[L78toLT1]

Hey guys, I'm not sure where this post belongs, but I figured I'd stick it here as most everyone probably peruses the General forum.

Anyway, after 61 years of wallowing around under cars supported by jack stands, I have finally had enough. I am planning to add a two-post lift to my shop and have been researching options. I am leaning heavily towards Mohawk, probably their Model System 1A. I’m a mechanical engineer who has spent the past 35 years designing aircraft parts and tooling; I really appreciate quality. Based on my research, Mohawk appears to be heads and shoulders above any of the other manufacturers. I frankly don’t see how it can even be debated that Mohawk uses the best materials and is easily the most robust design. Be that as it may, I realize that that any recognized brand e.g. Challenger, Rotary, Atlas, etc. will be less expensive, and will easily last me for the rest of my automotive life.
I’m willing to spend the extra bucks for the Mohawk provided the actual functionality and ease of use is equal to or better than competing lifts. The Mohawk is impressive and it’s nice to look at, but if any of the competing lifts are easier to use and live with, that would probably outweigh the other factors.
Does anyone have experience, good or bad, with Mohawk or any other two post lift that would help me to make an informed decision?

[closs2sx]

Mechanical Engineer here as well and I have the mohawk you are considering. If still available (its been 4 yrs since I was looking at 2 posts) the made in usa options from rotary or challenger would be the only other lifts I would consider and in that order. The only 2 things that slightly bother me about my mohawk is that because of the design the passenger side lift arms become slightly off level from the drivers side but they have an equalizing knob for that and occasionally you need to raise the lift to max height. The other issue is sometimes on the way down one of the safety locks will engage and I will have to walk around and disengage it again to continue to lower it. Other than that its been awesome. I have had a rotary 4 post and currently have a challenger 4 post and a bendpak 4 post in my garage. I have used atlas on the daily basis in the past and not impressed. Bendpak is junk. And when I was in high school and college I used rotary at the dealer ship I worked at. I have personally assembled my 4 post lifts but had my mohawk set-up by the company i bought it from who has been in business for ever and is well reviewed and was great for me so my slight issues are not because of improper set-up. That being said I would buy another mohawk if the budget allowed in a heartbeat as you are standing under a heavy object and your life is worth it.

[closs2sx]

I like my 4 post as well and the 1st lift i owned personally was the rotary 14k 4 post. It was nice to be able to just drive on get out and raise it and with the lift jack I have done complete drivetrain swaps on front or rear drive cars on it plus it allowed me to store something underneath it and its safer than a 2 post and when you are working the runways act as a bench for your tools. The only reason I got the mohawk was the approach to my rotary was too much when I bought my Z06 and I had to put planks down to get it on and it took me longer to get the car on then it did to change the oil. The rotary ramps were about 8" tall and I raised the back to account for the pitch in my floor and even with extended ramps it was a pain. The Challenger with extended ramps I can get on without scraping with all 3 of my cars and my zl1 1le is lower than my z06 but my ss 1le with eibachs is even lower but it goes on. Don't know what you plan on for projects but for just fluid changes and brake jobs a 4 post with a rolling jack is the way to go and you can store something underneath it as well. Mohawk does make adapters that lift by grabbing the tires so you could store something under it as well if you wanted

[benjaminforeal]

Might as well make this an engineer thread

I installed an Atlas BP8000 2 post baseplate lift about 2 months ago in my shop. For the price, i'm extremely impressed with the quality, ease of installation, and overall ease of use/practicality. I purchased my lift through Gregsmithequipment with a tight budget and low ceiling height in mind, I paid about $1,950 after tax and local pick-up (Gregsmithequipment has a location in Atlanta near me). The only thing I wish I would have done differently with my installation would have been epoxying in my anchor bolts, rather than using the supplied wedge anchors. I drilled all the way through my slab fortunately, and have already had to replace one wedge anchor via epoxy since it would not reach torque. I'll be replacing a few more - if not all wedge anchors with the "PC-Concrete" Epoxy/B7 grade all thread anchors eventually.

[L78toLT1]

Thanks for the insightful replies, guys. It appears that we're mostly on the same page regarding two post lifts. I also concur that four post lifts have their advantages. I'm in the early stages of building a 44 x 40, three bay shop. Eventually I will add a four post to the mix. As a matter of fact, I may rethink my original plan and do the four post first.
I'll have a while to consider it as all I have e completed thus far is the site prep and foundation. Framing materials arrive Monday. I'm my own contractor, carpenter, and electrician. My neighbor is a plumber so I won't have to deal with that. The shop will be stick built with 12' 6 x 6 walls. I can't wait to get started! I'll start a thread when I start framing in a week or so to solicit advice from those who came before me!

[sengli]

Four post atlas here as well. Looked at the two post versions, wasnt sure how thick the concrete floor was in my barn. Plus I can move my four poster around as needed, it has wheels. Engineer wanna be here!

[closs2sx]

Just realized you said you design aircraft parts and tooling. I work in the aerospace field as well for a bearing manufacturer. I built my 28x38 garage with my Dad and a buddy. I did the site prep and dug for the foundation with my Kubota. Had someone pour the foundation then it took 3 guys 16 days to close in. I hired out the garage doors and took 13 days for siding and electric. My Uncle helped me with electric. I am now in the process of looking for a house or land and plan to build a 60x80 and split it up into an area for mechanical work and an area for storage as right now I have 6 vehicles piled in there although one is a snowmobile. Our daily drivers sit out and every once in awhile I get reminded of that lol (mainly when it snows up here in NH)
Good Luck on your project.

[ddivinia]

Advantage lifts is what I am looking at.

D.

[Norm Peterson]

Some general information that's particularly applicable to 2-post lifts . . .

Make sure that your concrete floor meets the requirements for both thickness and concrete strength.

Make sure that you locate the posts away from structural discontinuities in the concrete such as expansion joints, surface grooves, and particularly cracks. The presence of any of those close to your post locations will compromise the concrete side of the anchor bolt / concrete interface. Concrete failure tends to happen with little warning.

If your concrete isn't up to spec, you'll have to cut enough of it out and replace it with thicker and/or stronger stuff. Wouldn't hurt to get a professional engineer (civil) involved to help size and spec any such replacement pad, as soil conditions under the concrete mat could possibly affect this.


Back when I had a day job, I did some anchor-bolted baseplate analysis for power plant piping supports. Same thing, different source of loading.


Norm

[Jaxcam02]

Originally Posted by Norm Peterson

Some general information that's particularly applicable to 2-post lifts . . .

Make sure that your concrete floor meets the requirements for both thickness and concrete strength.

Make sure that you locate the posts away from structural discontinuities in the concrete such as expansion joints, surface grooves, and particularly cracks. The presence of any of those close to your post locations will compromise the concrete side of the anchor bolt / concrete interface. Concrete failure tends to happen with little warning.

If your concrete isn't up to spec, you'll have to cut enough of it out and replace it with thicker and/or stronger stuff. Wouldn't hurt to get a professional engineer (civil) involved to help size and spec any such replacement pad, as soil conditions under the concrete mat could possibly affect this.


Back when I had a day job, I did some anchor-bolted baseplate analysis for power plant piping supports. Same thing, different source of loading.


Norm

good advise, ever since working in a dealership with a 4-post drive on, I have always wanted one. Just get the rail sliding jacking assemblies and its a perfect lift. I can't wait to be rich lol.

[L78toLT1]

Originally Posted by Norm Peterson

Some general information that's particularly applicable to 2-post lifts . . .

Make sure that your concrete floor meets the requirements for both thickness and concrete strength.

Make sure that you locate the posts away from structural discontinuities in the concrete such as expansion joints, surface grooves, and particularly cracks. The presence of any of those close to your post locations will compromise the concrete side of the anchor bolt / concrete interface. Concrete failure tends to happen with little warning.

If your concrete isn't up to spec, you'll have to cut enough of it out and replace it with thicker and/or stronger stuff. Wouldn't hurt to get a professional engineer (civil) involved to help size and spec any such replacement pad, as soil conditions under the concrete mat could possibly affect this.


Back when I had a day job, I did some anchor-bolted baseplate analysis for power plant piping supports. Same thing, different source of loading.


Norm

Mohawk's new slab requirements call for a 48 x 161 pad, 12" thick and chock full of #4 rebar for their A-7 (7K capacity) or System 1A (10K capacity) lifts. We added ~ 2' to the width and length dimensions as well as some additional rebar. I should be good to go on the slab, regardless of which lift I choose.

[L78toLT1]

Originally Posted by closs2sx

Just realized you said you design aircraft parts and tooling. I work in the aerospace field as well for a bearing manufacturer. I built my 28x38 garage with my Dad and a buddy. I did the site prep and dug for the foundation with my Kubota. Had someone pour the foundation then it took 3 guys 16 days to close in. I hired out the garage doors and took 13 days for siding and electric. My Uncle helped me with electric. I am now in the process of looking for a house or land and plan to build a 60x80 and split it up into an area for mechanical work and an area for storage as right now I have 6 vehicles piled in there although one is a snowmobile. Our daily drivers sit out and every once in awhile I get reminded of that lol (mainly when it snows up here in NH)
Good Luck on your project.

I’m following pretty much in your footsteps, it appears. My former neighbor and his crew poured the foundation. He was a large concrete foundation contractor before the housing bubble burst in ’07 – ’08. He has since gotten back in to the business albeit on a much smaller scale, said he’s too old to grow the business to its former size, although as crazy as the housing market is, he certainly could if he wanted to. Another neighbor owns a plumbing business. He installed plumbing under the slab for a drain in the wash bay, several hose bibs, and a bathroom consisting of a shower stall, toilet, and sink. For the 18 years we have been in this house, he has steadfastly refused to charge me labor for any plumbing work. I scrape and maintain our ~1/4 mile gravel road and he provides free labor as well parts, fixtures, etc. at his cost.
My framing package will be delivered this coming Monday. I’m planning a couple of framing parties with a half-dozen buddies. I’m hoping we can assemble and stand up the walls in a weekend or two. I imagine those twelve-foot 2 x 6 walls will be heavy!
When it comes time to set the trusses, another neighbor is in the mobile crane business. He has a huge, dual rear axle Peterbuilt crane truck, and an assortment of progressively smaller trucks down to a C-65 Chevy, which I assume will be adequate for setting my trusses.
Good luck finding a home or land for your 60x80 building. I hope I don’t regret not going larger with my shop. When all you have is a concrete slab, it looks deceptively small. I even pulled my crew cab pickup into the middle of one bay just to be sure the damn building was deep enough!

[closs2sx]

Housing market is stupid crazy right now. Your slab will be more than fine. I have a 5" thick slab with fiberglass mixed in for strength under my mohawk and use it 2-3 times a week and have put my duramax on it and its close to 8k when loaded with fuel. I never planned on having a two post and I made the floor 18" where the 1st four post is but now I needed a 2nd 4 post to stack cars and had to used what I had because my garage is way too small. When I was building my garage my Dad said if you build it that big if you ever sell it nobody will want it because your garage will be bigger than your house lol. I could build a 30x44 off the other side of the house but my town is a higher tax town and I could save enough just in taxes over the next 30 years to pay for the garage I want to build and then some so its time to move and build a dream garage.

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by L78toLT1

Mohawk's new slab requirements call for a 48 x 161 pad, 12" thick and chock full of #4 rebar for their A-7 (7K capacity) or System 1A (10K capacity) lifts. We added ~ 2' to the width and length dimensions as well as some additional rebar. I should be good to go on the slab, regardless of which lift I choose.

Good call

Hopefully the anchor bolt locations won't hit too many rebars though I'm sure there's a way of drilling through the bars without enlarging the hole in the concrete.


Norm