The Definitive Single Post Lift Thread: BendPak, AC, Girolift, Gemini,Tec

ersatzs2 · Feb 14, 2011

Ok, I've been researching this for a couple years, and over that time, there have been a number of threads started, each with some interesting information.
Here is my attempt to consolidate for anyone going this route, not to mention myself.
Here are the options out there as I know of them today:

BendPak PL 6000/6000X ~$5500 plus installation
GJ thread: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=77246
Photos: http://forums.viperclub.org/srt10-s...9645-help-acr-lift-garage-recomendations.html

TEC Equipment in Mass. I did not research; assume this is Chinese.
http://www.tecequip.com/storage_parking_lifts_7000SP.htm

GiroLift. The only one that uses chassis arms instead of drive on ramps. So the only single post that is truly a lift vs. parking solution. According to the GJer who researched, it is ~!$9K and requires 8" of concrete. Everyone else is 4-5"
https://www.girolift.com/en/products

Greg Smith: http://www.gregsmithequipment.com/Atlas-SP6000-Single-Post-Specialty-Lift-p/tp-xl-sp6000.htm
Assume this is Chinese. Edit: BigDav160 below notes there is now a list price of $2995 on their site. If so that is really cheap.

Gemini Lifts: See this GJ thread:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=82571
http://www.geminilift.com/single.html#single
However I spoke with the guys there and got referred to Brad at AC Lifts. Apparently Gemini is not making single posts any longer.

American Custom (AC) Lifts: http://www.aclifts.com/parking/m1-65.asp
The most expensive, but by pictures at least, the best built. Really massive.
About $7000 plus installation, which includes $1K shipping to NJ

Installation on all these seems to be about $1500. They are all very heavy, as in 2500-3000lbs and require a forklift delivered on site to manipulate.

I really like this solution for my situation where I'd like to get a car off the floor for storage, and preserve flexibility beneath that I lose with a two or four post lift.

I like the AC lifts a lot, and they seem nicely made. But you really pay a made in America premium for them, about $1500 over the BendPak.

Hoping others will volunteer other information under this thread, thanks to those who contributed so far.

CARS · Feb 14, 2011

That Girolift is pretty cool. I would like to hear from some previous owners first though... for some reason the single post lifts just look scary to me.

ersatzs2 · Jul 15, 2011

Just to update this thread, got my BendPak PL 6000X installed yesterday. Went pretty well, met my expectations. For the pricetag, finish and quality is pretty underwhelming. I was sorry as soon as I saw it that I hadn't sprung for the AC lift which is all US made, and I'm betting much nicer than the incremental $1500 cost. The reality is that these things are really heavy and shipping/installation will be costly no matter what you get!

Cryptic1911 · Jul 15, 2011

what disappointed you about it? I have a 4 post that I'm completely happy with

ersatzs2 · Jul 15, 2011

Cryptic1911 said:
what disappointed you about it? I have a 4 post that I'm completely happy with

sketchy paint quality
fair amount of rusty areas
controller hardware way below Rotary, the standard
very light gauge sheet metal filler pieces spanning the two ramps is an invitation to fall through (reminder to self, buy 'no step' stickers
Generally welds, square-ness of pieces is all pretty average at best.

Quality level would not bother me at half this price but for >$6K my expectations were higher.

ersatzs2 · Aug 14, 2011

The installer for the Bend Pak told me to check the bolt torque after a few weeks, which I did yesterday. A chill went up my spine as I discovered all but one of the nuts took significant number of turns to tighten up. He told me 100 lb ft. This is of course the scary thing about this kind of lift. I am considering tethering it to the wall with a chain or cable just for insurance. I have a huge piece of engineered wood running roughly parallel...

bigdav160 · Aug 20, 2011

Quality level would not bother me at half this price but for >$6K my expectations were higher.

Sorry for bringing this back up to the top. I found this thread while investigating in ground lifts.

Why 6k? It appears to be priced half that much at Greg Smith.

ersatzs2 · Aug 20, 2011

bigdav160 said:
Sorry for bringing this back up to the top. I found this thread while investigating in ground lifts.

Why 6k? It appears to be priced half that much at Greg Smith.

BendPak brand premium. Since it is so hard to comparison shop for something like this, you assume there is benefit to the mainstream brand. In this case I wonder, and wish I'd spent even more on the AC lift.

bigdav160 · Aug 20, 2011

Sorry, I saw the 6000 and gloss right over the fact that one said Bendpak and the Atlas.

Do you think they are the same? Asia?

MOPAULY · Aug 20, 2011

those lifts do look scaaaaaaaaary. Atlas is made in Asia but I think some of the lifts are Italian designed.

Steevo · Aug 20, 2011

+1 on the scary factor. How big a concrete footing is needed to attach them to? I wouldn't be comfortable with less than about a 6x10x3ft deep concrete block under the floor, with the attaching bolts embedded deep and tied into some steel in the concrete. to keep that from tipping over.
And I sure wouldn't chain it to the wall, and risk pulling the building down with it when it falls over.

ersatzs2 · Nov 6, 2011

ersatzs2 said:
The installer for the Bend Pak told me to check the bolt torque after a few weeks, which I did yesterday. A chill went up my spine as I discovered all but one of the nuts took significant number of turns to tighten up. He told me 100 lb ft. This is of course the scary thing about this kind of lift. I am considering tethering it to the wall with a chain or cable just for insurance. I have a huge piece of engineered wood running roughly parallel...

Just a quick update since I've gotten questions about this: 2+ months later, the bolts aren't moving any more when I test them at 100 lb ft. Two of them did pull up about 1" which I didn't like, but maybe the slab was just thinner there. The slab was supposed to be about 6" thick on average. In any event, I'm really enjoying the lift, it does a great job of getting one vehicle up and out of the way, and you are able to do a fair amount of work under a car even though it's still sitting on it's wheels. I did some rear work on an old sportscar bumper last weekend and it was nice to work on it at eye level vs. kneeling.

ersatzs2 · Dec 3, 2011

Continue to get nervous about the floor bolts loosening. We had an earthquake in NJ this year. So my solution was a safety chain which runs thru the 8x8 post inside the wall.

Dragster Racer · Dec 3, 2011

MOPAULY said:
those lifts do look scaaaaaaaaary. Atlas is made in Asia but I think some of the lifts are Italian designed.

I can't get my mind around that being safe. They sell them, and they wouldn't put themselves in a situation of possible litigation, so I guess they are. I am pariniod about my two post lift anchors. I don't think I could go under a single post cantilevered lift.

ersatzs2 · Dec 3, 2011

Dragster Racer said:
I can't get my mind around that being safe. They sell them, and they wouldn't put themselves in a situation of possible litigation, so I guess they are. I am pariniod about my two post lift anchors. I don't think I could go under a single post cantilevered lift.

Yep, I think that's why they don't sell that many of 'em!

ersatzs2 · Jul 13, 2012

Just weighing in on the one year anniversary to say it hasn't fallen over yet!

turboS · Sep 24, 2012

Hey I just installed a Bendpak 6000 PL in NJ and the lift plate is agging about even before I put the car on it ...any suggestions? It was shipped with Shim packs to level the lifting arms. i have 4 on each side ...still not level....Huge scary factor ...wife wont even go in the garage

D-man313 · Sep 24, 2012

So this is just a storage lift? Not one that you can work on? It looks like it has a solid center.

ersatzs2 · Nov 6, 2012

D-man313 said:
So this is just a storage lift? Not one that you can work on? It looks like it has a solid center.

No you can remove those center panels and work under the chassis. Obviously the car stays on it's wheels however.

turboS said:
Hey I just installed a Bendpak 6000 PL in NJ and the lift plate is agging about even before I put the car on it ...any suggestions? It was shipped with Shim packs to level the lifting arms. i have 4 on each side ...still not level....Huge scary factor ...wife wont even go in the garage

Sorry I missed this when you posted. When you say 'lift plate' is sagging: the whole platform does 'sag' quite a bit whether empty or loaded, but that is normal. Mine did not have any shim packs for the lifting arms, I'd love to see a photo of yours? Installer specifically said the factory didn't recommend them. Maybe that has changed.

turboS · Dec 19, 2012

Just got it fixed 3 months later...very little sagging now less than 1 inch across

email me @ [email protected] I can share the pics

ersatzs2 said:
No you can remove those center panels and work under the chassis. Obviously the car stays on it's wheels however.

Sorry I missed this when you posted. When you say 'lift plate' is sagging: the whole platform does 'sag' quite a bit whether empty or loaded, but that is normal. Mine did not have any shim packs for the lifting arms, I'd love to see a photo of yours? Installer specifically said the factory didn't recommend them. Maybe that has changed.

turboS · Dec 19, 2012

PL6000 with a 3 inch sag across ....

ersatzs2 said:
No you can remove those center panels and work under the chassis. Obviously the car stays on it's wheels however.

Sorry I missed this when you posted. When you say 'lift plate' is sagging: the whole platform does 'sag' quite a bit whether empty or loaded, but that is normal. Mine did not have any shim packs for the lifting arms, I'd love to see a photo of yours? Installer specifically said the factory didn't recommend them. Maybe that has changed.

ersatzs2 · Dec 19, 2012

Nice turbo S! I've got it's ancestor, the 993tt. That amount of 'sag' looks the same as mine.

Thanks for posting. I know these things are costly but I'm still surprised there aren't more of them in the GJ community since they are a great solution to a specific space problem.

turboS · Dec 20, 2012

There is a bulletin out from Bendpak to reshim the arms. This pic is before the re-shim. About 3 inches off. Now less than 1/2"!!

ersatzs2 · Jan 2, 2013

Wow, this single post alternative is fascinating!

Just saw this lift posted over at rennlist. A very interesting variation on the single post theme, since this one is portable and also is a service lift not just a platform.
http://indyautolift.com/MSC-6K.html
It is also half the money of a bendpak at $2500.00

shopnut · Jan 2, 2013

ersatzs2 - A guy was selling used PL-6000 lifts on Craigslist awhile back and I came this close (I'm holding my thumb and index finger about 1/8" apart) to buying one, but he didn't have any extended height versions left so I ended up passing. The prices were between $1200 and $1500, so that initially got my attention and made me seriously consider this single column lift.

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. One lift of mine will be strictly a storage lift and I really don't want it to take up that much space with extra posts in the middle of the room (always looking for every square inch I can get). I will be putting the post against the wall and I have a sturdy post in there to anchor it to for a little reassurance like you. I also have 6" concrete right where the base will mount and 4" everywhere surrounding it.

They are quite a bit pricier than the HD-9XW that I've had my eye on for a while now (about $2400 more), but now I'm considering a new PL despite the added cost. I need the high version so I can drive my Avalanche (think Suburban) underneath it and so I don't bump my head on the platform when raised.

Any additional words of wisdom after living with the PL-6000 for a while? If you had all the room in the world, would you still choose one? Do you feel completely safe underneath it?

(BTW, thanks for putting together a good thread)

ersatzs2 · Jan 3, 2013

shopnut said:
Any additional words of wisdom after living with the PL-6000 for a while? If you had all the room in the world, would you still choose one? Do you feel completely safe underneath it?

(BTW, thanks for putting together a good thread)

Words 'o wisdom: a) Glad to hear via TurboS above about the shim pack service bulletin. I called BendPak and they were out of stock but I backordered them. b) When I installed, one expansion bolt was damaged so the installer told me to buy a replacement and put in in myself. The one I bought from McMaster Carr was a very nice mil-spec piece miles ahead of the ones they sent, making me wish I could replace them all. c) In a perfect world, I would've poured a large deep dedicated footing for this thing, and embedded some massive galvanized threaded rod instead of the expansion bolts. d) In a really perfect world, I would've also countersunk the legs in the floor to avoid the drive-over 'bump'

If I had all the room: I guess in a hypothetical airplane hanger where space was infinite, a row of 4-posts would be cheaper and less complicated. But otherwise, Yes I would still use this, because of the extreme flexibility it confers. I have had two cars sideways underneath on dollys, and all variations. With one post against a far wall, it's almost like the car is levitating out of the way.

Feeling safe: Well. I have had cars on and under it with a cumulative value many multiples of the entire garage, so that says something. I work under it. I am sure it is secure in all respects other than the anchors pulling out, so for me the safety tether added some peace of mind. But I admit: I am ever mindful of the fundamental design, and I find myself doing things like parking the car as far to the left on the ramps as possible to minimize leverage. I also put a torque wrench on the nuts whenever I think about it just to see how they are doing.

But the net of it is I would absolutely do it again!

fongster30 · Feb 8, 2015

Glad I found this thread..

I have installed a pair of Bendpak single post and wish I had paid a little more attention.

All rust and sag... I am also having a nightmare trying to get my installer to work out all the issues.

omowright · Jan 11, 2016

Re: Wow, this single post alternative is fascinating!

ersatzs2 said:
Just saw this lift posted over at rennlist. A very interesting variation on the single post theme, since this one is portable and also is a service lift not just a platform.
http://indyautolift.com/MSC-6K.html
It is also half the money of a bendpak at $2500.00

Any experiences on this one?

2Fass240us · Apr 6, 2016

Same question. I'm considering a single post due to the space constraints a 2-post would create.

clex2 · Jul 28, 2016

I have a Greg Smith 4 post that has been flawless over the past few years. I am now about to pull the trigger on a single post for the other bay. After extensive research, it has come down to the AC lifts M1 6.5. It's the most expensive, but I believe it's the most robust. You can get a $3000 SP lift, but it is less well made as it comes out of China (Tuxedo or Kernel) and is rebranded by many companies. The cantilever arms are also rather short allowing for precarious physics.

The AC lift is made by Gemini out of Texas, which BTW, also makes The TEC 4500SP/7000SP. Mechanically they are the same, except AC lifts proprietary design has runways that are 25" wide vs the other two that are only 19" wide. This difference is not widely advertised, so if you are told the lifts are the same, now you know there is a small difference that is quite important.

My local installer has told me he has installed the AC lifts SP and he highly recommends it. He says it's a well designed and made lift, and he has seen all kinds of lifts.

ersatzs2 · Aug 10, 2016

clex2 said:
I have a Greg Smith 4 post that has been flawless over the past few years. I am now about to pull the trigger on a single post for the other bay. After extensive research, it has come down to the AC lifts M1 6.5..

As the OP I am back to this thread to revisit research I did a couple years ago and ironically I have come to the same conclusion as clex2. My bedpak has worked fine, but I have become increasingly worried about the bolts coming out of the floor. Now I need another lift for my NJMP shop, and I'm going with AC, although the 4.5 model since I'm sneaking it in under a 10' loft.
It turns out that BendPak has actually QUIT SELLING the model I bought when this thread started. I must say the AC design is much more reassuring, if only because the 'feet' underneath are so much longer.

A final word to the wise for anyone doing new construction: these lifts are REALLY fabulous if you can countersink the feet so they are flush with the surface when you pour the floor. If you plan ahead, you can get a car up and out of the way with almost zero penalty to your floorspace.

ersatzs2 · Aug 28, 2016

Update ok I ordered the new AC lift will report back when installed. Much more expensive will be ~$7500 plus $1500 install so you have to really value the space savings...

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

clex2 · Oct 15, 2016

Just got my AC Lifts single post delivered and installed yesterday. Here is a link to the pics. Pricey, but it's the best one out there. It fits perfectly in the space I envisioned. One caveat is that when getting the taller M1- 6.5, the base plate only comes in the taller 3.25" version where as, with the shorter M1-4.5, you can get a thinner base plate that's 1 inch lower at 2.25 inches ( additional $550). I needed the height so I could walk around and under the lift without having to worry about hitting my head. My sports cars will not clear the 3.25" plate. The floor space is the same, like the lift is not even there. The only way to avoid this is to plan your foundation and engineer in a recess for the base plate.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10154533540385050.1073741875.675545049&type=1&l=f0a5dcbb6e

clex2 · Mar 4, 2017

I have a friend selling a brand new AC lifts M1-6.5 single post ofr $2k. List is 6K. It's local here on the San Francisco Peninsula. My friend is notorious for buying things and changing his mind. He goes through cars like candy. Anyway, this is a smoking deal. It's the taller version so 12' ceiling is a must.

SOLD

ersatzs2 · Jul 16, 2017

installed this AC lift under a 9'6" ceiling after lots of careful measuring. Nicely stores two sportscars with very little room to spare. First impressions is that it is more nicely made than the Bendpak BUT having the control panel mounted on the vertical riser certainly puts you closer to the action, as does the little cable-and-ring safety release. the BendPaks remote station is a nice touch.

ersatzs2 · Jan 2, 2020

A bump here trolling for any new inputs or experiences with single-post lifts?

MillerMav · Feb 4, 2020

I am about to venture into this arena as well and I am glad I found this thread. I am very intrigued by the Girolift stuff but there website doesn't list a lot of data on mounting. I'm also thinking about one of the portable units but removing the rear "portable" part and just leveling it onto the ground. I have a small 2 car (22 wide x 20 deep) so I 2/4 post is out of the question if I want to park anything next to it. I have tall ceilings which is nice (153") but also have a staircase on the south side which only leaves 17' of available space. In order to sell this to my better half she has to be able to keep her parking space in the Michigan winters so a single post is my only option.

I'll be watching to see if any new info comes up as well.

tjm129 · Feb 9, 2020

Just saw this. I have a American Custom Lifts M1-6.5, this unit is awesome! We just sold our house and moving across the country and I will probably get another one. I did find it hard to find info about it before ordering it, but when I called them they were awesome to deal with. They can customize it a bit and there are lots of options for different ceiling heights, etc. I paid $5800 for it and $995 for shipping to IL and about $1000 for installation by a local installer.

TJ

mgent · Feb 17, 2020

If just for parking, does anyone have any experience with something like the bendpak autostacker?

I assume it would also work well in a constrained space...

mgent · Feb 17, 2020

Sorry, link for the above...
https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/parking-lifts/pl-6sr/

The Definitive Single Post Lift Thread: BendPak, AC, Girolift, Gemini,Tec

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