View Full Version : Bend-pack lift group buy has ended....
I've heard from Robert and he has heard from the bosses. They have ended the group buy pricing. We did reach enough units to qualify for the group deal and Robert has asked me to thank everyone that participated. Forum members will be hearing from Robert at least a couple times in the next few weeks with updates etc.
I would also like to thank all of you that joined me in this group buy.
Thanks,
Ray
RM1SepEx
04-07-2014, 09:08 PM
Delivery expected soon... :)
Gumball
04-07-2014, 10:21 PM
Huh - I recall pricing was supposed to go until May. Oh, well... guess I missed it.
Huh - I recall pricing was supposed to go until May. Oh, well... guess I missed it.
The Boss told him to end the deal. Nothing he could do....
Ray
68GT500MAN
04-22-2014, 02:59 PM
UPDATE for those who ordered: Since April 18th was the expected ship date I sent an email to Robert today and received an auto-reply that he was out of the office until 4/28 but gave me an extension for Tony. I talked to Tony and the DC units are shipping, the Ac units will be delayed due to a QC issue with the AC unit that they should have resolved by tomorrow.
Doug
I am not surprised. I thought from day one the price was too low. I bet they realized they were not able to meet the target cost to get that Msrp. Interested to see if the price goes up $300 or so...
Cant wait for mine to ship. I could really use it!
blueoval_bowtie_guy
04-30-2014, 03:08 PM
I really need mine NOW! Naturally, I ordered an A/C unit... I've delayed a major under-car repair on my Monster Miata because I want to use the lift.
I've seen two posts in another thread that say the lifts have shipped to two different members. So, they appear to be shipping.
Ray
PS: Mine just arrived. I spoke with Robert. The group buy was very successful with 20-units sold. He is making sure that each unit shipped has been QC'ed and they are trying to ship 15-units per day. If you don't have your's yet it should be on it's way soon.
Hope mine gets here soon tooo!!!!
Finally got mine and I have to say a little disappointed. I have not used it yet, but my first impressions are this....
-did not have wheels as they stated it would
-adapters and hoses are wicked cheap. I am in this business and have seen cheap stuff. This must be right from a foundry that has never made them before.
-pump, cart look used and scratched up. Metal ID plate was just sitting in box because it fell off.
-Safety bar just swings around when you move the lifts. When you go to put the lift down, the bar hits the ground first and you need to kick it out of the way.
Again, i have not used it yet, may work great, but disappointed with what i have seen so far. Will update when I assemble it all and try it out.
Finally got mine and I have to say a little disappointed. I have not used it yet, but my first impressions are this....
-did not have wheels as they stated it would
-adapters and hoses are wicked cheap. I am in this business and have seen cheap stuff. This must be right from a foundry that has never made them before.
-pump, cart look used and scratched up. Metal ID plate was just sitting in box because it fell off.
-Safety bar just swings around when you move the lifts. When you go to put the lift down, the bar hits the ground first and you need to kick it out of the way.
Again, i have not used it yet, may work great, but disappointed with what i have seen so far. Will update when I assemble it all and try it out.
Mike,
None of the units have wheels. That was some corrected information that I posted. Robert has been very available during this process and I would suggest a call to him with your concerns.
Ray
Ok, gotcha. Didn't notice that before. How did your stuff look?
I don't care as long as the thing works good. I am going to re plumb it with some nice hose and fittings. Plus no drip QD's
Finally fired up the unit this past weekend. I can say it does work, however I need to stress everyone should be wicked careful with this thing. The directions were terrible. They did not even discuss installation of the accumulator. On top of that, they use JIC male threads to thread into it. They are supposed to seat on a flare but there is no flare in there. You need to put a bunch of teflon tape on it. The adapters are not 90 deg. they are more like 92 deg LOL. The QD's are not very good and leak like crazy. Everything needs to be tightened on the connections as they were not tight from the factory. Another thing is the female JIC hose ends. They should put directions on how to tighten them. If you over tighten they will leak and be destroyed. Oh, and it takes 2 people to put the car down because of the locking arms. I still think these units were worth the money, however I would have been much happier with a $600 price tag due to the quality. I just wanted to put my opinion out there for future buyers of this product.
Mark Dougherty
06-10-2014, 06:32 PM
Well
I had my first opportunity to use the lift.
I was not impressed.
Ditto on tightening everything.
The car went up and down but on an angle. One side was higher than the other. ( I though oh well we have to get the air out ) We had loose fitting zip ties on the frame to hold security arms up.
We lowered the car down 1/2 way and stopped to move a few things then one side of the lift gave way and lowered by itself holding the other side of the car up.
AAAHHH we had no tires on the car.
so we quickly lowered the whole car to the ground.
well the lift could not lift the car from that low. ( Geometry ) We then grabbed the jack to help the lift up and one side sprang up, with out the other.
we were shocked to say the least.
wow thats pretty scary. I was really surprised there were no warnings on the unit to not get under it without jack stands!!! We used them but the whole deal almost seemed like more work then its worth. Also those rubber feet you put under the frame add a ton of movement to the car when in the air. I hate to say it, but I kinda had the feeling the whole time this thing was a death trap... LOL. But maybe i just need to get used to it and learn to trust it more. Would be interested to read others reviews on it so far too.
David Hodgkins
06-11-2014, 11:53 AM
Well
I had my first opportunity to use the lift.
I was not impressed.
Ditto on tightening everything.
The car went up and down but on an angle. One side was higher than the other. ( I though oh well we have to get the air out ) We had loose fitting zip ties on the frame to hold security arms up.
We lowered the car down 1/2 way and stopped to move a few things then one side of the lift gave way and lowered by itself holding the other side of the car up.
AAAHHH we had no tires on the car.
so we quickly lowered the whole car to the ground.
well the lift could not lift the car from that low. ( Geometry ) We then grabbed the jack to help the lift up and one side sprang up, with out the other.
we were shocked to say the least.
Wow. NOT GOOD!
:mad:
Mark Dougherty
06-11-2014, 04:56 PM
It may have had some warning in the brochure but since it was not my lift and I did not set it up.
I saw no posted warnings.
blueoval_bowtie_guy
06-12-2014, 08:51 AM
I have used my lift and am generally pleased with it. I cycled it up and down a few times to get the air purged out. After several cycles I don't have any leaks and it is working fine. The arms are a PITA. Nothing is built in to hold the arms up so you can lower it by yourself. The loose zip ties sounds like a possible solution. I thought the hoses looked like they were good quality. Not much experience with the adapters (only other set I ever had was on my John Deere lawn & garden tractor) so I can't comment on the quality. I did notice the threads on the accumulators. Thought it was strange the instructions said nothing about them and that they weren't pipe thread. I used teflon tape and put them on. I don't have any leaks and nothing is loose.
jimgood
06-12-2014, 02:30 PM
Are these what you guys are calling the "accumulators"?
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=29202&d=1400273594
One person posting in the other thread was told by Bendpak/Ranger to leave them off.
I still have not had time to use mine. Just wondering if tightening the bolts for the locking arms would help create some resistance so they stay up when you are trying to lower the car.
RM1SepEx
06-12-2014, 02:58 PM
those are accumulators
the locking arms are a joke, one of mine is too long and won't go into place with the rubber plug in it. I need to shorten it.
My biggest issue is the label indicating that you need to use the dust covers when the hoses are not connected...
they didn't supply any caps and I can't even get them to identify what they are so I can buy my own!
UGH
jimgood
06-13-2014, 09:47 AM
My biggest issue is the label indicating that you need to use the dust covers when the hoses are not connected...
they didn't supply any caps and I can't even get them to identify what they are so I can buy my own!
UGH
I found some caps but I don't know what size to get: http://www.fastenal.com/catalog_pages/2009/10-152.pdf
Mark Dougherty
06-28-2014, 06:33 AM
update on lift :)
I cycled the lift many more times to remove any air.
I have used it several more times and I am quite pleased. I think once the air is bleed out, the accumulators tightened up, and the safety arms secured it is a great machine. I will still never work on the car without the locks in place or jack stands under it, but that really is a no brainer. You should always use locks and stands when using a lift.
Actually I want to purchase one for the race trailer.
So if anyone wants to part with theirs give me a ring
I would be interested in selling ours. I just don't see it fitting our needs. I need something I feel comfortable doing heavy work under. This is more geared for maintenance I think.
r1msepx, I can get some if you need them. We sell those at our shops.
Mark Dougherty
06-30-2014, 06:23 AM
p/m sent
jimgood
08-03-2014, 05:48 AM
I finally got the chance to use my lift for an oil change on my Mazda3. It took me a while to set it up just because the work area is really tight and I was struggling with the logistics. I finally realized that I had to position the lifts side by side in the center of the space, drive over them with the car straddling them then slide them outward. The only other issue was that the safety struts did not fall into the cups on their own. They were about 1/16" too long. I was about to grind off the edge of the cup when I realized that the struts are capped with plastic so I was able to kick them into place. Like others, I did not feel safe without a couple of jack stands as back up. But I'm pleased with them so far.
I also forgot to pull up the damn vent plug. After raising the car, I noticed that the top of the oil tank was collapsing. :rolleyes: Oops! This led to yet another oil spill when I lowered the car and popped the vent open and oil spilled out all over the place.
Also, I tightened the bolt that runs through the safety strut so that it doesn't flop around. Now I can position it out of the way when lowering the car.
jimgood
07-01-2015, 07:37 AM
I know this is an old thread but I wanted to post this up in case it might be useful to anyone.
My QuickJacks have been a tripping hazard on the floor of my workshop whenever they're not in use. I finally got tired of that and threw together a wall mount that works great!
I made the thing from 1" x 14 ga. square tubing and a couple of pieces of 1/8" flat bar. I used a 1/8" x 1" x 3" piece of flat bar across the back to provide more support for welding the "hooks". So, they are welded to the flat bar on three sides and welded to the vertical tube on three sides.
I welded a piece of 1/8" x 1.5" x 3" across the front to act as a lip to prevent anything from accidentally sliding off the hooks. I ground down the lip about 1/4".
The vertical piece is 6' and is supported by the floor. I didn't want the wall to support all the weight. I mounted two pieces of 1 x 4 to the wall by using 3" deck screws into the studs (which were spaced and an oh so convenient 25"). The vertical piece is bolted to the 1 x 4 using 9/16" x 2" lag screws.
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=43260&d=1435753996
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=43261&d=1435754017
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=43262&d=1435754025
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=43263&d=1435754031
68GT500MAN
07-01-2015, 09:20 AM
That looks great. I will have to fabricate something similar, thanks for sharing.
Doug