I had to leave all my equipment in the States. Hurray for internets and impulse buys. I needed an engine hoist, and since shipping mine from storage over the pond was cost inhibiting, the search began. I found several for rent, ranging from private sellers to companies, but most required pickup and signing of a vague anti-warranty to not cover possible, yet probable, damages. Costs were daily or weekly, ranging from 1o-5oGBP per day, some variable depending on length of rental.
Before it got too complicated, I ruled out renting solely due to the fact I didn't want to deal with anyone with a rental contract, nor would I have the ability to pick up, or return for that matter, an engine hoist.
I found a company called SGS Engineering. They had the cheapest hoist I could find for sale, even compared to amazon uk, and most of their house tools looked pretty stout, so I ordered one of everything.
(1) 2-Ton Professional Engine Hoist
(1) 1.5-Ton Professional Long Reach Trolley Jack
(1) 5oo kg Load Leveler
(2) 3-Ton pin Jack Stands
(2) Pair of Wheel Dollies
Everything was obviously over engineered by the same company and matched in hardcore black on black on black.
"What color?"
"Any color as long as it's black."
The jack stands, as it would turn out, were actually 3-Tons for the pair, 1.5-Ton each. They were labeled as such on the boxes, but sold and advertised as a 3-Ton jack stands. I took that to mean each, but apparently I'm not as literal as people tell me. Either way, it's more than I need for cars I'll be supporting, but as will be seen later due to obvious dwarfing by other SGS tools, I think I have to return them for the larger, 6-Ton stands.
I have a similar 2-Ton hoist in the states, but this one has to be twice as heavy. They weren't kidding when they immediately called after my order to confirm I would be home for delivery because it was a two man lift and the driver wouldn't be coming with a friend.
In all, 8 boxes arrived, of which I helped drag approximately half of into the hallway, and then all of into my flat. That was extremely difficult. I wasn't surprised that some of the boxes looked somewhat compromised, but was concerned, holding judgement until post un-boxing inspections.
Engine hoist, main crane hook included and two smaller chains for various engine side connections. This was the lightest box by far, and with what would turn out to be <relatively> the worst condition of everything, a spot of missed paint at the end of the welded collar. If anyone's used a lift before, this is nothing, and could easily be fixed in 5 minutes with some sand paper and black paint.
I was more impressed with the substantial construction, and based on unloading the truck and strained muscles, I was eager to uncover more.
This package looked stressed, as some straps cut into various sides while others were already un-looped from their intended locations. There were some package dings, dents, and holes, and upon opening I found that everything had shifted to one side, pulling the all important bubble wrap protective layer away.
There were some light marks on the curve of the wheel dolly but wow, these casters are much larger than expected, as well are the dollies themselves. The marks weren't even scratches per say, don't look like they've broken the surface, not to mention are on the underside of a wheel dolly that could fit large slicks across them.
The second wheel dolly package was similar condition to the first, this one entirely lacking a strap or two, but with the casters more evenly distributed to a side rather than a corner. I still haven't gotten over the size of these. The edges are folded over with additional railings to boot.
Found the apparent top side cardboard divider nestled in the actual top of the box. I placed it back between the casters and dolly after reorganizing.
I thought this next package was part of the engine hoist at first, and quickly realized it was the jack. I knew I had ordered a larger, professional service jack which I could use for years to come, but still, this was over the top. I didn't want to get the normal jack, as I have one of those back home and wanted to round out the tool selection, not replicate it. There was a low profile option, but it wasn't low profile it's entire length, and the frame near the handle was as tall as any other jack. This would be fine to reach a low side corner, but nothing from the front or rear of the car without having to clear the entire jack, negating the expensive lowness factor.
I like to use the rear differential and front crossmember as jack points. They are very sturdy, bolting to the frame in several places distributing the load more than one jack point on a frame rail that may or may not buckle under the load of a 4o year old chassis and a jack. Jacking from these points also lifts the entire front, or rear end, respectively, not just one side, potentially cutting the number of lifts in half to get 4 stands under the car.
One issue I have with my normal jack in the states, a Craftsman of the steel/aluminum variety, is that it BARELY reaches the jack points above. In the front I have to push the jack in up to the hilt so to speak, and slowly start jacking until the car lifts high enough to clear the handle for a longer stroke. The handle actually hits the bumper in this position and can only be inched up and down to start the lift, sometimes requiring holding and moving the front valence. Luckily mine is not painted yet. The rear isn't as bad, but the jack being all the way under the car to reach the differential again inhibits the throw of the handle, not to mention busted knuckles against the bottom of the fuel tank.
I opted for the long reach jack, not only does it have a shot to easily reach central jack points, but it will lift the car that much higher, another reason to swap out my current stands. I was a little worried of the height of the frame of this jack, but it wasn't any taller than the rear of the other jack's, which as I said would have to entirely clear under the car, and this one was close enough to try it. I measured the oem height s13 radiator core support, front valence, and engine cross member ground clearance with a pen and determined the jack was usable as is based on it's frame height. The jack does get taller in the center the further away from the jack point you get, so this isn't fail-safe. It obviously depends on how far inboard the jack must reach, but as I said, I only had a pen.
The s14a is a slightly different story. It's at a driving height now on coilovers, especially in London, but could be lower in the future. Currently the front valence will not clear the jack, and would need removal to jack off the cross member directly from the front. It looks like the front radiator support would clear up to a point, again depending on the actual incline of the center section of the jack per length, but it may not matter as the cross member itself may not clear when the jack pad reaches it. The rear of each car will clear this jack fine, and 3 out of 4 lifts isn't bad. 1x or 2x8's could always be used to bring the car up a bit in a garage to quickly jack.
This trolley jack also has a quick lift pump which is always good.
It was so heavy it came on a ply board in the box. The thick pad is removable if that makes a difference when clearing low frames, allowing about an inch less of ground clearance, none of which will matter if the lift center angle is too high. I'm a little pessimistic this week, hoping to test fit her soon, but am so amazed how large this is that regardless simply can't regret this purchase, no matter how quickly the checkout cart was emptied onto my living room floor.
A circlip came out of the jack box, apparently extra. I found in the assembly drawing of the pump and two are used in it's construction underneath the dust boot around the pump shaft. A later call to SGS would confirm, since my jack was functioning, this was indeed deemed extra.
Time for ice cream in Leicester Square behind the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square.
Back in the flat, I'm still utterly astonished by the size of the jack.
Moving on though, another package with more holes.
The core of the engine frame came pre-assembled. This crane has the same design as most engine hoists, but just seemingly stronger, and much heavier.
Larger casters being the order of the day, I wasn't surprised at this point to see them tucked into the box between the frame.
Into the hallway, I began disassembling the box the rest of the engine hoist, from a box with thick plywood ends and strong lateral and transverse straps, which still didn't prevent things inside from shifting a bit.
I'm so thankful I live on the first floor.
Getting there.
Bam. I'm completely impressed of the condition considering some of the packaging and part shifting. I'm not sure how I would package it per say, but this was obviously more than adequate and that much more impressive given the actual size, and more-so the weight of the contents. This added to the fact it was delivered within 24 hours of my order, for free.
SGS rocks.
Black on black on black.
Before it got too complicated, I ruled out renting solely due to the fact I didn't want to deal with anyone with a rental contract, nor would I have the ability to pick up, or return for that matter, an engine hoist.
I found a company called SGS Engineering. They had the cheapest hoist I could find for sale, even compared to amazon uk, and most of their house tools looked pretty stout, so I ordered one of everything.
(1) 2-Ton Professional Engine Hoist
(1) 1.5-Ton Professional Long Reach Trolley Jack
(1) 5oo kg Load Leveler
(2) 3-Ton pin Jack Stands
(2) Pair of Wheel Dollies
Everything was obviously over engineered by the same company and matched in hardcore black on black on black.
"What color?"
"Any color as long as it's black."
The jack stands, as it would turn out, were actually 3-Tons for the pair, 1.5-Ton each. They were labeled as such on the boxes, but sold and advertised as a 3-Ton jack stands. I took that to mean each, but apparently I'm not as literal as people tell me. Either way, it's more than I need for cars I'll be supporting, but as will be seen later due to obvious dwarfing by other SGS tools, I think I have to return them for the larger, 6-Ton stands.
I have a similar 2-Ton hoist in the states, but this one has to be twice as heavy. They weren't kidding when they immediately called after my order to confirm I would be home for delivery because it was a two man lift and the driver wouldn't be coming with a friend.
In all, 8 boxes arrived, of which I helped drag approximately half of into the hallway, and then all of into my flat. That was extremely difficult. I wasn't surprised that some of the boxes looked somewhat compromised, but was concerned, holding judgement until post un-boxing inspections.
Engine hoist, main crane hook included and two smaller chains for various engine side connections. This was the lightest box by far, and with what would turn out to be <relatively> the worst condition of everything, a spot of missed paint at the end of the welded collar. If anyone's used a lift before, this is nothing, and could easily be fixed in 5 minutes with some sand paper and black paint.
I was more impressed with the substantial construction, and based on unloading the truck and strained muscles, I was eager to uncover more.
This package looked stressed, as some straps cut into various sides while others were already un-looped from their intended locations. There were some package dings, dents, and holes, and upon opening I found that everything had shifted to one side, pulling the all important bubble wrap protective layer away.
There were some light marks on the curve of the wheel dolly but wow, these casters are much larger than expected, as well are the dollies themselves. The marks weren't even scratches per say, don't look like they've broken the surface, not to mention are on the underside of a wheel dolly that could fit large slicks across them.
The second wheel dolly package was similar condition to the first, this one entirely lacking a strap or two, but with the casters more evenly distributed to a side rather than a corner. I still haven't gotten over the size of these. The edges are folded over with additional railings to boot.
Found the apparent top side cardboard divider nestled in the actual top of the box. I placed it back between the casters and dolly after reorganizing.
I thought this next package was part of the engine hoist at first, and quickly realized it was the jack. I knew I had ordered a larger, professional service jack which I could use for years to come, but still, this was over the top. I didn't want to get the normal jack, as I have one of those back home and wanted to round out the tool selection, not replicate it. There was a low profile option, but it wasn't low profile it's entire length, and the frame near the handle was as tall as any other jack. This would be fine to reach a low side corner, but nothing from the front or rear of the car without having to clear the entire jack, negating the expensive lowness factor.
I like to use the rear differential and front crossmember as jack points. They are very sturdy, bolting to the frame in several places distributing the load more than one jack point on a frame rail that may or may not buckle under the load of a 4o year old chassis and a jack. Jacking from these points also lifts the entire front, or rear end, respectively, not just one side, potentially cutting the number of lifts in half to get 4 stands under the car.
One issue I have with my normal jack in the states, a Craftsman of the steel/aluminum variety, is that it BARELY reaches the jack points above. In the front I have to push the jack in up to the hilt so to speak, and slowly start jacking until the car lifts high enough to clear the handle for a longer stroke. The handle actually hits the bumper in this position and can only be inched up and down to start the lift, sometimes requiring holding and moving the front valence. Luckily mine is not painted yet. The rear isn't as bad, but the jack being all the way under the car to reach the differential again inhibits the throw of the handle, not to mention busted knuckles against the bottom of the fuel tank.
I opted for the long reach jack, not only does it have a shot to easily reach central jack points, but it will lift the car that much higher, another reason to swap out my current stands. I was a little worried of the height of the frame of this jack, but it wasn't any taller than the rear of the other jack's, which as I said would have to entirely clear under the car, and this one was close enough to try it. I measured the oem height s13 radiator core support, front valence, and engine cross member ground clearance with a pen and determined the jack was usable as is based on it's frame height. The jack does get taller in the center the further away from the jack point you get, so this isn't fail-safe. It obviously depends on how far inboard the jack must reach, but as I said, I only had a pen.
The s14a is a slightly different story. It's at a driving height now on coilovers, especially in London, but could be lower in the future. Currently the front valence will not clear the jack, and would need removal to jack off the cross member directly from the front. It looks like the front radiator support would clear up to a point, again depending on the actual incline of the center section of the jack per length, but it may not matter as the cross member itself may not clear when the jack pad reaches it. The rear of each car will clear this jack fine, and 3 out of 4 lifts isn't bad. 1x or 2x8's could always be used to bring the car up a bit in a garage to quickly jack.
This trolley jack also has a quick lift pump which is always good.
It was so heavy it came on a ply board in the box. The thick pad is removable if that makes a difference when clearing low frames, allowing about an inch less of ground clearance, none of which will matter if the lift center angle is too high. I'm a little pessimistic this week, hoping to test fit her soon, but am so amazed how large this is that regardless simply can't regret this purchase, no matter how quickly the checkout cart was emptied onto my living room floor.
A circlip came out of the jack box, apparently extra. I found in the assembly drawing of the pump and two are used in it's construction underneath the dust boot around the pump shaft. A later call to SGS would confirm, since my jack was functioning, this was indeed deemed extra.
Time for ice cream in Leicester Square behind the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square.
Back in the flat, I'm still utterly astonished by the size of the jack.
Moving on though, another package with more holes.
The core of the engine frame came pre-assembled. This crane has the same design as most engine hoists, but just seemingly stronger, and much heavier.
Larger casters being the order of the day, I wasn't surprised at this point to see them tucked into the box between the frame.
Into the hallway, I began disassembling the box the rest of the engine hoist, from a box with thick plywood ends and strong lateral and transverse straps, which still didn't prevent things inside from shifting a bit.
I'm so thankful I live on the first floor.
Getting there.
Bam. I'm completely impressed of the condition considering some of the packaging and part shifting. I'm not sure how I would package it per say, but this was obviously more than adequate and that much more impressive given the actual size, and more-so the weight of the contents. This added to the fact it was delivered within 24 hours of my order, for free.
SGS rocks.
Black on black on black.
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