Good brand cherry picker/engine hoist?

[Mike117]

Can anyone name a good brand that's not too expensive but not too cheap would be using to lift truck beds and such
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[J Knight]

Harbor Freight has good deals on cherry pickers/engine hoists. They run around $135-$175, I dont think you can get cheaper than that. They arent the fanciest but they get the job done.

[suspect]

i bought my engine stand from harbor freight 8 yrs ago, $40. it's only got the 3 legs, so i welded some more bracing to make sure it didn't tip over.

i also got my cherry picker from harbor freight, $100 pittsburgh brand. excellent, i couldn't ask for a better picker. i've lifter off my bed, cab, 2 engines, and been flipping my frame around a few times already.

[ETsC10]

Maybe buy used!

A friend just got a commercial (Large!) fold-up OTC cheap. It folds and was surplus from the local tech school.
Rebuild kits for the entire thing, including ram, will be less than $200 (including new wheels). The list on
the picker is over $4,000.

I'll get pics next time I'm near it. EDIT: Pic Now Posted

Perhaps look into a quality used hoist and spend your upgrade money on reconditioning? A good source of things
like this are equipment auctions, tech school upgrades and local scrap haulers.
Granted, the hoist I'm speaking of is surely an overkill but the fact remains theres lots of savings in reconditioning a
quality one ... much like we do for our trucks

IMHO-you can never upgrade a cheap picker without beefing it up by hand (and that's limited) or by upgrading later.
Plus, if you ever plan on heavy loads (engine/trans combos, BBC, etc), get the biggest monster you can fit in your shop.
Nothings worse than picking up something with ease just to have the back of the picker cantilever off the floor...hoist
safety = use, weight & design.

HF and the like do have their place though...light weight, stored size, simple design, initial cost and warranty.

Mike, I know what JR found is an overkill for you but buying a high dollar hoist USED might be the way to
go if time trumps your budget.

The promised pics...
He decided to sell this one and buy a floor model fold-up from the local parts store for $100...retail was about $300 and
it's fairly nice (& new).
Since he had less than $100 into the OTC, that would equal a free hoist plus some---lucky bugger!

btw--Foot print when folded: 27"x38" at a weight of 450# !!

[67lowered]

I second the HF hoist. I have a 2 ton foldable hoist/cherry picker, pulled 4-5 engines no problem. cheap,I think about $100- $120, find a 20% off coupon, even cheaper! stores away in a little space

[jhaymon]

i use a case cherry picker. as for a hoist i just got a new atd hoist for $200. it seems to be doing the job quite well. i had a hein i bought used for 50bux. i used it for the better part of 15 years, but i couldn't find an 8 ton ram that would fit it. it was time to replace it. i would normally use an electric hoist, but its never seems to work right. that being said, i defiantly wouldn't recommend shop fox electric hoists.

[elvis.donnelly]

Originally Posted by J Knight

Harbor Freight has good deals on cherry pickers/engine hoists. They run around $135-$175, I dont think you can get cheaper than that. They arent the fanciest but they get the job done.

Agreed. +1