Which motorcycle lift?

[Woodenfish]

I have a Craftsman motorcycle jack that I use on my RTL’s. It will lift it but you have to be very careful with its balance on the jack. You can lift it up fine but if you have to take the front tires off you better have the bike supported with 3 jack stands. These style of lifts aren’t really ideal for the Spyder for all maintenance. The 1500 pound lift capacity is overrated for its hydraulic cylinder actual power which can lead to a shorter than expected service life. I haven’t found any lift that is ideal and affordable to lift these heavy bikes with solid stability so be careful, go slowly and constantly check for balance. Lifting these 3-wheelers is dodgy and a great amount of care is required when working on a lifted Spyder to prevent the whole bike from tipping off the jack. These lifts raise the bike at an upward angle toward you and not true vertical so lowering it onto the jackstands has to be done with great care as the bike is lowered away from you. I’m a professional automotive technician with decades of experience but lifting these Spyders always gives me the heebee jeebees.

 

[Dasmoetorhead]

Thanks for your evaluation. Yes I totally understand. When I used to lift my Nomad 1600 with the craftsman jack, I had to be careful (as you should), and there were some wobbly moments. The big blue is probably the answer, and it might find its way in my shop, because I know how often I will use it. I'm also not fond of balancing anything heavy like a F3 on a small platform. Trying to stabilize a machine in the event it gets out of hand is not in the cards anymore with my back in its current situation. I'm just going to wait to get the machine in my shop and then evaluate what I think is best.

 

[Dasmoetorhead]

I called Big Blue Co. about their lift, and he said they don't have the new F3S mount yet. So that's out for now.

 

[NorwegianRT]

I called Big Blue Co. about their lift, and he said they don't have the new F3S mount yet. So that's out for now.

Bad luck there then !
I thought they did due to this line on their site :CanAm Spyder RT/F3T/S Trike Lift

Have a great weekend and ride safely !

 

[Dasmoetorhead]

This from the company,
The lift would come with the F3 mount set and the main lifting items that locate on the lift beam fits all models of Spyder it is simply the adjustable stabiliser bracket that is located near the pillar to hold the machine from moving left to right as it balances on the lifting points.

The latest F3S has a different mount required at this point (see the picture) and as yet we have been unable to acquire a Spyder to develop the bracket needed so the only option at this point in time is to use this setup and secure the Footboard mounting to the lift by means of a ratchet strap as this does ”Not” take and load in the lifting it is simply to hold the machine from rocking sideways, “A Stabiliser”!

Hopefully we will get to develop the part at some stage but cannot offer it at the moment.
Regards

 

[NorwegianRT]

Ahh, someone need to loan them a F3 :lecturef_smilie: