(Topic ID: 10986)

WTB - cheap pinball lifter/mover

By JWS64

12 years ago


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  • 30 posts
  • 18 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 10 years ago by PC-Pin-NC
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    #1 12 years ago

    Because I have one, soon to be two pin's I need to buy a pinball lifter but I'm not wanting to
    pay full price for a brand new model that costs upwards of 3-4 hundred dollars.

    Anybody know where I can get a used/refurbished lifter?

    I will be picking up my second pin soon and want to be able to have one available so I can take the pin out of my Expedition and put it on the lifter and add the legs onto it.

    Thanks!

    #3 12 years ago

    Thanks ssathre,

    I called up a local harbor freight and they're out of stock. The shipping on that is almost as much as the item itself, even ground is gonna run almost $100, so I guess I'll keep looking for something locally. Trying to avoid shipping, I think I'm gonna need one this weekend so I need to get my hands on one fast.

    #4 12 years ago

    Do you have a Northern Tool near you? I just bought one similar there for a similar price. I looked at the Harbor Freight one and felt the NT one was a little better built, plus both up and down controls are foot pedals. That way you can take the handle off with no other modifications so you can push it under the game far enough. The HF one has to be modded in some way to deal with that release handle.

    #5 12 years ago
    Quoted from Jediturtle:

    Do you have a Northern Tool near you

    As soon as I got off the phone with local harbor freight I found a local Northern Tool.

    They have what I need, picking one up tomorrow. Jedi, the exact one you're describing
    is the one I'm getting. That is if they don't sell the one I want before my wife get's there.
    She's picking it up on her way home from work. Crossing my fingers. Thanks for the replies!

    #6 12 years ago

    This the one you are getting?

    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546

    Seems like a decent deal.. might have to pick one up as well.

    Quoted from Jediturtle:

    That way you can take the handle off with no other modifications so you can push it under the game far enough.

    Does the pin move / slip at all on the diamond plate top? I figure if you have it balanced well enough its not going anywhere but like the idea of the rubber. Might add that..

    #7 12 years ago
    Quoted from PaulyB18:

    Does the pin move / slip at all on the diamond plate top?

    I have the HF model and misplaced the rubber mat some time ago. pins don't budge on the bare metal... but I'm not jerking them around either.

    #8 12 years ago

    That's what I use as well. Modified a bit with a hinge on handle so it can go all the way up and down makes it much easier to get pins up safely & store that way. With rubber mat pin will spin a bit with it removed not so much.

    #9 12 years ago
    Quoted from ssathre:

    I have the HF model and misplaced the rubber mat some time ago. pins don't budge on the bare metal.

    Quoted from The_Dude_Abides:

    With rubber mat pin will spin a bit with it removed not so much.

    Good to know! Looks like something I will be picking up soon. Thanks guys!!

    #10 12 years ago

    I use the one from hf as well, works well after modifying the handle.

    #11 12 years ago

    I took this Sears motorcycle jack http://www.sears.com/craftsman-motorcycle-atv-jack/p-00950190000P and modded it to use as a Pinball Dolly.. Like in the ad, the jack was on sale for $89 bucks when I bought it.. I also bought two Fixed ( non-swivel) 4" wheels and two 4" Swivel wheels.. Some clamps..

    Here's what I ended up with.... And I also through some 2x12 together, because the jack only wouldn't lift high enough... It works !

    Picture_032.jpgPicture_032.jpg Picture_038.jpgPicture_038.jpg

    #12 12 years ago
    Quoted from The_Dude_Abides:

    Modified a bit with a hinge on handle so it can go all the way up and down makes it much easier to get pins up safely that way.

    T_D_A, would you mind taking a picture of your mod? I picked up one of the Harbor freight lifts last week and have been thinking about doing something with the handle.

    #13 12 years ago
    Quoted from southbound:

    T_D_A, would you mind taking a picture of your mod? I picked up one of the Harbor freight lifts last week and have been thinking about doing something with the handle.

    Sure picture is courtesy of pinsider alexlevy.
    Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you. There's a nut underneath that you can loosen to give the wire some more slack. : )

    Lift_with_hinges.JPGLift_with_hinges.JPG

    #14 12 years ago

    Thanks. I'll try that out.

    #15 12 years ago

    I just got my HF for 103.99 ($76 off)

    They did something with ITC gift memeership 19.99 to do that

    I got the 2 year replacement warranty due to reading reviews for $34.99

    There was a $10 SVC charge?

    But then I got a $10 gift card out of it too...

    Bob C

    #16 12 years ago
    Quoted from PaulyB18:

    This the one you are getting?
    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546
    Seems like a decent deal.. might have to pick one up as well.
    Jediturtle said:That way you can take the handle off with no other modifications so you can push it under the game far enough.
    Does the pin move / slip at all on the diamond plate top? I figure if you have it balanced well enough its not going anywhere but like the idea of the rubber. Might add that..

    Have a question on the northern tool lift.

    Got it home tonight, getting use to using it. Having two issues

    When I use the foot pedal to pump it up and raise the level it seems to only go so high, and stops from going any higher. Any idea what I can do or am not doing correct to get it to max out on the height?

    And how do I get it to lock in place? I can manually use my hands, lift the platform up and by pushing in on the support bars for the platform get it to stay locked in place.

    I'm going to buy a couple of straps, so once I have it moved out of my expedition and onto the diamond plate I'm going to strap it around the length and width of the plate so when I'm moving it through my front door it doesn't fall off. I'm going to be taking it slow an' easy, I DO NOT want to damage my XF pin before I get it in the house to play it. That would suck big time.

    Any suggestions will help. Thanks!

    #17 12 years ago

    I got the HF 500 lb capacity jack a few months ago for about $130. It was the best money I have spent in this hobby in long time! If you move pins around even a little, you will quickly find it worth the price.

    I had to do the mod to allow the handle to swivel, but that was quick and easy. I had to toss out the rubber mat on top as it had a super strong smell that I could not get rid of with extensive cleaning.

    #18 12 years ago
    Quoted from JWS64:

    paulyb18 said:

    This the one you are getting?
    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546
    Seems like a decent deal.. might have to pick one up as well.
    Jediturtle said:That way you can take the handle off with no other modifications so you can push it under the game far enough.
    Does the pin move / slip at all on the diamond plate top? I figure if you have it balanced well enough its not going anywhere but like the idea of the rubber. Might add that..
    Have a question on the northern tool lift.
    Got it home tonight, getting use to using it. Having two issues
    When I use the foot pedal to pump it up and raise the level it seems to only go so high, and stops from going any higher. Any idea what I can do or am not doing correct to get it to max out on the height?
    And how do I get it to lock in place? I can manually use my hands, lift the platform up and by pushing in on the support bars for the platform get it to stay locked in place.
    I'm going to buy a couple of straps, so once I have it moved out of my expedition and onto the diamond plate I'm going to strap it around the length and width of the plate so when I'm moving it through my front door it doesn't fall off. I'm going to be taking it slow an' easy, I DO NOT want to damage my XF pin before I get it in the house to play it. That would suck big time.
    Any suggestions will help. Thanks!

    Honestly, it sounds like you either got something completely different than I have, or there is something major wrong with yours. Did you get this one?

    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546

    Mine goes very high. Plenty high to get any pin off of it's feet. Specs on the website say 29" which I guess is about right, though it seems higher if I'm remembering right. It should stay in place on its own, not dropping until you hit the release pedal. You shouldn't have to do any lifting on the platform or pushing on support bars. Pump it up to where you want it with one pedal, lower it with the other. It should stay wherever you put it. If yours isn't going that high and not staying at height, I'd take it back as it sounds like the cylinder is shot.

    #19 12 years ago
    Quoted from Jediturtle:

    Honestly, it sounds like you either got something completely different than I have, or there is something major wrong with yours. Did you get this one?

    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546

    Mine goes very high. Plenty high to get any pin off of it's feet. Specs on the website say 29" which I guess is about right, though it seems higher if I'm remembering right. It should stay in place on its own, not dropping until you hit the release pedal. You shouldn't have to do any lifting on the platform or pushing on support bars. Pump it up to where you want it with one pedal, lower it with the other. It should stay wherever you put it. If yours isn't going that high and not staying at height, I'd take it back as it sounds like the cylinder is shot.

    I have the exact same one.

    After seeing liquid draining from the cylinder I think it is shot. It's going back.

    Thanks for the reply, you confirmed what I thought mine should do, but isn't.

    #20 12 years ago

    Are you sure you really need a lift? If you have other uses for it, that's great. If you just need to get the pin out of the SUV, it seems like overkill.

    Pull the pin out a bit, and put two legs on. Pull it out some more, prop it up on (say) a bar stool and do the other legs, one at a time.

    Okay, I'm no expert at this, but I saw it on one of those videos (This old Pinball?)

    steve

    #21 12 years ago
    Quoted from sscharf:

    Are you sure you really need a lift? If you have other uses for it, that's great. If you just need to get the pin out of the SUV, it seems like overkill.

    I'm moving it out of the car, into my house, by myself.

    Since I'm not going to drag the pin with legs on it down the cement walkway into the front door, yeah...I need the lift.

    Even if I did use the method which you describe in putting the legs on, I still have to get it
    from my front walk way into the house by myself. The lift is going to help. I'll put the legs on when I get it inside. Thanks for your concern, but I got this!

    1 week later
    #22 12 years ago

    Just wanted to say got the NT jack and used it for a little bit tonight to change out some leg levelers. Works awesome and couldn't be happier. The store matched the online pricing.

    Thanks again for the suggestion!

    http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200365546

    #23 12 years ago

    Furniture sliders work good in the house and on smooth concrete. Dont work in the driveway on rough concrete. $10.00 lowes

    3 months later
    #24 11 years ago

    I see this at my HF every time I go. Anyone have a pic of the handle mod talked about in this thread?

    In the meantime, I got some floor sliders. With another person's help, I can slide my machines across my finished concrete basement without too much sweat.

    #25 11 years ago

    Pinskates work well and are quick for this purpose as well. I have an old WICO cart and pin skates and use the skates more often for routine moving on flat surfaces. The cart isn't as mobile or steady.

    #26 11 years ago
    Quoted from GoldenBear:

    Pinskates work well and are quick for this purpose as well. I have an old WICO cart and pin skates and use the skates more often for routine moving on flat surfaces. The cart isn't as mobile or steady.

    After moving 3 machines around the basement, I am going to give the pinskates a try. Just ordered a set from eBay. Thanks for the tip.

    #27 11 years ago
    Quoted from GoldenBear:

    Pinskates work well and are quick for this purpose as well. I have an old WICO cart and pin skates and use the skates more often for routine moving on flat surfaces. The cart isn't as mobile or steady.

    +1. I use my skates the most. I have the 500 lb. HF cart too.

    Todd

    3 weeks later
    #28 11 years ago

    Just wanted to thank those that recommended this. Great tool and on sale right now. Find a 20% off coupon and you're in for under $125.

    As mentioned, I'll need to do put some hinges on or weld up something to allow it to go further under. The handle does limit it.

    1 year later
    #29 10 years ago

    Any new cheap pin lifters out there? Also for those that have the Northern tool lifter, how is it holding up? That is the one I am going to buy as of this second .

    #30 10 years ago

    I'm in the market for a dolly right now too and interested in current feedback on beefzap's questions.

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