Model A on lift
 

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Great shot. Look at all those neat tools. Where are they now? Do you know where this was taken?

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when I was a teenager in the early 60s worked off a rail lift just like that at Mortimer Bros garage in Huntington NY. Had many an A and T on that lift doing oil changes. Would like to have those period correct tools!

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I haven't seen a rail hoist like that since the 60's.
The two bars with the dip in the center, just under the tools, must be used to support the driveshaft during work, or maybe to hook an oil bucket during the oil change. Would that be right?

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Oh no and supported by the axles

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not to sound macabre, but does anyone know if these old lifts ever failed? I've always been uneasy getting under a car supported by jack stands and now I read on the Barn that members feel the sheet metal-type of stands are junk etc.

hardly a day goes by when we don't read about some kind of product recall...I think most of them emanate from overseas production in the modern era.

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I would guess even these old time lifts were designed with very high duty cycles and some kind of fail safe mechanism much like an elevator in the event there was a loss of hydraulic pressure...

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There was a post that came down on back of hyd.cyl. to hold the lift for safty

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I remember those - It had a lever that toggled into place when the lift was all the way up. You pushed the lever in with your foot just before lowering the car.

It also prevented the lift from rotating like a merry go round.

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I used to work under a hoist where I could spin the car all the way around once the wheels were off the ground. I don't recall if it had any safety backup, but most of the hoists I worked under had the steel pipe with the safety toggle.

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Actually, this picture originated with Brad Minners back when I was building a 'Tool Wall' here at the shop. Brad said this was taken at a dealership named Plastman in Belgium. Click HERE to view the original post that shows even more tools.

BTW, I always thought it was ironic that there was a water hose ( ...to wash the floor?? :D ) when it had a wooden plank floor. Also, when you study Brad's photo of the lift, you will notice there are special brackets attached to the rails that are supporting both axles.


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thanks Brent for that info... someone sent this to me recently so i had no idea where it was taken from..
i found looking at the pic very interesting and figured others would enjoy it

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HEY, KID,
I "thought" you put in a modern hoist at home??? Chief's Conoco Fillin' Station, in our small Oklahoma town had the FIRST hydraulic lift in town & we had the FIRST FAST Battery Charger in town! The hoist had a swing down safety post, like some of you described. I don't remember how big a compressor we had to put in??? GOD, I'm gettin' OOOOLD!
Bill W.

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"you will notice there are special brackets attached to the rails that are supporting both axles."
The lift at Mortimers that I used had different "sliders" that you could use to fit different vehicles all the way into the 60's. They had a piece of 1/2" round stock about 30" long attached to them so you could side them on the rails into the correct position without getting under the vehicle There was two 2X12 boards laid on the ground to give newer cars extra clrnc. over the rails which were about 5" high. The rails were too close together to do auto trans removals, but was OK for manuals and doing rear end work on newer vehicles and great for oil changes. The post always seemed to be in the way and you had to "balance the vehicle " to avoid too much weight at either end. In the late 60s the rails were removed and a spyder attachment was put on the post to accommodate modern vehicles. The safety was as mentioned, a pipe about 2 1/2" in dia that had a toggle that flipped out when at full height. The lift used air over hyd. to operate. It was a lot better than working on your back. I used this lift for years without any safety issues.

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MOST safety issues are OPERATOR ERRORS! READ THE INSTRUCTION BOOK!
Bill W.

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Great photographs!

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There is one of those lifts still in use about 20 miles from me.It was a Ford garage,on a state highway that was bypassed in the late 30's,so it became a back road.The garage burned during the war though.The fellow that bought it after the war built another garage on the foundation,and the lift is still there.He had a VW junkyard in the 60's and 70's,that lift worked great on VW's.I went by a couple of nights ago on a motorcycle,it was about 11 PM,the garage door was open and the lift was about halfway up.I could see it pretty clearly in the moonlight.He's another one of us that leaves his garage door open at night to take the cool air in.

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Brent is right on the car being supported by the axles. Notice the car is at normal ride height and the suspension is not extended like it would be if it was lifted by the frame.

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Can't see picture(s)

OK, now I can