Does Harbor Freight sell a DECENT engine hoist?

Hard to coordinate with the local tool rental places, so I'm considering purchasing one. There is a Harbor Freight nearby, but IIRC there have been a lot of complaints about their hoists leaking, possibly other issues, too.

Any feedback available here to help with my decision? Thanks - Brad

I bought one from Jegs. I think everything comes on a boat from the same place nowadays. Mine works fine.

I bought a fold up Goodyear engine hoist years ago and like it so much when I saw a used one local for 80.00 I grabbed it for my house garage. Now I don't have to drag it 100 feet thru the gravel.

I've had my HF engine hoist for 17 years now. It has been used for many things besides lifting engines, but has had 3 different 5.9 cummins hanging from it... still works just fine

I'll keep looking, considering there are some very "telling" reviews of all the engine hoists on the HF website.

May have to jump thru a couple of hoops to get a rental after all.

I have one and it's fine. Just get the bigger model.

I've owned mine for about 7-8 years and have not had any issues.

I did bend one leg pulling out boxwood bushes from the ground but, I don't think the hoist is intended or rated for pulling boxwoods.

I have one. It has always worked fine. No issues here

Back around 1985 I bought this one from the local tool rental without a hydraulic cylinder. I rented one just like it so many times one day asked how much to buy it and he sold me this hoist/crane without a lift cylinder for 200 bucks. That was a lot of money then and it took me months more to save up for a hydraulic cylinder.

Used it for larger V8 truck engines which are much heavier than a 440.

I have wore out 2 cylinders over the years using it. It is holding up the front of the car in this picture.


Then I bought this a few years ago from the local auto parts store, I think I gave around 190 bucks for it. I got it because it folds up and is easier to use at home and I keep my one above at work in my race shop. Used to take it home to use. I use the import one to do light duty work like lift the front of the lawn mover to clean the deck and change blades and small block engine swaps.

I feel this hoist was at it's limit in this case, would not feel comfortable doing this with a big block engine. My driveway was a little out of level which made the hoist very unstable. Nothing like my wide base breakdown model I showed above which is way better. FYI.


And when I got it in, the crane was touching the front bumper. It does not have the reach that my other crane has. A car with longer front end it would not work. I did the install by myself in a afternoon.

I have had mine since the mid 90's and have had zero issues. The only things to consider in my opinion are whether to go with the collapsible unit or the non-collapsible. In the same tonnage range, I think the non-collapsible unit may have slightly different reach and width dimensions. Due to that, I went with the non-collapsible and when it's not going to in use for a while, I simply disassemble it. The small pile of parts leaning against my garage or shop wall are far smaller than the collapsible model when collapsed and it takes just a few minutes.

- EM

The complaints I see repeated about the current models they offer include things like parts not fitting correctly, incomplete parts and/or hardware packed, machine work issues, etc. I don't have the time or patience right now to deal with any of that crap and will look elsewhere for a solution to my immediate need.

I would keep an eye out for used one like the breakdown model I showed above.

The smaller silver one that HF always puts on sale isn't worth it. Won't work for us. Not enough capacity or reach. The full size one isn't bad. The best thing I ever did was buy a second hand heavy duty hoist that had a leaking cylinder. Got a $60 ram from HF. They have several models, so getting a compatible one was easy. Check your local craigslist listings. You can probably score on a nice fold up one for the right price. I now have 2 hoists so I can pull the body off my Cuda without any help. And everything packs up out of the way when done.

I have the 2 ton fold-able - works good so far i have had 10 years or so - like anything use as it is designed and it should be sufficient - one thing about a hydraulic cylinder when not in use it should be collapsed to its closed position. Pretty much all of the engine cranes i have seen seem to come from the same place China -just different color paint

My HF (Maybe it was Northern Tool?) collapsible hoist was purchased in the mid 90s. It has served well and still uses the original cylinder.

Lately, it has developed a habit of tilting to the left under load. Dangerous tilting. When we have to lift an engine rather high I stand on the left rear leg to counter the lean. The hoist is lowered as quickly as possible.

After a thorough examination I found that the hinge holes for the boom were wallowed out and allowing the arm to lean to one side. I bored the holes and made a larger pin. The lean has improved but not gone away. As best I can tell the left leg pin hole is a bit worn. This lets the leg lift, causing the rig to lean.

I plan on getting it straightened out before it gets used again.

My HF breakdown is OK tho I did weld some gussets where the main vertical leg bolts to the base to further strengthen it.

My HF is a yr old and the cylinder leaks like crazy other wise its ok and I got the bigger of the 2

Brad, tell the wife you need a bridge crane......

I bought one for like 99 on sale... only reason I bought it. They apparently have 2 different ones. Well I got mismatched parts and holes didn't line up. So use the base for moving engine/transmissions around. Use the other parts for various things around the shop. Used the hydraulic cylinder on another hoist. So wasn't too upset in the end... but I wouldn't buy one from them again to actually use for lifting engines.

I have a Harbor freight engine hoist from about 20-years ago. The hydraulic ram on it failed the first time I used it.
Really not the ram as much the threads for the release valve were stripped, and when I went to lower the 383 after pulling it, the release valve came all the way out drop the engine on the garage floor and crushing the oil pan. Lucky that was the only damage.
I replaced that hydraulic ram with another from a different source, and it has worked fine since then.

i think all the Chinese ones are about the same now days. i bought one probably 15 or more years ago and havent had any issue with it. i HATED to keep giving money to the rental place, being put in a time crunch and dealing with picking it up and dropping it back off.

Hate to tell my HF story again, but about 5 years ago I went to the local HF to buy a hoist, they were out of stock so they suggested ordering online. I ordered one and when it came the box was open and there were parts missing. The local store refused to take it back, even though it is written in their online policy. I had to ship it back and their Asian customer service people were either complete imbeciles or were dodging me intentionally. I had to file with my bank to get the charges removed, which took about 5 weeks. Needless to say I have never looked at another HF ad nor gone into the store.

I did find a hoist exactly like the 6-wheel one Challenger1 shows above, it was in stock at Autozone just 5 miles from my house!

I have an Arcan CEH-41 foldable crane 4000 pound unit I bought at the turkey rod run about 25 years ago. I use it many times every day, at work. I replace anywhere from 1 to 3 engines a day.
I've replaced the rams about 4 times, just get the 8 ton ram. Last one I bought is air operated so it's a real pleasure compared to having to pump that thing.

I have a HF 2 ton fold-able I bought a year ago on sale for 169.00.
Works fine, has pulled BBC and SBC engines so far.
Assembly was easy and parts were marked for install.
Either buy it on sale, use the 20% off coupons or check craigslist for used. Never pay full price at HF.

I didn't see one in their latest flier...

I saw this thread earlier and went to HF for some gloves, thats the only thing I buy there. So I went and looked at the engine hoist selection and they had one thing in common, all the welds sucked! HF tools, for when it doesn't matter if the job gets done today!

Those import cranes like you have are fine for small engines like what you work on. But not enough crane to lift a big block V8 and transmission in our old muscle cars. IMO Plus too many places for it(import) to wear out and become unsafe.

I have HF 1/4 mile from the house, only go in there every couple years to buy gloves like said above! lol

I bought a bunch of HF equipment 25 years ago, like drill presses, hydraulic press, porta power and plenty more for home and at work. Today that same equipment is so cheaply made it is not funny. Sad And I thought it was cheap stuff 25 years ago but now it looks good compared to what they sell now.

Bought a 1000# capacity jib crane 10 years ago at an industrial auction... $75.00. I was buying/selling lots of vintage Hemi and flathead Ford stuff so it really paid for itself. Sold it last year to a local wood processing shop for $1800.00...

Now I use a small engine hoist I bought at a marine going out of biz sale for $20.00....

If you look at the welds on most of the fold up cranes under 300.00, they all have the same hit and miss welds.

I'm renting a hoist for $92 for a week, but will look into purchasing something in the future.

Thanks for all the responses. - Brad

https://fredericksburg.craigslist.org/tls/d/engine-hoist/6353595788.html

I have a Sun International cherry picker that I bought out the back of a pick up truck with South Carolina tags years ago. I think the stuff was made in the Carolinas. Old guys on the east coast know who I'm talking about. Thing is heavy made, works great. Had to put a cylinder on it a while back. Don't know if they can still be had or maybe find one for sale. Then there's OTC or some of the professional stuff.