65 Gas Tank Removal

[1Bad55Chevy]

Tony, yes the platform gets in the way, A commercial type has a frame built in, you can lift the car, lock the frame to the posts, then lower the platform out of the way. the frame is still going to support the chassis, so that really won't work either in this case, and the base is now a tripping hazard.

I have never seen a lift like this, do you happen to have a picture or know the style of this?

Only way I know how to support the frame on a 4 post lift is using one with rolling block attachments like this.

Not saying the lift you mentioned isn't a thing I just have never seen one before.

[frasern]

It was '76 when I worked there, so the memory has faded. We had 3 the same, I recall it was basically a drive on platform, but had a framework which rode inside it, which could be locked into place and the car lowered onto it. the platform could then be lowered. I think it had sliding cross braces, but they would not have been hydraulic, probably had some flip up stands to position under the vehicles frame.
I never used that feature, as my job was basically oil changes and the like, I was just a first year apprentice, but I observed it being used by others. I thought that was still being used today, but I have been out of that field for a long time.
The next place I worked had a Rotary 2 post side arm, which is what I have now, and they also had a weird and dangerous in floor 2 post pneumatic lift.

[1Bad55Chevy]

Speaking of unsafe lifts....

My shop was a 1950s Texaco 3 bay service station when it was new. When I purchased the building back in 2018 the original the lift was still in place and actually worked! The owner said his grandfather was extremely cheap and had purchased the lift used in the mid 50s and had to actually dig it out of the ground at another shop. I never used this lift because it was leaking and was not equipped with a dead leg safety. It's a really crazy design because the platform is designed to be rotated so when it was in the air you could actually spin the vehicle in a complete circle.

[frasern]

I have worked under those as well, but with 4 arms instead of a platform. They were held up by air pressure, and would sometimes bleed down, but it was a slow descent. The one I described was similar, but had 2 posts, one for the front and one rear, the rear one would slide to fit different length vehicles. When raising it, you had to operate two valves, and one post would move faster than the other, so you had to balance them to keep the load level. As they reached the top, they would speed up, so you had to feather the two valves to reduce the bump when it hit the top.
The shop that had that hoist was built in the late '70s, so it was ancient when installed!