My friend John has always been a bit of a gearhead. When he was younger, he loved taking things apart and seeing how they worked.
Over the years, his passion for tinkering gradually turned into a full-blown obsession with anything and everything automotive. He could talk for hours about the different makes and models of cars, engines, and tires – and he was always looking for ways to improve his skills as a mechanic.
A few months ago, John came to me with an idea. He wanted to build his own motorcycle lift table.
He had seen some commercial-grade lifts online that cost hundreds of dollars, and he thought it would be great to have something like that in his garage. But he didn’t want to spend a fortune on it, so he asked me if I could help him come up with a plan to make one himself.
I had never built a motorcycle lift before, but I was definitely up for the challenge. After brainstorming for a while, we came up with a design that would meet all of John’s requirements.
The lift would be made from commonly available materials, it would be sturdy and durable, and it would be affordable enough for anyone to build.
We started out by gathering all of the supplies we would need – including construction lumber, scissor jacks, plastic bushings, and hardware.
The build plans were straightforward and easy to follow, so we were able to get started right away. It took us about 15 hours to build the lift – including the time it took us to make the ramp that would help get the bike onto the lift table.
The finished product is amazing! The DIY motorcycle lift is incredibly sturdy and can hold up to 520lbs with the 24″ jack or 470lbs with the 30″ jack. It’s also completely mobile so you can move it around your garage as needed.
Best of all, it only cost my friend John about $100 to build – a fraction of the price of a commercial-grade lift.
John loves his new motorcycle lift table, and he’s already put it to good use. He’s used it to change the oil in his bike, to rotate the tires, and to clean and wax the entire bike.
DIY Motorcycle Lift Table Plans
1. Collapsible Motorcycle Workstand
If you are a motorcycle owner, it is crucial to have a motorcycle lift for various reasons. Some people may argue that creating one will consume a lot of time and money but trust me, the result is more pleasing and having a motorcycle lift is worth the effort.
2. Motorcycle Build Platform
3. The Best DIY Motorcycle Table on YouTube
There is nothing more satisfying than working on your bike. Conducting basic maintenance like changing oil, brake pad replacement, brake fluid top-up, and air filter cleaning give you a good understanding of your bike.
4. How to Make a Motorcycle Workbench / DIY Motorcycle Lift
Additionally, conducting these activities will help you save a few bucks here and there and sometimes help you overcome some mechanical problems, especially when you are on the road. The good thing about creating your table is that you can perform several tasks.
5. How-to DIY Motorcycle Table
There are several ways you can create your DIY motorcycle lift, but the first thing to come to your mind should be sourcing all the required materials before you start the project. Ensure you have everything you will need going forward.
6. DIY Motorcycle Worktable Build
The other thing you will need to evaluate is your budget first. For example, if you have a fixed budget, we suggest going for a wooden lift.
7. Motorcycle Table
Some people may prefer to buy a ready-made motorcycle lift, but when you are on a tight budget and want to own a motorcycle lift, a homemade motorcycle lift might help you save a few bucks.
8. Build a Motorcycle Work Table Cheap
With only $300 or less, you have your lift to give you maximum services. With that said, there are two types of motorcycle lift; wooden and metallic( heavy-duty steel lift table). Budget-wise metallic motorcycle lift is expensive as opposed to a wooden lift.
9. How To Build A Motorcycle Workbench
10. How To Build A Motorcycle Workbench
How to build your own DIY motorcycle lift bench: step by step
Our main focus will be on these two types of motorcycle table lifts.
Having all the required tools will save you the hustle of going round to purchase, thus consuming a lot of time. Below are the materials and tools that you will need in this project for the wooden lift:
- Pieces of wood (4x8x3 inches)
- The small wretch of paper
- Electric power saw
- 4×1-inch galvanized pipe
- Electric drill with 3/8 paddle bits
- A pencil and a ruler for drawings
- Lag bolts
Step 1:
Once you have all materials, assuming you have created enough space in your garage that can allow you to work freely, grab the wood with some correct measurements as indicated above, with the help of the pencil and the ruler, mark the 8-inch side in the center, 3.5 from the end.
Step 2:
The second step is where you will need the electric drill. Use the 1 3/8 paddle bit in place and carefully drill the hole through the piece of wood when you had already marked in step one. Note this hole must be drilled right through the 4-inch-thick section of the wood; after that insert, the 1ich galvanized pipe into the drilled hole. Once done with this, you are free to move to the next step.
Step 3:
In this step, you will be required to mark 4 points on the wood, ensure they are equidistant from each other, and carefully drill the holes through those marks. The aim of drilling these holes is to help you insert and fasten lag bolts with ease.
Step 4:
This step is crucial; since you are done drilling the holes through the piece of wood, now it is time to insert lag bolts into each hole. Additionally, insert the galvanized pipe into the hole where you had already inserted the pipe flange in step two and carefully tread it into the pipe.
Step 5
this is the final step, and it is the point where you will need to ensure all the bolts are tightening, probably to avoid breakage when using the lift.
The first thing is to ensure you tighten the lag bolts using pipe wretch, and once you have done that and counter-checked everything is in place, your wooden motorcycle lift is ready to be used.
As you can see, this is pretty easy work and hustle-free, and you can have your lift in a matter of a few days. Now you can lift your bike and start repairing it with much ease.
Unlike the wooden motorcycle lift, this lift allows you to adjust to your desired height without any problem. In other words, it is more comfortable and friendly as compared to the wooden lift.
Another advantage of a heavy-duty steel lift table is that it can be used as a storage platform, especially during the winter or when you are not playing to use the bike for an extended period.
If you are good at working with the plan, this project can be ideal for you. Building DIY heavy-duty steel lift is more complicated and requires advanced knowledge to execute; thus, it is not ideal if you don’t have time and enough resources to undertake the project.
It should be noted that this project (metallic) requires advanced skills in drilling and welding, which further complicates the process. However, there are several such lifts in the market; you can search for one that suits your needs and budget.
But if you have time, money, and skills to carry out the process, you can give it a shot because nothing is pleasing like having started and completing your project.
Sometimes money and time can be a major factor when you want to own a motorcycle table lift, then building yours can be ideal because if you do things correctly, I am sure you will save a lot when you commit to building yours.
The step-by-step guide above will help you create a simple but very effective wooden motorcycle table lift . Whichever project you decide to take, both are meant to help you service your motorcycle with ease which is the main purpose of needing one.
The wooden motorcycle lift table is for completely new ones, while the heavy-duty steel motorcycle lift is for experts where advanced skills are required.
Evaluate your skills and budget before commencing on the project, and you will have everything running smoothly.
Hi, my name’s Elena Coolidge. I’m a DIY enthusiast who loves building fun woodworking plans. These DIY plans are fun hobby projects for enthusiasts or even more advanced builders that want to build things like bunk beds, end tables or even a duck box!
