Electric top hoist for garage - my solution

[XirallicBolts]

I've got a relatively low ceiling (8' 7" / 103") in my garage, so attic access was required. Went a little overboard making it out of 2x6s and using 3/8 bolts for everything.

Took a little workshopping to figure out straps. I didn't like the ratchet against the weatherstrip so my current plan is to criss-cross the straps to opposite eyelets. Foam pipe insulation in the back to protect the weatherstrip, front is on the hard edge going 90° so it doesn't seem like it can deform.

Extending the remote for the Harbor Freight winch took a little more figuring. There's a capacitor in the handle that's too big to fit in a typical wall box, so I put a spare 6x6x4 Hoffman box in the attic to act as a splice point + capacitor box, then ran flex to a regular wall box with six #14 THWNs for the actual switch.

Definitely needed to add a piece of plywood to the ceiling to keep from knocking chunks of drywall down when the edge of the pulley catches.

Having the attachment point for the hook about 3/4 back seems to work decently for balance. When unloaded the front obviously comes down first, then when raising the back eyelets hit the ceiling first. Double-hooking definitely helps to slow it down.

Hardest part now is lining the car up in the garage. We have a couple pieces of duct tape on the floor temporarily for where the tires need to be.

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[Wheelin72]

My plan was to hook to the front bolt mounts for my front attachment point, so I wouldn't be on the gaskets. Any reason y'all didn't

This is way I have my hoist pickup points. I hook to the two front mounting brackets on the rear section of the hard top, and at the rear I hook to the lower brackets for the air struts that open the glass. This way, none of the weather seals are touched by straps.

 

[BottleShark]

Could you post pics?

 

[Mikey D]

Surprised no one has come up with a way to stick mounting points on the hardtop so you don't have to wrap straps around the whole top.

BRONCO TOP HOIST | FORD BRONCO MIC HOIST A TOP POWER HARDTOP REMOVAL S – Lange Originals

Only one I've seen so far. Flat hooks in back and J hook in front (for 2 door).

 

[niterider006]

BRONCO TOP HOIST | FORD BRONCO MIC HOIST A TOP POWER HARDTOP REMOVAL S – Lange Originals

Only one I've seen so far. Flat hooks in back and J hook in front (for 2 door).

Yes I've seen this one. Wish I could just get the hooks.

 

[Mikey D]

Yes I've seen this one. Wish I could just get the hooks.

4" Heavy Duty Flat Hook w/ Aluminum Defender (uscargocontrol.com)

 

[timhood]

Thats a nice setup. Couple of things I have experienced in the past, that you may want to watch. The strap compression on the door seals and top seals can deform the seals, causing more wind noise and water leakage. Just keep an eye on it, especially if it is hanging for long periods of time.

I used suction cups on the windows, with safety tethers in the event suction cup lets go, it wont go anywear. Been like this since April in an unconditioned shop....suction cups are holding fine.
I lift the top one corner at a time, a few inches at a time, and "walk" it up to the height I want. I have degenerative back disease and can still do this incrementally without breaking the back. This setup I am doing does not depress any seals or gaskets.

[Reviving an old thread]
Where did you get those suction cups? How much are they rated for?

 

[Bronc69]

Just to pile onto the revived thread, I've been thinking about a lift.
IMHO, for certain, the hoist is the best option.

I seriously thought about the TopLift Pro, but when I'm not using it, what do I do with it? It's really big and bulky, plus my Bronco is not the one that lives in the garage. I am extremely organized with my two-car garage. I can fit my 911, wife's X3, large storage cabinet, extra refrigerator, toolbox, snow blower, two kayaks and four bikes. Yes, we have enough room to walk around without any issues, plus I have room to work on my Bronco when it's in the garage.

My thought was, why not mount some sort of lift system to the garage wall and have long arms that are foldable come out to pick-up the hardtop, similar system to the TopLift Pro and you can literally just have it hoisted above the Bronco and drive out from under it and obviously the reverse to reinstalling it.
The great thing is this is out of the way when you're not using it (similar to the hoist systems shown here).
The pic below is what I was thinking. They make manual - hand crank lifts. If we could mount the crank on the front side and extend the arms out to about seven feet it would be quick and easy. There could be a powered option as well. FYI: the hoist shown is rated for a 770lb. load and costs $1200. This was just one of many I found, but was good for the illustration. Lower capacity lifts were a bit cheaper - as low as $500.

Just trying to think of something different. I really don't like using the slings for the hoist. I'm sure they're fine. I don't like using clamps on the hardtop to hold it either.

Thoughts/suggestions on this?

 

[darinhouston]

This is way I have my hoist pickup points. I hook to the two front mounting brackets on the rear section of the hard top, and at the rear I hook to the lower brackets for the air struts that open the glass. This way, none of the weather seals are touched by straps.

Do you think those brackets are strong enough to hold even the ~70lbs of the main top?

 

[Wheelin72]

Do you think those brackets are strong enough to hold even the ~70lbs of the main top?

Yes, they are easily strong enough. By lifting at the 4 corners, it really only puts about 20 lbs of force on each bracket. The air struts put far more force onto the brackets to lift the glass open.

 

[niterider006]

Yes, they are easily strong enough. By lifting at the 4 corners, it really only puts about 20 lbs of force on each bracket. The air struts put far more force onto the brackets to lift the glass open.

I wouldn't count on that. I think those brackets are on with an adhesive only. But not sure

 

[Wheelin72]

The brackets are bolted to the hard top. The gas struts push "down" on the brackets all the time, whether the lift glass is open or closed. The hoist pulls "up" on the brackets with similar amount of force, which actually reduces the load at the point where the bracket bolts to the hard top. For those with an engineering degree, draw a free body diagram to understand my point.
For the brackets at the front of the hard top, think about how much load there is on those bracket if you drive around with the forward panels removed. As you drive at highway speed with the forward panels removed, there will be hundreds of pounds of force from the air trying to blow the hard top off the Bronco. The brackets are easily strong enough to use as a lift point.
I've done it this way all of last summer, without issue.
The hard top is actually quite light weight. You can lift each corner with one hand, so there really isn't much load on each of the 4 lift points.

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