Opinions and reviews on boat lifts companies?
 

Looking to get a larger boat lift for a Malibu 247. The dry weight is 4000lb, so we are probably looking for a 5500 or 6000 pounds lift. Ballasts would always be drained before going on the lift, so we don't think anything larger is necessary. We would want a canopy as well as a solar-powered motor. We currently have a 4000lb ShoreStation for our boat, but it will not be adequate for the 247. Does anyone have any opinions on the various brands? Ex. shorestation, shoremaster, craftlander, RGC, lakeside, Floe, Hewitt.......

We are leaning towards lakeside because they seem to cost less, but at the same time are getting good reviews. Any other opinions on any of the other brands? Leaning away from shorestation, rgc, floe and hewitt because they seem to cost noticeably more.

I've had no issues with my 6k shorestation for several years now.

I know it is not glamorous but my shoremaster 5000 lb model 50120 is rock solid! I put my 210 on it which is 3,900 dry weight. One time forgot to drain stock ballast and had no problem.

I have a 4500 capacity lakeside lift, it was under $4k shipped from michigan.

Not fancy but has been reliable thus far (after 3 seasons). My boat is 3,000lbs dry but I lift it with ballast regularily

My neighbour on a shared dock has a sunstream hydraulic lift...that thing is sweet but cost about 3 times as much

Is your 5000lb shoremaster price with a canopy? If so, that seems very reasonably priced. Also, with the lakeside lift, are you happy with the quality? Does it seem sturdy?

Check into AirDocks. We have three - one for our 24 foot wakeboat (Tige 24Ve) and two for our jetskis. Compared to the old mechanical style lifts, they are less expensive to purchase, easier to maintain, automatically move up and down or in and out with changing water levels (if that's an issue on your lake), etc. They're easier on your hull than the old style lifts too - since they distribute the force across the entire hull the pressure is about 1 PSI. Boat goes up or down in under five minutes and does so automatically while we're getting other things ready. We've had our boat AirDock for ~8 years now, through two different boats, and would never buy anything else.

Purchase price for our boat's AirDock was around $2500, and our boat weighs ~4500 dry.

Disclaimer: I have no relationship with AirDock other than as a wildly happy customer. My highest recommendation.

I have a lakeside lift as well. 3 seasons old.

Only issue so far has been I had to replace the brake wheel.

The quality is decent. It's not as sturdy of a design as a shorestation, but it is well built. And considering the price it is very good value.

The depth of the canopy, and quality of the PVC canopy is up there with anyone.

We had a nasty storm here in Michigan in June, and the canopy managed to survive 70 mph winds directly on its side.

One tip no matter which lift you buy, is buy the 116 beam width model. I have the 108, and even with a 96 inch beam boat, that is only 5 inches of clearance per side.

No offense but you should not have to replace a break wheel after only 3 years use.

How can you say that, when you probably have no idea what the brake wheel is in this design, how much it costs, and how often I use my lift? :banghead:

I can say it because other brands last like 15 years in my experience.