A good repair stand is the foundation of any bike workshop. Having the bike held securely and at a comfortable working height isn’t just more efficient; it can lead to better results. In recent years, the popularity of heavy e-bikes has made lift-assisted repair stands an occupational health requirement for many professional workshops around the world. Of course, many owners of such heavier bikes, or those with injuries, can also benefit from a little hoisting assistance.
Having a helping hand in lifting and lowering a heavy bike is great, but what I didn’t anticipate is how much benefit there is to having easy height adjustments available for any repair. I now often find myself tailoring the working height of a bike, whether that’s for getting a better angle when bleeding a disc brake, sitting the fork down onto a stool to service a headset, or sitting the wheels onto the ground to stomp on a wrench.
Electric repair stands have been in the market for a number of years, but it’s only recently that we’ve seen a few options designed and priced with smaller-scale shops and enthusiast home mechanics in mind. First was the Remco Bike Lift (a product I previously reviewed) and that now has some competition with the Feedback Sports Pro E Lift. In this edition of Threaded, I review and compare the two.
If an electric repair stand is a little rich for you, then I previously reviewed two premium folding workstands against each other: the Feedback Sports Pro Mechanic vs the Park Tool PRS-26. Even if you’re only in the market for a more budget option, the thoughts in that review should be of value.
Basics of both
Both the Remco Bike Lift and Feedback Sports Pro E Lif are workshop-style repair stands designed for indoor use where you have a dedicated area for tuning, tweaking, and assembling bikes. Since they’re electric, you’ll need a way to plug them into a standard household power outlet. That’s a big departure for Feedback Sports as all of its previous stands were foldable and made with transport in mind – though there are still elements of that here.
Both stands are of the workshop clamp variety, meaning they’re designed to hold a bike by the seatpost. You can also use a frame clamp adapter such as the Silca Hirobel if you want to grab something other than the seatpost. Clamping the frame with a stand like this is never recommended unless it’s thick-gauge steel and unpainted.
Feedback Sports Pro E Lift on the left, Remco Bike Lift on the right.
The Feedback Sports stand comes as a turn-key product that includes its own integrated base and clamp, with the whole kit and caboodle retailing for US$1,250 / AU$1,900 / £1,300.
Things are significantly more complicated with the Remco. Remco initially designed its Bike Lift stand to be an upgrade for the thousands of shops and home mechanics who already owned a Park Tool PRS workshop-style stand. If that’s you, Remco offers just its electrical Bike Lift column at US$645 / €720 / AU$TBC, which would then sit between the old Park Tool steel base (or floor mounting plate) and clamp assembly.
Of course, Remco also offers all the other pieces you may need if starting from scratch, including its own steel base and a variety of pro-level clamps from Efficient Velo Technology, Unior, and Feedback Sport. A stand, with Remco’s steel base, and an offshore-manufactured version of EVT’s wonderful Right Arm Clamp (Field Unit Edition) retails for US$1,244 / €1,432 / AU$N/A.
Remco offers its stands in a number of configurations with a growing list of optional add-ons and more premium pieces (such as the Heavy-Duty Chuck Adapter, not pictured).
Neither stand includes a tool tray, but both offer them as an add-on. Feedback Sports has two new options to choose from, costing either US$30 or US$50 (covered in Threaded #49). Remco’s stand can be used with Park Tool trays or its own premium offering (US$120).
Winner: It’s a draw. While the Remco is cheaper for those already with a fixed Park Tool workshop-style stand, it’s on par if you need a base and clamp.
Alternative options
While those prices are fresh in your mind, let’s look at how they compare. Most notably, both of these stands are significantly cheaper than other pro-shop-focused electric offerings. For example, a Park Tool PRS-33.2 retails for US$2,390 and is much more of a permanent fixture due to its size. There are many pro-focused electric stands that compete with the Park, including those from VAR, Unior, Ezoord, and even RockBros. The list goes on, but none are in the price range of the Remco or Feedback Sports.
There are counter-balanced and non-electric options, such as the EVT EzLift, which start from US$2,600 (and are difficult to source outside of the USA). Italian brand BiciSupport also has non-electric options, one that’s counter-balanced and another that’s pneumatic (connects to an air compressor).
Built for home mechanics, Topeak offers its Prepstand eUp Pro folding repair stand that operates with a gas piston, just like a big dropper post. At US$950 and with an assisted lifting capacity of 17 kg, my brief play with one left me wanting more.
Threaded is an ongoing series created for professional mechanics and enthusiast home mechanics in search of continuous improvement, or at least ways to bring more efficiency, precision, or just joy to the work.
It’s photographed, written, and created exclusively by me, Dave Rome. With approximately 20 years of experience on the tools, and more than a decade of documenting other mechanics’ work, I aim to share my passion for finding quality tools and tips on how best to use them.
This series takes many hours to create, and the information shared isn’t available elsewhere. You will hit a paywall soon. It’s merely through the support of our members (readers) that this content exists.
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Which brings me to two brand-new options from Park Tool and Feedback Sports, neither of which I’ve tested yet. The Park Tool PRS-30/LB (US$900) is a mechanical lift stand that can be operated with a hand crank or an electric drill to raise and lower up to 54 kg of bike across a more-limited 58 cm travel range (64 cm minimum). Feedback Sports’ new Pro Air Lift (US$725) isn’t out yet, but this folding stand is adjusted with a bicycle pump to lift up to 45 kg bikes across a 107 to 170 cm height range (that minimum height is notably tall).
Want something cheaper? Look to the myriad of folding options.
Don’t need assisted lifting? A stand such as the ubiquitous Park Tool PRS-3.3-2 will set you back US$995 with the #130 steel base. Meanwhile, the Feedback Sports Pro Mechanic and Park Tool PRS-26, both pro-level folding stands, retail for US$425 and US$473, respectively.
OK, back to comparing the Feedback Sports Pro E Lift and Remco Bike Lift.
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