HARKEN - Hardtop Overhead Garage Storage Hoist for Jeep Wrangler and Ford Bronco, Self-Leveling, Safe Anti-Drop System, Easy One-Person Operation, Garage Organization

I'm new to the world of Jeeps, but I knew that I needed to get my Freedom roof off to fully enjoy the summer. The roof is too heavy and awkward for my wife and I lift off, so we went in search of a hoist - and this is the one we bought.Fitting this to the ceiling of our garage took a whole lot longer than I thought it would, and I thought that the instructions could have been a little clearer - for example, they could have included measurements for common vehicles. I spent a lot of time trying to transfer the vehicle measurements to the ceiling. All in all, I was up and down ladders for about 5 hours. If you don't have 2 left hands, like me, you might be able to do it quicker.I followed the instructions on where to place the hoist points on the ceiling and I wish I'd followed my intuition instead. The hoist points are placed above the outer edges of the Freedom roof, and I wish I had instead placed them directly above where the straps are when you hoist the roof off. This means that, when you pull the roof up, you would be pulling the straps up in a straight line - instead of an ever increasing angle outwards. It feels like the last foot of so of lifting is placing a lot of strain on the pigtail hooks in the ceiling.The instructions say that this is for 10' ceiling, though I think you could easily use this kit on a 13 or 14' ceiling. I have a lot of rope left over that goes through the pulley system, possibly 15' extra feet (my wall is about 8' from the hoist mounting spot). The ropes that attach to the roof are long enough for me to lower my roof all the way to the ground with a 10' ceiling. If you never plan to lower it all the way down, and leave the roof suspended then you have extra height to play with.Once we had the hoist attached to the ceiling it was pretty easy to lift the roof on my own. There's a failsafe in the pulley system to prevent the roof falling, so it's a 1 handed operation. We did have to mess with the lengths of the straps quite a bit, to ensure they were the same length and would lift the roof on both sides at the same time. We left our roof suspended for 2 months - it's just above the high point of the windshield when suspended, though we could get it slightly higher if the hoist points were different, and we used shorter knots in the hoist ropes. Note that this is for a stock Wrangler Rubicon - no lift kit, and stock wheels and tires. Once we lift the Jeep and put 35s on it the roof will be too low to park completely under.I put the roof back on this weekend and it was easy. I was on my own - I backed the Jeep under and the just lowered the roof. The pulley system allows for a lot of control - I could stand to next the rear corner of the Jeep and lower it from there guiding the roof down with my free hand. The only challenge is that, once a corner of the roof touches down, there's not enough weight left to pull the rest down. I had to push the roof around in the harness to try to get it as level as possible, so it was pulling itself down for as long as possible. Still, it was a 1 person job and took me about 5 minutes to get the roof back on - for my first time.Great product, high quality components and makes removing and replacing the roof a breeze

Great product! Exactly what we needed for our tent! It was harder to find the studs in the roof, than it was to install. Definitely a 2 person job to install. The first time to do anything takes longer. I’m sure we could do it alot quicker the next time. Would recommend!

The product was as advertised and seems to be working great, which I would not have suspected after installing it.I gave it 4 out 5 stars because of the installation. It was generally easy overall, but the instructions were not the best. 1st) there were w sets of instructions depending on which way your ceiling joists run. That makes sense. Mine were the second way and I found them to be lacking some of the detail of the 1st. My guess is, when they tell you skip to page X for the second set, they still mean for you to read the 1st set because they don't repeat some of the 1st set details. OK. 2nd) the knot...holy crow! The KNOT! I am not a sailor or a fisherman. I was not a Boys out. It you were, you may have a different experience, but the rest of the install takes a few hours, the knot may take a few days. I did end up mastering it, but I must have tried a hundred times on my 1st one. Check their website for a link to easier instructions. 3rd) it doesn't feel like it should work. I was hesitant the first time I hoisted my Jeep top in to the air. I read a lot of reviews and watched some install videos on YouTube. They all mentioned what they felt to be potential fail points. I agree with them all, but they missed a lot. As you install it you see all the parts. Some are beefy and some you feel like, why did you make that so beefy when this is where it is going to fail. I am obviously no engineer.Overall though, it seems like a great product. It worked as advertised. I will be able to remove and replace my Jeep hard top by myself now. I jostled and tugged on it a bit and it didn't budge, it is solid. I trust enough that I park underneath it every night. Despite my aforementioned concerns, I would buy again.Update: it has been over a year, no failures, the knots still seem to be tight, and everything is in fine working order. My aforementioned concerns seem unwarranted and it is a solid piece of kit. I use it almost weekly removing and replacing my top a few times a week, weather depending. It is also very easy to operate, I can remove or replace my top and 4 doors by myself in about 30mins, removing the top with this is the easiest and quickest part.

I’ve installed it with the help of a friend about a year ago, I’ve used many times since and it still works great, and it doesn’t take any garage floor space.

Product was exactly as described, although the instructions were a bit unorganized. Other than the tools needed (ladder, wrenches/sockets, drill, pencil, stud finder, beer), the recommended 2x6 support boards, a saw to trim them, and some lag bolts and washers for the ceiling were all that was needed (about $12 at local hardware store) that did not come in the box. Beginner to Intermediate experience in tools needed (finding studs/joists, pilot hole drills, trim with saw, vertical ladder work). Two hours later, the lift was up and working properly.For our Wrangler JLU three-piece hard top, great one-handed operation: one hand to raise or lower, the other hand free to guide the roof into position. Straps, ropes, and pulleys seem to be of good quality. Depending on your garage height (mine is 11 feet), can provide good vertical clearance for storage. Definitely could see this being used for other large objects or applications (removable hardtops for multiple styles of vehicle, canoes, light boats, bicycles, etc.)PROS:No expensive tools requiredOne person can install it themselvesSimple one-handed operation of hoistPrice point for capacity/capabilityCONS:Instructions were a little funkyStraps can upset back window seal (for Jeep hardtops)