Heavy-duty lifting, portable convenience — hitch-mounted power for your pickup.
The MAXXHAUL 70238 hydraulic truck crane delivers mobile
lifting performance with 3 adjustable boom settings
(500 lb / 227 kg, 750 lb / 340 kg, 1000 lb / 454 kg) and a
lift height range of 30–84 inches (76–213 cm).
Mount it on any 2″ receiver hitch to load generators, barrels,
or equipment into your pickup with ease — no drilling required.
Designed for flexibility, this swivel crane rotates
360° and disassembles for safe transport. Its
powder-coated alloy steel frame resists corrosion and
supports tough jobsite conditions.
- Three boom capacities – 500 / 750 / 1000 lb (227 / 340 / 454 kg) for various loads.
- Portable hitch mount – fits 2″ receivers, no permanent install needed.
- Adjustable lift height – 30″ to 84″ (76 to 213 cm) for flexible loading angles.
- 360° swivel arm – rotate freely while lifting (remove swivel before driving).
- Heavy-duty steel construction – powder-coated for durability and weather resistance.
Technical Specifications
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Model | MAXXHAUL 70238 |
| Lift Capacities | 500 / 750 / 1000 lb (227 / 340 / 454 kg) |
| Lift Range | 30″ – 84″ (76 cm – 213 cm) |
| Rotation | 360° swivel (removable assembly) |
| Material | Powder-coated alloy steel |
| Mount Type | 2″ receiver hitch |
| Weight | 62.9 lb (28.5 kg) |
| Dimensions | 54 x 20 x 9.75 inches (137 x 51 x 25 cm) |
| Vehicle Compatibility | Pickup trucks, trailers |
* Swivel section must be removed before vehicle is driven. Always follow safety instructions during use.
DoorMats Assurance: Free global shipping, no-drill installation, and responsive customer support.
I was very impressed with the crane. I was in need of loading and unloading a 500 LBS generator and it worked excellent and was not a problem for that weight at all. Very happy with purchase
One modification I made was to use a long string to run from the back of the crane arm to where the hook and chain attach. Tie it off to the support on top. This will allow you to adjust the chain and hook without fumbling around trying to get the chain to line up with the hole for the pin to pass through it.
Will need to modify to get more reach out of the boom
So, I bought this Maxxhaul hitch-mounted crane. And it works pretty slick. I will say that it's way heavier than I expected ... but that can't really be avoided: it's lifting heavy stuff, so it has to be pretty heavy duty, itself. And, even when "broken down" for traveling, it's still a bunch of pieces. But it all goes together pretty quickly -- maybe takes me 2 minutes to set it all up on-site, and another 2 to take it apart when I'm done.
One thing I learned quickly: plan on positioning the tail end of your truck right BESIDE the item that you need to lift. The crane doesn't have a long reach, so basically you're just going to pick up your engine or whatever, and swing it 180-degrees to set it down about 3 feet from where it was when you lifted it, into your truck bed. That seemed to be the most stable way to use it. Speaking of which ... make sure your truck is on pretty flat, solid, stable ground when you use this thing; if you're on a hill, it'll be tougher to swing your heavy item around ... or it'll quickly get away from you and might smash into your truck, damaging it.
One last thing: it doesn't come with chains or straps to connect your heavy item to the crane. I had chains from my engine hoist, so used them. But if you don't have chains or straps already, plan on getting some with it. Some folks use serpentine belts to lift engine blocks and such, which probably would work fine with this, but I'm not sure whether those belts would lift an entire, fully-dressed engine safely.
And it seems well-built. I'm amazed at how smooth and effortlessly the crane pivots on its bearings. Really nice action.
Despite all that praise, I probably won't use this terribly often -- only when I'm delivering or picking up engines. But it's super helpful for that use-case, so I consider it a great addition to my "toolbox." If that's something you have a need for, it'd probably be a good addition to your toolbox, too.
Tires, wheels, tool boxes with tools in them, camping gear containers, etc…
My pickup has a cap on the bed and this lifts works well with that, not really a restriction at all.
The carton was a little raggedy upon arrival, but nothing inside was damaged or missing. Everything went together just fine. I haven't really tried to hoist anything approaching the weight limits, but what I have attempted the unit handled without problem. I have a couple of challenges on the schedule over the next few weeks, and will update my review if warranted.
With that said, I have been in construction for 21years, so I am slightly more adept at these types of situations. Also, you'll notice in the photos is not hanging level...well this is due to in part of the only real "shortcoming" of this unit. The boom arm is justttt long enough to make it adequate. JUST long enough. I wish it were longer. but the engineers have their reasoning. Ours is but to do or die. You can make it work. The engine is not hanging level because I used the crane's short boom length to my advantage to pull the engine out as it went up.
So, yeah a short boom arm, but otherwise a perfect unit. I still completely support you buying this unit. I wish I had one of these 10yrs ago. I love it.
Well made device!
Assembly was a breeze. Stability legs are kind of odd but work. Just keep a hammer handy to knock pins out if you load something and the truck sets down. That makes it interesting to get the stability legs out. But hammers are very useful!!
A few suggestions to make it better:
- Need a clip or tube or something to hold the pump handle - easy to lose
- flimsy bag for bearing - the original was torn out of the box and falls off easily
- All the parts are heavy for this 67-year-old, maybe split into more pieces?
- Add handles to the separate parts so they are easier to carry and assemble.
- Maybe use pins with clips for the crane arm instead of bolts so it can be separated.
- The legs on the crane brace kinda flop around so it's difficult to assemble. Easy to pinch fingers.
As I said at the top, this is a very useful product, but it could be better ;-)
I plan on try to add some of these myself, I will post updates as I go.
Assembly is simple enough, even though I did end up with left over washers. The hook and chain did seem a little long, but that can be fixed by cutting a few links out of the chain. My only comment would be that both the assemblies that you end up with, the base and the lifting crane, are heavy. If they were aluminum, it would all be easier to assemble and disassemble.
Operation does require good judgement. The load must be balanced when you lift because you will want it to be level when you swing it into the truck and set it down. Heavy nylon load straps are best for hook up. Also, it is good if the load can be wheeled, or slid, further into the truck bed. Otherwise, this is a simple one-man operation. I am a 77-year-old senior citizen, and my first use was with a 300-pound wheeled generator, no problem.
Heavy duty, solid, and relatively easy to assemble. I like the pins and velcro on the legs that easily fold. I used removable engine hitch pins instead of bolts on the hydraulic ram as it is heavy along with the crane boom which allows the two to be separated for storage and transport. Barely fit the lower hitch receiver on my Suburban, but it did the job. I hoisted and transported a Chevy 5.3L block which this tool lifted, pivoted, and lowered into the Suburban without any problem. An adjustable boom would be nice, but I can work around that buy just pushing the load into the back of the vehicle.
Used crane picker attached to a golf cart with standard hitch to gain access to Air Condition Units still attached to there concrete pad.
Intent was to lift units and re-level 2 units.
Worked like a charm.
This crane worked beautifully. However, it is HEAVY; I had to take it apart to lift it onto my trailer.
Assembly wasn't very easy either, as I am over 70 years of age. Thank goodness we had family members here to help.
Depending on the terrain, you will have to adjust the legs when you set it up and put it in the slider, but it is very well-built, and I do believe it will do the job that we needed to get done! Mine is a qualified recommendation, you need to consider how much it weighs in the hard it is to put together, as well as what you want to achieve in loading heavy objects. I will say that with the quality and what it will do, it is well worth the money! I would give it a three and a half Stars.
It was easy to assemble and use and works great. This is an offset crane, so it allows one to swivel
a load into the bed without having to go up over the bed sides, very easy to use, load, and unload.
The only negative I have on this unit is that the welds on the inside of the reese hitch "tee adapter"
were not cleaned up and the transverse offset bar would not slide in there freely. I spent 45 minutes cleaning up those interior welds with a dremel and diamond wheel and everything was great after that. Ideally "Bob in welding" should have cleaned up his own welds and made a test fit instead of me doing it for him.
But overall very happy with the crane and rate it as a good value for the price.
This crane is not flawlessly manufactured. I had to take a file to it to deburr some of the drilled holes to get the thing to slide together. It’s very heavy and awkward to assemble - almost as much work as just going ahead and lifting the load by hand.
But in the case where the load is just too heavy for one person to lift... this kluge of a contraption will flat do the job. It’s plenty strong and sturdy once you get it all built. And it’s out of the way, over to the side instead of right in the middle of the tailgate like some.
A considerable chore to assemble and disassemble each time you use it - you can’t move your truck with it attached. In hindsight I might rather have had the type that is permanently mounted in the corner of the bed, but I didn’t want to cut my bed liner so... kluge it is.
It works reliably. It got the job done that I bought it for. I will be glad I have it the next time I need it. And I’ll be glad I don’t need it often.
Not handy, but effective.
it wont reach the hitch in place I have to slide back a little to pick it up ,works has intened.
I would be nice to have a little more reach, it is what it is
Easy to set up and use.
The three stars for the packaging was due to the damaged cardboard exterior.
The crane would not have survived the trip without the 1/4" plywood used as a liner.
not only is she nice to look at , she is some kind of strong
I'd highly recommend this
I don't have to start the vacation or fishing trip with a sore back.
this helped to put the load in the center of my truck bed. GREAT PRODUCT!!!! Thank you.
Now for first assembly, the instructions were absolutely horrible... As an example, there are four total bolts with three different sizes but the instructions only list "bolt" in the instructions, so it did take some guessing to proper assembly. Still, did not take long to assemble but something I wish the manufacture would fix. However, again, once the initial assembly is taken care of, this thing goes up in minutes on the job site.
All arrived well, couple of dents on the box, but the product was all good.
It took me about 20 minutes to assemble (and figure out) the first time, but now that it's all together and in 3 pieces, it'll only take me 1-2 minutes to setup and take down.
It works perfectly for me to do all I need to by myself, rather than rely on someone coming to help. ;)
The Hoist arrived as quoted, and in perfect condition. After a quick fitment in the receiver of my 2006 F350 4X4, it was ready for operation. Very portable, very safe, and convenient. Well made.
Update: I managed to fix it and it's still working. This is the second time the c clip has come out but it's really paid itself off after all these years and can be fixed with a little effort. I've used it a lot and it's still holding up and fairly reliable.
It is very well made, very strong and HEAVY. Just kidding, but you might need another, smaller crane to load and unload this crane...and another tiny crane for that one, etc.
Each boxed item is very manageable even for a 70 year old, just wear gloves and think ahead and don't pinch your fingers. The bolts are well made and the nuts screw on easily. Put it on the truck in a LEVEL place; I don't think you could use it anyplace much off level.
The clip pins work well, if you lose one you can get them at a tractor store. I lubricated pivot points with some heavy grease, and sprayed some moly grease in the bottom bearing and around that upper bearing and shaft area but probably didn't need to. There is a protective bag for the two bearings on the bottom of the finished yellow part; that area is the only place that might suffer from exposure to the weather, on sealed bearing and one sort of open one at the bottom.
I used it to lift an old perhaps 180lb TV into the truck for its final ride, not only saving my back but making something possible that probably wasn't before. I just used a nylon loop around the TV and balanced it by hand as i pumped it up.You'd want to make a better arrangement for very heavy items. (Don't forget when to tighten and loosen the hydraulic valve!)
Now, once you disassemble it for the first time, the yellow part is all assembled, three previously separate parts which were previously easily handled. But now it is all together and VERY heavy for a normal person. To move it easily most anywere is a two person job. (Unless you buy a smaller movable crane to move this one.....ha ha ha). I suppose if you were very concerned about the total assembled weight, you COULD disassemble the yellow part piece by piece as you assembed it, tedious but no big deal if you only use it once in a while, and the big bolts and nuts COULD work just hand tightened.
Makes things possible that weren't before you got it.
Mike
You do have to be aware of height considerations you will have that consideration with whatever non custom crane lifts that are out there. Look at the height the crane will go from your truck bed height.
Easy to setup. The legs the crane mount sits on has adjustable positions which I need because I maybe setting up on uneven ground well most of what I do is remote locations so I need to have flexibility in setting this crane up.
I have used this crane in some other creative ways but I don't want to steer anyone into taking chances.
TIP: I keep several pieces of 2x4 blocks and always have other scrapes in the truck for slopes and uneven ground. This is very heavy duty hitch mount no light weight materials on this crane so it takes loads easily.
For $300 this seems like a bargain if you occasionally find yourself loading and unloading heavy stuff in your pick up. I read the comments about the poor quality of the shipping box and the unit coming with some paint chipped off. I guess that would annoy me too for something new I'd purchased, but this looks like the kind of thing that would get dinged up pretty quickly with normal use. Looks like the bearings also need to be kept clean.
Update 10/24/13
I did buy this item. My primary use would be to load and unload my almost 300 pound Honda generator in and out of my truck.
Quality, function etc - This item is everything (good and bad) anyone who researches it should expect. It is big, heavy, and somewhat awkward for a single person to assemble on the vehicle. Everything went together relatively easilly, and I was able to hoist my generator which was standing on the ground up onto the tailgate of my truck by myself. As demonstrated by the youtube video I reference above, it takes many pump strokes to raise a load. Also, the main bearing is very smooth. As some others have said, almost too smooth. My set up was on a slight incline and you really have to hold the load while pumping. To be honest, its really a two person job to be completely safe. Of course, I knew I'd always have another person with me, we,d just lift this thing up into the truck bed (I've done it, but I dont recommend it). So for now, I stand by my original review in that for the price, this hoist does exactly what I expected.
I did knock a star off for a couple of reasons.
1) When I received the box, it was not badly damaged, but was pretty dinged up. Upon opening it, I found a loose nut, bolt and washer laying inside the packing material. This turned out to be one of the bolts for assembling the hoist arm. I had doubts that all the pieces were in the box when I opened it.
2) The paint and finish of the hoist is not very good. Acceptable, but they could have done better
3) two of the spring pins that hold the adjustable legs on were damaged. The springs were crushed so you could not clip them on to safely retain the pins in during assembly. I used a couple of cotter pins as a temporary fix, and have emailed Maxxtow requesting replacements. I'll update my review to reflect how they resolve this issue.
4) The main bearing for the hoist shaft needs to have a nylon bag covering it after disassembly, presumably to protect it from damage. The bag is pretty flimsy, and already was halfway cut through from being shipped. I'm a bit concerned this bearing will rust causing issues with the crane operating properly
5) Although I was able to assemble the crane by inserting the bearing/hoist assembly into the mounting post fairly easily, when I went to disassemble the crane, I had a very difficult time removing the bearing/hoist assembly from the mount. Its very difficult to twist/ shake/lift the heavy assembly to get it out. It appears to be lubricated with a very thick oil (or thin grease).
I'll add to this review if anything changes. Right now my main concern is if Maxxtow will send me the replacement parts that were damaged when I received the box
Ok, another 10/24/13 update:
4 minutes after I sent Maxxtow an email telling them about the damaged pins I get an email back from them appologizing for my incovenience and saying they are putting 3 replacements in the mail today. So I stuck the 5th star back in.