Just back from the JLC convention (which was great, even if there was virtually nothing to eat but hot dogs and pizza made from cardboard liberally doused with candle wax) and was tempted (again) by the Little Giant Ladder company.
This ladder is an A-frame with a hinge at the top, and can be converted into an extension ladder. It seems like a winner to me (I could have used it on a stairwell job a few weeks ago.)
My questions are, how do you like them, and are they worth the major outlay for them. ($550 for a ladder, even a convertible one, is huge for a one-man band like myself.)
Thanks.
BTW, I wasn’t joking about the pizza. And I bought a new framing nailer. DW wasn’t surprised.
Replies
I love mine. I got the work platform and seem to forget it in the truck but it seems good and solid. The leg adjuster is a big pain to use but I'm glad I have it.
My vote is buy it.
i told ya nick.. shoud of gone up the HIll to Angelo's with us....
Little Giant.. been looking at them for 10 years.. always found something i need more... nothing bad to say about them.. just sorta struck me as the ShopSmith of staging...you know ,..one tool fits all...not..
we've got baker staging.. step ladders, alum-a-pole, pipe staging... when you come down to it . i guess it depends if you are a one-man-band or not.. if you have a crew.. the LG may be too limited... if it's just you... might be just what the doctor ordered...
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I appreciate the invite, Mike. Friday my wife went to the show with me, as kind of a date. She sat through a whole day of listening to Myron Ferguson, taking notes on drywall techniques, so you know how that goes. Yesterday I left early, and disappointed. New job I wanted to get a jump on, but I felt a little cheated. They had substituted some events, so my carefully laid out schedule was blown to bits. And a lot of those demonstrations are pure advertising; I went looking for tips and technique (Myron was great for that) and all I got was a promo on how great the product was. (Myron was great for that, too. If I hear one more accolade about USG, I'm gonna pitch my pail of compound in the lake.)
I am looking forward to next year, though. But maybe I won't do all three days.
BTW Mike, I have a Shopsmith, bought it 21 years ago. I have since bought about everything else, so now it is used as a disc sander and drill press and space waster. But it served its purpose early on when all I had was a garage shop filled with cars.
I know what you're saying, though.
I never met a tool I didn't like!
Nick: Try Grainger. I think they now carry them. I bought mine off the floor so the Rep wouldn't have to sip same back to Salt Lick City. Got a pretty decent break on it.
DonThe GlassMasterworks - If it scratches, I etch it!
I just bought the second from largest 300 lb rated ladder. I wanted one ladder that would fit inside my pick-up cap that could do it all.......and it does!
I looked at Gorilla.....1/2 the price, but made in China and parts are not available. As far as I can tell, the adjustable step/shelf is not available for it.
I looked at Jaws and just thought it looked cheap......my opinion.
Soooo I bought the Little Giant for around $400.00 at a show in Timonium. They matched the price from this website http://www.laddersource.com/GiantIA.html
jocobe
Thanks, that's the cheapest I've found. (Grainger sells the same ladder for more than a $100 more.) Of course, the shipping would be a pant-load.
Thanks again for the info.
I never met a tool I didn't like!
No problem.......for the size I bought they said the shipping would be $30.00 from their plant to Baltimore via UPS.
The next size larger ladder would be more expensive 'cause it would've shipped via common carrier.
Good Luck!
jocobe
Plus..........no sales taxes!
Edited 4/6/2003 9:09:42 PM ET by JOCOBE
Nick: They are greater than sliced bread, canned soup and nighttime baseball. Noontime sex should start packing its bags! I bought one about two yrs ago at the Etlanner, Jawja, Home Show, and absolutely love it. The best part of it is the work platform you can place on a step and stand w/o getting sore feet or arches from standing on a rung for a long time. I have used mine every way they show you in the brochure. I have had subs working for me that use my ladder rather than their own.
Fer cryin' out loud, go buy one. You'll wonder why you waited so long. Bewsides, if'n you are in business, it comes off the gross before taxes! That right there is about a 28% discount to start with.
Don
We have 2 little giants at work, I personaly hate them, but they are good on uneven surface, they are ok as a step ladder, a little less then ok as a scafold, and plain stink as an extension ladder.
Just my 2 cents...
It is a great ladder. It is in it's element in stairs or uneven surfaces. I also got the extension leg
The downside (other than the price) is the weight. It is not a light ladder to move around compared to a fibreglass step ladder.
I am a one man operation and I bought it because it is so versatile. It is the ideal step ladder if you always carry one on your truck.
FYI. I got mine at the JLC show in Baltimore for about $439.00. I have the second argest size. The largest size is almost impossible to move around.
Love it. Granted, depends on what you do all day, but it's compact and it stretches and has saved me I don't know how many times from trying to cart something unwieldy like an extension into those stupidly small entries with two story open ceilings.
But you gotta get the hook up on pricing. $550? Wowzers. I would assume retail chains price similarly across the country. I got the Type 1A 17' with the deck at Sherwin Williams for $300 even. About a year ago.
" Blessed are the forgetful: for they get the better even of their blunders" - Nietzsche
Thanks for the feedback. I think I'm gonna take the plunge, but will have to wait until I find a more reasonable price.
RW, you were able to buy the ladder through a SW store? As often as I go in the local SW, I've never noticed any ladders for sale. Was this an ordered item?
Thanks again for the responses.
I never met a tool I didn't like!
Edited 4/6/2003 6:50:35 AM ET by NickNuke'em
Nope. They had (and still have) them sitting on the sales floor. Maybe ask if they carry their ladder stock at another store or ask to speak to the local sales rep. if you don't see them there. It was and still is the best price I've seen on the Little Giants. " Blessed are the forgetful: for they get the better even of their blunders" - Nietzsche
I can't tell you what you want, but you might want to take a look at these.
I have 2 of them, and use them all the time. The Little Giant type things never tempted me.
I bought the second largest little giant a few years back, and use it pretty regularly. I would highly recommend it, but now there is a ladder identical to it in all except price. I think home depot carries it, and I think it is called the gorilla ladder.
Several guys I work with have picked these up, and I cant tell a difference between them. In fact the pivot locking seems to work smoother on the gorilla brand.
Whoa ! $550 US greenbacks ? I bought the Jaws ladder, which I understand is the original that the Little Giant is based on (they make them under license). It was around $400 Canadian ($275 US) for the JT26, that's the biggest one.
http://www.featherliteladders.com/products/multiprp/jaw.htm
Anyway, at 54# is a pain to drag around and set up; but, I'm working on a two-story stairwell and I don't know how else I'd be able to get up to where the wall meets the ceiling without scaffolding.
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
I just bought the short gorilla little giant from HD for $ 100.00. 6' step, 13' extension.
larger is 200.00 or so.
I suspect that's from the lighter-duty line (they come in two grades).
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
Personally I like having separate equiptment designed for separate jobs.
MAybe in almost 30 yrs I've accumulated it all but as far as ladders and scaffolds go..I think I accumulated all that in my first five years as one of the most important things a builder can own IMHO.
Seems to me these fold up ladder/scaffolds (of which I own one cheapie I never use) are more like another "gimmicky" tool to waste money on.
Spend your money on the tool you actually need when you need it.
I mean.....do you have sooooooo many jobs in a day that you can't go back to your shop and switch equiptment?
Tools and equiptment are additive so beware and be realistic. $500 is ridiculous IMO.
Be the Right tool for the right job
Namaste
Andy
"Understanding yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth"
Alan Watts
http://CLIFFORDRENOVATIONS.COM
Andy-
I guess it depends how you are using the tool. Most of my work is repairing windows. The Little Giant does it all for me. Inside a 2 story foyer, I'll extend it as a step ladder......outside, where there's steps or a roof....I'll use it like an extension ladder. The platform that attaches to the rungs allows a small area to stand when I have to work at heights for a long time.....way more comfortable then standing on a rung. I've had to get to areas above stairs..........the legs adjust independently. Comes apart to make 2 trestles, just add a plank to make a scaffold......that's nice when I'm working a big window, 'cause I don't have to keep moving the ladder around. The ladder fits in the back of my short bed PU, so I don't need a roof rack. When it's a step-ladder, it's rated to have two people on it at the same time..... that comes in handy when you have to take down a large pieces of glass.
If you're into tools, you'll know that it is high quality, just by looking at it. Sorry, but the Gorilla looks like Chinese crap to me (no judgement there ;-)) I'd be wary of the quality of aluminum and the welds on the chinese made ladder.
I'm not gonna be cheap when it comes to my safety & heights!
jocobe
Edited 4/7/2003 3:38:42 PM ET by JOCOBE
I bought an A-frame ladder at Sam's Club a few weeks ago--$135 for the 17-foot extension, which converts to an 8-foot step ladder--perfect for the 12-foot cathedral ceiling I'm currently sheetrocking. It's made by Cosco, a Canadian company, though I'm not sure if the ladder is actually made in Canada. I looked it over pretty thoroughly at the store and again when I got it home and I don't see any places where it's obviously shoddy. All the various conversions seem to operate quite smoothly. My only concern might be using it as an extension--it's rated 300 lbs and I'm 250 and I have a hard time visualizing the hinge not buckling in the middle when I'm on top! (On the other hand, I've been using my regular 28-foot extension uneventfully for many years, and it's rated at 250!)
Math Question time?
At exactly what speed does a human body falling from a cheap ladder realize the hospital bill will be more then the money saved?
____________________________________________________________________If you were arrested for being a quality builder would there be enough evidence to convict you?
Yup, Cosco is Canadian, main plant is in Montreal, wholey owned subsidiary of Dorel (as in "Dorel Boats"). Listed on the TSX (DII.A and DII.B) and NSADAQ (DIIBF)..
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario