Engine Hoist Tech Post kinda long....I do have pics :)

[Dave]

Well some of you may remember a couple summers ago or maybe it was near fall I guess when i wanted to buy an engine hoist aka cherry picker.. I forget who it was that fixed me up with a coupon for harbor freight but i ended up getting a hell of a deal on a fold up model.. Well the folding thing was just what the doctor ordered cause my garage is 20ft wide by 24ft deep and although i dont have a problem building or fixing cars in it the just isnt a hell of a lot of room and stuff has to be  placed  where I wont trip over it and it wont get in my way so every (im 5sing here if any of you have been thru lean manufacturing ) value added tool is in its place and non value added stuff needs to be either tossed (ya right) or stored some where else.. 2 weeks ago i started on my shed. The kid got his dirt bike out of there and i commenced to cleaning and im not done yet but i have more room now.. Next I started on the garage . I bought a new tool box and roller chest .. 42 inch wide jobs and emptied my craftsman boxes into the new stuff. (by the way ive got a nice 12 drawer upper box a 4 drawer mid and a 11 drawer roller cabinet cheap but i wont ship but i will drive about 2 hours to deliver.. All craftsman 26 inch wide stuff  but not roller slides.. Still Nice.. Ok back on topic..  Now that im cleaning in the garage im thinking gee this cherry picker is nice but how often do I use it and do i need it in the garage :?:  No but where can I put it the * thing its heavy and too heavy to carry to the shed but there is room in the shed for it.. Im not gonna throw it away hell its been used 3 times so thats when i got to thinking.. I was in the shed cleaning and found a couple pneumatic tires and wheels i got some where so maybe if I made an axle for the cherry picker (and it needed to be bolt on just in case i needed to remove it) I could wheel the thing the 100 feet to the shed :?:  :?: Ok so I made the axle at work (cut the 5/8 round to the length i wanted and drilled and tapped the ends for 1/4 20 bolts.. I then sawed some plates and i had time to drill em for 1/4 bolts and found some 1/4 28 bolts as the square tubing isnt that thick on the picker so fine thread will hold better.. I then came home and mowed the back lawn and Sue was doing the front when i started welding the axle to the mounting plates and I welded washers on the axle as a stop for the inner bearings on the wheels.. Then I clamped it to the picker and drilled and taped the holes 1/4 28 and mounted the axle.. After mounting the axle i grabbed the handle thats used for wheeling the thing around on cement with the metal like 3 inch casters and  leaned it back on the wheels id just installed.. Ok it works but the lower legs fold up and the way they pin the * things they can move forward about 8 inches and they cant be used as support to move it and that would really help as its still not light.. So           I drilled thru the handle into the lower legs (1/4 28 again) and got some longer allen bolts from work and affixed the legs to the handle .. Now when I tilted it back the legs rested on my fore arms and everything was good. Ok i dont have any pics of wheeling this SOB to the shed but i do have pics of what i made and it worked great.. I still was a little winded when i got it to the shed but thats what years of smoking anD 20% heart damage can do for ya         No biggie I won...
hope fully the pics are self explanatory and I hope they help someone that has storage issues like me.. If i need it in the winter though sue is gonna have to shovel a 41 inch wide path to the garage  
Dave

[EMSjunkie]

Do you ever get any actual WORK done at work :?:    

Vance

[enjenjo]

I have the same hoist. i installed a pair of wheels on mine too, a bit larger, but that's what I had. They are set so they are about 1" off the floor when the hoist is upright.

I also made a hitch that bolts on where the handle is on the back. It sticks up past the top of the hoist. I also made the handle a bit wider so the legs will rest on it. When I want to move it from one building to another, I just tip it backwards, and hitch it to the lawn tractor.

[kb426]

Reading this makes me feel a little better because my space constraints are similar. It's better than nothing but frustrating when you have to move stuff or crash into it to do any work.

[48ford]

I remmber there was a place in Toledo that used to rent a hoist,and you pulled it with a car (just like frank is doing).I think every young guy around Toledo rented it at one time or another.
Russ

[enjenjo]

Sparkys rentals.

[Dave]

Do you ever get any actual WORK done at work :?:    

Vance

Oh ya.. this is easy stuff Vance.. Takes a few minutes of free time   Frank my wheels just touch the floor when its upright but thats ok cause i can just unbolt the whole assembly and they do make it wider and that the reason to make it all one piece so i can remove it easily.. I dont have a garden tractor to tow it with and its still pretty heavy but i can get the job done and get it in the shed by myself and Sue was there to call 911 if needed
Dave          

[Jbird]

I remmber there was a place in Toledo that used to rent a hoist,and you pulled it with a car (just like frank is doing).I think every young guy around Toledo rented it at one time or another.
Russ

One of my customers has one. He bought it for fifty bucks so he could lift the original 390 engine, we removed from his Mustang, out of his truck to store it in his garage, for future restoration. I borrowed it once to pick up a couple of core motors. I was amazed at how well it towed. Still have an option to buy it fer a c-note.

I just added a 28x14 expansion to my home work shop, the roof's not even done yet and it's already 90% full. Oh well, Home Depot hasn't run out of wood yet.

[enjenjo]

When I built my shop, I stacked the stuff in a pile, and built the shop around it. It hasn't been empty since.

[Leon]

I put some tires and a hitch on mine so when I get asked to "help" pull an engine I'm not risking my life with a rope tossed over a rafter.  I hitch it up and pull it to the location, set it up and start pulling.  I've only had to tow it a couple times but it does work.

[48ford]

Thats the place Frank,
Over by the old Dana/spicer factory on Bennett rd.
russ

[enjenjo]

Thats the place Frank,
Over by the old Dana/spicer factory on Bennett rd.
russ

They also had a location in the Point, and one on Dorr street near Reynolds.