just finished making my hoist to pull the engine out of my 1911 in the next couple of weeks. should be fun. cheers

That looks like a lot of hard work. Pushing that frame up the wall with your engine attached to it.

I know pictures can be deceiving but do you have enough "outrigger" distance on the legs with the wheels? You're lifting 550 lbs. with that and looks like it c
ould tip over..hopefully not. Otherwise a nice looking rig

Looks like a 5 man operation, to me.
1 to push the car.
2 to manipulate the rig to prevent tipping.
1 to operate the chain hoist.
1 to tilt the motor as needed.

Looks pretty sturdy to me with those big gusset plates, I like it!



(Message edited by cudaman on July 07, 2016)

Be sure the casters are rated for the load.

Any one remember the method of one man doing this without any hoist?

Herb:

Walk it out to the end of the frame, tip it nose down with the ears still on the frame, then grab the 4th main, lift and pivot it on the nose and set it down. I've done it when I was a kid, it's not pretty and I'd avoid doing it again.

aw geez guys....i have already picked up over 600# with it. yes, the casters are rated properly. will be dismantling half of the car to facilitate engine removal. going to swap out the pan for a 1 pc pan and tapered hole hogshead for a square hole hogshead and re assemble. should be fun.
cheers

The one-man method is illustrated in the MTFCA engine booklet.

Me and wifie got it out and back in, and before we were done she was telling me how to do it.

Stuart..glad to hear that. Not trying to be a critical charlie or anything...just being extra cautious, that's my nature. One of my zillion hats I wore back when I worked was OSHA regulation safety for my crews. Spent tons of time and money keeping people safe. Gets in your blood.

Ya I had a wife like that. Sometimes I miss that.The help not the wife. Looks good Stuart. I use the old Massey. NO Strain No pain. It takes up more space though.

For a number of years I used a gantry that was somewhat similar. It was actually mounted on 15" car tires with only one wheel that actually steered. We used it to pick up loads of up to 5000#. As a safety measure we had the frame extended to within a inch of the floor. If the load was to great, or in the unlikely event of a tire/wheel failure the unit just settled to the floor. It never actually happened in 8 years of heavy use, but the reassurance was worth it and satisfied the government inspectors too
You could easily add a block close to each wheel with maybe 1/4" of floor clearance for that extra comfort

It will work fine I would be careful and if you have someone to be there while removing the motor and trans it always helps. Looks like it was a lot of work but I am terrible with wood. Tim

Great job Stuart! KGB

Stuart,
Looks great, although I agree that I would probably want a wider stance for the base wheels. As long as you're careful, and don't run into any small objects on the floor to stop a caster, you'll be good.
I was lucky enough to find a Harbor Freight engine hoist at a yard sale! Yeah, China made, but it's done a lot of lifting, including lowering a 5 hp Theatre Pipe Organ blower into the theatre's basement! (yeah, I also added a chain hoist to get 10' vertical movement.)

-Stuart, David, Mark, and others-
I've got both the Harbor Freight 1-Ton gantry crane and cherry-picker. Since I'm usually working alone, (my wife checks on me), a helpful addition has been a 2-point tilt/leveler. The 'screw/crank' adjusts the center of gravity, and can make the situation much easier. Good castors & trolley hoist on a clean, level, hard surface just makes sense to me. I do shudder when I see the TV programs using a fork-lift with a chain looped once around.... Chains to 'how many engines' slide forward or back as they're being lowered in? Sideways adjustments??? JMHO.

Good workmanship but I agree with others to be careful because of the engine weight.

The engine hoists that have the legs going under the engine keeps the engine from tipping over the hoist. I wouldn't try to swing the engine much in either direction as that could happen if you did.

Center of gravity? Forklifts??

Sorry for the thread-drift. If you really want to shudder at something, here's an old thread showing a Model T on a trailer being lifted to a second story doorway via two forklifts to be used as a prop in Ragtime. Yup, the inevitable happened but thankfully no one died. If you look closely at the front wheel on the ground, there is a man laying there in a gray hooded sweater with his feet up in the air still. He WAS standing alongside the Model T on the trailer being lifted.

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/80257/80357.html

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/not-the-smash-they-were-hoping-for/article_cf d810f1-e79e-55a1-801c-d9b3cce2115f.html


Garnet

ahhh...the engine is out..no problem, now just have to remember how it all goes back together.

Hey nothing wrong with that. We built many things over the past 1000 years using wood cranes and hoists. Looks like you done a really good job. You should sell them.

Love that open valve engine, it looks good from the outside so why did you pull it?

It's so pretty, it's a shame to put that engine back in the car. Mary would let me put it in the living room next to the T.V.

Another home made gantry:

thanks for the comments.....its been a three year quest to finally get a one piece pan and square hole transmission cover to replace a later two piece pan and tapered hole cover. although the pan is an altered two piece, it has all the correct elements, and the trans cover is from a newer casting i got and then machined.

Looks good Stu.

I hope while you had the pan off you re-checked all your rod and main bearing clearances.

If you didn't, well... least you have the hoist and the expert knowledge of how to pull the engine out...

: ^ )

keith

everything is good.....the engine has less than 100 miles since a complete rebuild. the hoist will disappear when the engine is back in and tested.

i now longer have a need for the hoist setup, anyone in the northern cincinnati area that would like it may have it, the exception is the chain fall, i will sell it for what i paid for it.
thanks