Above 1200 Sq/FT 86's 20HP shop

[86turbodsl]

I've got the old chains off the outdoor oliver lift and made the couplers for the new chains. For reference, the old chains were a non-standard size that has been obsolete for over 50 years. I am moving to BL544 chain, which is common and available. While i hope to swap masts at some point in the future, i need this lift working now for moving hay bales and forklifts around. Winter is coming...

 

[threepiece]

This is what happens when the following comes together:

1. Perfectionism - I don't want to do something unless i can do it RIGHT and perfect ONE TIME
2. Poor organizational skills - it's just not something that comes naturally
3. Very good at finding great deals
4. Packrat - I have a hard time getting rid of things i "might" need someday

Add them all up, and you get this mess.

Thankfully, i think i've reached the end of my rope, it has to change or i'll end up torching the building. I don't want that, so change it is.

I have been reading the previous posts and the entire thread about your mezzanine idea that was discontinued.

I can honestly tell you, I could have written most of it myself, I feel I completely understand you and what you have been dealing with. It was this post that prompted me to respond.

I want to add another item to the list above that I suspect you will agree with. It is being able to see value where others don’t. This ability comes from your resourcefulness, from the skills you have and the tools and equipment you have that facilitate these skills.

I have loads of “stuff” around my place that many others would call “junk”. It takes a specialized eye and mind to see the value there.

 

[86turbodsl]

Welcome aboard threepiece. Maybe we've run into each other before. I've bought lots of "junk" in Detroit. haha.

I got the new couplers for BL544 chain welded up yesterday, probably a bit overkill but i didn't think a single perimeter tig weld was going to hold thousands of pounds, so i cut 3/4"x3/16" strap into chunks and welded across the two couplers. The new clevis ends are 5/8-18 and the old couplers are 3/4-11 i think. but there's plenty of thread engagement so i expect no issues. Of course i wasn't done before the rain hit and it's been super nasty ever since and the lift sits in the yard waiting. So i'm cleaning house and laundry today. Maybe i'll make it to the shop tonight but who knows. Winter is coming....

 

[bimmer1980]

Sounds like progress to me. Keep chipping away at it.

Hopefully after the rain passes through it clears up with some more fall weather conducive for more progress.

 

[86turbodsl]

Yes, i'm hoping the oliver can actually move the electric namco without the battery. the old namco is reportedly about 3000lbs. The new one is listed on the nameplate as over 4000 WITHOUT BATTERY. The lift is rated at 5000. But who knows how it works hanging out in the breeze. I might do it sideways. I have picked up escorts with the oliver and extensions. So theoretically it should.

I'm also actively looking for a 36v charger. I'm nearly most of the way there to moving to electric if i can get it working without buying a battery. I really like the idea of quiet and no smoke in the winter with the door shut.

 

[bimmer1980]

Do you have a couple of pictures of the battery?

Thinking out loud, are there separate "cells" that you could directly connect 12 volt chargers to? I.e. since you work a day job, having three separate trickle chargers (or similar) running may be more easily attainable than an industrial 36 volt charger...

Or is there a way to adapt one of the chargers from a modern day electric tool? Aren't some of the Dewalt or EGO stuff close to that? 36 or 40 volts.

The electic forklift in the shop would be nice! Its a haze of fumes in mine after running the propane Clark to move equipment around... takes a bit to air out while the carbon monoxide alarms are going off....

 

[86turbodsl]

i don't but could get some once the rain quits.

I have 1 12V charger. It would take a while and there'll be no equalization charging. I really need a real one if this is a thing.

 

[threepiece]

This is the type of stuff that irks me about GJ. Here I am, not one person around me that gives a ****, not one person that has the same interests, not one person that will help me out. Here are two great people with similar interests yet we are miles apart. Why is it like that? I was watching star trek last night and I really wish we could beam around the country.

Indeed, I am surrounded by a Subdivision to the north and east and condominium to the south. After living here for over 40 years I still don’t know any of my neighbors and I suspect they are not interested in knowing me. I have turned into the strange old man in the neighborhood with all the ”junk” and drives that old truck.

It’s nice to visit here with fellows who get it. And now I discover some of you are Trekkie’s too!

 

[86turbodsl]

Yep, 100%. Not much sci fi i don't like. although the wife and i have NEVER seen firefly, and we don't know why.

 

[threepiece]

Welcome aboard threepiece. Maybe we've run into each other before. I've bought lots of "junk" in Detroit. haha.

I have a recommendation of a great scrap yard to visit if you venture this way but I don‘t want to tempt you.

 

[86turbodsl]

maybe in the spring when i have less on my plate, although that's probably not a foregone conclusion.

 

[kent_323is]

This work?

VEVOR 36 Volt Forklift Battery Charger – 30A Smart Charger

Need fast charging? VEVOR 36 volt forklift battery charger offers 30A smart 4-stage charging with OLED display & Anderson plug for industrial use. Order today!

www.vevor.com

This seems like a good gamble to take for $160.
I've ordered a few Vevor tools, and generally they are decent for home use or very light industrial use. So in this case, probably perfect to try on that forklift battery and see if it's enough to make it go.

 

[86turbodsl]

i am undecided on that vevor yet. i have a few of their tools and moderately ok with them. There's a real charger fairly close to work that i'm looking at, a bit cheaper, so we'll see how that goes this week. if nothing materializes maybe i go this route.

 

[bugnut]

HGR usually has a bunch of chargers available....

 

[86turbodsl]

The guy near work with one responded. It looks like a winner and no 4 hr travel and tax.

 

[86turbodsl]

Picked up the charger this noon. Looks like a winner.

 

[bulletpruf]

Picked up the charger this noon. Looks like a winner.

Pics or it didn't happen!

 

[86turbodsl]

More importantly i don't have a working forklift to actually get the thing out of the bed of my wife's truck.

I may have a problem.....

 

[Johanfpa]

More importantly i don't have a working forklift to actually get the thing out of the bed of my wife's truck.

I may have a problem.....

Can you not do it with your engine hoist/crane?

 

[bulletpruf]

Can you not do it with your engine hoist/crane?

Or a chainfall on a jury-rigged A-frame?

 

[bimmer1980]

Well, good step in the right direction on getting the charger!!

Now you have a very definitive reason to get the Oliver forklift completed. It will force you to push thru any issues.

Then get the electrons flowing into the battery.... and then the electrons can flow into the namco!! Let's go, let's go, git r done!!

 

[86turbodsl]

i can't get into the shop right now. Too much stuff in the way. I'll try to get photos soon. Its dark now, and i've got multiple fires burning at work that i need to get on.

Everyone have a better day than me. It won't be hard.

 

[bimmer1980]

Yup, definitely take care of the day job -- that's crucial for keeping the greenbacks flowing. Manage what you can and don't let the rest of it get under your skin...

Good luck!

Regardless, I'm optimistic on your forklift situation. While I'm sure there will be some issues getting it up and running, I'm thinking it will be a nice long term solution.

 

[86turbodsl]

Thanks. there's definitely risk of stuff getting under my skin. Never figured so much conflict resolution would be my lot in life...

 

[M.Brane]

Zen.

 

[86turbodsl]

Well it looks like fall is officially finally here. Today's high 50F, and 50s rest of the week.

Half day today, and i've got the family ******* this afternoon getting chores done. I'll try to take some pics of things

 

[bulletpruf]

Well it looks like fall is officially finally here. Today's high 50F, and 50s rest of the week.

Half day today, and i've got the family ******* this afternoon getting chores done. I'll try to take some pics of things

Still highs in the 90's here. It's hunting season, too, but too damn hot to sit and roast in a deer blind.

 

[86turbodsl]

Here's some photos promised of the various forklift items.

I started to put the lift chains on the big outdoor job Friday and found i was 6 inches too short on one chain. So back to the ordering site and got another foot coming. It's always something. So the namcos can't move until that's done. Then at that point, i can clean the shop out further and work on last minute vehicle services for coming winter.

 

[86turbodsl]

We're going to call this the weekend that never was. Worked on the day job all weekend, minus a little bit of time to clean things up and make this happen.


Now i have to get this thing moving so it's not right in the way of the lift.

And for fun facts, it was EVERYTHING the oliver could do to lift this. Including 2 people sitting on the counterweight. Without battery.
I'm hoping it doesn't punch a hole in my shop floor.

First thing i did is take a look at this thing: Footpedal "lift" The guy i bought it from was like 5' tall. He needed this to see over the dash.



Ground the welds off. There, that's better...

 

[Strouty]

86, I have three electric forklifts, two are 24 volt and one is 36 volt. I am converting them over to deep cycle batteries that I can buy locally. As for the counterweight, I am making a steel box and then pouring concrete into it, this will be the shelf that the batteries sit on. While the unit you got is smaller, I think you could still do something like that. Having an electric forklift for inside use is awesome, no real noise, no real smells, instant on, and fairly easy to maintain.

 

[86turbodsl]

Yeah the more I thought about it the more I warmed up to it. Messing with batteries is way easier than messing with masts.

 

[Strouty]

I like the size of that machine, it should be fairly simple to wire up and you can mix the concrete by hand. I found some decent used batteries, that will be the biggest cost for sure, but in the end it will be worth it. One question, did you check the battery from the forklift? I have have one that was "bad" and while it isn't the greatest, it is still going several years later. Also I do not use those huge chargers, I have a battery minder that will charge at 4 amps and I usually leave it one for a few days a month, more if I am using the lift a lot. You just have to make sure the plates have distilled water covering them, otherwise you can kill the cell.

 

[86turbodsl]

I have the original battery, it is sitting at 36V. I read somewhere it should be more like 38.6V full charge. The big charger has some nice features like equalization and things like that. It's 3 phase but after looking at the schematic, it should be able to run on single.

If for some reason it doesn't' work, i'll throw 3 deep cycles in it.

 

[Strouty]

36 volt is OK, golf carts run good batteries and a lot use 36 volt systems. I prefer 24 volt, but I also have military and equipment that runs 24 volt too. If you run a multimeter across each cell in the pack you will either find they are all low or there are one or two really low ones. Full, they should have about 1.2 volts IIRC, anything lower than 0.75 is usually a problem cell, they make chargers for the individual cells, but they are expensive, I had always planned on using an adjustable power supply. One thing that is confusing, even though I know it is this way, you can charge cells individually, or in groups other than 26 volts without disconnecting all the cables. So if you find a group that has a low cell, you might break it off into a 12 volt group and put a boost charge on it for a bit, then charge it on high. Having 36 volts already is better than bad...

 

[86turbodsl]

Yeah at 36v it's probably not that bad really

 

[u3b3rg33k]

Here's some photos promised of the various forklift items.

I started to put the lift chains on the big outdoor job Friday and found i was 6 inches too short on one chain. So back to the ordering site and got another foot coming. It's always something. So the namcos can't move until that's done. Then at that point, i can clean the shop out further and work on last minute vehicle services for coming winter.

that looks like it takes the same control board as our enersys/enforcer.

one control board for 24/36/48v, you just set the jumper for the transformer you have (if replacing it), and be sure to wire up the input voltage to your power to get the right output voltage. the unit we have came set for 480v, so we had to change it down to 240 and swap the fuses as well.

a watering system is a nice add-on to these. way faster than popping every cap and checking every cell.

 

[86turbodsl]

Do they use up water that fast? Never had a non-maintenance free battery.

 

[83VillageRepair]

i am undecided on that vevor yet. i have a few of their tools and moderately ok with them. There's a real charger fairly close to work that i'm looking at, a bit cheaper, so we'll see how that goes this week. if nothing materializes maybe i go this route.

Sounds like a trip to the new HGR is order. They had tons of industrial chargers last time I went.

As far a the job goes remember you are the one with the technical skills. I suspect the ******* manager has none, they never do.

Edit: I see I jumped in too late with the HGR. The job part still stands.

 

[u3b3rg33k]

Do they use up water that fast? Never had a non-maintenance free battery.

equalizing burns water off much faster than you might expect if you're used to a FLA car battery. I'd give a rough guess we're probably putting in a gallon a month to a 36v 680Ah/24kWh pack. charging a couple times a week, I'm pretty sure it auto-equalizes every couple of cycles (i don't pay that much attention).

ours came with the battery pre-plumbed (it was used). so i just picked up the gravity feed tank and wall-mounted it.
basically each port gets one of these little float-caps and it auto-stops when they're full. probably makes a ton of sense if you have a fleet of the things (if you're not already on LFP forklifts).

 

[bimmer1980]

Looks to be good progress!!!

Is there anything holding you up (other than time, etc) to slide the battery into the forklift and try it?

Are there any "known" or potential problems that you are aware of?

Just a quick function test and hopefully be able to move under its own power would be a good win.

Even if it had a little weeping of hydraulic seals, if it functioned as is, it would be worth it to be able move and hoist your stuff onto shelves.....