Homemade gantry crane

[superkonr]

I have an idea for a gantry crane and I'd like opinions on if it's safe/a good idea. I need something to pull engines from cars and stands, I won't be lifting more than about 700 pounds. I'm thinking that I could get two Horror Freight 2 ton under-hoist stands and securely mount a beam between them. Then I could hook a chain hoist to the beam, roll a car under it, pull the engine, roll the car back out, and set the engine on a stand. Assuming the beam was very securely mounted and thick enough, do you think this would work? The stands are rated at 4000lbs each, I'd be lifting at maximum less than a quarter of that. I've never seen anyone do this before, I want to make sure that there's not a safety reason for that.
Thank you

 

[Dirty Diesels]

Why not just buy an engine crane?, they are more versatile !

 

[Jarhead0408]

x2^^

 

[southernoutlaw]

Why not just buy an engine crane?, they are more versatile !

My thought exactly. I use mine for more than pulling motors.

 

[gte718p]

I have an idea for a gantry crane and I'd like opinions on if it's safe/a good idea. I need something to pull engines from cars and stands, I won't be lifting more than about 700 pounds. I'm thinking that I could get two Horror Freight 2 ton under-hoist stands and securely mount a beam between them. Then I could hook a chain hoist to the beam, roll a car under it, pull the engine, roll the car back out, and set the engine on a stand. Assuming the beam was very securely mounted and thick enough, do you think this would work? The stands are rated at 4000lbs each, I'd be lifting at maximum less than a quarter of that. I've never seen anyone do this before, I want to make sure that there's not a safety reason for that.
Thank you

Or if your already at hoorible freight why not just buy the gantry crane. Its not horribly expensive and pretty decent for what it is. A hand full of good quality grade 8 bolts with some lock nuts and it is down right good. If you want to be really fancy you can put some better casters on it and make it super useful.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Responses with good suggestions.. Those 4000 pound foldable engine cranes are highly versatile and often sell for $200. The HF gantry is three times the price, but is well built, and still a bargain for a gantry.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Also, watch Craig's list for a used one..

 

[404]

Size of the base on the stands looks small to me.. Seems like it would want to tip with a side load yanking the engine around when removing.

When used under a hoist, the hoist itself takes all the side loads so only the down load is on the stand.

Regards,
404

 

[APEowner]

I've pulled engines using everything from a tree branch to a bucket loader and in my experience it's hard to beat an actual cherry picker style engine hoist.

 

[rixtrix1]

Ditto to what 404 says. Too narrow to b stable

 

[azhatchback]

Or if your already at hoorible freight why not just buy the gantry crane. Its not horribly expensive and pretty decent for what it is. A hand full of good quality grade 8 bolts with some lock nuts and it is down right good. If you want to be really fancy you can put some better casters on it and make it super useful.

My father in Law bought the HF gantry for unloading his large pallets of stove pellets from his trailer. It's a nice piece. Hard to beat a cherry picker for engines but when I pulled the 460 out of his 4x4 truck I wish he had had this unit! The A frame we used with a chain hoist was not tall enough, we had to get the neighbor to pull the engine with his tractor!

View media item 44525

 

[sberry]

I have done some dandys too, that is about a 2nd 12 pack by 3pm scheme. I was tempted to look at the stands.
There is enough legitimate testimony for a HF 2 ton picker (some experience too) that makes it about the first and possibly the only piece of rigging equipment a guy needed.

 

[sberry]

I came home a while back to find this.

 

[619DioFan]

I would also highly recommend an engine hoist. I have a 4,000 lb that folds when not in use. have used it for more things that I can remember. see them used on CL all the time for 100 bucks.

 

[drivesitfar]

Sberry: that is one great picture and memory. thanks for sharing.

All: how about this style pallet jack type fork lift? i know they make them a bit taller and they have of other uses like loading and unloading pallets on and off your truck or trailer for one. there are a pair of forks under that table attachment i have on it in the picture. it's made by Jet, but i'm sure there are other companies that make them.

I so like the back hoe idea, but that's me. probably just a tad spendy unless you have a lot of other work for it.

 

[azhatchback]

I came home a while back to find this.

That is so cool. My boy loves the engine crane as he calls it! I'll post one of him helping me yank a engine.

 

[Vegaman_Dan]

Oddly enough, my engine hoist has been around for about five years and while it has lifted a ton of different things in that time, never once has it been used for an engine!

I would love a gantry crane, and I might build one, but even that HF unit is pretty darn cheap when you use a 20% coupon on it, dropping it to around $500 or so. That's hard to beat.

 

[azhatchback]

Here is a pic of my boy. He was 4 in this pic. This project spiraled out of control and 3 years later we dropped the engine back in 3 weeks ago. All done with HF 2 ton cherry picker. It's a good machine.

View media item 44532
Engine going back in 3 years later. My oldest is 7 and the new born then is now 3

View media item 44533
Before:

View media item 39961
After:

View media item 44534
one more after:

View media item 39963
Ok sorry back to the cranes. As you can see my HF picker has been awesome. Had it for almost 9 years now and it's pulled lots of engines.

 

[sberry]

Those are some good looking sprouts. Mine are in to it all, the older one is actually a pretty good rigger. He came in the other day to ask me to look to see if some scheme was safe,,, well, what he was doing wasn't for a 6 yr old but I had to admit he had it rigged well.

 

[azhatchback]

Those are some good looking sprouts. Mine are in to it all, the older one is actually a pretty good rigger. He came in the other day to ask me to look to see if some scheme was safe,,, well, what he was doing wasn't for a 6 yr old but I had to admit he had it rigged well.

It's awesome to see kids in the garage! My boys love it. It's rare to see kids enjoying this stuff these days. I just wish I had a bigger garage! My wife will be done with her accounting degree in the next 2 years. Maybe when she goes back to work we can get out of this cookie cutter house I spent a lot of time growing up at my grandparents that lived on a few acres with big trees. I miss that!

 

[spv]

Why not just buy an engine crane?, they are more versatile !

I find my engine crane a complete PITA. It is anything but versatile. The width of the "feet" are way too narrow to clear the base of things like a pallet. Even getting them into position to lift an engine out of a car can be a pain.

IMO a gantry is far superior. I am currently using a gantry to lift everything for my Deckel mill, including the mill itself. Not a chance that an engine crane could lift the Deckel. Heck my crane even struggles with my lightweight (500kg) lathe. Bends like a banana because the boom is too short for the length of the feet and clearing the stand is not an option due to the width of the legs (again). I can't say I have ever seen an engine crane in a machine shop where versatility of lifting is needed. They all use overhead gantry cranes.

A similar discussion can be found over on HSM relating to engine hoist issues and gantry cranes: http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/threads/33998-Gantry-crane-VS-Engine-hoist

Harbor Freight had a gantry a while back that would sell like hot cakes over here. It was a "1 ton" crane that would cost more in steel (here) alone to build than they were selling it for.

 

[R W]

I find my engine crane a complete PITA. It is anything but versatile. The width of the "feet" are way too narrow to clear the base of things like a pallet. Even getting them into position to lift an engine out of a car can be a pain.

I've found mine to be one of the most useful things that I have
built

 

[nine4gmc]

Great to see kids in the shop but sandals should NEVER be worn in there, much less on a ladder.

 

[Dirty Diesels]

I find my engine crane a complete PITA. It is anything but versatile. The width of the "feet" are way too narrow to clear the base of things like a pallet. Even getting them into position to lift an engine out of a car can be a pain.

IMO a gantry is far superior. I am currently using a gantry to lift everything for my Deckel mill, including the mill itself. Not a chance that an engine crane could lift the Deckel. Heck my crane even struggles with my lightweight (500kg) lathe. Bends like a banana because the boom is too short for the length of the feet and clearing the stand is not an option due to the width of the legs (again). I can't say I have ever seen an engine crane in a machine shop where versatility of lifting is needed. They all use overhead gantry cranes.

A similar discussion can be found over on HSM relating to engine hoist issues and gantry cranes: http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/threads/33998-Gantry-crane-VS-Engine-hoist

Harbor Freight had a gantry a while back that would sell like hot cakes over here. It was a "1 ton" crane that would cost more in steel (here) alone to build than they were selling it for.

Some people will get on with engine cranes, others prefer gantries.
When I first started wrenchin, we used a gantry back then they were great, but you had to shove the vehicle out from the gantry once you lifted the engine out, now when your working on diesel light commercials & 4X4 pick up trucks, you'd understand how an engine crane becomes the tool for the job, yeah you've still got to remove the bonnet for lifting clearance, but with an engine crane you haven't got to push an heavy lump of a vehicle outta the way once you've lifted the engine, you just pull the crane out, simple & easier.

When I did the front fork oil seals on a customers bike, I used the crane to lift up the frame of the bike, it made light work of that job & the engine crane takes less time to set up unlike a bulky gantry which can be a PITA by getting in the way, causing obstructions to your left & right, the amount of times I've banged my head on a gantry frame & the amount of times the gantry has slipped & damaged a customers vehicle was more than enough for me to invest in an engine crane.

To this day in time I've never once had an accident with an engine crane.

Oh & last week the versatile engine crane helped & assisted myself & my colleague put a scrap car shell on the back of a low loader