need recommendations for engine hoist casters

[chavist93]

I have grown tired of the old steel casters on my engine hoist. It's a nice old USA made hoist so I want to get something good for it. What do you guys recommend?

 

[AZAV8]

In your search for casters, look for these specs:
Take your lifting capacity and divide it by the number of casters. If your lift is a 3 ton (6000 pound) capacity with four casters, then you need casters of 1500 pound capacity each.
Get the largest diameter wheel you can find. It will make it easier to roll the hoist and load over the joints in the concrete floor.
If you can find and also afford casters of the load capacity with UHMW polyurethane "tires", then get them. (UHMW = Ultra High Molecular Weight). It will make for smoother rolling on the concrete floor.

Phil

 

[Danglerb]

I buy my casters out of junk bins at swap meets or yard sales, and never put more than about 700 lbs on my 1 ton lift with six wheels. I suspect a large portion of the load goes on the front legs, and I think the rated load for wheels has more to do with rolling so many miles before X happens, and I only move my hoist with a load a few feet. So far no issues with any wheels.

*** My high load wheel use is actually more with Metro wire shelving racks. Four shelves each rated at 600 to 800 lbs, with a total of 1000 lbs actual load common.

 

[fomocoforrester]

You might also want to check that the caster capacity arrived at by the above method is in excess of the wheel load encountered when the jib is loaded to the max. allowable while horizontal and at full extension.

 

[TAMPAGT07]

In your search for casters, look for these specs:
Take your lifting capacity and divide it by the number of casters. If your lift is a 3 ton (6000 pound) capacity with four casters, then you need casters of 1500 pound capacity each.
Get the largest diameter wheel you can find. It will make it easier to roll the hoist and load over the joints in the concrete floor.
If you can find and also afford casters of the load capacity with UHMW polyurethane "tires", then get them. (UHMW = Ultra High Molecular Weight). It will make for smoother rolling on the concrete floor.

Phil

I think most of us only use our engine hoists for removing engine/trannies. I don't have anythink in my garage that weighhs 6,000 lbs. Not even my cadillac, and I use my scissor lift to pick that up. I would think that 500 lb casters (each) would be enough. And just keep the steel wheels, just in case.

 

[fomocoforrester]

I think most of us only use our engine hoists for removing engine/trannies. I don't have anythink in my garage that weighhs 6,000 lbs. Not even my cadillac, and I use my scissor lift to pick that up. I would think that 500 lb casters (each) would be enough. And just keep the steel wheels, just in case.

I think the 6000 figure was a hypothetical one not quoted by the OP.

Surely the principle here should be to maintain the consistency of the rating of the individual components, so that the overall rating of the piece of equipment is not impaired.

 

[neblinc]

Couple of places

http://www.judahcaster.com/
https://www.surpluscenter.com/wheels.asp?UID=2009041715402569&catname=wheels

Randy

 

[Chris Adams]

On guesstemating the load, 6000 ain't far off. Figure leverage. Lifting a Rat with Super T Ten and shield, you are pulling maybe 1500 lbs, but it's at a heck of an angle, so those front wheels are pulling at least 800 each.
Worse, everyone that has pulled more than a couple engines has left a bolt in, so your real load is the engine/trans and five inches of lift on the front of the car...


I know we had a cross lift we used for years pulling Rats with Rock crushers and it did it fine till a guy borrowed the use of it and left one motor mount bolt in a GTO. Bent the 2.5 inch top pipe nicely. We figured it took about 4000 lbs of force. Clown was still pulling on the chain as the pipe got lower but the engine didn't move...
And a boom type hoist would have been under even more load.
You think there might be a reason they used STEEL wheels on it?

Mind you, putting easy to roll wheels sounds like a very good idea, but I would be very sure they were rated pretty high. I can see you rolling the sucker back with the engine in the air, the wheel breaks and it comes down on the grill… OUCH.

 

[swgray]

I think you'd be better served "tuning up" the wheels currently on it. The cost of getting a caster strong enough, and low enough that it doesn't raise the hoist too much, may be cost prohibitive. Unless $200 on the low end of the scale is a good price.

The size of the mounting plate and bolt pattern may also be a factor in your decision.

I'd stick with the steel, though. Or maybe phenolic. Most of the plastics polyurethane, uhmw/hdpe, etc. are strong, but are still soft enough to get stuff embedded in them. That doesn't make for smooth rolling.

 

[Art From De Leon]

I replaced the iron wheeled casters on my engine hoist with larger diameter UHMW casters I bought from ENCO.

I ground off the welds holding the original mounting plates and made new plates welded them to the arms, and bolted the new casters to them.

What I would do different is, instead of having 4 swivel casters, I would have two non-swiveling ones on the legs that go under the car, and have the swiveling ones on the back.

 

[Merkava_4]

What I would do different is, instead of having 4 swivel casters, I would have two non-swiveling ones on the legs that go under the car, and have the swiveling ones on the back.

That's a good point. What diameter wheel did you go with? I'm thinking a person would want the largest diameter possible AND yet still have the legs low enough to slide under the front of the car without having clearance issues.

 

[Art From De Leon]

That's a good point. What diameter wheel did you go with? I'm thinking a person would want the largest diameter possible AND yet still have the legs low enough to slide under the front of the car without having clearance issues.

That is a good point, and something I didn't give much consideration too, as I bought it to work on tractors, and move things around the shop, which is why I would not have had all 4 wheels with casters.
I think the replacement casters are 6 inches in diameter, which would really limit the ability to get under a car, or most pickups.

 

[Danglerb]

What you could do on the "leg" wheels is to switch from a caster below the leg, to a fixed wheel with the axle going through the leg.

 

[Vulturej]

I don't know how much you want to spend, but I bought a set of these low profile casters for a 2 ton hydraulic platform lift at work.

http://www.sugatsune.net/152PDF/250.pdf

 

[nissan_crawler]

Get the largest diameter wheel you can find. It will make it easier to roll the hoist and load over the joints in the concrete floor.
If you can find and also afford casters of the load capacity with UHMW polyurethane "tires", then get them. (UHMW = Ultra High Molecular Weight). It will make for smoother rolling on the concrete floor.

Phil

Negative, get the smallest diameter wheel you can find that makes the weight range. large wheels won't do you jack when you can't get the cherry picker under the vehicle in the first place.

 

[bran1har]

Just had a sugestion for engine hoist easy roll compromise. I did it on my crappy engine hoist that I only use for pulling stumps. I have 2 pneumatic tires on a hinge and a drawbar on the back to tow it around the yard with the lawn mower to pull stumps. just an idea.

Also, to figure the weight you have to divide by two because all the weight is on the front wheels unless you collapse the boom. If I've had the hoist tip forwards when I lifted an engine and trans at the same time, turn it so the trans points towards the hoist not away.

 

[jarhead]

Bringing this back up. Need to replace steel wheels on my HF cherry picker. Any steel when suggestions you all have actually used?

 

[tarbellb]

Good brands to check

Albion, rwm, colson

If the price doesn't scare you off there are top quality. Check eBay for nos stock.

 

[redragoon]

McMaster Carr also sells some casters in various sizes and materials.