Hauling a Mill

[FMC1959]

I am still patiently looking around for a mill. There have been some decent used ones, but haven't pulled the trigger yet.

I don't have a pickup, so when I find one, I will either rent a trailer or U-Haul truck or pickup, depending on the size. My question is for anyone who has done this, with all but the smallest starting at 1000 pounds and up from there, how do you get it from the persons garage(?) onto the truck or trailer? If they have a forklift or big hoist, sure, but assuming there are no special lifting tools, does U-Haul have anything for that weight and size?

More than likely, I will be alone doing this, any ideas on something I can bring along with the truck?

 

[astroracer]

Buy or rent a pallet jack. It's as easy as that. I moved mine with a jack I picked up at a yard sale for 90 bucks...

Roll it into place, install cribbing and set it down. I set mine on 4 x 4 timbers just to make it a little taller.

Mark

 

[Bobcat753]

If you will be alone I would rent a hydraulically lowering trailer and a small forklift. That way you can move the forklift and mill on the same trailer to and from. Since you don't have a pickup you can rent those too from Sunbelt rentals or United Rentals
( same place you rent the other two things).

Also to get a mill on a UHaul trailer or truck you would have quite the struggle just doing it your self.

 

[IndyGarage]

Bridgeport J-Head mill weighs around 1500-1700 lbs depending on the style and size of the table. M-head shown above is less - probably 1000-1200 lbs.

They come apart - you can remove the head and it weighs probably 150 lbs - J-head.

U-haul probably won't let you move a mill in their trailer. If you rent from them you are going to have to tell them you are moving a garden tractor or something.

there are plenty of youtube videos of people moving fairly heavy stuff. You can use an engine hoist to pick it up into and out of the trailer and even move it into place.

I've seen people use pieces of iron pipe to move it across a flat floor. I have a set of moving skates to move heavy stuff - much heavier than a mill - I made a toe jack that lifts it up 3/4 inch at a time on each side alternating, piling up pieces of 3/4 plywood, then put it on the skates and roll it around.

The pallet jack shown above would move it pretty easily - again if the floor is flat.

If somebody nearby has a bobcat or a forklift that's the easiest way to move one.

Just remember they are really top heavy. You don't want to get anybody hurt. Make sure you have plenty of straps to hold it down in the trailer - four corners then a couple going to the top on each side to keep it from tipping.

 

[kmacht]

I moved mine using some 1" black pipe under the mill and a come a long from harbor freight to pull it up the trailer ramp.
Keith

 

[Maui]

I lag bolted a set of 4X4s to the bottom of my full size Bridgeport clone and can easily move it by myself with a pellet jack I bought used for $50. After transporting the mill to my garage on a hydraulic drop deck trailer I simply moved the pallet jack under the mill, pumped it up, and rolled the mill off of the trailer with ease. I had to remove the 4x4s to lower the mill enough so that it would just clear my garage door, and once inside I reinstalled them. I actually left the mill sitting on the 4x4s and have the pallet jack handy for those times when I need to temporarily move the mill to a different place in the garage. I can't tell you how much easier that makes moving a mill by yourself.

Maui

 

[Maui]

By the way, my mill weighs approximately 2300 lbs.

 

[nobody special]

One time I tried lifting my complete Bridgeport 1J with an engine hoist, I personally wouldn't do it again, but others have done it. They are more willing to take the risk than I was. You can disassemble the machine and do it more easily. A single 3/4" wrench takes most of it apart.

Last time I moved it I hired a roll back wrecker. They drug the machine onto the wrecker with the winch, chained it down at the end of the wrecker bed, and drove away. When we got where we were going, they tilted the bed and bumped the hydraulics until the edge of the mill was setting on the ground. Then with some tilting and sliding the deck they set the mill on the ground with near zero manual effort. It cost me $280, which is probably not much more than renting a truck and trailer. I plan on doing the same thing if I ever move it again.

The pallet jack idea is a good one. I roll mine around the garage on 1/2" iron pipe when I need to move it.

 

[Dr Stan]

Ditto on the trailer rentals, but I do not know what you have on the north side of Lake Erie.

If this is your first time moving a heavy object please please get some help from someone with experience. One little Oh Sh!t can be hazardous to your health and to the mill.

Watching YouTube vids will help, but are not a substitute for actual experience. When I worked as a millwright I screwed up & dropped a flywheel off a Bliss high speed punch press. Luckily no serious damage was done, except for my ego.

I'd also look into hiring a rollback car hauler/wrecker. It may be less expensive than renting trailer + truck. They have a nice winch that can load & unload the mill and know how to safely tie down a load.

 

[shawhite]

Might be worth the money to hire an equipment mover. I had my 3 head clausing and large table (3800lbs) moved from the truck terminal to my shop (15 miles) for $100. No way I could have moved it for to much cheaper than that myself

 

[Bobcat753]

U-haul probably won't let you move a mill in their trailer. If you rent from them you are going to have to tell them you are moving a garden tractor or something.

That is my favorite thing to say to Uhaul when I rent a trailer. Although I am now friendly with my local Uhaul manager so he doesn't care what I use the trailers for.

 

[FMC1959]

Thanks for the various answers, some good ideas.

Ultimately, if and when the right deal comes along, this will partially determine what direction I will go in. For the right deal I have driven 2-3 hours each way, but this was usually with my SUV. Something like hiring a rollback car hauler/wrecker, is good if the mill is within 30 minutes of my place. To drive 4-6 hours round trip hiring someone can get costly. Mind you most truck rentals count miles so that would cheaper, but not cheap either.

If it is right around a 1000 pounds, a decent trailer with the mill properly centered would be good in that trailers usually charge X $$$ per day regardless of mileage.

Something close to home, a service could work. Medium distance a rental truck would work but like Bobcat mentioned, a lift gate might be essential. On most moving trucks I have rented, up to 26 foot, usually have pretty narrow ramps. I am not sure a pallet jack would fit, and even if it does, sure as heck doubt it would be easy to roll up to the truck from what I assume would be ground level (versus a level docking platform).

I don't have an engine hoist but figure this would be dicey being that it won't raise it too much off the ground.

I have moved fridges on my own (in my younger days) with the strap ratcheting dollies, that have rollers for going up and down stairs, but I don't think any of them would support 1000+ pounds. And if they did, it may be just a bit too much weight to do on my own.

Any other ideas are most welcome. Ultimately till I find the deal, distance is a big decision maker, and weight also. Right around 1000 pounds is one thing, 2000 plus is another.

Mills are tricky, you can find good deals but if they are too big and far, the cost of getting it home can negate whatever fantastic deal you can find.

 

[My Old Tools]

under 2000# I pick it up with my engine hoist and set it on the trailer. Lift from above with a rated lift strap around the ram.

 

[FMC1959]

under 2000# I pick it up with my engine hoist and set it on the trailer. Lift from above with a rated lift strap around the ram.

Are you talking about a hoist like this?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CO9YME/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Ole Slewfoot]

I use mine for things like that, but Ive got buildings on and off my trailer with nothing but pipe rollers, come along, and levers before.

 

[My Old Tools]

Are you talking about a hoist like this?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CO9YME/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Exactly like that. If you need to roll it around, just lay a couple of 4x4 across the legs and let it rest there while you move it.

 

[My Old Tools]

I use mine for things like that, but Ive got buildings on and off my trailer with nothing but pipe rollers, come along, and levers before.

Buildings aren't quite as top heavy as mills and lathes. I really like lifting from above. Almost no way to turn them over. Bolt them to a large footprint timber base for rolling them around on pipe.

 

[nine4gmc]

Moving heavy things is dangerous, even more so alone. I highly recommend you find a helper with a good head on his shoulders. You also may want to check into Wrecker moving, I've seen several mills strapped to the back of a wrecker. Mine was loaded on to a standard utility trailer with a forklift. I was able to get it off the trailer with a HF engine hoist but it was literally about to explode from the weight so it took me longer to get it off the hoist than it did to ship it 500 miles and get it home.

Friend and fellow member MercLSU rented a hydraulic drop trailer for his, we used a pallet jack to roll it on and off the trailer semi effortlessly. We had to get it positioned with the engine hoist and it almost fell on Merc and through the side of his shop. I will NOT recommend an engine hoist be used at any time in moving a 1k# or more mill. I still recommend a helper if for nothing else but another set of eyes from a safe distance.

 

[My Old Tools]

If you dropped with the engine hoist you didn't have it rigged correctly.

 

[nine4gmc]

If you are talking to me, I didn't drop mine with the engine hoist, it was just more than maxed out at the 1/2 ton setting and I could hear and feel it straining. I would NOT recommend using a standard 2 ton HF engine hoist for a 1k+ lb machine. The boom is not long enough in the 1 ton, 1-1/2 ton or 2 ton settings. It was great as a safety backup to keep the mill from tipping while I leveraged it down with a hydraulic jack and blocks.

 

[WittHay]

A expensive way would be to hire a flatdeck truck with a Hiab or a truck mounted forklift

In a rural area, you could borrow someones tractor or backhoe to lift it on a trailer.

There are tilt car trailers with winches or landscape trailers See what a construction rental place has. The trailer and mill in the picture are not mine, but it gives you a idea that unless it is housed in a specially built crate. Its not something you would haul in a U-Haul van

Make sure you strap it down good, maybe even using chains and cinches (load binder) depending on the size of machine. When hauling machinery, metal on a metal deck doesn't work well. Usually use wood dunnage to prevent stuff from sliding around.

 

[tool_scrounge]

Drop deck trailers are really nice, though a lot of rental companies want you to have a 3/4 ton pickup or larger to rent one.

 

[MushCreek]

I've moved several mills with an engine hoist. I take it apart where the ram swivels on top of the base. Four bolts and it's off. Lift it off with hoist, and situate it on the trailer. I use a bar of metal to lift, although the spider should be strong enough. I lower the table all the way down, and all the way in for better balance and weight distribution.

I had one delivered on a rollback- they raised the front of the bed up, and it just slid down to ground level. Scared the **** outta me, though.

I'm in a similar situation- looking for a mill, and have no way to get it home. I do have a sturdy trailer, but no tow vehicle. Will U-Haul rent a truck with a trailer hitch for your own trailer?

 

[nobody special]

The issues I ran into moving a Bridgeport 1J with the engine hoist were:
1) The machine base did not fit between the legs of the hoist
2) After lifting the base onto stacked 4x4's to solve problem 1), the machine was too tall to effectively be lifted onto the trailer which was 18" off the ground, while the hoist was on the ground (this is still true even without lifting it onto 4x4's)
3) Solving 2) was done by putting the hoist on the trailer, but the legs then were shorter than the boom, so the hoist wanted to tip forward
4) Solving 3) I used a come-along from the front edge of the trailer to the top of the boom near the hinge, and straps from the base to the rear of the trailer. The come-along kept the hoist from tipping and the straps keep the base from sliding backwards when lifting.

edit - having done the above, you really want two come-alongs, because the straps require the release of tension to pull the hoist backwards with the come-along. When the straps released tension, the hoist tilted and slid.

It can be made to work and the problem can be solved, but it sounds as if you have zero infrastructure from which to actually work (no hoist, no truck, no trailer, no help), and that will really limit your options. I posted my experience above, take it is as you so desire.

When I got the mill home, after having lifted it on, I hired a wrecker to remove it from the trailer and drop it on the ground, it was about $50. Later when I moved it again, I just hired the wrecker from beginning to end. Having moved it twice, it just one of the things I'm willing to spend money on.

The best DIY method I see here is the drop bed trailer and pallet jack. I never thought of those when moving mine.

 

[My Old Tools]

A wrecker is an effective way to get it done. And putting over 1000# on an engine hoist at the 1/2 ton setting is not recommended. I use the 1 ton position on mine and it works just fine.

 

[Thumper68]

I just went through this a few weeks back, lots of good advice here and in the thread I started about it as well.

I chose to rent a dropdeck trailer from Sunbelt rentals, we used the bridge crane in the shop I was buying it from to put it ob the trailer, used 6 straps to secure it, four from the ram to the 4 corners of the trailer to keep it from tripping, all 4 needed no adjustment on the 123 mile trip, The last 2 straps were from the base to the front and back of the trailer to keep the base from shifting, theses stayed tight as well.

Once at the shop we used prybars and blocks to raise the mill about 3/4 of a inch to get blocking under it then used a home built toe jack to lift it high enough to place pipes under it and rolled it into position.

 

[FMC1959]

More good advice, thanks for all the responses

 

[KMScott]

I wish I took pictures of how I have been moving Bridgeport type mills and all the other machines. On Bridgeports you should rotate the head 180 degrees to lower the height and drop the weight. then I centered the dovetail portion of the ram to equal out the weight of a 2200lb machine. Bridgeport adds a 5/8:11 or 3/4:10 threaded hole for a eye bolt, then crank your knee up with to set wood blocks on your table to secure everything.

I built a A-Frame from 2-1/2" heavy pipe around 15' high that slips together and wide enough to straddle your truck or trailer then hook a chain hoist to the cross pipe with three pipes in side each other. I have lifted very heavy stuff with this a-frame. Using a chain hoist I lift the machine with machine straps. After the mill is on the ground then several pipes or a engine hoist can position the machine in your shop. I have a machine shop in the basement of my Avatar since 1990 and have moved many machines in and out.

Looking forward to seeing your new machine FMC.

 

[FMC1959]

Thanks Kevin, I first need to find the deal I am looking for, then I will see about getting it home.

All the ideas and advice definitely helps for when the time comes.

 

[FullRaceMerc]

One time I tried lifting my complete Bridgeport 1J with an engine hoist, I personally wouldn't do it again, but others have done it. They are more willing to take the risk than I was. You can disassemble the machine and do it more easily. A single 3/4" wrench takes most of it apart.

Last time I moved it I hired a roll back wrecker. They drug the machine onto the wrecker with the winch, chained it down at the end of the wrecker bed, and drove away. When we got where we were going, they tilted the bed and bumped the hydraulics until the edge of the mill was setting on the ground. Then with some tilting and sliding the deck they set the mill on the ground with near zero manual effort. It cost me $280, which is probably not much more than renting a truck and trailer. I plan on doing the same thing if I ever move it again.

The pallet jack idea is a good one. I roll mine around the garage on 1/2" iron pipe when I need to move it.

A wrecker is an effective way to get it done. And putting over 1000# on an engine hoist at the 1/2 ton setting is not recommended. I use the 1 ton position on mine and it works just fine.

I worked for a guy who hired wreckers occasionally to move large equipment. I always thought it was pretty creative on his part.

 

[Cahark]

+1 on the drop deck trailer and a pallet jack. Rental in Ohio is about $60.00. I've Moved 3 mills, a surface grinder, and a lathe with this method. Works very well, and in my opinion is very safe for most folks with a level head on their shoulders.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk