Transitier Forklift

[Yale]

Hi, my name is Chris and I have a forklift problem.

I'm a long time lurker with a few posts here and there. I thought some of you might want to follow along with my latest project.

It started many years ago after we bought our house with a huge (for Seattle) garage. I had a few things that I needed to move that would be much easier with a forklift. I could have rented one but where is the fun in that. Instead, I found the cheapest one on CL. They even offered delivery!

My thinking was that I would get it running, use it for what I needed and then sell it.

That was 12 years ago. It's just so nice to have around.

It sure ain't pretty but it works:



It's an early 50's Yale with a Chrysler Industrial 230 flathead 6.

Since I've had it, I've replaced some hoses, converted it to 12v and replaced the starter.

It has served me well but there are some things that are less than ideal (besides how it looks).

- It's big. It's a 4k capacity machine and I rarely lift anything over 1.5k. It's too big to maneuver around in my narrow garage.
- It's gas. Since my garage is below the bedrooms of the house, running it in the garage (with the doors open!) stinks up the place.
- It has solid tires. This is kind of the big one. Since it's designed to work in a warehouse with smooth concrete floors, it doesn't do well on gravel or dirt or anything other than concrete. Since half of my driveway is gravel, I can only access one side which is limiting.

So, I set off to find a replacement.

 

[Yale]

I did some looking around the usual places (CL, OfferUp, MP, etc.) There were a few possibilities but nothing great. Then I remembered a small lift behind a garage nearby that i had noticed years ago. I drove by on my way home from work and spotted it sitting off to the side.

It was small (check!), it had a propane tank strapped to the side (check!) and it had pneumatic tires (CHECK!)



It took me several days and stops to finally talk to the owner but he was willing to part with it for not much money so a deal was struck.

For those that are unfamiliar with this make and model - which turns out to be pretty much everyone as near as I can figure - while the mast says Pettibone-Mercury, the original design is by a Portland, Oregon company called Transitier. They built them just after WW11. They are a unique design that originally used Crosley car engines. I think Pettibone bought them at some point and started using Waukesha engines - which this one has.

My friend and I went and picked it up last weekend.


That's my '79 F-250 with my other friends trailer and my friends '55 (I think) Jeep FC-150.

 

[Yale]

So, over the last week, I've been working on it here and there as I get time. Here's what I've found:

The good:
- As far as forklifts go, it's adorable! And it's the perfect size for my needs (2.5k)
- Propane powered
- Pneumatic tires
- Whoever had it before took decent care of it. All of the fluids are topped off and clean.
- The engine isn't stuck. I can turn it by hand.

The bad:
- It's missing the part that makes it a forklift - THE FORKS! The PO says that he has them "somewhere in the back" but I haven't been able make contact. I haven't paid him in full for that very reason. Hopefully, they will turn up.

- Parts are not exactly plentiful. I haven't been able to find a manual even.

- The clutch is seized. The PO told me as much when I bought it and there is evidence of someone trying to free it up. However, the little information that I have found indicates that, unlike most other lifts, this one has a very accessible and easily serviced clutch so I'm not too worried.

- It doesn't roll - something is stuck. There is almost nothing more difficult to move than a forklift that won't roll. Luckily, this one is 'light' and we were able to drag it onto the trailer with a chain hoist. It's either the 90 degree gear box that's seized or the e-brake is stuck on. I think it's the latter and I'm hoping as much because well, the parts thing.

The plan:
Get it rolling and off the trailer and then get it functional. I'll probably throw some paint on it but this IS NOT A RESTORATION.

What about the old lift? Well, I don't really need one lift, let alone two. There is a guy down the street that runs a charity that sends clothes and dry goods in shipping containers to Ethiopia a few times a year. He has borrowed my lift a few times to load said containers and expressed interest in having their own lift but he can't afford one (have you seen the used forklift market lately? Sheesh!). So, I'm donating my lift to him as soon as this one is functional. And, if I ever do need to move something heavier than what the Transitier can handle, the old one will only be a couple blocks away.

 

[Yale]

Step one - get it rolling. The rear tire is barely holding air and there is no easy access to put air into it. So, first thing to do is figure out how to remove it and get it fixed. I lifter the back end and blocked it up and found this:



So the rear axle is held on with a nut on each side. Remove them and you get:

The steering fork then looks like this:

Pretty dirty but it's really hard to get in there and it's on blocks on a trailer so, dirty it will stay.

The wheel turns out to be a two piece bolt together deal that the hub then bolts to. Undo 10 nuts and you're left with:


I couldn't find any holes in the tube and the valve appeared to hold air. But, given what a PIA it is to get to, mizzel replace on it.

Quick trip through the solvent tank and:


Stuff everything back together, air it up:


Bolt it back in, lower it off the blocks and three functioning wheels!

 

[Yale]

On to the clutch. As I stated before, the clutch is designed to be easily serviced. It's actually front and center when the access cover is removed.


The pedal on the left actuates a master cylinder that pushes fluid through that piece of brake line to the top of the clutch cover. There is a piston in there that pushes on the throwout bearing and actuates the clutch. The piston is currently seized. Someone has already been here with penetrating oil but nothing is moving.



So, after carefully unscrewing the line fitting and undoing 3 bolts, the whole assembly comes off leaving the pressure plate and disc behind:



The clutch cover is one big ball of rust:


The piston (slave cylinder) is supposed to move up and down - it does not. That threaded collar is supposed to turn to adjust the return spring tension - it does not. The pipe plug on top comes out and gives access to the back side of the piston. Remove a spring and insert a drift, a little tappy-tap and:


There is a rubber brake cup behind the piston. Everything looks like it will clean up fine. I'll get a new cup and a brake cylinder hone and get everything cleaned up and reassembled.

And that brings up up to today. I also managed to get it to fire off with some gas down the mixer and it runs pretty well. I may need the collective expertise when it comes to the propane system as I've never worked on one but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Let me know if you know anything about these lifts or if there is anything you would like me to go into more detail on.

 

[txvwnut]

That’s a cool little lift. I can tell you from experience that the pneumatic tires on it don’t play well in gravel either.

 

[Yale]

That’s a cool little lift. I can tell you from experience that the pneumatic tires on it don’t play well in gravel either

Yeah, probably not ideal but it has to be better than the solid tire. Plus, it really isn't that heavy so I'm hoping for the best. I did see a video of one driving on grass so it can't be that bad.

I've got the clutch back together and working again. I'll post pictures of that soon.

I started digging into the propane system and it appears that the main solenoid valve is DOA. It don't click or nothing. It has what appears to be a sediment or water trap attached to it? Can I replace it with a regular propane solenoid valve or do I need the trap?

 

[slowtwitch73]

I wouldn't work on it until the forks show up.

 

[Wrench97]

Have you tried the forks off your current lift?
Forks are usually pretty standard items.

Class 1

Carriage height: 13”

Lifting Capacity: Less than 2,200 lbs.

Class 2

Carriage height: 16”

Lifting Capacity: Between 2,200 lbs. and 5,500 lbs.

Class 3

Carriage height: 20”

Lifting Capacity: Between 5,500 lbs. and 10,998 lbs.

Class 4

Carriage height: 25”

Lifting Capacity: Between 11,000 lbs. and 17,600 lbs.

Class 5

Carriage height: 28.66”

Lifting Capacity: Between 17,602 lbs. and 24,198 lbs.

What is a Forklift Carriage? Basic Terms and Classes

In this guide you'll learn both about carriage height and what that height implies for your potential forklift lifting capacity.

www.toyotaforklift.com

 

[captain14]

Nice project. Keep us updated.

 

[Yale]

Have you tried the forks off your current lift?
Forks are usually pretty standard items.

I have not but the mounting plate on the new lift looks a good deal smaller than the old one. Thanks for posting that link. I'll see if it falls into any of those categories.

I honed and reassembled the slave cylinder:


Then I removed the pressure plate and clutch disc. The disc was solidly adhered to the 'flywheel' but I managed to pry it apart:



The disc is dirty but I hit it with some brake clean and cleaned it up as best I could. There appears to still be a bit of material left so I'll let it ride. Super easy to get to so NBD to change it if it fails. I hit the pressure plate and 'flywheel' with a wire brush and bolted it all back together:


Next, I turned my attention to the master cylinder. I had to remove the pedal and rod to get a wrench on the reservoir cap which, miraculously, loosened up without any great effort:



I topped it off and straightened the rod that had a slight bend in it. I also loosened and oiled all of the adjustment threads. Then, I put everything back together and bled the system. Everything now operates as it should.

 

[Yale]

On to getting it running. I got it to fire off of gas so I know it runs. The plugs look clean (on the important end) due to it running on propane:



But, it definitely need plug wires. So, I'm hopeful that I can find some local. I may need to make a set custom. I opened the valve on the propane tank but I'm not getting anything to the engine. I traced it back to the solenoid valve. After removing the solenoid and putting power to it, I'm not getting anything. So it needs to be replaced. However, googling the PN doesn't get me anything:

I can find a lot of propane solenoid valves but none that look like what I have:


Does anybody know what the bowl is below the valve? Moisture trap? Do I need it or can I replace this with a regular solenoid valve?

Also, the existing valve is 6v. I'm debating converting this lift to 12v as I did with my other lift. It starts SO much easier. I don't know if I can find a small enough alternator to fit on this engine.

 

[Wrench97]

It's probably a filter housing.

Is that a air cooled or water cooled engine?
Helmar had a decent catalog on line but it seems to have changed a bit over the years> https://www.helmarparts.com/Solenoid-Valves-s/183.htm

 

[garfunkle24]

Might be a filter, LPG is dirtier than you think and most systems incorporate a filter, either as part of the regulator assembly or between the tank and regulator. On lots of those solenoids you can just pull the plunger out for testing or to get going til you can source another. You should be able to find a 6v LPG lock-off (using those terms might help with the googling) but at worst could replace with a vacuum lock-off.

 

[IndyGarage]

I'm a big fan of forklifts in the shop, but I'm afraid not a fan of old ones like that.

You can buy a 90's forklift that needs a bit of work for $1000 and have a much, much better and safer machine for no more money. Power steering alone is worth buying something newer.

That said, I started off with a 60's Clark that did a lot of work for me. Good Luck.

 

[Yale]

Power steering alone is worth buying something newer.

Definitely agree as far as my old lift but not such a big deal on this one as it is a single rear wheel and pretty light. Steering effort is negligible compared to the other one.

You can buy a 90's forklift that needs a bit of work for $1000

Not around here you can't. The only thing less than $1k around here are maybe electric stand-ups that need new batteries or lifts like this.

I partially agree on the safety issue but the amount that I use it (once a month - maybe - on average), putting in some thought and care as to how it's used goes a long way.

That said, the cage that is on it is basically for decoration as the back two legs are fastened to the rear cowl by a single bolt. It looks like it was welded to the counterweight at one time but was then cut. I will either remove it entirely or make some plates that bolt onto the counterweight. I'll need to cut the front legs in order to remove the front cowl for service so I'll do the same bolting arrangement there.

 

[Farmall450]

Have you tried the forks off your current lift?
Forks are usually pretty standard items.

What is a Forklift Carriage? Basic Terms and Classes

In this guide you'll learn both about carriage height and what that height implies for your potential forklift lifting capacity.

www.toyotaforklift.com

Nailed it.

Hopefully it gets around OK -- small pneumatic tires aren't that much better performing than the cushions you had before.

 

[Yale]

Is that a air cooled or water cooled engine?

Water-cooled flathead 170 ci (I assume based on the model #) inline 4. Cutest darn little industrial engine I've ever seen. The head is, like, 14" long:

 

[Wrench97]

Good I would go with a Impco Vacuum lock off and Impco Regulator, simple cheap, easy to rebuild when/if needed.

 

[IndyGarage]

Not around here you can't. The only thing less than $1k around here are maybe electric stand-ups that need new batteries or lifts like this.

I don't know where you live, but around here you have to look for the cheap ones, but they are out there. I haven't looked for a year or so, but I've probably bought a dozen of them for less than $1500 on craigslist.

They usually have some kind of problem at that price. I had one a couple years ago that was free - had a flathead engine with a stuck valve. About two hours to remove the head and tap the stuck valve until it loosened. Ran great after that.

 

[Yale]

I don't know where you live, but around here you have to look for the cheap ones, but they are out there. I haven't looked for a year or so, but I've probably bought a dozen of them for less than $1500 on craigslist

I’m in Seattle. I just checked CL. Literally the only lift under 1k is a non-running stand-up Clark electric. There’s an older walk behind order stacker for $2850. Slim pickins.
I found this one on my own and paid $400. Well, actually $300 without the forks.

 

[IndyGarage]

You are correct, they seem to be higher there. I did a search in the area and found several in the 2000-2500 range, including one really nice looking electric for 2100 in the Portland area, but not nearly as plentiful or cheap as here.

 

[Ton ton]

That forklift looks like a ton of work. But each to his own.

 

[liliysdad]

I like it. Sure, its not as nice as a new one, and won't be as convenient, or reliable....but I think its cool, and sometimes that's the most important thing.

 

[Yale]

I finally dragged it off of the trailer which took some doing because A) the drivetrain is locked up and B) the weight on the back tire exceeded the point load that the rotten trailer deck was able to support and it had fallen through. My friend whos trailer it is was aware that some of the deck boards need to be replaced. I'll probably go halfsies with him and re-deck the whole thing in PT.

Once I got it in the shop, I jacked up one front wheel and heated the parking brake drum with a torch. Then, with it in gear, I was able to bump the starter and watch the drum move slightly. This means that it is indeed the parking brake that is holding up the show and not a broken gear box or something. My hope is that, once I get it running, I can bust the brake free all the way around. But, I'm waiting on a new propane solenoid valve to arrive.

Also, the PO hasn't been able to dig the forks out yet. He says that he has another shed to go through on Saturday. Hopefully, they turn up. If not, I'm on the hunt for a set of Class 1 forks.

 

[nadogail]

With a little imagination you can use a forklift for a lot more than shifting pallets. I used a one to support a porch roof as I changed out the 4X4 post, they are great "Jump Starter" vehicles, I have used one to tamp cold patch in a parking lot hole, I once told a young girl that if she did not move her car out of the warehouse corridor I wiold pick it up and move it myself; she said "Macho Man !, I replied "Macho Man, Hell, I am driving a Fork Lift!"

 

[IndyGarage]

With a little imagination you can use a forklift for a lot more than shifting pallets. I used a one to support a porch roof as I changed out the 4X4 post, they are great "Jump Starter" vehicles, I have used one to tamp cold patch in a parking lot hole, I once told a young girl that if she did not move her car out of the warehouse corridor I wiold pick it up and move it myself; she said "Macho Man !, I replied "Macho Man, Hell, I am driving a Fork Lift!"

I move cars and trucks all the time with a forklift. I have a trailer ball attachment at the end of the forks and it's the best trailer mover made, because of the rear steering. I can put a trailer into any spot with precision. It will pick up one end of a car or truck easily - I don't even bother with a jack sometimes.

I've pulled dents with the forklift and pushed a bent bumper back into place. I've pulled engines with one. Anything more than about 60 lbs I don't even try to pick it up by hand. I installed my two post lift singlehandedly, and moved machines from 5,000 to 12,000 lbs solo. It frees up so much space. I literally have a car 12 feet in the air on pallet rack as well as several engines and a couple waverunners and a stack of sheet steel, and pallet after pallet of parts for my various projects.

I can set things in the back of my pickup, or on top of a shipping container so nobody can steal my stuff. I've lifted people up in a basket so they can work on the roof. I drove about a mile to a nearby park and helped some girl scouts move some giant stones for landscaping a memorial for one of the girls mother who died unexpectedly.

I bought an engine for a car on Ebay a couple weeks ago. Guy shows up in the LTL truck with a lift gate on the back. I say "just a minute" and roll out into the street with the forklift - 2 seconds I have it out of his truck. Five minutes later it's 10 feet up on the pallet rack.

When you have one, you don't even think one minute about how you will move heavy stuff - if I can get it in the back of my truck or on my trailer, I can move it off when I get to the shop. Awhile back I bought a 10,000 lb aerial lift that didn't drive forward or back. Pick up one end with the forklift and move it around until I got it fixed.

If you have one you will find so many uses for it, that you will wonder why you didn't buy one earlier.

 

[nadogail]

Forklifts are one of those things that once you have access to one you will wonder how you got along without it.

 

[seber]

I've never had a fork lift but I refitted my tractor with forks in place of the bucket with a quick detach system. I can't believe how much I miss it. It was limited to 1800 pounds but for my uses that was enough. It seems like a day does not go by when I don't have to figure out a way to move something that would have been a breeze before I retired.

 

[Ton ton]

My brother uses forklifts. I use a skid loader with a universal quick attach pallet forks. I prefer to use a skid loader because it doesn't get stuck quite as easily.

 

[Yale]

Ok, I know it's been awhile but I'm back at it. I managed to get a new propane lock off valve and hoses installed. I also rewired everything (almost) including a button for the purge valve on the regulator. I got a new GM 1-wire alternator to replace the old 6v generator and built a bracket for it. I still need to wire in the exciter terminal but everything else that was working before is operational.

 

[Wrench97]

A true one wire alternator doesn't have a exciter terminal and only requires 1 wire to the output terminal

 

[Yale]

A true one wire alternator doesn't have a exciter terminal and only requires 1 wire to the output terminal

True but, from the research that I've done, they don't necessarily charge at low rpm/idle but can be wired to do so. Since that's where this operates, I will put a voltmeter on it when it's running and see if anything needs to be changed.

 

[Wrench97]

One wire alternators need to be revved to over 1200rpm to self excite, once that occurs they will keep charging at idle until you shut it off.

 

[ATC]

If you have one you will find so many uses for it, that you will wonder why you didn't buy one earlier.

Yup. I've been operating a forklift for a living for 16 years now. I do so much stuff at work outside of just picking up pallets, that everyone comes to me if they need something out of the ordinary.

I bought a skid steer recently and a set of forks was the first attachment I bought for it.

Cool project OP....I like it!

 

[Yale]

One wire alternators need to be revved to over 1200rpm to self excite, once that occurs they will keep charging at idle until you shut it off.

Good to know. I'll try that out as soon as I get it running and moving.

 

[matt_i]

You already have it mounted but on ebay you can buy a 30A "denso" alternator which is very compact and will charge a starting & ignition battery very well. When you don't have lights and HVAC fans and heat tapes its a much smaller challenge to the alternator. Truck alternator will last a very long time tho!

Very brave to jump in without a ready parts source Old forklifts are famous for leaks....

 

[Yale]

Very brave to jump in without a ready parts source Old forklifts are famous for leaks....

Well, there are leaks but more on that later. For the most part, the older stuff is pretty simple and parts are (usually) easily made if not available OTS. This one does have a few obviously proprietary parts like gear boxes and such but, thankfully, those appear to be in good shape.

 

[Yale]

This last weekend afforded me a chunk of time to dig into why this thing won't roll. If you've been following along, I narrowed it down to the parking brake being seized. Unfortunately, that assembly is nestled in the deepest bowels of the beast. So, after much consideration and deliberation, I determined that that the easiest way to tackle it would be to block the machine up and drop the gearbox, on which the parking brake lives, out the bottom of the machine.


Here is looking up from below the machine. The backing plate of the parking brake is on the far left, then the gearbox and driveshaft. The rod at the front is the forward-reverse shift cable.



Here is the box removed. Brake at the back, brake cable on the left and input shaft coming out the top. The end of the shaft is splined and that is driven by the clutch disk. The hole in the drum was an attempt by me to add penetrating oil and free up the mechanism. Needless to say, that didn't work.

 

[Yale]

After removing the drum, it looks like this:


One thing that I had not expected was that this is the parking brake as well as the main hydraulic brake. I was expecting individual hydraulic brakes on each front wheel.

Another thing that I didn't initially understand was the spring and plunger device on the left shoe. After I disassembled and cleaned everything, a part number on the plunger lead me to a Studebaker listing. After comparison, this whole brake assembly was sourced from the left rear of an early 50's Studebaker Champion or Commander.

Then it was time for a visit with the solvent tank: