Retractable casters for 600lb+ press

[MackMan]

I have an old Nugier H40 (40 ton) press that is a bear to move. When I moved from my old garage into new, it took me, my brother and my brother's teenage son to deal with it. Nugier's sheet says shipping weight is 622lb. We kind of just shoved it into a spot in the garage without much thought as I wasn't sure what my actual layout was going to be.
I've been thinking it would be nice to put it on casters, since it's infrequently used it would be nice to keep it tucked out of the way normally but get it into a spot with more clearance etc if needed. But I also don't neccissarily want to raise it the height of putting casters under the base, and don't want it moving around in-use, so I was thinking some of the "retractable" casters would be idea... If there's any that can lift 600lb.

I see lots of these on Amazon that *say* they work with that kind of weight. Just wanted to see if anyone had done something similar and had good luck with it.

 

[PCustoms]

That's only 150lbs/caster, so not really a big deal IMHO

Bigger concern may be weight distribution, presses tend to be top heavy (i.e. want to flip over). Maybe added counterbalance at the base?

 

[cvairwerks]

Set it up with pockets for a pallet jack. Much more stable and safer to move.

 

[whateg01]

I prefer to have fixed height casters and add leveling feet. Casters become easy and leveling feet allow you to keep it from wanting to rock it the floor isn't perfect. Either way, you may want to beef up the feet to keep them from wanting to twist.

 

[whateg01]

Set it up with pockets for a pallet jack. Much more stable and safer to move.

I started out trying to make everything movable with the pallet jack. Some stuff still gets moved that way, but my shop lacks the floor space to easily maneuver the pallet jack everywhere. Casters on everything that's not a lathe, Mill, or drill press now.

 

[Old tool guy]

I have mobile bases for my band saw and table saw, HTC brand. Work very well except the small wheels won’t go over a zip tie on the floor. I think HTC is out of business, but there are others. One advantage is they don’t raise the machine more than about an inch.

 

[MackMan]

That's only 150lbs/caster, so not really a big deal IMHO

Bigger concern may be weight distribution, presses tend to be top heavy (i.e. want to flip over). Maybe added counterbalance at the base?

When we moved it, it took 2 of us pushing on the top to get it to start to tip (we laid it down flat to move it) and it's pretty much rock solid when in place. I don't think this would be much concern with the casters as far "out" as possible on the base. It has quite a bit of weight down low (the "anvil" part of it is adjustable by winch, so can be lowered for transport)

 

[MackMan]

Set it up with pockets for a pallet jack. Much more stable and safer to move.

I like this idea, but I'm not quite sure how I'd add the pockets, and I don't have a pallet jack, plus a lot of the time I may just want to rotate it 90 degrees or something, not necessarily move it to a different area of the shop.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Hmmm, that thing has virtually no space at the bottom to get under it. I was going to suggest welding a lifting beam near the bottom between the uprights, high enough for a floor jack to get under. raise each side and place a HF mover dolly under each vertical beam. If you choose to use these, I suggest cutting a piece of 3/4 plywood for the center and screw it in.

 

[whateg01]

Hmmm, that thing has virtually no space at the bottom to get under it. I was going to suggest welding a lifting beam near the bottom between the uprights, high enough for a floor jack to get under. raise each side and place a HF mover dolly under each vertical beam. If you choose to use these, I suggest cutting a piece of 3/4 plywood for the center and screw it in.

I've used those for moving the press, benches, anything that didn't have wheels at the time and I couldn't or didn't want to put a pallet jack under.

 

[Sweetcorn]

I was in a similar position with my press and couldn't find anything I liked that wasn't a big old trip hazard so I made my own.
In the link you'll see I tapped the cut rectangular tube for a 1/2-13 bolt so I could use it to push the caster down/press up, then set it down as needed. Works easy and its low profile.
I don't know if you have machining/welding skills, but maybe you have friends who do if you don't.
My press is very heavy and these roll nice.
Here's a link to the thread I did on it.
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/freshened-up-a-dake-75h-press.501954/

 

[fillister]

Hi, I just cut some 1/4 plate to match the wheel plates, welded the plates to the horizontal floor supports and bolted on the wheels. Moves around easily and does not need stabilizing feet.

 

[paulsomlo]

I have an old Nugier H40 (40 ton) press that is a bear to move. When I moved from my old garage into new, it took me, my brother and my brother's teenage son to deal with it. Nugier's sheet says shipping weight is 622lb. We kind of just shoved it into a spot in the garage without much thought as I wasn't sure what my actual layout was going to be.
I've been thinking it would be nice to put it on casters, since it's infrequently used it would be nice to keep it tucked out of the way normally but get it into a spot with more clearance etc if needed. But I also don't neccissarily want to raise it the height of putting casters under the base, and don't want it moving around in-use, so I was thinking some of the "retractable" casters would be idea... If there's any that can lift 600lb.

I see lots of these on Amazon that *say* they work with that kind of weight. Just wanted to see if anyone had done something similar and had good luck with it.

By "retractable" casters, do you mean these? https://footmastercasters.com/leveling-casters

If so, I have three of the larger ones under my 1200 lb. lathe, no problems. But don't buy the cheapest **** off Amazon.

 

[Smilodon]

I was in a similar position with my press and couldn't find anything I liked that wasn't a big old trip hazard so I made my own.
In the link you'll see I tapped the cut rectangular tube for a 1/2-13 bolt so I could use it to push the caster down/press up, then set it down as needed. Works easy and its low profile.
I don't know if you have machining/welding skills, but maybe you have friends who do if you don't.
My press is very heavy and these roll nice.
Here's a link to the thread I did on it.
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/freshened-up-a-dake-75h-press.501954/

I went to the link, that is really cool! I'm going to have some of these "arranging/moving" issues with a shop I inherited (not to that point in the clean-up yet). That is a nice design that I wish somebody sold (maybe in kit form). One of my goals is to learn a bit more in using the tools in the inherited shop. Maybe I can steal your design at that point!

 

[MackMan]

By "retractable" casters, do you mean these? https://footmastercasters.com/leveling-casters

If so, I have three of the larger ones under my 1200 lb. lathe, no problems. But don't buy the cheapest **** off Amazon.

Those are an option, but what I'm looking at is something more like this, that will allow it to still sit on the factory frame, unless it's being moved

https://www.amazon.com/Bora-Workbench-4-Caster-Non-marking-PM-950/dp/B08G3RYGMQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[whateg01]

Those are an option, but what I'm looking at is something more like this, that will allow it to still sit on the factory frame, unless it's being moved

https://www.amazon.com/Bora-Workbench-4-Caster-Non-marking-PM-950/dp/B08G3RYGMQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Those are ok with light stuff but you really have to lift anything heavy to get the foot "lever" to flip. Then letting it down is the same unless you want it to drop.

 

[carlaisle]

I am always leery of using anything near its stated load capacity. My rule of thumb for anything made in China is that its safe WLL is half whatever is advertised. That said, there's nothing that requires you to only use 4 of those wheels on your press. Put 8 of them on there and they would probably be up to the task. There's no way you're going to lift that press with those tiny foot levers. You'll have to lever it up manually first and then engage the wheels.

The design of your press makes designing/installing some DIY flip down or screw down casters very easy. Using the Bora or something similar would be the fastest route. Building your own will definitely take more time than just installing those and may not save you much money.

 

[ericm]

never mind, link fail

 

[whateg01]

. There's no way you're going to lift that press with those tiny foot levers. You'll have to lever it up manually first and then engage the wheels.

For reference, I put one of those on the light end of my 7x12 bandsaw. Standing on it will not lift the saw. I have to help it out. It is easier to move once it's up off the feet though.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Just bolt it down to a pallet. I have put everything in my barn on a pallet and life is SO MUCH easier now. You will not regret it.

A pallet jack is $200 used and can move 5000lbs. I will not ever be w/o one.

 

[mikedodge]

Seems like the best way to deal with it would be to either add lockable casters to it or put it in a pallet.

 

[rust in the eye]

K.I.S.S. If you want to tuck it away against a wall when not in (infrequent) use how about just laying some rods on the floor to roll it out on? Would simply pulling it away from the wall suit you?

 

[dscheidt]

Those are an option, but what I'm looking at is something more like this, that will allow it to still sit on the factory frame, unless it's being moved

https://www.amazon.com/Bora-Workbench-4-Caster-Non-marking-PM-950/dp/B08G3RYGMQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

No. Use the lift master style. I have no doubt the bora ones will carry the weight, but getting the load on an off will ****. I have casters just like that on my workbench which is much lighter than your press and I basically have to lift the whole thing to get the first wheel down.

 

[tarmy]

This…I have them various tools including this 600 plus pound table saw…they do not move once locked.

 

[zkdiesel]

Don’t bolt to pallet. Weld on base to make it accept pallet jack or forklift

I thought this was gonna be like a real sized press. My big one weighs about 3,800lbs

 

[whateg01]

Didn't expect this to become a press swinging contest!

 

[tool_scrounge]

Set it up with pockets for a pallet jack. Much more stable and safer to move.

I agree. Big stuff gets bolted to metal blocks and moved with a narrow (20.5” wide) pallet jack.

The H40 has a 30” x 38” footprint, so it should be easy.

Tip if you are short of space, find a used vending machine pallet jack. 21.5” width and only 36” long forks.

 

[WisJim]

This…I have them various tools including this 600 plus pound table saw…they do not move once locked.

Do you have a link to these casters? There are a lot of them out there, so a specific recommendation would be useful.

 

[jmarkwolf]

When we moved it, it took 2 of us pushing on the top to get it to start to tip (we laid it down flat to move it) and it's pretty much rock solid when in place. I don't think this would be much concern with the casters as far "out" as possible on the base. It has quite a bit of weight down low (the "anvil" part of it is adjustable by winch, so can be lowered for transport)

I don't know what your width is on the angle iron "feet" but if the width corresponds with the width of a pallet jack simply add 4x4's to the bottom of the angle iron "feet". Of course it will raise the height by 3-1/2in. But it makes an opportunity to widen the vase also.

I'm doing something similar to make my milling machine more easily moved with a pallet jack. Pic below.

 

[FTG-05]

By "retractable" casters, do you mean these? https://footmastercasters.com/leveling-casters

If so, I have three of the larger ones under my 1200 lb. lathe, no problems. But don't buy the cheapest **** off Amazon.

I made this mistake. Retractable castors (Amazon) failed like a cheap watch after one or two moves.

 

[tarmy]

Do you have a link to these casters? There are a lot of them out there, so a specific recommendation would be useful.

ER Wagner or RWM 47 series. Both are 1000lbs or so polyurethane so no flat spotting. Get big as you can to roll easily over slab joints. I roll tools outside sometimes and 5” works great for that too. Not cheap but very good.

 

[eviltwin]

I have a mill and large doall bandsaw that I made movable with a pallet jack. Buying the pallet jack was a great investment I didn’t know I needed. Use it for a handful of things now.

 

[whateg01]

Even though the press is around 600 lb, I’d still size the casters pretty generously (250-300 lb per caster minimum) because presses create shock loads when you’re working them.

I’d also be cautious with the cheap Amazon ones since a lot of those ratings are optimistic.

If you’re not sure what style would work best, the guys at CasterHQ are usually pretty good about helping people sort through options if you send them the weight and some photos of the base.

I suspect the casters on Amazon are capable of supporting the load they say they will, but only in perfect circumstances. Much like those on an engine hoist, there's no safety factor built in. That said, I use them often for lots of stuff. I just derate them - a lot.

 

[PCustoms]

@whateg01 don't quote the spammers

 

[threepiece]

No need to buy expensive castors. I utilize my floor jack, it already has castors. This is what I did to make my press mobile:

I made a jack pad for one end of the press. This pad allows me to lift that end of the press with a rolling style floor jack. The other end of the press is fitted with two wheels. The wheels are rigidly mounted not swivels. The wheels are positioned slightly above the floor surface so the press sets normally on the floor.

When I jack up the end of the press, the tilting causes the wheels to come in contact with the floor and the press is raised slightly. In this condition I can maneuver the press anywhere with a zero turning radius.

The attachments I made come off when not in use. I use this method to move other heavy items in my shop.