Shop made forklift attachments thread

[csp]

Something I threw together from light pallet rack.

Now I know what to do with some extra pallet rack uprights I have. Helluva idea you had there!

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

I hope you get your picture posting problem sorted out FTG-05. Your work platform sounds interesting. I just use the paperclip at the top of the advanced post window to put pics directly to GJ . I've never trusted any other hosting sites since Photo Bucket gave us all a good hosing.

A rolling pallet rack used for a scaffold is a good and easy project csp. Surprising how often it's the perfect elevated work solution. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

Nothing extraordinary but I used my forklift to load the contents of my scrap metal bin


into this container
.

tipped it on its side...


and lifted the bin out with my loader



Much tidier.....

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Looks like you found a safe way to dump your scrap bin without the need of a rotator Lis. You have more will power than I do though...I'd have trouble tossing out those post mounted lamp heads. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

It’s all about perspective, Ed. This particular pile has been accumulating for almost a year. I have a tenant in my maintenance yard who does commercial T/I’s for big box, convenience, and big chain stores. You should see the stuff that I rescue.

“Rescued” this last week....

 

[Strouty]

Yup, I would have rescued that too!

 

[lis2323]

I guess I should have mentioned ...
re/ “rescue”. 16 gauge all steel construction. Lockable, slide out workstation, removable file holders, good quality casters.

Apparently it was used for cigarette storage in a convenience store.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

It’s all about perspective, Ed. This particular pile has been accumulating for almost a year. I have a tenant in my maintenance yard who does commercial T/I’s for big box, convenience, and big chain stores. You should see the stuff that I rescue.

It is handy to have an always changing pile of scrap to pick and choose from. A guy definitely has to limit salvage to just the best stuff or what you realistically will use or risk becoming buried in ****.

While finishing up some fab work on the deck shop I was stuck in the man basket for a couple of days. These pics were taken at the start of the first day and before I had drug out all the **** I ended up with in the basket. I had three grinders, the torch, welding leads, three helmets, needle scaler, hammers, multiple clamps, come-alongs, rods, gloves, tapes, cutting square, steel scraps, and a lot of other **** on the floor to step over.

I think the next mod I make to an attachment will be to add a removable sliding shelf to the man basket so I have a place to keep a bunch of tools and equipment organized and off of the floor. Maybe a row of hooks on it for things that will hang. While on it I was using the square tube frame to clamp steel to for cutting and grinding so I might add some type of work shelf also. A small vise would have been handy, even a clamp on. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

Beautiful, Ed! Those arches are a gorgeous touch. What are they from? Sorry if you already mentioned , as I must have missed it

The removable sliding shelf will be a great addition to keeping tools off the floor (and easier on your back)

I made one for the rolling stairs in my shop.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks lis, the arches were binding rings that went between 50' sections of a large multi-plate tunnel section. Really just a 10' diameter steel culvert that a conveyor once passed through. One of those salvage items that came in handy. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

Did you always envision using them as such when you acquired them or did the idea evolve over time?

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

I knew where I wanted to use the arches from the first time I saw them. I would have added two more sections but part of that lower area under the windows gets steel sided in...that's where the wood stove goes so I can vent the heat up into the shop. Room to stack a cord or so down there between columns too. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

You have better vision than me. I envy you. I could be looking at something for years before it comes to me. LOL. [emoji23]

 

[royce]

I knew where I wanted to use the arches from the first time I saw them. I would have added two more sections but part of that lower area under the windows gets steel sided in...that's where the wood stove goes so I can vent the heat up into the shop. Room to stack a cord or so down there between columns too. Ed.

Ed,
Those arch’s are some kind of gorgeous.
Fantastic look and nicely adapted to your project.

Royce

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

You have better vision than me. I envy you. I could be looking at something for years before it comes to me. LOL. [emoji23]

The beauty of interesting scrap comes from ones ability to recognize potential and hang on to it long enough for it's special purpose to reveal itself. I've seen plenty of neat things in your shop to doubt you have any vision impairment.

Ed,
Those arch’s are some kind of gorgeous.
Fantastic look and nicely adapted to your project.

Royce

Thank you Royce, I'm still hoping for a few more interesting design embelishments from the junk pile along the way. Just finishing up the framing today. Plenty of fab work still to go in the basement. Ed.

 

[drivesitfar]

Ed: like you I didn't have a DIY or shop thread on GJ for several years while I posted on everyone elses. that said after I started one it is helping me make more progress on my own stuff.

since you make a lot of progress and have more than a few cool old tools maybe you should start a garage gallery thread cause OMG you have skills and many of us could learn more than a few things just watching and reading your posts.

also to keep this thread out of the archives it needed a bump so anything new or interesting out there to post please do.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks for the bump drives. I guess it has been quite a spell between posts on this thread. I haven't built any lift attachments lately but have been really busy finishing up the deck shop project as well as a few others. Maybe one of these days I'll get around to starting a general garage / project page. Looking at cutting back to half time at work this spring so that might be a good time to start one.

Here are a few progress pics of the deck shop project. It's connected to the main shop, fully insulated and wired at this point, and really the only thing left is to buy the hardwood flooring and install it. I'm really liking having all the natural light and when it's nice out opening both pocket doors really opens up the work space. A couple pics for now. Ed.

 

[1Garageman]

^^ Ed, your place is looking great!

 

[IndyGarage]

^^ Ed, your place is looking great!

I think so too.

Nothing against other people's style - but those pristine looking shops with perfect epoxy floors - those look more like a hospital to me than a place to work.

This looks like a comfortable place to work. I guess I always liked function over form.

 

[drivesitfar]

did your bride arm wrestle you and win cause it looks like you've made a nice deck where i thought your blacksmith shop was going? or was that always the plan?

looks great either way and i'm sure you've got more than enough space to do any blacksmithing or work elsewhere.

is that a bit 8 inch 250+ pound old vise on that stand to greet you when you open your garage door? NICE!!!

great to hear you are maybe working towards retirement cause those grandkids (and me too if possible) need to share shop time with you.

take care and stay warm!!

 

[IndyGarage]

While I'm typing in this thread I thought I would relay a recent forklift story.

About a month ago I saw a scissor lift for sale on craigslist. I had one a few years ago, and sold it for a nice profit and this one was priced cheap - thought I could buy it, fix it, use it to put some new lights in then sell it for a profit and pay a few of my hobby bills.

The problem was it was stuck on a loading dock in an old warehouse back in a corner with junk all around it. I had to get it off the loading dock. The only access to the dock was a pretty steep ramp through a narrow door. The lift weighs approximately 3,300 lbs.

After thinking about various winching options I figured the easiest way was to haul my Nissan 6,000 lb lift electric forklift down there on a trailer, drive it up the ramp, pick up the scissor lift, back it back down the ramp with the lift, put the scissor lift on the trailer and take it home, then return to retrieve the forklift. Easy right? Well problem number one is the nissan weighs 11,500 lbs, so it is heavy to tow. Had to rent a 14K trailer from the rental yard - but my Tundra has no problem Towing 14,500 - except when it is in downtown city traffic it's a bit hairy.

I get the lift truck to the site - drive it across the crusty old parking lot to the ramp - then have to double and triple think the drive up the ramp - it's steep. Unfortunately there are some guys fixing the overhead door at the ramp - I had to wait for them to let me through. Forklift barely fits through the door at the end of the ramp then slowly crept up it. I'm thinking the motor might fail or the brakes might - it felt really steep while I was on it.

Once I get up the ramp it's easy to retrieve the scissor lift, which is about 200 feet into the building. Glad I brought the big forklift - this scissor is bigger than I thought - the 3,300 lbs is hanging way out there - every bump in the floor and the other end of the scissor jumps up and down a foot - I put a strap around the mast and the lift to hold it steady - the forklift handles it great, but the floor is cracked concrete and bumpy. I back over to the ramp - and contemplate going backwards down it with now almost 15,000 lbs of machinery - what can go wrong. Now the door guys have the overhead door stuck halfway down - I have to wait 90 minutes for them to get it fixed - plenty of time to think of all the ways this could go badly.

They finally finish and I slowly creep the forklift to the ramp - I have a crowd of guys watching me and I'm thinking whether this is my "watch this" moment. I slowly drop over the threshold - I can see the end of the scissor is bouncing 5 feet off the concrete at the other end. I'm committed now. Fortunately the brakes on that lift are perfect. I creep it down slowly, slowly - now I get to the end and another potential unanticipated problem occurs. When the forklift gets to the bottom of the ramp - the load is still on the ramp. I have to lift the forks about 3 feet high to clear the angle, but now the scissor is in danger of contacting the overhead door that the guys just fixed! It ends up clearing by an inch or two - if I hadn't been going very slowly and paying really close attention I could have blown the move right there by destroying the overhead door.

Once out of the building it was easy - I put the dead scissor on the trailer, drove it home, then came back for the forklift.

I fixed the scissor in about a day - had about five little things wrong with it - including a broken control wire and no water in the batteries - but I filled them up and they charged right up - so I didn't have to buy a battery - that's a first. My lights are fixed, so it's for sale now.

Another win for the forklift...

 

[drivesitfar]

INDY: GREAT STORY!! i was taking that ride down the ramp with you all the way. GEESH!!

and just clearing that door that was a stroke of luck.

only thing i would have done different was take the fork lift home first and then come back and pick up the dead lift, but it sounds like it all worked out.

WOW!!

 

[IndyGarage]

INDY: GREAT STORY!! i was taking that ride down the ramp with you all the way. GEESH!!

and just clearing that door that was a stroke of luck.

only thing i would have done different was take the fork lift home first and then come back and pick up the dead lift, but it sounds like it all worked out.

WOW!!

I had to transport the scissor first because I needed the forklift to load the scissor lift on the trailer. And The scissor just rolled off the trailer at the other end - I had a smaller forklift there if needed.

At the same time I was doing this, another guy was buying some kind of stainless steel oven and he brought 3 guys to help him move it. I'm there moving this ton and a half piece by myself. After they saw me move this thing they thought I was a professional and the guy tried to hire me to move some other stuff for him.

I guess sometimes it's a narrow margin between looking professional and winning a Darwin Award...

 

[drivesitfar]

INDY: I guess when it works out you just shake your head and say to yourself at least I TRIED TO THINK IT THROUGH if it failed.

so you made gas money from the other guys too. WELL DONE SIR!!!

great story and you definitely were on the cusp of the Darwin.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks Garageman and Indy. The shop is a good hang out for me but not a place I am afraid to make a mess in at all. I just like it so I can easily clean it up at the end of the day so I get a fresh start.

Great scissor lift recovery story Indy. Thinking about what will happen as the move progresses before you start really helps cut down on those Oh **** moments. Sounds like you had it planned out well and made it home safe and sound. Hard to argue with that.

Good eye on the new fancy deck Drives. The wife does like to visit me in the shop sometimes and agreed to let me have a couple of the old wrought iron panels for the railing that have been guarding her garden for the last 20 years. That covered outside deck makes a great place to take wood working projects about 9 months of the year and we even get a few warm days through the winter for outside work. I really like working outside when I can and it's a good place to enjoy a beer at the end of the day too!

The fab shop area is on the other end of the wood shop through the other door. It hasn't changed much over the last few years. Hopefully you can make it down here for a few days of welding practice one of these days. Plenty of steel on hand for you to knock out a project or two. A couple pics of the Fab side of the deck. Ed.

 

[IndyGarage]

Great scissor lift recovery story Indy. Thinking about what will happen as the move progresses before you start really helps cut down on those Oh **** moments. Sounds like you had it planned out well and made it home safe and sound. Hard to argue with that.

I usually do a mental walk through on activities like this - step by step - in order to figure out where a mistake might come. sometimes I will write it down.

In this case though I missed the act of having to raise the forks at the bottom of the ramp because of the length of the scissor lift. I had to raise it to where the top of the scissor was higher than the top of the forklift mast. I had measured both prior to the move to make sure they would go under the door, but I used up almost all of the margin when I topped the mast.

I still could have figured it out even if the raised scissor didn't fit, because the forklift was now down on level ground - just would have taken some extra steps. The only time I was real vulnerable was when the forklift was on the ramp - I didn't know if the e-brake - which works fine - would hold the weight of both machines on that angle.

Still if I hadn't been literally creeping down the ramp and watching carefully - I could have easily crashed it into the door - it was that close, and it wasn't a pinch that I was expecting.

Here's the scissor listing:

https://indianapolis.craigslist.org/hvo/d/indianapolis-mec-2034ht-scissor-lift/7272987302.html

 

[WoodsTruck]

Ad said they would load. Was that an additional charge?

 

[Dureault_s]

Elec forklift for in the shop, not much for attachments yet but wired so I can raise and lower from remote and drive forward backwards. A wood step I had made for another project is the current man lift. Makes getting into the loft without a staircase easier then a step ladder or doing any work up high



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[Oregon rock crusher]

I usually do a mental walk through on activities like this - step by step - in order to figure out where a mistake might come. sometimes I will write it down.

Still if I hadn't been literally creeping down the ramp and watching carefully - I could have easily crashed it into the door - it was that close, and it wasn't a pinch that I was expecting.

Here's the scissor listing:

Nice looking scissor lift Indy and a good example of going slow and re-evaluating what it is that could go wrong as you progress through a tight spot. When you're paying attention and see the problem developing you can do something about it which you did.

Ad said they would load. Was that an additional charge?

I'd say that's Indy's add to resale the lift after he got it home and fixed it up.

Nice electric lift Dureault. I've worked around a couple of them and for in the shop lifts and tight spaces they are extremely handy machines. I never have seen one with a remote control though and that is a nice feature, especially if you want to work on or elevate items with your wooden platform. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

Ed. Your shop area(s) are incredible. Well laid out and truly unique in SO many ways!!

More photos anytime please. I’m certain I’m not the only one who thinks this!![emoji16]


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[IndyGarage]

Ad said they would load. Was that an additional charge?

Rock crusher is correct. That's my ad for the lift. Yes it works fine and I can load it if you need one...

 

[Dureault_s]

Yah it works good for my smaller shop lifts 14’ 2500# and only paid 500$. Needs a proper table/platform. The remote is really nice and easy to do cause the controls are all electric already


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[Muckin_Slusher]

Stuck a winch mount on the top of my forklift attachment. I'm always working alone and this will help, especially with dragging snowmobiles I don't want to start onto my lifting platform.

Was going to run power from the machine, but it ends up being cleaner just mounting a dedicated battery on the attachment. It'll also get used more as it'll always be there.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

I could see that being very handy having a winch up front Muckin. Good for working alone or dragging things just out of reach a little closer with better control. Ed.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Been a while since this thread got a bump so I thought I'd throw in a few pics getting some use from my fork lift attachments to re-locate a storage container. We did talk about containers up thread so it is fairly topical. My container is great for longer term storage but sure takes up a lot of valuable space near my shop. I have a steep drop by the shop of about 15' and always thought it would be nice to stab the container out into the blue...just need a sturdy stand to support it.

I had to start by clearing five or six maple trees to prep the area and make a path for the container stand. I needed wood for next winter anyway so I spent a couple days sawing it up. Checking the bone pile I decided to use a very heavily built four leg stand I had always wanted to use as a bench but it was a little too tall. I used it to form the base of the stand and because two legs of it end up on an existing slab I could cut the legs enough to make it a usable height as a bench as well. The boom attachment on the forklift was needed to stand the four pipe uprights. I got a lot of use from the man-basket as well. A lot of the fab work would have been very hard to get to without it.

I used a heavy rolling scaffold quite a bit as well. I'd built it several years ago to insulate the shop roof but it got a plate of 16 guage steel mounted on top to make it a little tougher for this job. A few pics of the project starting off.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

The beams I used for the stand are just a pair of channels welded together flange to web. A simple shape but easy to work with and strong enough. With full width rollers mounted on the first set of uprights I could just shove the beams out. A second roller was just saw horse mounted and it sat on the rolling scaffold. They pushed out with the forklift very easy.

Stretchers between the beams to keep consistent width and angle braces went up after the beams were landed. Just about ready to move that container.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

With the runway / stand done it's time to move the container. I had it parked right on the edge so had to start off just side shifting it away. After welding in a couple heavy duty 12" roller bearing wheels the forklift was capable of rolling it out and into the new alignment fairly easy. Before sending it out the container got a good washing and a coat of paint. Really changed the look of it and covered better than I expected.

The wheels were moved to the outer edges of the container to match up with the "rail" of the beam. By the container sitting down in the beams there wasn't much chance of getting off line. I did add some thin rub rails down low with very little clearance to really make sure it couldn't move sideways. Started out really smooth. The lift had little trouble pushing from the front. Just stopped every few feet to make sure all was good....

 

[steaks&anvils]

You know, that would make a great bunk house for the grand kids...

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks steaks&anvils, I'm not sure the grand kids parents would go for the bunkhouse idea but it's a thought. I'm up to 7 now and I'm looking forward to a bunch of camping trips with them out back by the creek. With any luck I can get them interested in making a few things when they visit..

The container roll out went smooth as silk. My neighbor had come over to watch and kept an eye out while I pushed it out. I had to side shift a couple times just to keep online but really that was about it. I had a stack of blocks for the wheels to ride out on outside the stops so when the box hit the end I just knocked them out with a hammer and we were parked. With all the weight carried at the ends I now have a couple of beams I can use to deck out on both sides a bit more and that should give a covered area below the container about 24' wide. Bonus space, maybe a good spot to park my lift and attachments...

The best part is I got all my yard space back and the container only takes up about 8 sq ft on the edge of the drop off. Almost like it disappeared. I will deck out both sides and add a roof to cover the whole thing one of these days....maybe when the price of lumber comes back to earth. Ed.

 

[steaks&anvils]

Wow, that does look good. and now covered space below too?

Well, I suppose the grand kids "parents" won't mind staying in the new "guest house"?

Camping out back with Grandpa sounds fun. My grand parents were either gone or too old, so I never really knew them. Cherish your time with them.

Kids like to build stuff that makes noise or has movement, like a peddle go cart or a giant steel pipe xylophone/wind chimes... and well, cannons too...