Mods to a shop/engine crane

[arvidj]

(07-28-2015, 07:08 PM)DaveH Wrote: ... of course replace the front legs with shorter ones. Just to give it more mobility in a small space.

DaveH

Just my mind wandering on Sunday morning so you may want to skip this.

Like many others I (a) am getting older and (b) need to lift heavy stuff.

I also own one of the ubiquitous engine cranes that have the long legs. I've often thought about making another set of legs that were considerably shorter but then envision what happens when the center of mass moves past the end of the shorter legs. I think the technical term "it tips over" applies.

I've thought of ways I could resolve the issue ... add mass to the back of the crane as a counterweight ... but that has its challenges.

I though about putting a plate on the back of the crane and then simply stand on it. I certainly qualify with the excess mass thing so problem solved. But then I'd have to step off the plate to actually move the crane ... and the tipping problem reappears.

I also thought about simply putting concrete or some other "heavy thing" on the back of the crane but if permanently affixed the crane becomes cumbersome to move when empty or loaded and if not permanently affixed I'd need another crane to load and unload the counterweight. A Fibonacci crane if you will.

I've come to the conclusion that either an anti-gravity device or an overhead system attached to the basement trusses will be required, but both of these projects are on hold for now.

Arvid