Lathe thing

I'd have to make it it's own slide to use the ways like a tailstock , or underneath and make a swivel to get it out of the way. On the tool post you have to move it on or off. I bet it weighs a bit too. Small gantry best option
 
Glenn,
I completely understand not wanting to wrestle with those heavy chucks. I had the same issue and I also looked into various solutions and ultimately decided that for me, the best thing was one of the rolling engine hoists. I bought a HF 2 Ton engine hoist and use it for many tasks including changing my heavier lathe chucks, lifting my rotary table onto the mill, lifting heavy items onto my welding table and loading and unloading things from my truck. Even used it a couple of times for pulling engines ! It has been a pretty versatile tool, it folds up so it takes less floor space when not in use and it was very affordable. I made a set of shorter legs for it so that it can roll up closer to the machinery and make it more maneuverable in the shop. With the shorter legs I just make sure not to extend the boom past the legs to maintain stability.

Just some food for thought.

Ted
 
Check out thrift stores and other sources of used medical equipment for hoyer lifts.

These are hydrolic lifts used for lifting people out of beds and look like an engine lift but instead are small.

Have wheels and lift 400 pounds.

Sometimes can be had for free if the hydrolic pump is out and usually a 10 cent seal fixes it.

We have a few and the most expensive one was 20.00.

Great for holding things up for painting or many other tasks.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337Z using Tapatalk
 
I appreciate Glenn's post on the application of the Skyhook crane in the railroad repair shop, It certainly seems to work for the guys, Fair do's , & more power to their elbows, It would by all accounts seem to be run by dedicated , skilled, and careful folks, by the look of glenns splendid illustrations, I wish I had one of these little cranes, I would certainly use it on my lathe to lift the chucks up, But Iwould make a quickly simple demountable attachment so I could use it attached to my lathe bed, Over the years I had thoughts on something similar using my come-along, A 30 cwt yale, But it alone is a brute to move Over the last year it has dawned on me, Sadly, that humphing a heavy three & four jaw chuck up onto my big 16" swing lathe is becoming a thing of the past, Age & heavy weights catch up,
Sadly a low roof and restricted floor space precludes the use of a gantry, My method is, as it is not always possible to get help, is to leave the four jaw on the lathe & when an application of work necessitating a three jaw cchuck application, I clamp a five inch three jaw in the four jaw chuck.
Often I am intriguued by lots of folks having a rosy glow about "The good old days" Really ? When men were wracked to death moving inappropriate weights in workshop environments, working for employers who did not give a rats a**e for their welfare in many occasions, I love the fine machinery , tools, & other things in those far off days, But I think frequently of the guys who made them,
Ain't advancing years fun!
 
My point was that the whole thing hangs on the T slot in the cast iron topslide, which I have seen broken out on many machines with normal use. This is a Camlock machine, which means the crane has to lift just enough to free the chuck, any more and it is trying to lift itself up by its own bootstraps. Regardless of all the shared opinions, it is an accident waiting to happen.
 
I have one and am very happy with it. I also made an adapter so the Sky Hook fits both my mill and my welding table. I am 70 years old and I have stopped lifting heavy items. I have never lifted anything with it more than 200#. I think if you actually analyze the stresses, the major forces are in compression,( if it's afixed properly) . I can assure you that my 13" lathe tool post sees more stress taking interrupted cuts on stainless than it does lifting an 85# chuck.

Randy
 
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