Lets Talk Gantry Cranes

[catoctin]

I ended up renting a gantry crane from AAA Rentals in Redwood City, CA when my PM935 mill arrived. My garage is getting to be space limited for new toys so I decided to rent versus buy. The crane is portable and is all aluminum which really surprised me. The rental yard's advertisement for the crane are a bit off. My concern was the maximum height so I went to the manufacturers website for the correct dimensions. Matt at Precision Matthews and I went through the height stack up ahead of time to verify the mill could be moved off the shipping pallet and on to a mobile base. The shipping company threw me a curve ball and double palleted the mill and it lifted at an angle since it was front end heavy. I used my HF engine lift the front end off the pallets.

The neat thing about the crane is it can be easily broken down and put in the back of my pickup. However, it is a few more bucks than the HF model.

-Joe

 

[glenbjackson]

GET ONE! I read you already bought it but for anybody else second guessing the buy....GO DO IT!!! It can not only save you money but it has "opportunity value". I have a gantry from the junkyard and I've never regretted the space it's taken up assembled(you can always take it apart to get it out the way). With it I was able to take advantage of a machine shop getting rid of a carlton drill, $450 and a K&T 2chl universal for $450. Neither could I have gotten home without the help of the gantry. Great opportunity!!
Now I'm aware they weight more the 1ton, carlton 3tons and K&T 1-1/2ton, but not taken apart That's the biggie. You can take almost anything home with a gantry disassembled, the just assemble it!
I asked the shop if I buy them will they allow disassembly. They agreed and even helped! Put it on a U-Haul and got it home.
I've since bought another gantry because they really are worth it.

 

[Silverbullet]

You won't ever be sorry you bought it. Ill bet you will use it more then ever could the little rolling motor cranes . I have a jib crane in front of my shop the cranes one of the truck cranes from HF . After a few years the Jack went with the dinosaurs. It is mounted on a 6" box channel hurried in concrete 7' deep with 18" around , the crane ain't movin ever. Now instead of a crank winch and Jack, it's mounted solid with an electric hoist . So I pick up and spin but I'm still going to get the gantry crane or build one. I've never been sorry for building the jib for working , and if I can get an I beam 10 to 20' long ill be building it. Saves me now because I can't pick anything up hardly more then a hundred pounds. Have to remember I'm not walking and can't do the stuff I could twenty years ago. My brain says yes go ahead do it but my pain I'm in says HEY buttwad your gonna not be able to move for a few weeks. DERN it sucks being in a wheelchair and knowing all you should do. YUPP get the gantry and whatever else now. You may not be able to later.

 

[HMF]

The HF one has gotten good reviews. It's often on sale for $700
http://www.harborfreight.com/1-ton-capacity-telescoping-gantry-crane-69513.html
http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=4059147


Jason built one:

http://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/my-gantry-cranecrane.45971/#post-392810

Here are a couple of other builds:
http://www.cnccookbook.com/CCHallOfFame4.html
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/overhead-lift-trolley-system-under-300.297750/

 

[glenbjackson]

here's the crane I got from junkyard. is a 5ton, could've lifted the whole drill and mill in one lift!! but the drill is too tall for the door of my storage.









heres the drill in pieces(yes the ways and column are on wood even though you cant see it), then together;



















it will save me money by being able to take my babies apart(monarch comes in at 16,000#) and move it when I finally get my shop running. its far too expensive to rent a forklift then truck to move all these machine. im just gonna take it nice and slow

 

[hman]

Durn, Glen ... I see you're not into lightweight toys!!!! Looks like you're getting a well equipped shop, though.

PS - What do you use to put the 5 ton gantry together, another gantry?

 

[glenbjackson]

its a spanco a-series, not sure of height. but its TALL, I had it on the lowest adjustment point and I had to stand ontop of my wrangler that's lifted and im 6'1" and still reaching above my head. that was a trial n ERROR day. but I weld hinges to legs and beam, pull each leg up under the beam with come-along. worked great for first leg, second leg not to well. just need to beef up the hinges. but after the one hinge failed I called it a day because I couldn't store it like that anyway. so just got MUCH lighter beam from scrapyard and ordered some tubing for the columns. welded tops on tubing and drop them all the way in the legs. That way it is as tall as me so two people could assemble it. but im a loner so I just propped the legs/column combo up and put beam on top, then jacked up the columns past the adjustment pin, close pin and drop columns on pins.
although I will use this to put together a 10t t-series I just came across.
ps yeah the heaviness came by accident, by winning monarch at auction, grew from there....

 

[682bear]

I fabricated my own gantry crane from a length of 5x5.5 H-beam. I had designed it with a 2,000 lb capacity, even though I figured the heaviest weight I would ever lift with it would be a v-8 engine/transmission.

But... then I bought a South Bend 14 1/2 x 72 lathe... and had to use the crane to unload it. I wasn't too worried about the steel not being strong enough, I was more worried about my welding.

It held it just fine, and was very stable with the lathe hanging from it. I guess it was a success...



It is 10 feet wide and 9 ft 10 inches tall and I now have 2 trolleys with chain hoists on it. It will roll through my shop door so I can use it inside or outside.

-Bear

 

[Franko]

I got a HF motor lift and I've found it o be very useful. I modified mine and it works for just about any thing I need it for. It folds up compactly. I'd love to have a real gantry, but there just isn't enough room in my shop for one. This modification serves me very well.

 

[Franko]

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