Moving RF 30

matthewsx

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Interested in experiences using an engine hoist and straps to go from a stand to pickup truck bed and back to stand.

Best ways to strap, transport, any tips from those who have BTDT.

Thanks,

John
 
It looks like it is top heavy so it should be no problem . 660 lbs ? Hopefully the hoist is high enough you don't have to remove to remove the base . I had a guy pull a Bridgeport out of my garage . We lifted it up with a Bobcat and sat it in the back of a beaten down pick-em-up truck with air leaking out of one of the tires . Got a call 2 hours later and he said he had made it home . I sure don't know how ! :grin:
 
If you open up the belt cover on top I think you’ll see there is a hole that goes through the head on the front side of the column. I just dropped a chain through the head and put a bar through it and looped it then hooked to the engine hoist. It is kinda tall, but I was able to perfectly balance it by adjusting the Y axis in or out.
 
I have a similar LC30, moved it twice. Originally I took it home in the back of a Sienna van. Took the motor and head off. Three big guys picked up the pieces and placed them in the back of the van. At home I had a chain lift and gently lifted and swung it out the side door and then reassembled. It would have been marginally easier with a shop crane.

2nd time I had to move it to a basement, fortunately I had a stair case directly from the garage to the basement, I beefed up the wooden staircase, placed a couple of 2x6 top to bottom, and made a skid plate that registered on and between the two 2x6, then I used an electric hoist to lower the entire assembly by sliding it down the stairs. I did it solo and it took several hours.
 

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If you open up the belt cover on top I think you’ll see there is a hole that goes through the head on the front side of the column. I just dropped a chain through the head and put a bar through it and looped it then hooked to the engine hoist. It is kinda tall, but I was able to perfectly balance it by adjusting the Y axis in or out.
Did the same thing with mine back in the day. I took the cap off the column, dropped a chain down the column. Ran a rod through the chain and easily lifted in with the hoist.

Bruce
 
Rick Sparber has a helpful writeup of the process he followed:


I would point out that RF-30 is a fairly loose term. There are variants that weight about 500 pounds and other variants that weight close to 600 pounds. AFAICT, the most obvious visual difference is how the base and column are joined. The 500 pound variety have 4 visible bolts where the column casting connects to the base. The 600 pound variety has 4 visible bolts where the round column attaches to the intermediate casting. I believe the 500 pound variety is a fair bit more common.

Craig
 
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