As you've recently found out surface plates are heavy. A few years ago I purchased a 24"x 36" Challenge brand cast iron plate that originally belonged to the company I worked for. I didn't realize how heavy it was until I loaded it in my truck. I found out the hard way it weighed 475 lbs. It was all I could do to get it in the back of the truck.
Unloading it was another "Eat Your Wheaties " exercise. A friend and I carried it from the truck, through the kitchen, and down the stairs to the shop. It was all brute strength since there was no room for a dolly around the island in the kitchen. We barely got it to the bottom of the stairs before we ran out of strength. It sat on it's edge for about half an hour while we collected our wits and got the stand down to the shop.
The final move was to lift it onto the stand. It took all we could do, and we were sweating bullets to get it positioned before it fell on one of us. Fortunately the stand has wheels so we could eventually roll it into place next to one of the lathes. I made a thin plywood cover for it to keep it from getting damaged when not in use.
I do use it a few times a month, but at my age it's hard to just pull it into the middle of the room. I can't imagine carrying it down there a second time, and have no idea how it will be moved if we sell the house. I do know if we move the shop will be a separate building or a minimum of a dedicated room on ground level.
