steel beam strength/weight question (engine pulling beam)

Atch, I pulled my beams up with a come-a-long on each end. I cranked one up then the other, then back to the first till each beam was up. It took a lot of up and down the ladders. Two guys would be a LOT better but I did it being careful to NEVER be under it. I had 7 beams to pull up to make a second floor. Each one took me an 8 hour day which included cutting, notching, drilling, getting each beam in a full garage ( I cleared a path 12" wide, then rolled each beam in on short pieces of pipe) lifting, positioning them and bolting them in. Then about 300 2X6s for a floor. 7 full days just to get the beams up but a Great sense of accomplishment

 

I "hung" my I beam by getting a couple of weak minded friends with strong backs - we lifted one side at a time and set it one some some car lift stands (the 6 foot tall version that adjust even higher) Mine needed to be seamed which was fine because I couldn't install it otherwise.

After having one I would NEVER be without it. Takes up no floor space - always ready to lift with - I have unloaded numerous engines, lathes, drill presses - you name it. Makes engine swaps easy. Now granted there are times when a portable engine hoist is nicer, but I just don't have the room. Meanwhile I have gotten nearly everything done (one way or another) with my beam.

 

as y'all can see i started this post over a year ago when it was a "what if?" proposition. i actually got the beam this spring and it's in place now. it's supported on each end by two 2x6's screwed (MANY screws) into the shop support 6x6 posts. that gives me a 3" x 5.5" "shelf" under each end of the beam. the bottoms of the 2x6's rest on the concrete floor.

a bud happened by one day as i was painting the beam and getting ready to put it in place and volunteered to bring his bobcat over. he showed up the next saturday with his bobcat with a boom on it in place of the bucket. took about 5 minutes to put that sukka up in the air and get it positioned where it needed to be. would have taken a lot less if we hadn't been being extra careful.

 

atch - for a little more material and thinking - you could do what my old boss did. He put in a traveling bridge hoist.

It could get anywhere within his 5 bay shop. Just put a beam running front to back on either side of the shop - then the original beam accross those two beams making an H with trolleys on either end.

He actually ran a shaft from one end of the cross beam to the other to keep the wheels on either end together so the thing wouldn't crab.

Put your trolley on the cross beam - it'll go all the way accoss then the beam will slide front to back. You'd cover the whole floor with hook access. It was bad ***.

 

tudor,

i've got a buddy that has a shop that was originally built to house a machine shop. it has a traveling bridge that covers the entire shop, about 40' x 80'. this thing was built to move around really heavy machines. like big lathes, mills, etc., that weigh tons. it's really cool, but waaaaay overkill for what i need.

i would have liked to have a traveling bridge hoist, but what i've got will do just about everything i'll ever want to do.

i now have the beam side-to-side in the shop with a trolley and chain hoist; a cherry-picker type engine hoist; and a set of car dollies (the kind that go under each wheel and you can roll your car around). i can lift just about anything and the car dollies are pretty amazing for moving around engines, ******s, heavy tools, etc. and i've got a 2nd trolley i'm about to put up there, too. don't know if i'll ever need two trolleys, but i've got it and it might as well be up there just in case.

besides, the bathroom that i'm currently building right in the middle of one of the long walls would make it impossible to install a traveling bridge hoist. and moving the bathroom isn't really an option due to other concerns.

 

I bought a jib crane that swings 12'...$100.00 at auction....1/2 ton capacity.

 

I got a traveling beam crane as scrounge from work about two and a half years ago

it has been stacked outside my shop all this time
I finaly put one of the beams up

to put the entire crane up I would need to go to coiling doors,
move my furnace and steps to the loft....

still may do it one day
but for now the single beam will do

here's a picture of the crane right before I brought it home
and another of the single beam in my shop

 

woo - now there is a serious toy!

 

I would LOVE this setup. I was thinking of something similar, but on a smaller scale for my garage, but I have waaayyyyy too much in the way for that. Next time I'll build the garage and put one of these in.

 

Damn, what kind of engines are you guys lifting?

 

heh heh

I plan on using mine for lifting frames on and off the frame table
and bodies on and off frames

even lifting the T bucket body without help was tough
now it should be a lot easier

 

If you have a Jeep (or other vehicle) with a winch on the front you can make cheap and easy to make A-frame type lift like I made for the front of my Jeep. I used it to put all the beams in place on my house, put my two post lift up, and to pick up and move other items. I built my house by myself and used the jeep to pull the walls up into place after I built them on the ground.





c ya, Sum

HOUSE/SHOP CONSTRUCTION