Congratulations, Ted, on your new facility. Here is a follow up on my bent Wicked.
In the end, I didn't take that offer and decided to let Ted off the hook and have my cousin repair my 72 inch single lid. Cousin Dave knows how to weld and he owes me big time. (I've been letting him hunt on my property for nine years free, even though I've been offered as much as $8,000 a year.)
To straighten out the bent frame, we chained the lid shut. Cousin Dave applied heat to the frame around the bracket while I fondled the power beyond lever. That hydraulic cylinder straightened the frame member good. Cousin Dave reinforced the bracket area with plate and gusset. However, don't make our mistake and cut the bracket out of the frame member because the frame member bent back a little. But we got it within tolerance for continued hard service.
Here is an example. This ancient black walnut tree split almost in half. Black walnut is so dense and heavy, we cut it into manageable pieces to haul it to the burn pile. Could not have done this job without the Wicked.
Thank you, Ted.