Lifting heavy awkward stuff in tight spaces

[chim]

To just raise something enough to slip a cart under, maybe a few wood blocks and a digging iron. At work we have all manner of rigging stuff, but at home there are limitations. I have a boom pole that I built for the Ford 1210 many years ago. It put the load so far away from the tractor that it couldn't pick anything very heavy. Been using slotted angle on the FEL since the B7500 days back in '02 with success. Post 52 in the link below shows a few things it's been used for on the L3200:

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/customization/338783-advice-bucket-hooks-6.html

Pics below show the angle on the L4240 bucket and on the brush forks I recently built. With the slotted angle on the bucket I can either rig above center on the finish mower deck or connect it sort of cantilevered out front and set it into or onto something where overhead clearance is limited. It's good to have a bunch of chains, chokers and slings on hand.

 

[ericm979]

my new grapple is something I haven't got the hang of yet, storage wise. Left partially open it likes to tilt and move. Left closed it looks like it would roll. Those claws also look like they'd be happy to poke a hole through the surface wood as well, in the open position.

I close the grapple before I take it off. Otherwise there will be pressure in the hydraulics which will make it hard to connect the quick connects. Even if the grapple is closed, if the ambient temp heats significantly after I disconnect it, there will be enough pressure in the hydraulics to make connecting the quick connects impossible. I made some pressure release gizmos that are a tee with quick connects on two ends and a valve on the other, but I have yet to try them.

My grapple (EA wicked) sits just fine on a pallet. It doesn't move or damage anything. The dolly I put it on is like a big pallet made from 2x6s and 4x4s. Bucket or grapple sits on top and the forks slide in between the upper and lower slats. That way the forks extend under the bucket or grapple reducing the floor area required.

 

[mikester]

I say get a used forklift with side shift if you want to move around tight spaces with loads. Goes higher than a tractor so you can also get pallet racking and store your implements vertically. Floor space is more expensive than going higher.

 

[hosspuller]

Coming from an industrial environment, my heavy lift rigging is done in small increments. Like JMC said a few pages back, block/boards and a pry bar will work well. There is little chance of disaster if the drop is a couple of minutes vs several feet. I once removed and reinstalled a 400 pound front counter weight from a backhoe using nothing more than wood blocks and a crowbar. While, I had lifting equipment, the space available precluded its use.

 

[MF RED in MT]

Hey Mr. Bull,

If it were me, I'd just use a pinch bar and some 2x4 blocks of wood to get the corner of the brush hog positioned to roll another 4 wheel dolly under it.

I have a Harbor Freight 1 ton chain hoist hanging from a HF 2" lifting strap connected overhead and in between 2 of my garage trusses (having a 8' 2x8 flat on top of the trusses and then a 8' 4x6 laying on top of the 2x8, to distribute the load) to lift a approx. 600 lb. weight box on/off a HF 4 wheel cart.

Good luck with your decision,

KC

Or maybe you could use something like this:

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/t...MIm5Lg3JKF6QIVkchkCh1nwQGWEAQYFyABEgIzKvD_BwE