Lifting advice

[Memmeddu]

Hi everyone I'm on the market for a chain hoist for a gantry crane build.
Now I've put my eyes on a nice Robur (Beta Tools company) one.
But it's a lot of money all at once ranging from 200 up to 500 euro, while generic Chinese ones are around or below 100...
Now we have vevor, neo and other cheap ones at my workplace.
They work but they fail too...
Last one doesn't keep the weight lifted, as soon as you leave it alone the chain starts free spinning and what has been lifted falls down.
It should be a Vevor or a Neo one, the label came off so I'm not sure about the specific manufacturer but I'm 100% sure it's one of those two.
It was living outside, no maintenance but not even a year of life.

I need something I can trust to lift an half ton safely (600kg at most).
I don't know what to get I'd go with the Beta one but I'm not using it every day and it will probably live outside too, I can always remove it and store in a safe place once finished to use but you know it's a lot of money for the 2 or 3 times I'd need it in a year.
On the other side, I'd like to avoid to being killed from my cold saw for example (good 250kg) or by an engine or something like that.
Have you any experience with chain hoist? What would you get if in my situation?

 

[Smallfry]

My chain hoist is older than I am, and it lives outside under a lean to. Cannot remember what make it is.

Vevor tools are all Chinese. Every tool I have of theirs has broken, although they are a bit better than other stuff available.

Cannot suggest a brand, but I would go for one to handle twice the weight you want to lift, at least you stand a chance of it lasting a while.

 

[JOEPRO]

Viper ones are made in England



Many capacities and lengths available in this brand.

 

[oldbikedavey]

Got a 0.5 ton Tractel lever chain hoist here, which cost me £60 , second hand , on eBay.
Nice little bit of kit it is too....

 

[Melvyn Best]

My block and tackle was secondhand when I brought it 50 years ago or thereabouts , haven’t used it in years , it’s hung up in my lockup . From memory it may be a Morris, a British made item from when Britain made quality stuff. I had it hanging from a girder trolley along a RSJ over my pit when I had one, worked a treat !

 

[Barking Mat]

Another vote for second hand block and tackles.

My favourites are my two ton manual, or three phase 700kg hoist, just press the buttons.

 

[zzr1200]

I have dealt with this supplier for years now for my lifting equipment, I've never had a problem with their products.

The only problem I have had, is if they have what I want in stock at the time, but generally it's only a couple of weeks wait before stock appears again

Prices are good, quality of the products I have found to be excellent, the only problem might be the shipping costs to you?

Chain Blocks With Loads Between 250 kg & 30,000 kgs

Chain blocks are a versatile way of lifting loads by pulling the chains by hand, lifting heavily loads with relatively little force. Order yours online today.

www.theratchetshop.com

 

[Memmeddu]

I have dealt with this supplier for years now for my lifting equipment, I've never had a problem with their products.

The only problem I have had, is if they have what I want in stock at the time, but generally it's only a couple of weeks wait before stock appears again

Prices are good, quality of the products I have found to be excellent, the only problem might be the shipping costs to you?

Chain Blocks With Loads Between 250 kg & 30,000 kgs

Chain blocks are a versatile way of lifting loads by pulling the chains by hand, lifting heavily loads with relatively little force. Order yours online today.

www.theratchetshop.com

They seem nice and legit products.
The problem wouldn't be much the shipping costs but the import taxes.
When I've bought my MS361 off eBay for 100£ the finished price (shipping+vat+custom duties) ended up to be 203 euro.
Which is way close to what I should pay for a 2 tons Beta Robur chain block locally.
I might try to get a discount through eBay or Amazon with the black Friday thing they are doing in those days.
They applied 30 euro discount on a stainless sink I've got on Saturday for a job my brother is doing.

 

[MetalMonkey]

I've a cheap Chinese one, had it for 20 years, still works fine - but it lives inside though. Perhaps that is the answer if you only need it a few times a year? It is useful, but I don't need it often enough to justify buying a "good" one.

I always assume such things intend to kill me, so therefore avoid standing under the load, or putting anything vital in a pinch point. Just in case. Probably a good idea with the cheap ones...

 

[Memmeddu]

So I've been in contact with a guy selling a 5 tons triple chain block, 6+ meters long.
Pretty much over kill with 10 Times the lift capacity I really need and double the hight.
This thing should be enough big and heavy but I think it's worth a look

 

[zzr1200]

So I've been in contact with a guy selling a 5 tons triple chain block, 6+ meters long.
Pretty much over kill with 10 Times the lift capacity I really need and double the hight.
This thing should be enough big and heavy but I think it's worth a look

The trouble with a 6 m, 5 ton chain block is you'll need a 1/2 ton block to lift/fit it...to your lifting point.......

 

[Rrobson]

Be careful with very large blocks lifting below 10%, but certainly below 5% it’s rated capacity, they can free run as the brakes don’t have enough weight to activate it. Reputable manufacturers don’t normally suffer this but I’ve come across it a few times over the years.

When it comes to lifting, the simple answer is don’t scrimp on anything.
If you purchase something produced in the EU you can be confident it’s been through some basic testing and the design has a minimum rated breaking strain. Often you find Chinese tons aren’t as heavy as the rest of the world…

If you have had some breaking, and are using them within their designed capabilities, that should be reason in itself to avoid those cheaper products.
Is €200 saving worth dropping something on your foot (or worse)!!!
I’d look at something with a 1t or 1.5t capacity. Any bigger and they can be a bit slow to hoist.

 

[Stupoty]

So I've been in contact with a guy selling a 5 tons triple chain block, 6+ meters long.
Pretty much over kill with 10 Times the lift capacity I really need and double the hight.
This thing should be enough big and heavy but I think it's worth a look

I have a 3m 1T chain hoist . i got it to lower stuff into my basement.

Any time I have used it for very short lifts the length of chain is a massive issue.

You can pull the lift/fall chain from the max height of a chain hoist, so a 6m one will have a 6m drop (12m) drive chain. This is a massive amount of chain for a short lift and will become messy very quickly.


Stu

 

[Agroshield]

So I've been in contact with a guy selling a 5 tons triple chain block, 6+ meters long.

As above, that might have more problems than benefits.

A single fall, 6m HOL chain block has roughly 6m of lifting chain and 12m of operating chain.

A three fall one has thrice that amount of lifting chain and a large and heavy hook block.

Lifting one of those to hook it onto an overhead gantry is a task in itself, and you need to manage all that chain when in use (chain bag).

Think about when the hook is 1m from the body of the hoist - there is 3m of chain supporting the block and then a double fall of chain 7.5m per leg whipping about your face (plus all the operating chain). The bulky hook block at the lower end can also inconvenience you in a tight space.

If you have a 3m high gantry, it makes use a lot easier if you have a hoist with no more than 3m HOL. You can cut down the chains on a taller one to achieve this.

I would think Tractel (part of Alimak) would have a distributor in your place. Yale is also a good manufacturer. A long shot would be Elephant Hoist (Japanese).

 

[RWD3M]

Hi everyone I'm on the market for a chain hoist for a gantry crane build.
Now I've put my eyes on a nice Robur (Beta Tools company) one.
But it's a lot of money all at once ranging from 200 up to 500 euro, while generic Chinese ones are around or below 100...
Now we have vevor, neo and other cheap ones at my workplace.
They work but they fail too...
Last one doesn't keep the weight lifted, as soon as you leave it alone the chain starts free spinning and what has been lifted falls down.
It should be a Vevor or a Neo one, the label came off so I'm not sure about the specific manufacturer but I'm 100% sure it's one of those two.
It was living outside, no maintenance but not even a year of life.

I need something I can trust to lift an half ton safely (600kg at most).
I don't know what to get I'd go with the Beta one but I'm not using it every day and it will probably live outside too, I can always remove it and store in a safe place once finished to use but you know it's a lot of money for the 2 or 3 times I'd need it in a year.
On the other side, I'd like to avoid to being killed from my cold saw for example (good 250kg) or by an engine or something like that.
Have you any experience with chain hoist? What would you get if in my situation?

https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/morris-gantry-crane-1-2-ton-capacity-and-no2-fly-press-lb125-o-n-o-each.140190/

 

[Memmeddu]

The trouble with a 6 m, 5 ton chain block is you'll need a 1/2 ton block to lift/fit it...to your lifting point.......

That's something I have to take in consideration for sure
It would surely be around 40 or 50kg

Be careful with very large blocks lifting below 10%, but certainly below 5% it’s rated capacity, they can free run as the brakes don’t have enough weight to activate it. Reputable manufacturers don’t normally suffer this but I’ve come across it a few times over the years.

I wasn't aware about that, it should be from a reputable company anyways but I'm still waiting for the pictures of it as the only displayed one is from beneath the gantry where it's still installed.

When it comes to lifting, the simple answer is don’t scrimp on anything.
If you purchase something produced in the EU you can be confident it’s been through some basic testing and the design has a minimum rated breaking strain. Often you find Chinese tons aren’t as heavy as the rest of the world…

Yes I'm aware about that and I'm looking for something that has some sort of certificate like tuv tested or something like that.

If you have had some breaking, and are using them within their designed capabilities, that should be reason in itself to avoid those cheaper products.

That's why I want to stay far away from the cheapest end.
The heaviest thing the hoist at work lifted was a golf kart frame which is easily lift by hand and move around by two men

Is €200 saving worth dropping something on your foot (or worse)!!!
I’d look at something with a 1t or 1.5t capacity. Any bigger and they can be a bit slow to hoist.

Let's say that if I'm lifting an engine out of a car and it drops on the car I'll be pretty upset as it's more expensive than 200 euro

I have a 3m 1T chain hoist . i got it to lower stuff into my basement.

Any time I have used it for very short lifts the length of chain is a massive issue.

You can pull the lift/fall chain from the max height of a chain hoist, so a 6m one will have a 6m drop (12m) drive chain. This is a massive amount of chain for a short lift and will become messy very quickly.


Stu

As above, that might have more problems than benefits.

A single fall, 6m HOL chain block has roughly 6m of lifting chain and 12m of operating chain.

The chain loop to operate the hoist will be replaced as I'd like to avoid cutting the good 12m loop
The chain that actually does the lifting is 18 meters long and I'll shorten it to half by just remove the holding pin and relocate the chain.
Then the excess chain will be secured on the hoist.
At least I was thinking to proceed that way

A three fall one has thrice that amount of lifting chain and a large and heavy hook block.

Lifting one of those to hook it onto an overhead gantry is a task in itself, and you need to manage all that chain when in use (chain bag).

Didn't read this part and you are right about that

Think about when the hook is 1m from the body of the hoist - there is 3m of chain supporting the block and then a double fall of chain 7.5m per leg whipping about your face (plus all the operating chain). The bulky hook block at the lower end can also inconvenience you in a tight space.

I didn't take in consideration the space

If you have a 3m high gantry, it makes use a lot easier if you have a hoist with no more than 3m HOL. You can cut down the chains on a taller one to achieve this.

I would think Tractel (part of Alimak) would have a distributor in your place. Yale is also a good manufacturer. A long shot would be Elephant Hoist (Japanese).

I'm going to have a look, there's a lot of tractel retailer around here, you can find them practically everywhere

 

[Memmeddu]

So it's a kito corp made in Japan.
Problem it's that the seller knows that now.
So maybe I can loose the bargain

 

[Memmeddu]

update
I've had a call with the seller.
He discovered the brand new price but we discovered it's weight too, shipping might be unpractically expensive.
And he will call me again once he put it on a pallet box or whatever.
It's a good 5k euro hoist brand new.
Surely more than capable to suit my most mind blowing needs as I can practically lift an a mini excavator too if I would.
Now bad news
WEIGHT
42kg 3 meters standard lift
96kg 4.5 meters lift
It should be the 7 meters lift variant so we are talking about 150 kgs of glorious Japanese engineering.
And it will cost me a lot more than 150 euro + shipping it was sold for.
I've already anticipated to him that an honest price for it would be over budget.
I don't want to buy it for a steal price and he surely wants at least 400 euro for it.
Now my best option is the 2 tons Robur and I'm ok with that even if I'm little sad to have lost one of the biggest bargain I've ever put my hands on .