jamesp
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Member since October 2012
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Post by jamesp on Jun 14, 2017 9:00:20 GMT -5
I'd be concerned about how that 'Walkie Stacker' would work on different surfaces, such as gravel or grass. Can't tell now much you can modify wheels especially those under the main body of the machine. GOT to use this on hard surface Bob. The loading and storage is on a big asphalt area. Got the space. First time that thing hits dirt/gravel it's stuck. Absolutely. |
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 14, 2017 9:18:58 GMT -5
The freight company guys were impressed Wigglin. Their trailers certain dwarf this one. The forklift operator Rico was impressed with ease of unload. I ordered two banners, 3' X 8' with a 7' X 2' fire pit on it(my logo) with web site name on it. Trailer is almost 7' tall, banners will be 11' high above trailer. will have to remember it's back there when going thru drive-thru. Now I got to buy some 1.5 and 2.5 inch thick wall steel tubing and rearrange the cubicles, like remove a couple of posts and reinforce from the load in/load out side. I had 8 sales last week but could not get the two 48" pits and the one 54" pit on at same time. For some reason they like to buy my biggest. Suites me, a 30" pit is about the same amount of work as the big ones. I would also think your freight has a bit more invested in their trailers . Been watching progress on your trailer without commenting . Looked like my penny and a half wasn't necessary . Very well thought out and built trailer . How are you tying the pits down ? Now you need to sell your customers some kindling splitters to go along with the pits . I think I sent you a pic of the ones I build , if not , I can send ya one . There is a straps welded around the trailer to 'trap' the load on 3 sides. A one inch lip at the open end. I could chain buck a chain down the open end to complete the 'trap'. But it appears the pallets do not move at all in the 10 mile trip to the freight company. Looking good. I use ski rope to tie the pits down to the pallet, strung tight. Never had a pit come loose from the pallet. Buy 1000 foot rolls of 1/4" rope for $40, case at a time. I use the heck out of rope, pallets, 5 inch angle grinders, 7 inch angle grinders, grinding wheels, cupped wire brush wheels, welding rods, oxy/acetylene. Most of that stuff is ordered on Ebay, big time saver. Got the purchasing down to an art. I have a stack of 6-7 larger angle grinders, all cooked. They last about 4 months. Lots of wire brushing and heavy grinding. Custom made pallets from the Brazilian pallet company up the road. A small 32" X 32" pallet for $3 for 42" pits and smaller. They are 46 inches on the diagonal. I should have made the trailer 18 feet long instead of 16 feet. I thought about it before building. 16 feet made better use of 20 foot steel. Needed more 48 inch cubicles. I knew that would bite me. Listen to gut.... |
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Post by wigglinrocks on Jun 14, 2017 9:30:08 GMT -5
I should have made the trailer 18 feet long instead of 16 feet. I thought about it before building. 16 feet made better use of 20 foot steel. Needed more 48 inch cubicles. I knew that would bite me. Listen to gut.... Funny how you can talk yourself out of or into something to make use of existing material . Even when ya know it isn't the way you want the final product to end up . |
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 14, 2017 10:26:43 GMT -5
I should have made the trailer 18 feet long instead of 16 feet. I thought about it before building. 16 feet made better use of 20 foot steel. Needed more 48 inch cubicles. I knew that would bite me. Listen to gut.... Funny how you can talk yourself out of or into something to make use of existing material . Even when ya know it isn't the way you want the final product to end up . Exactly the case. Classic. Love your gut feeling, don't avoid it ! |
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Post by captbob on Jun 14, 2017 10:41:42 GMT -5
Hope you don't mind my chiming in, but I'm wondering if maybe you are over engineering things with that Walkie Stacker critter.
It's gotta be able to life a couple/few thousand pounds, and it's kinda pricey.
Do you really need that much lift capacity?
Could you maybe MacGyver something using something like a portable engine hoist? Yeah, you usually have to jack those things up with a pump handle and they sure aren't as sexy as that Walkie Stacker thing, but the cost would be a fraction of the Walkie Stacker.
Engine hoist may need some mods for height and adding forks, but it may even be something you could take along on the trailer to unload your fire pits at locations away from home.
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Post by coloradocliff on Jun 14, 2017 11:04:47 GMT -5
Be careful dragging the iron maiden around Fulton county jim.
Lotsa idiots like passing fast. .
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Post by wigglinrocks on Jun 14, 2017 12:22:16 GMT -5
Or something on the lines of this ,
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 15, 2017 21:37:22 GMT -5
Hope you don't mind my chiming in, but I'm wondering if maybe you are over engineering things with that Walkie Stacker critter. It's gotta be able to life a couple/few thousand pounds, and it's kinda pricey. Do you really need that much lift capacity? Could you maybe MacGyver something using something like a portable engine hoist? Yeah, you usually have to jack those things up with a pump handle and they sure aren't as sexy as that Walkie Stacker thing, but the cost would be a fraction of the Walkie Stacker. Engine hoist may need some mods for height and adding forks, but it may even be something you could take along on the trailer to unload your fire pits at locations away from home. The main use of that trailer is getting pits to the freight lines. They have to be on pallets to ship motor freight. That pretty much means it has to be lifted from ground level on a pallet and pushed horizontally into a truck or a trailer cubicle. So it is both a fork lifting vehicle at the house and at the freight company. From ground level to the second shelf is just over 5 feet. Loading into back of the truck is 7 feet reach for the first pallet. Makes sense just to use a pallet handler. Plus I can load those heavy buggars on the pallet while it is sitting on the ground when prepping pallet load. Then raise it to waist level to tie the pit to the pallet. Lifting from above is not doable to get it in a trailer cubicle or my truck with a camper shell. Don't need that much lift capacity, 1500-2000 pounds is about minimum for pallet handlers(40-50 pound bags for instance). But that is just the way it is with a pallet handler. I will use longer forks, then the counterbalance becomes way less effective. Double the fork length and reduce the tip-over threat to 1/2 the load. That is key, so the heavy machine is challenged if you triple the length of the forks. Not by load, but by tip-over. The 1000 LB Big Joe requires me to stand on the counter weight due to triple length forks lifting a 300 pound pit. Bigger is OK in the lift biz. |
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 15, 2017 21:52:50 GMT -5
Or something on the lines of this , That device would work great for street sales where no pallet is needed. I would probably buy a battery powered hydraulic rig and mount it on the ceiling of the trailer.  |
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Post by wigglinrocks on Jun 15, 2017 22:10:43 GMT -5
How do you unload when you deliver at a customers residence ?
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 16, 2017 5:43:33 GMT -5
How do you unload when you deliver at a customers residence ? One or two pits at a time in the back of pick up truck. Pit upside down. Slide it out and let it drop to lawn, leaning against truck bed. Then roll it like a tire. Easy to roll, even if 300 pounds. Lest uphill or ha, down hill. Downhill may get away and end up in their living room. 98% of local folks picks up at farm. They like to shop first. Usually me and the husband chunk em in the back of the SUV or truck. Amazing how many Porsche and Mercedes SUV's those pits have scarred. I offer to fully blanket them. The owners don't seem to care. Get it and go !! Go go If it is a 300 pound 48 inch pit then I will insert it into the vehicle with the fork lift and slide it in. Lots of 40 year old husbands in good shape. Some just get on the other side and we muscle it in from a 'leaning against the bumper' position. Leaning up on it's edge you are not picking up so much. Lots of strong ladies w/attitude out there too; some help me load. It is the palletized pits that are hard to handle. That is where the forks come in so handy. Then the freight company removes with fork equipment at dock delivery. Got to have a forked loader. Being heavy by nature, you want it to have hydrostatic drive. Hand pushing 1500+ pound lift with load is challenge, especially turning. Wednesday I delivered to a celebrity not 15 miles away. Super high security estate. Not sure about that place. Must been 2 miles back in the woods. She paid the $250 freight bill no questions(never saw her). I delivered that giant. The 'concierge' helped me unload(he was in the way, useless as teats on a boar hog). Sometimes I get 48 inch pits pressed of 5/8" steel. Must go 450 pounds. They present all kinds of problems from handling to fabrication to shipping. Those get sold to people picking up only. |
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 16, 2017 7:33:50 GMT -5
Having to remove an internal post and bridge over it today. The lower post centers are not working out at loading.
Again, should have made the trailer 2 feet longer and not worried about 2 feet of loss end scrap. Modifications costing more than end scrap loss.
Also having the forks get trapped on lower section. Torch work and small reinforcement bridging required. Seen this one coming, but lip holds pallet in so all is good.
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Post by wigglinrocks on Jun 16, 2017 8:02:30 GMT -5
Real learning experience , now you know how you want to build the next one .
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Fossilman
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Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,723 
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Post by Fossilman on Jun 16, 2017 9:07:13 GMT -5
I need a build for picking up large rough,with Obsidian....LOL
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 16, 2017 10:14:17 GMT -5
I need a build for picking up large rough,with Obsidian....LOL That's just not fair. |
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 16, 2017 10:23:47 GMT -5
Real learning experience , now you know how you want to build the next one . Nice out this morning, stormy, so welded some mods without cooking. Had to remove a post. So reinforcement has been added. Spacers:  bridge beam of HEAVY square tubing:  post removed for large pits:   Forks were binding so material was removed from the main beam, then bridged:   And no need to hook up with a truck, Big Red pulls it just fine and much quicker to hitch to:  |
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Post by rockpickerforever on Jun 16, 2017 11:32:20 GMT -5
I need a build for picking up large rough,with Obsidian....LOL That's just not fair. The largest piece of obsidian in our front yard came from Obsidian Butte, on the SW Edit - South EAST corner of the Salton Sea. To catch that that one, we just manhandled it into the back of the truck. That was a good ten - fifteen years ago, could not do it now, lol.
This is how we pick up bigger rocks: 
Lifted with a hoist that is mounted into the receiver hitch on an offset platform, with bottle jack underneath for support on the ground.
Not sure how heavy it is, at least 250 - 300 lbs. This is the most humongous rock we have hauled home to date. It is a large chunk of lepidolite, it now resides in my front yard. Can't really see the nice purple coloring of it in the photo.
It is a big 'un! 
Some smaller chunks of it, and other stuff. 
A small bright chunk - nice color, but soft stuff. 
We need to go back up and get a bigger chunk for Anita. She had had her sights on this one from a previous trip, did not know we were already planning to go get it for ourselves.
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Post by 1dave on Jun 16, 2017 13:05:02 GMT -5
jamesp Third time is a charmer.
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Post by wigglinrocks on Jun 16, 2017 13:21:08 GMT -5
Kinda stinks to have to build a prototype to work the bugs out , could have had it all dipped without the bugs .
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,607
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Post by jamesp on Jun 16, 2017 13:26:25 GMT -5
The largest piece of obsidian in the front yard came from Obsidian Butte, on the SW corner of the Salton Sea. That one, we just manhandled it into the back of the truck. That was a good ten - fifteen years ago, could not do it now, lol.
This is how we pick up bigger rocks:
Lifted with a hoist that is mounted into the receiver hitch on an offset platform, with bottle jack underneath for support on the ground.
Not sure how heavy it is, at least 250 - 300 lbs. This is the most humongous rock we have hauled home to date. It is a large chunk of lepidolite, it now resides in my front yard. Can't really see the nice purple coloring of it in the photo.
It is a big 'un!
Some smaller chunks of it, and other stuff.
A small bright chunk - nice color, but soft stuff.
We need to go back up and get a bigger chunk for Anita. She had had her sights on this one from a previous trip, did not know we were already planning to go get it for ourselves.
With that beautiful insides I would have sledged that rascal for yard rocks. The coating does that rock no justice. Jean ? What do you think ? It is certainly a trophy whole. Maybe take the diamond grinder and remove the outer layer, yep, tons of work. |
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