Weighing a Pallet

Thanks for the reply, but I'm sorry, I don't see an advantage to using the pallet lifter. I already have a forklift.

With the lifter you can won't have to lift just the edge and worry about the center of gravity of the load. You will get a more accurate weight.

What is on the pallets? If the load is not uniformly distributed over the entire area of the pallet then you cannot estimate the weight by lifting one edge.

As for any other ideas, I'll keep thinking.

Thank you for your response. O.K. the load will not be uniform. The Center of Gravity (CG) is not in the center, but offset in three dimensional space.

Since I don't have the space for a scale, I also don't have the room for a 'Pallet Lifter'.

My intuition says that as long as I don't lift the edge above the floor significantly, I have not moved the CG significantly far from it's position, so I should get an accurate measure of the weight on that edge.

Now, since you have pointed out that the position of the CG is significant for the accuracy of the measurement, my questions are:

Can I simply weigh the pallet with the hanging scale one edge at a time, and add the two readings together?

How do I evaluate the significance of the distance of the height that I raise the edge off the floor when I do my weighing? (It seems true that the higher the CG is above the floor, the more significant the inaccuracy will be, but I am not sure how to estimate it's significance.)

Weights by lifting edges can still be inaccurate.

How about forks that measure weight (a little pricy but accurate)

http://www.americanforkliftscales.com/Legal%20Forks.html

http://www.weigh-tronix.ca/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=9&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1&vmcchk=1&Itemid=1

And it seems that you are really stuck on size, but how about a weighing truck that is easily moved around? (and perhaps it would work in plase of your fork lift, depending on distances required)

http://www.americanforkliftscales.com/Legal%20Pallet%20Jack.html

I am just trying to steer you away from the scale/add edges method, because it could cause you trouble, like you mentioned you wanted 5% accuracy and it really does depend on where the center of gravity of the load is.

If you must resign yourself to the hook from the side scenario - you can not weigh from one side and double it (see lever reasoning below). You must weigh from opposite sides and add the weights together.

Think of a second class lever; if your center of gravity is not perfectly in the middle, the amount of weight you 'see' when you lift it will depend on how far off center the CG is.

For example - if you take a 10" lever with a 5 pound CG at 2.5" off from center and lift from the close side - from statics, the moments about the fulcrum must be equal - you will see a weight of 5 lbs(7.5")/10" = 3.75 lbs (obviously not half of the total weight). Then, if you were to proceed to lift from the opposite side, you would see a weight of 5 lbs(2.5")/10" = 1.25 lbs. Added together you would get the 5 lb weight.

Hopefully this helps you.

Note there may be some discrepancy due to the fact that the pallet also has another dimension (side to side) but if you find the balance point with the hook you should be alright.

With an offset load you will have to measure both ends and add. That will probably get you within 5% if you don't lift too high.

Is your idea any good? Well, maybe, you have a lot of constraints you are trying to work around. If you get er done the way you want/can then its all good.

If you are looking for alternative ideas how about this. The ass end of your fork lift must get lighter by nearly exactly the weight of the pallet it lifts. (Tilt on the rack and height of the forks will be error sources.) If you use a strain gauge to measure the change in the suspension and calibrate that against some known tare weights you should end up with a direct read of the weight of any pallet you pick up.

Should be standard equipment on forks and mules eh?

Best wishes,

Mr. Gee

If it works great! If you patent, I want 10%.

There are so many ways to weigh something, all with varying price tags and accuracy. You haven't really given enough information for a precise answer but you've given enough for suggestions to be made.

I gather that price is more of an issue than efficiency otherwise you'd simply get some forklift scales fitted. Dangling it sounds fine and so does your fishing scale idea. You can expand your range by judicious use of a pulley, if you've an overhead beam. Accuracy might be an issue though, depending on the quality of the scales.

If you have the materials, have you considered a balance arrangement? Sturdy steel beam dangling from one forklift tine, pallet dangling from one end of the beam and a container of water dangling from the other end of the beam. If the fulcrum (where it attaches to the forklift) is carefully positioned and the leverage set at say 10:1, by measuring the water level required to balance, you can calculate the weight quite accurately and efficiently. Fiddly to set up but very low cost. Once the water container is calibrated, quite accurate.

I like the dangling beam idea, but I truly have a packed shop, and this would have to be set-up in a shared parking lot. I'm not sure that would be wise. Not to mention the wise cracks from some, and the attaboy's from the others!

I have test instruments in the crate, not individual parts that can be easily weighed. One piece may be 425lbs, and the size of a tabletop refrigerator. Many different sizes and configurations. Weighing individually would be difficult.

Thanks.

If your max weight is 800 lbs...how about lift one side of your pallet and slip in 2 bathroom scales, one under each corner; lower the pallet down on them then lift the other side and slip in 2 more scales. Add up all the scales and you are done. Bath scales are cheap and usually good up to 300lbs or so each and stack up out of the way when not in use. It's possible that if the pallets are loaded up way off center then there may be a disproportianate weight on one side or corner.

Another alternative is to weigh the lighter packages before they are put on the pallet and then add them up. You could create a spreadsheet of items and their weight and then put in the quantity and add the weight of the pallet and you'd have the total weight.

For shipping purposes exact weight is not really required. Approximate is close enough as you said.

Hello sail4evr:

I have to admit this was my first thought. But I rejected it when he said there was no room for a scale. Of course the usual pallet scale is quite high and I think this is important as he does not have much height to play with.

I also assumed the pallets would carry boxes of the same product. Where, it seems that is not the case.

I think this should work. Is it too simple though? I wonder what the Astro-turf....... Astro-physicists here will say? Only joking of course.

Thanks, this multiple scale suggestion is an idea I hadn't thought of. I will give it some more thought.

The concern I have with this scenario is that the scales could be individually receiving much more that their 300lbs. max rating, since the loads are uneven, and the crate may be set down on them unevenly, until the forks are off the load. I'm not sure how much that could be a problem, but it does concern me.

I came in late today and was delighted to see all the responses. You can see below how I immediately jumped on the hydraulic pressure idea. just a few bugs to work out, and I may have it solved.

Thanks again, Curtis

You guys really are great here on CR4!

Hello WhiteHorse:

If this is a manufacturing company, even a 'one man band' you could put a new pallet directly onto say six or even nine household scales. That way there is not likely to be any one scale over-loaded. It could be checked by comparing a known weight pallet to see if there is any or much difference.

I still think a local weigh-bridge is an alternative. Particularly if it is an ongoing job where, the weigh-bridge receipt can be used as proof of good delivered?

How would your suggestion on the pressure work? Would it be a simple case of linking the two hydraulic pipe together and then put a strain gauge in? Most of the Fork Lifts I have used had the weight taken by a large chain. With the hydraulics used for sideway and back and forth moves.

Hello WhiteHorse:

I have worked in cardboard box making. I always used the same pallets so knew the weight of them. And I weighed each box of product before pelleting. I used a scale which weighed down to 1 gram. About~1/25th of an ounce.

The way you have in mind sounds a little clumsy. No offence.

Put a box or container on the scale with a single product you make and zero it. To test it on the first batch of a new job count 100 items and put them in the box on the scale and '100' should come up on the scale electronic register.

This has to be safer and more sensible than trying to balance a pallet on the end of a Fork-Lift-Truck? Just my opinion.............

I suggest you contact your forklift supplier.

You only wanted within 5% and we had a similar need here. Our forklift supplier was able to retrofit a gauge that minotored the hydraulic pressure inside the mast hoses and gives a mass reading when the mast is at rest and the forklift is not moving.

You beat me to it. This was my first thought when I read the post. We have a hydraulic press in our shop. The gage actually reads out in tons of force under the ram instead of PSI for system pressure. I have a question though concerning the math I am reading in other posts. How many lift cylinders are on the lift? The readings may be off due to the calculation of total surface area of the glands in the cylinders. How about no math at all. Lift known loads and record the readings. Should be very straight forward. Don't get me wrong. I can appreciate the calculations.

By the way, experienced truck drivers can estimate loads using the air pressure gage for their air bags.

The gauge in your shop press is designed to read tons as it has been calculated by someone like has been done in this post and then the gauge face set up or marked to correspond to there calculations.

Example in layman's terms: If you replaced your press ram with one of a different bore size your gauge would no longer read accurately because you have changed the area.

As far as the calculations... I do not have the educational background many people here do obviously, I would actually verify with a known weight to double check everything .

If you replaced your press ram with one of a different bore size your gauge would no longer read accurately because you have changed the area.

I understand that. Sorry I did not make myself clear. That was pretty much my point concerning the area calcs being tossed around. Plus, we have not heard if the dimension given is the ID (equal to gland Diameter) or OD of the hyd tubes.

Exactly, When its all said and done the best thing to do would be perhaps a couple 55 gallon drums filled to various levels with fresh water or any other weight easily calculated.

There may be sacks or containers around the place with weights clearly marked on them.

Hello The Mechanic:

I think your advice to lift 'known loads' is good and sort of what I have also said as a double check? But, you need to have some idea of the probable PSI to allow a meter or gauge to fitted that will not be overloaded?

I also think the idea mentioned by another poster that, it may be an idea to have a valve to 'isolate' the gauge for 'normal' lifting jobs, like unloading stuff etc makes sense.

take care

Yea, that to me is the sensible approach. As I stated earlier, he should check to verify the set point of the systems relief valve by maxing out the tilt.

Most of what I offer is not gained through professional education, but rather the school of hard knocks or practical.

To be safe and sure install a 0-3000 psi gauge for the first time out as MOST systems operate bellow this. When the relief pressure is known then its time to move forward.

A 0-2000 psi digital gauge with an isolation valve will do fine I believe.

Hello Tim in Mexico:

I agree with all you say.

In this case where there is not room for a commercial scale, it has to be cheaper to have a gauge fitted, certainly cheaper than the Commercial scale route?

All the Fork lifts I have ever used were second hand or even sixth hand! So there was not any option to get a gauge fitted direct from the factory.

Take care

I agree you should use a gauge that exceeds the relief valve setting. For a starting point you can also look at the ratings on the hoses. That rating will be greater than the relief setting. Also when you buy the gauge pick out one that has a very large diameter face. Not so much for the readability but for the distance between numbers. This will yield more accurate readings for your purpose. That is unless you buy a digital.

You can use water for the known weight. Pick out a tank of suitable size. The original post wanted to weigh a pallet of items with in 5% of actual weight for shipping purposes. But it was not said what the typical or average loaded pallet weighs. If that were known then he could target that range. Then using a calibrated five gallon bucket and the known weight of water you can work in that increment. Or use a smaller bucket for a chart with finer resolution. A faster less accurate method would be to check the flow rate from a garden hose. Then run the water directly into the tank and record the weights at regular intervals. After filling then go back and do the math for each interval. Inherent problems of course are the fluctuations in water pressure, temperature, and the time it takes for the mast to settle out due to friction in the cylinders for a more accurate reading.

Here is the weight of water from the wiki website: A US gallon of fresh water at 4 degrees C weighs 8.34 pounds. An imperial gallon at 62deg F (old UK system) weighs 10 pounds.

For even less math use a good quality scale. Zero it out with the bucket on it. Fill it with 25 pounds of water and dump it into the tank. This eliminates the error from temperature changes. The volume/density of the water may change but its weight will remain constant. 25 pounds is about 3 gallons US. If your lift is rated at 5,000lbs then that will be 200 buckets or around 600 gallons. This of course does not include the the weight of the pallet and tank. So do not exceed the max load rating of your lift during calibration.

Also when picking out a gauge be sure to check the accuracy of it. None of your time will be worth anything if the gauge is out of the % accuracy range you desire. In the same respect there is not much sense over spending on one that will exceed your needs by leaps and bounds. Remember, your weighing shipping pallets not gold dust. I have to remind myself of the last bit quite often. I tend to over due accuracy. It comes from years of having to play cover your a**.

Whitehorse,

Measure the hydraulic pressure in your forklift cylinder. That will require no extra room and will measure the whole load. You will loose some accuracy due to cylinder friction and pressure measurement resolution. You may be able to calibrate to minimize these, especially with an electronic transducer and readout.

LG_DAVE

O.K. Thanks for this answer. I went quickly to my forklift and measured the shaft diameter of the cylinder (it is 1.75", and looks to be the same size as the cylinder). I multiplied the diameter times 3.14159 and got 5.5 square inches. I divided a maximum weight of 1100 pounds by 5.5 and got 200 psi. I went to my drawer of fittings and selected the fittings I needed and a 200psi. pressure gauge, and installed them.

As soon as I lifted the forks, I got 180psi reading! (I estimate my lift to have a fork and misc hardware weight of maybe 200 lbs. max.) Then I added 20 pounds, and the reading increased 10psi. to a reading of 190psi.

I did not expect such a high (fork load only) reading, and I did not expect the reading to be 0.5psi./lb. I expected 200/1100= 0.1818

I admit I am not confident about the physics, but this has me even really perplexed.

I like this solution very much, but am wondering what size gauge to buy, and what went wrong with the math?

I would suggest you carefully examine the mechanics of your forklift lift. Most forklift rams operate at a mechanical disadvantage in order to get a large lifting height with a compact ram.

The hydraulic pressure gauge is the principle of most forklift scales. I was thinking these to be outside your budget but if you're able to set it up yourself it's the way to go. Needs some careful calibration and some accurate internal dimensions for the ram.

Hello WhiteHorse:

your figures regarding the Math scan fine. Whether it was the correct Math figures entered ..............may be not? Dis you work on the internal size of the Hydraulic pipe? And do you have another gauge to check the reading of the first?

If your gauge was almost up to the 200 lb mark with no weight on the forks, would you not need a 400lbs psi gauge to allow the measured load to rise by the 200lbs psi to a total of 380lbs psi?..........Or am I way off the mark, and just trying to make things fit?

I am not an Engineer but I can see what you were getting at. (Not too sure my little bit has helped much though!)

Further to my previous post; I'd suggest that your 200psi gauge is way too small for the job. I'd check the specifications for the forklift but most hydraulic pressures are more like 2000psi!

Whitehorse,

The correct formula for the area of a circle is A=Pi x r^2. For your 1.75" dia cylinder this would give a piston area of 2.4 sq in. A 200 lb load on this area, where P=F/A would give 200 (lb) / 2.4 (in^2) = 83 lb/in^2 This is about half of what you actually got, so perhaps your forks and hardware actually weigh closer to 400 lb.

When you added 20 lb for a 10 psi increase, that would mean 20(lb)/2.4(in^2)=8.3 lb/in^2 or approximately what you read - 10psi.

So for a max of 1100 lb, P=1100/2.4 = 458 psi. Therefore a 500 psi gauge should work and give you a little margin. It would probably be wise to isolate the gauge with a stopcock and turn it on only when weighing. This would protect the gauge from lifting pressure and surges and prevent a blown gauge from letting the load drop.

LG_DAVE

Thank You!

I see my formula was off. I should have thought my School Physics would be a little rusty - 38 years ago.

So Area = 3.14159265 * (1.75/2)*(1.75/2) = 2.405sq. in;

Maximum expected load pressure reading = 1100 lbs./2.405 sq. in. = 457.4 psi.

Gauge calibration = 0.4158 psi./lb. -or- 2.405 lbs./psi.

No-load (fork weight only) reading of 180 psi. = 180 psi.* 2.405 = 432.9 lbs. of fork weight. Right?

Add 20 lbs. weight onto fork and what is the expected gauge reading? 432.9 lbs + 20 lbs. = 452.9 lbs. = 4 = 452.9 * 0.4158 = 188.3 psi.

I tried another test. I added exactly 24 lbs ( before, I was actually using 22 lbs., I re-weighed the items I added) weight onto the fork and checked the reading: 190 psi. What would I expect? 432.9 lbs. (fork calculated weight) + 24 lbs. extra load = 456.9 lbs. total load: 456.9/2.405 = 189.98! Close enough for me!

It seems you have answered all the questions, and added a very good idea. A stopcock is a very good idea. In addition, wonder if selecting an oil-filled gauge would be of any benefit?

Thank you very much.

I did notice that there was some unexplained hysteresis in the mechanics. When going up, the pressure would stop at 200, then slowly drift down to 180 after a minute or so. If I let the load drop slightly after raising the load, the pressure would return quickly to 180. I am hoping that, no matter what load I have on the forks, that the 20 psi. hysteresis would remain constant, or at least the settling delay time would get shorter, rather than remain the same. What do you think?

Since the forks apparently weigh 432.9 lbs, the gauge's 0.0 Pounds of weight would set at 180 psi, and since my maximum load will be around 800 pounds actual weight, another 332.6 psi., the total psi reading would be 180 + 332.6 psi. = 512.6 psi. So I'm thinking of getting a 600 psi. gauge. This would give me a range of 1443.6 lbs. and give some extra gauge protection. The range of use on the gauge's scale would be 180-513 psi., or 30-85% of range. This seems ideal for readability. The next challenge is to make a calibration chart and check it with known weights.

I don't know what I would have done without you guys! Thanks again.

Definitely a "stop cock" or isolation valve, if nothing else for servicing of your added circuit and Periodic gauge replacement.

A liquid filled gauge would be preferable to deal with the vibrations associated with the equipment if you want to use an analog gauge. Large face with small graduations. OR use a transducer and a digital readout for the transducer for an easy to read option.

Another option will be to use a digital gauge... Look up McMaster Carr PN 3805K78, For your application this would be the best all around to connect to the hydraulic circuit and be able to get an accurate reading without extra electrical circuits.

Although your calculations are coming up with a relatively low pressure, remember you need to be sure your added equipment can handle the total lifting capacity of the forklift. Otherwise sooner or later someone will climb on the unit and lift much more than the pallet you are now trying to weigh.

If I had to make a quick guess, I would say the pressure relief on your system is somewhere between 1200 and 1600 psi. But you can verify this by simply tilting the mast back to its maximum limit and reading the pressure with a gauge.

In most cases you will find field service ports either on the valve body it self or built into the circuit somewhere for the service hand to trouble shoot the circuit. This would be a good place for you to tie in.

Be sure to use hydraulic hoses and connections rated same as the existing circuit.

"...I am hoping that, no matter what load I have on the forks, that the 20 psi. hysteresis would remain constant, or at least the settling delay time would get shorter, rather than remain the same. What do you think?..."

I think the best way to know for sure is to try it with several different known weights and see what actually does happen.

Hello WhiteHorse:

I am trying to learn here OK?............Can you tell me as I too am a little rusty, is the difference between this post, and your first post when you explained the Maths for the first time, that you did not square Pi?

I have a problem will short term memory, where I can follow things when they are written down but trying to figure things out can be confusing as, I forget what I am thinking and doing? Also, I have not worked on trying to work out the area from a circular thing (a tube) to the pressure exerted etc, using Pi for a while.

I only did very basic Maths at school 40 years ago, and taught myself all I know from then which is just about everything! I find, because I am not using these equations everyday, week, month etc, I occasionally forget to do part of the equation but, I can usually do it in my head and get some idea of the final expected answer. As, it seems you do?

I feel embarrassed about the lack of short term memory. I would be most obliged if you can explain what the difference was between your two posts as I mentioned above please?

Take care............

Area=diameter^2*pi/4. The idea is sound, but your area is 2.405 sq in. for a 1.75 in dia.

"As soon as I lifted the forks, I got 180psi reading!" It's safe to say forks and misc are right at 350 lbs.

It would help to have a general idea of what your laoding on the pallets.

Hello dadw5boys:

I thank you for saying that. I have mentioned it twice with no reply.

Why not ask whoever supplies your pallets to provide you with the weight, if he is as concerned as you on weight issues he will know how much on average each of his pallets should weigh.

Hello Triton67:

I don't want to state the obvious here but, the original post want the weight of a pallet plus the goods on it..........Not as you seem to imply the empty pallet weight only.

No offence meant OK.

You should be able to put a pressure gauge on the hydraulic lift cylinder of your forktruck and calibrate it or determine the load vs. pressure in the cylinder using the diameter of the cylinder. The pressure in the cylinder with no load vs. the pressure with the load. You could make a conversion chart and determine the weight this way. Good luck.

I'm not an engineer, I just recently subscribed to Global Spec, I must say, these forums are really educational and interesting.

My 2cents...

What ever happened to constructing a seesaw? place weights on the other end till balanced and calculate the total force, to the distance from piviot point?

There is one major thing that I think we've missed. KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid). I think we're getting too technical here.

WhiteHorse, If you have a large operation, it would seriously be eaiser for you to just spend the money to PURCHASE or RENT one of those pallet jacks with digi-scales on them. It would save you time in physics calculations and tearing apart your fork lift.

http://www.centralcarolinascale.com/Intercomp-PW-800-Pallet-Truck-Scale.htm

http://www.1800scales.com/Intercomp-PW-800.html

I work in a small company and we sometimes run into problems like this. In the end, the expensive equipment that we initially thought was not going to help ended up being both the answer to the question and solution to many problems down the road.

Thats neat, but the only thing different about the pallet lift that reads the weight is a transducer and a digital readout.

It rates up there with buying a new forklift when all you really need is tires or brakes.

There are probably numerous ways to accomplish your objective of weighing a pallet. My thought was that if you do not have room for a floor scale you do have room for a pallet. See this page for referrence: http://www.sentranllc.com/scales.htm

Also on this page is an assortment of scales suitable for weighing hanging loads.

Regards,

Keywalker

p.s. One loadcell under each corner = total weight read out on display.

The scale built on the forklift is the best idea, I have seen these work at the local lumber mart.

However to answer your original question... No, measuring one end will not give you half.

For a quick fix:

If you have a scale that is limited to just over half the maximum weight , just have the scale connected through a block and tackle to lift the pallets. Then double the measurement.

By the way there is a technique to weigh a big trucks having weighed only one side of their axes with quite good results.

I have not any intentions to discuss here how is your idea good or is not so good.

I keep it as given and there are my thoughts how to improve your initial move to achieve maximum accuracy. Ok, if 5% accuracy fits --- you can try it as follows:

First: you have to provide the way when fork could lift crate on the same height[as minimal as possible].

Second:You must be sure that distribution of weight inside your crate is uniform

Third:You may check out the accuracy of your method time to time applying set of model weights which you can put on/off over the crate when it already suspended by fork.

Of good brand's digital[load cell] scale can endure significant overloading, dynamics include.

Goto: www.diniargeo.com There you will find exactly what you need, (if this is not a one time job.) They have a kit you can put on your fork lift.

Wangito.

How about a fork lift scale. Transducer goes on the hydraulic line senses the increase in oil pressure placed on it by the load.

http://www.americanforkliftscales.com/Accuload-Model-LTWS1-Hydraulic-Forklift-Scale.html

Looks like this is finished

Exactly what we have all been talking about only in a packaged "plug and play" version. Couldn't ask for more huh?

Hold your horses, 'pardner!

I have been busy, so I have not responded for a few days.

Update: I have a pressure gauge and cutoff valve on order,.

I have a forklift repairman looking in his junk for one of the bourdon tube type gauges that has a tare and scale calibration capability built into the gauge, specifically made for the hydraulic line of a forklift. It sounds ideal in that it is inexpensive and made for the job. The problem is he may have tossed the ones he had.

Actually, I have allowed everyone to assume that my forklift is a normal one, because, for the most part the answers applied to mine. What I actually have is a 'Big Joe' walk behind 2000lb. capacity lift that does not have the normal kind of forks. they are 2-3 inches thick, and I believe the transducer type fork scale adapters will not work.

The one that uses the hydraulic pressure does not list the price, and I have not contacted them yet for a comparison. I plan to wait for my test of the gauge when it comes in.

Thanks to all for your help. I won't have an update on my progress until later this week. I hope this works!

My best hope is that I can find a forklift repair place that has one of the gauges made for this purpose rolling around in their junk. I did some calling around to other repair shops, and nobody else has heard of them. With a web search, I wasn't able to find anything except the electronic types.

Your walk behind still uses hydraulic pressure to lift. It will still work, the thing is you only lift a couple inches now in this scenario, you will need to check and be sure there is no mechanical advantages built in here (be sure the cylinder picks the pallet the same distance the cylinder extends and there is no strange linkage involved)

That last suggestion was cool because it was everything we were talking about but all packaged nice and clean. However if your walk behind is of the manual type you probably don't have an electrical system to power this thing with anyhow. Although it wouldn't take much current and this could be dealt with, the device probably costs more than your walk behind...

A gauge will do the same but you will need to do some calculating.

The Big Joe I have is capable of lifting a 2000lb. pallet to a height of 7ft. above the floor. It does have a 12v electrical system for it's hydraulic pump. I'm still avoiding spending the bucks to buy a $$$$ digital system.

Now I want to thank you for helping me understand the 'mechanical advantage'. After reading your post, I saw that I needed to measure the lift of the fork/extension of the cylinder. It has a chain and sprocket, so I suspected there might be some mechanical thing going on...

So I measured and found that when the fork is lifted 3ft, the cylinder extends 18in. so there is a 36/18=2:1 ratio mechanical advantage!

Now when I check the math, It seems that when Joe is lifting a 2000lb. load, the cylinder is pushing 4000+lbs using a 2.4in^2 cylinder. So that computes to 4000/2.4=1666psi. on the hydraulic line to the cylinder. That corresponds to the 1800 psi. I read on the gauge I used to check dead-head pressure relief (safety) pressure before my gauge stopped working.

My new gauge should be in tomorrow?...

Thank you!

You have the same mechanical advantage as most every other fork lift out there. We also have a Big Joe In-between Handling Lift (IBH). It is a 2000lb capacity lift with an 18" load center. Ours only lifts 6 ft and will not straddle a typical 4ft pallet. That can be a pain in the neck. The electronic version sounds great. We typically don't need to measure the weight of our load. I have to admit that having an idea of how much weight is being thrown around could be a good safety reminder for our students. It would also help in double checking weights of brass, aluminum, and stainless scrap before going to the salvage yard. Thanks for starting this thread.