Engine Crane Weight

What I would use is just rent a hijack, we used to use these for getting condenser units on roofs...

...or maybe a Genie lift would be easier to handle...

These are great...

Yes the greater the angle and height the less lifting capacity....you could just hang a hundred lb sandbag on the back...but this seems like a lot of overkill for what is actually needed....see 1st post

Hi Solar Eagle, nice to chat with you again! Those are nice lifts, but the feet stick out farther than the lifting arms. Can't position the TV close enough to the bracket to get it mounted. Plus, I'm into this lift for about $350.00 for the crane, the extension pole, and polyurethane wheels so as not to mar the floors of the client's house. The other lifts are much more expensive. Rental is an option, but I own this rig, and can charge for using it.

The chart you showed doesn't seem to indicate the apparent weight of objects when lifted, just the arc angle and heights. I do agree though, that a 100 lb. sand bag on the back of the crane will be helpful.

Mike

I would just test it out in the open with 100 lb load and see how much weight your sandbag needs to be...and see if any other problems arise ...test for stability etc...you might have to add some outriggers or something...it's possible you could inadvertently exceed the capacity of the hydraulic cylinder....

I think that's a good idea. Jeez, I didn't even think about outriggers. I'll see if I hopefully don't need them during the test. It's designed out of the box to lift 2000 lb. up to about a 7 foot height, but that would be way back over the long feet. I'm hopeful that even with a longer boom, 100+ lbs. won't need outriggers. That would require some thoughtful engineering!

You could have the mounting bracket extend from the wall...

I don't have numbers because you did not provide lengths. I strongly suspect you are in trouble at this length with a 100 lbs TV. I think you need closer to 150 lbs mounted at the very back of the crane. I have a harbor freight 1 ton engine lift. If I added 6 ft to the end of the boom that would be more than doubling the length. Mine would be unstable at that length. You probably have a different one because mine is decades old.

Lengths needed to do the math.

distance from pivot point at the back of the crane to the ground.

Distance from the previous point on the ground to the place the front wheel sit on the ground

Width of front wheel base

Length of crane boom from pivot point to drilled hole for clevis hook.

The most dangerous point is with the crane boom parallel to the ground. You could just test it there by hooking a weight on the end and then try to lift up the back of the crane.

I mounted a harbor freight electric winch and a pulley on my crane. You could just raise the crane and then raise the TV. It would solve your overbalance worry.

They also have hand operated winches

This sounds like a good solution, lifting the arm to an 80° plus angle before attaching load would negate all lifting worries, a hand winch mounted to the lower support arm with a couple of pulleys is all that would be needed except maybe a lifting cradle for the tv...cheap and easy...

You could go with an aluminum extension vs the steel to reduce weight...

I too have one of these cranes and have used it several times to change engines in a Model A.

The key consideration is the moment of the load relative to the construction of the crane. (I.e., the horizontal position of the center of gravity of the load and its weight.) As you raise the load higher the CG of the load follows an arc, moving closer to the supporting structure of the crane thus reducing the moment. You have already established that your modification will work satisfactorily at low heights, so the structure apparently is sufficient to handle the load.

However, a major consideration has to be the sidewise stability of the crane when the load is raised high, and this is where some appropriate outriggers may be needed as others suggested.

Regards,

Bill Lee

I know you already have the engine lift, and have some effort and expense into modifying it… part of your difficulty may be in the name of the device.

How about starting with a device called a TV lift?

https://m.youtube.com/shorts/6Q4zkj1fmCU

To stabilse your crane from Tilting sideways and add stability to it, simply mount two brackets (on each side) to the legs and add a section of Box tube that can be folded out as needed.
To counteract the danger of the crane tipping forwards, mount a subframe at the rear of the crane where you can add a ballast weight.
That way you can safely lift the TV without any risks, especially if you have to juggle the set to line up with the wall mounting.
Using the Weight / Lift table provided by Solar Eagle note the boom will move away from the wall as it is raised so you will need to take that into account when you choose a extension to your boom length.
Maybe use the side wall of your house, mark up the maximum height you will work to, put the crane in place and elevate the crane to the required angle and measure the distance from the crane jib to the marking on the wall, that way you will see how long the extension will need to be to reach the required position.
Also if you provide a Lift that avoids the risks of tipping that should cover you in the event of an accident leading to an insurance claim.

The pivot point is the front of the bottom legs (wheels). Whenever you get the load out farther than the front wheels, you get into the region of instability. The easiest way to balance this is to put more weight on the back.

It doesn't matter how high you lift it, what matters are the moments about the pivot point. This is simply the weight of the TV x distance in front of the front wheels vs weight of the crane x the distance it's CG behind the front wheels.