Help Needed: Retrofitting a Forklift

"It might need a negator spring, (contorque spring) on it, which is capable of lifting an object that is 72"wide x 48"high goal mouth / 16" top shelf / 44" deep at base"

Why do you need a negator or contorque spring? Where will it be located?

"and weighs approximately ninety pounds"

Rather meager information to work on and hardly specifications. It appears that you have an object the 72" wide, 44" deep or front to back at the base and a height of 48." It has a "goal mouth." WAG: The opening you want to put the object of the same size in???

The opening that this specific object fits into is irrevelant. However, the total size remains the same as I stated previously. I don't necessarily need a forklift but a machine or tool that is capable of doing the same lifting technique.

Would you give me the address of the company that you work for, please? I am in the process of developing a totally new project! Will you sign my agreement form that I could either FAX or mail to you? Thanks, Louie

Louie, Check your e-mail box.

a forklift? ..........lifting and turning aspects of a forklift? At the risk of the obvious, there are one heck of a lot of Forklifts out there. We have 62 of them and even though the variety varies from same source suppliers, the variety never ends. There is a point where helping means the answer to the blanks left in the picture. How much room do you have to manuver? Is it limitied to an aisle width? What does the term goal mouth mean? If you are placing a 90 pound object you have a lot of options. How high are you lifting this object? If I understand you correctly this has a base of 44" deep and the top 16" depth at the top shelf. Create a better visual for us. There may be options that don't require modifications unless it's a unit you have and are attached to. Each detail is a tool in the tool box. You bring the tools and let's see how full we can fill the tool chest.

Dear Dennis, Would you give me the address of the company that you work, as I am in the process of developing a totally new project, please? Dennis, will you sign my agreement form that I could either FAX or mail to you? Thanks, Louie

WHy do you need a forklift to lift a 90lb hockey net?

grab a buddy and pick it up

I have what I call a real challenge to "Retrofitting a Forklift" and that is for someone figure out how I can take an indoor forklift and make it an outdoor forklift. You know, one that can run in dirt or gravel and not just on a paved surface.

Chuck

Your in big trouble, The biggest problem is wheel diameter. A standard indoor forklift has wheels with a total OD of 12-14" . Not near large enough for outdoor conditions. If traveling in gravel, the wheels will sink , or the undercarriage will hang up. You may attempt a lift kit of some sort to put larger wheels on, but I think this would play hell with your counterweight. All in All it would be cheaper to buy an outdoor Forklift (say at auction) and repair it

LOL, Thanks Dazed for your suggestion, however I have already discovered what my challenges are, I am just asking if anyone out there has figured out a solution ya see. Now for some more bad news,,lol,,, I have two of the indoor type,,,,,lol,,,and only a 20' by 60' pad in front of my shop. I am just a small job shop type machine shop and don't have a big need for either of them. It's just I love challenges and so far I have not come up with anything for this challenge. My gravel is packed pretty well so sinking is not a big problem for the drive wheels but the steering wheels get burried pretty often. I have concidered your suggestions about installing a larger wheel it's just if I do that the front will be jacked up but not the rear or steering axles because there is no room to increase their size in width or dia.. as I was saying before, maybe someone else has found an answer as this is a challenge for many I'm sure as this is a big world,,,,,Thanks for your input though

1) You could concrete over the gravel to give a better base.

2) Buy a tractor, and fit the lifting gear from one fork lift to the rear of the tractor (some come with these as optional extras). The extra length of the tractor allows it to balance the load quite well.

OK, add this to your challenge list of ideas to incorporate in your thought process. If the big problem is the steering wheels, consider making them dual wheels like the drive wheels. That's assuming that the drive wheels are dual wheels. Indoor warehouse lifts have small solid tires in most cases. If that's what you have, the job is easier. Odds are you have solid tires. Unless you want to machine an adapter here is the simplest way to do what you want to do. Remember the goal is to reduce the number of times you get stuck, not eliminate it. Elimination can be solved with cash, but that's not the kind of challenge you are talking about. What you do is make a band that can be welded to the existing rim. The width need only be wide enough to create a gap allowing a good weld to the existing rim to the adjoining new wheel. The center of the add on solid wheel needs to be modified to allow access to the mounting hardware of the existing steering wheels and allow clearance when the wheels are turned. The same can be done with the drive wheels to increase their footprint if required to keep them from sinking. Again, you can machine an adapter based on the offset of your rims, lengthen the mounting hardware and bolt on an outer wheel if you have the time and inclination. This is very similar to single to dual wheel conversion kit. (I thinks that is what you could Google for a few design ideas.) IF the offset is all the way to the inside An adapter becomes easy and bolting a second wheel requires a smaller spacer. The width essentially stays the same on the original tire since all you are doing is flipping the rim 180 degrees. The downside is that the cantilever force increases on the spindle. Unless you carry loads that max out the machine, you may be finding yourself machining new spindles on occassion. I'll bet that between rotors and other things, you could even make a better spindle. So, IF you don't need ADDITIONAL HEIGHT off the ground, consider increasing the contact patch. One thing that you will find helpful is to machine the solid outer tires just ever so slightly smaller than the original steering tires. It will make it easier to turn on hard surfaces than all the rubber on the road. You'll end up wth a longer life to your steering components and less exercise. The only failure in life is not trying to do something. The results is simply varied levels of success. Have fun.........

If fitting second wheels to the steering, remember to check that they will be allowed to turn - the lock on many fork trucks is amazingly tight - ~160° lock to lock - and most have very little space, as the counterweight sits on top/around the steering wheels.

Thanks ever so much Dennis as you have started my brain spinning again,,,lol,,,I'm going to look hard at your suggestions this weekend. The one thing I have fear of is the the steering wheels only have about one inch clearance in front and back of the wheels.

I'll forward you some pics of steering lock to lock on a cushion tire lift. Then another of wheel arches. GM 1964 point is illustrated in the photos to you. The majority of the time the "truck" frame is on top of the axel. The area in front of the wheels is sheet metal. Depending on the lift, the area behind the steering wheel can be open to the rear as shown in the one photo or may be closed. The counterweight also sits on the truck frame and normally does not make up part of the wheel arch surround....Cutting tourch or Plasma time....Again see photos. You may find yourself in a situation where you have to compromise between the ultimate tight steering radius or how often you stick it in the dirt. What make and model is your lift? Dennis

The lift is a Allis Chalmers type "G" and I have no idea of what year it is nor do I know where to luck for the year, I just know I got it for a grand and it runs and all the things work on it,,,,,lol,,,oh yeah and it gets stuck easy,,,,,lmao,,,,also it's propane.