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Having lifted an NP205 from ceiling joists, I would respectfully submit you also want to be sure that the joists can handle the load. Mine were bending down more than... well, certainly more than they should have been. :eek:

-- A


Houses here are designed to handle pretty heavy snow loads and I did add a lot of extra lumber and carriage bolts when I reworked the garage a few months back.....

I'll probably just see if if can lift ME up in the air first.... and make an evaluation based on that. :haha:


-G
 
Houses here are designed to handle pretty heavy snow loads and I did add a lot of extra lumber and carriage bolts when I reworked the garage a few months back.....

I'll probably just see if if can lift ME up in the air first.... and make an evaluation based on that. :haha:


-G
Is this going to turn into another ladder incident?
 
In my drivers side C pillar I have a chunk of left over garage door cable left inside the tubes leading up to the section over the back seat. I plan on running some leds back there and I didn't want to have the wires showing. I still need to do the A and B, but when I finally finish weld the cage, I should easily be able weld the tubes with the cable inside, then use that cable as a fish tape with out needing to fish anything. Hook the wire in from the bottom and pull to the top and bing bada boom, I'm sitting in the back seat drinking a beer under leds. :smirk:








Well, that's the plan at least. :popcorn::haha:
 
In my drivers side C pillar I have a chunk of left over garage door cable left inside the tubes leading up to the section over the back seat. I plan on running some leds back there and I didn't want to have the wires showing. I still need to do the A and B, but when I finally finish weld the cage, I should easily be able weld the tubes with the cable inside, then use that cable as a fish tape with out needing to fish anything. Hook the wire in from the bottom and pull to the top and bing bada boom, I'm sitting in the back seat drinking a beer under leds. :smirk:








Well, that's the plan at least. :popcorn::haha:
:popcorn:
 
2017.04.04 - UPDATE!!! - ONE-FINGER ROLLCAGE LIFT!!!!


More progress.... :waytogo:

With the bedfloor complete, it was time to start thinking about marrying all of these parts together and as always...figuring out how to accomplish that in a very limited workspace. The reworked mezzanine area certainly offered a good opportunity to get the rollcage up high in the air if I could just find a safe way to lift it off the rolling chassis. After a few minutes on Amazon, (and 2-days of waiting) a lovely Chinese 1300Lb capacity ceiling hoist arrived....

The only hardship was the fact that it comes with an inexplicably short cable for the controller (5 feet)..... considering that the hoist comes with almost 30 feet of cable, it seems like an odd design. Nothing like having to stand up on a tall ladder to use a winch that is supposed to keep you from having to climb tall ladders!!! :haha: Oh well, I ordered up a 25' length of 16/4 wire from eBay and will rewire the controller once it arrives. THEN it should be perfect...

Regardless of all that, here's how it looked once it was installed as high as it could go.

IMG_5915.jpg



With a couple of straps, it was SUPER easy to lift the cage up out of the truck. The only unexpected problem was that the A-pillar legs wouldn't clear the windshield frame during the lift....so the truck had to be moved forward about 2 feet to provide clearance.

IMG_5925.jpg



That was a bit of an issue, since the truck hit the toolbox before it really cleared the cage properly. Instead of fighting with it all night, it made more sense to just roll the truck out of the garage and roll it in backwards so that the cage had better alignment with the hoist cable.... Like so:

IMG_5926_1.jpg



This was WAY better. The cage went right up and it was easy to push the truck forward as needed to pull it cleanly off the chassis.

IMG_5929.jpg



Sorry for the busy backgrounds... it makes it hard to see what is going on. :dunno: Here's another shot that shows the cage way up in the air and the truck aimed for an easy departure from the garage to make room underneath.

IMG_5935.jpg




The idea is to get the truck moved outside for an afternoon... then roll the bedfloor / cageplate setup over from the opposite side of the garage (thank goodness it's on casters!) and then lower the rollcage down onto the newly installed bedfloor plates. From there the cage can be tack-welded into postion and the bedfloor and cage will be "unified" and ready to be lifted back up onto the chassis for test-fitting. That will be fun.



-G
 
You need a taller garage. Nice work...


The cage can go higher.... but with the truck aiming out the door it's not really necessary.

The hoist is nice and strong, but that doesn't mean I don't still get the willies standing underneath it with the cage dangling over my head!!! :haha:


-G
 
Might want to add a safety chain or something if you will be leaving it up there for long just in case the winch decides to let go. The truck shop I used to work at had a mobile wheel lift for semis and could lift 60,000 lbs high enough to stand under it and do a clutch. Kinda spooky putting loaded dump trucks and car haulers on it then working under them.
 
I have one of those lifts on a pickup-bed-boom - I like it a lot. I would say that they have the short controller so you won't hit your head on it every time you walk by. That said, my hoist is a good 10 feet off the floor - and the control is within easy reach.
 
The hoist is nice and strong, but that doesn't mean I don't still get the willies standing underneath it with the cage dangling over my head!!!

That's your sense of self-preservation. Extend the cable on that winch too because you and ladders don't mix. :p
 
"Done" is a four-letter word. And not a good one. ("Free" being the good four-letter F-word, for instance.)

-- A
 
2016.04.05 - UPDATE!!! - THE 2-BAY TANGO....!!!!


The weather was lousy last night but that wasn't going to stop the forward progress. :waytogo:

The hoist experiment was a success, so it was clear that a small "Towers of Hanoi" process was about to start.... in the rain.


Step 1: Raise the rollcage up
Step 2: Roll the bare chassis from the left side garage bay out onto the driveway and into the rain (temporarily)
Step 3: Move the bedfloor / cageplate / 2x4-castered assembly underneath the rollcage
Step 4: Move the chassis into the right-side garage bay where the bedfloor used to be.
Step 5: Wipe down the rainsoaked chassis quickly
Step 6: Lower the rollcage down onto the cageplates. Hold breath....pray that everything lines up like it was supposed to.


Sequence Photos from last night:

The start of the sequence....

IMG_5948.jpg



Some kind of hybrid process step between between Steps 2 and 4:

IMG_5951.jpg



Parts in new locations and out of the rain:

IMG_5965.jpg



Checking alignment of cagepoints to CNC cageplates. (Note: This is the first time that the cage has actually sat on a complete rear bedfloor. The floor was heavily cut out to design the rear strut mounts initially)

IMG_5968.jpg



Parting shot of the night with everything setttled into position. Old cage feet cut off, and lowered completely into new bedfloor....lifting straps removed, etc.

IMG_5996.jpg



Overall it was a VERY cool feeling to see the rollcage sitting on the bedfloor, and the whole look of the shop last night was awesome... like things are really progressing and major parts of the build are finally getting put together in a cohesive way.... :saweet:


-G
 
Great utilization of finite work space. I read your intro, and immediately understood the "tango". Here in Oak Cliff, it's called the "Willomet Shuffle."

Excellent use of tools to save one's back/neck/elbow. You've got me thinking about a Chinese hoist hung from my trusses.

David
 

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