Moving a hammer... one mm at a time...

[Ed Thomas]

View of the hammer leaving its storage location in the pole barn.

View of the hammer where it sits as I figure out how to change direction INTO the shop.

View showing the mighty :?: oak which anchored the chainhoist to pull the hammer. I must say I kept an eye out to see which would move. The hammer blinked first.

[Strine]

To turn the beast, remove all the packing underneath so it's sitting on the ground, then rehitch to another mighty oak fro a different direction. What a pity there isn't a knarly old redgum nearby. You could hang the thing from a branch and spin it around like a top. Once you're ready to take up the strain in the new direction grab the wife or whom ever to steady it so it wont topple over. Don't go too quick either or you'll need to lift it UP as well as along. Once you're pointing in the right direction replace all the packing and rollers and the like and heave ho.

Personally I would have built the new shed around the hammer it seems like an easier job. :D

[anon_smith]

Is that a tire chain I see between the hammer and the tree?

Tsk, tsk, tsk

[Ed Thomas]

Strine: I'd have to wait about 80 years for a tree to grow in that direction. Maybe plant one in the shop now and check in 2090? You know, we actually talked about your idea of building around the hammer, back when it was still on the trailer and the shop was just a gleam in my eye.

Anon: Yes, that is a tire chain. There is another one wrapped around the tree. And I had to use a third one to get long enough to get out of the barn. These are tractor and semi chains. Stronger than some of the tow chains in the link. I didn't really want to take the time to forge one chain long enough to do the job.

[anon_smith]

...I have at least 100' of 3/8" high tensile chain :lol:

[mike-hr]

How about laying plywood sheets, or a track of 2 x 6 boards into the shop. Lever the hammer onto sections of pipe, and roll it along. I moved my hammer all over the shop like this. The key is forcing yourself to move slow enough to be safe. When the hammer was where i wanted it, I levered it up onto shims a little at a time, removed the pipes, and removed shims, 1/4" at a time, until it was on the floor.

[JimG]

Changing direction is easier to do than it is for me to explain.
A lever and fulcum on the front. lift the front of your skid to clear then swing the lever sidewaysto move the front over a bit. Repeat till it's facing the way you want.

[John Larson]

Ed, use a truck or tractor as a place to mount the come-along/chain-fall even if these machines can't pull the machine or you don't want burnt rubber on the new shop floor. Add some cleats to the front and back ends of the timbers to keep the timber constant distance apart for better stability. Good luck.

[Glenn]

Any time you put tension on a long hitch like that, it is always a good idea to a towel, blanket, etc over the chain/cable. If anything were to break, it acts as a parachute and slows things down.

When using a vehicle to pull, it you can see the cloth leave the ground, just before things get tight.

It is always nice to put a couple of pinel size rings into their own footer before the concrete floor is poured. Use them to hook on to and pull things into the shop. The ones I saw were recessed in the floor with a 1/4" piece of plate steel as a cover when not in use. There was enough room in the recess for a screw-pin clevis to attach things to.

[irnsrgn]

Ed, I can see you need a crash course in rigging and moving machinery, I have moved items much heavier than that just by pushing on them and corners are easy if you know how to position pipes under it, it will just roll around the corner. LOL

sorry I couldn't resist

irn

[Ed Thomas]

Well dang, Jr... where were you today when I needed you. :mrgreen: I wasn't going to post more pictures, but heck... you practically DARED me with your last comments. I can move things all around on a concrete floor, too... it's getting it TO the flat hard places that is a challenge. So here is proof that I may not be too bright, but at least I'm persistent:


Here is the anchor I forged from a jackhammer bit to snag the 6" concrete pad at the far end of the shop (the forging area is gravel). It was originally more 'U' shaped... but that Beaudry put up a fight.


This was the hardest part actually, because it is slightly uphill and the chain on the concrete pad was pulling slightly downward. So the hammer wanted to dig into the beams rather than move. I helped it along with the car jack you see in front of it. Tedious but effective.


Home free.

[Ed Thomas]

I've found that, if at all possible, this sort of thing is best done by myself with nobody around. That way I am not distracted and can stay alert to all the things that can go wrong the whole time. The only times I've ever gotten hurt were with "help". :oops:

[Ten Hammers]

Ed, if you have any more material/equipment handling to do I might suggest you invest in a small pile of 3/4" pipe (sched 40). Stuff rolls easily (sometimes extremely easily) on pipe and sure solves lotta problems. Even light bar stock placed on the wood bases (like 1/8 x 2) will give you less rolling resistance for the pipe and moves heavy stuff pretty easily. You just got to pay attention and not get distracted. I agree that a vehicle of some sort used as an anchor to pull from works well too. Walk like an Egyptian...:)

[irnsrgn]

Sorry you took offense ED. I meant none.

irn

[Ed Thomas]

Ten Hammers: Yes, I have a stash of round stock pieces ready just to do as you suggested. A friend of mine taught me that trick when I moved my smaller hammer so I'm counting on it for this one. Other than pouring a foundation and getting it on that, I'm in good shape now (I hope).

Jr: Of course not! I could see you grinning while you typed that! I thought it was pretty funny. Even with these Emoticons, it's hard to type in the humor. I was trying to joke right back. Sorry it came out wrong. You've been nothing be encouragement and help on this board!

Sometimes I really think what I said... "not too bright, but persistent". When I want to do something, I think about it for awhile and just DO it. Then along comes a friend and says: "You know, if you'da just..." Oops. I do a LOT of things the hard way.

I was grateful you posted anything at all, Jr!

[irnsrgn]

In the for what its worth department about moving heavy equipment like Ed did, when a winch truck or forklift or other means is not available.

1. Level out the ground side to side as best you can. Don't try to use large timbers unless the machine is excessively heavy, they are hard to handle and sometimes hard to obtain and getting the equipment upon them can be a problem. Use cheap inexpensive precut 2by4 studs from the local building material place, and keep moving and reusing them, it doesn't take that many and you can always use 2by4's.

Don't just use 1 per side, put them at least 2 or more wide and stagger the ends as the joints are the weak spot and can sink into the ground tipping the center of balance past the center point and the equipment goes on its side. Also space your runners (2by4's) as far out as you can to improve stability.

2. Use pipe rollers or round wooden post material to make moving the equipment a lot easier. The larger the roller the easier it will move with a minimum of effort. If going down hill some, put a block and tackle or such on the back side so it doesn't get away from you and run off the rollers. As you will be reusing the rollers and putting them under the front quite often, use a small piece of wood with a taper cut on one end to stop your rollers so it doesn't run off the rollers before you get another one under it.

3. When you want to make a corner or turn the equipment slightly, the easiest way is to start early and place the rolls at a slight angle so the load will turn easily and smoothly, remembering that the load is going to move to one side and you don't want to run off the roller.

The easiest way to make a sudden 90 degree or less turn is to run the center roller up on a piece of board or iron placed in the center of the roller so it acts like a pivot point and just twist it around, its amazingly easy to do by just one man even with a heavy load.

4. Do things slowly and don't get in a hurry, this is the important part.

5. With machines that are top heavy, use a couple of good stout ropes fastened at the very top and tie them to a pickup or even a car positioned on either side far enough away to the sides that if something drastic happens it will not damage the anchor vehicle if things go awry.

Even if the machine is heavy it doesn't take much to keep it from tipping sideways if it doesn't go to far past center.


I have moved machinery weighing several tons using these methods with very little effort many times. The main things to remember are use your head instead of your back and always be prepared for the worst.

my $.02 worth.

irnsrgn

[Ed Thomas]

Irn: Thanks for the rigging hints. I still have a vertical Gorton milling machine that probably weighs almost as much as the hammer and isn't so conveniently bottom heavy. I will look at ways to incorporate your advice.

I do want to say that impatience drove some of my decision to move the Beaudry this way. The ground is not very level and it all slopes down fairly quickly beyond the area right in front of the shop. The Beaudry was already sitting on two I-beams in the pole barn from when I off-loaded it from the back of the trailer. So I decided to use the skid ramps and beams because I could then keep the hammer at the same height. It is always easy to let a large object down, but it can be a bear to raise it if there isn't any place to get purchase and leverage.

By myself, I actually prefer the way I did things. It is less scary because the hammer only moves in small increments. I used a small chain hoist so I could feel the resistences better. The beams and ramps provided a stable and fairly level surface. I just greased their surfaces and the hammer slid along them. I didn't have to do any extra rigging to ensure the hammer remained vertical or didn't take off down the hill. Just inched it along fairly complacently.

Once I start moving it around in the shop, I will definitely go back to boards and rollers because the floor is smooth and level.

[HWooldridge]

I am fortunate to have an old Dodge Army 3/4 ton truck with a PTO winch so I can move a great deal if there is a solid anchor point like a pole to hook the snatch block to.

[sandpile]

ED: It don't make any difference how you did it. You got it done. It is in the dry and on somehting hard and flat. Build your base and use pipes and roll it right up on top of the base where you want it. Us old arm-chair quarterbacks app. the effort you put in to get this done by yourself. Congrats. :wink:
My grandfather once put a home-made differential windmill on top of a tower by himself. That was before I was born, I would have liked to have seen him do that with out a tractor. He used mules and no one helped him. I bet getting that first bolt started was a doosy. Quite a feat.

Iwas typing and talking to the wife while Jr. was posting-- His is the best advice you can get. I have moved a lot of heavy stuff, just like he is talking about.

Chuck

[Tom Lumpkins]

I was just wondering how long it took you to move it.. Looks like it was tough.

[Brian D]

Ed,

Congrats on moving the hammer! Good job to have behind you.

I couldn't help but notice in the pictures the Shop. Looks like a really nice shop in the works. Very fine indeed.

Enjoy,

[Brian D]

Ha, Ha, I just looked at the original date of this thread.
It is pretty old! I would like to see some pics of that shop now, I bet it has changed quite a bit from when the photos were taken in the original post.