22 replies to this topic

[M J W J]

Being a student money is tight (don't bother making comments about me being tight etc we all wish we had more money/could save some). I am at the minute in need of an engine crane to lift my engine (and other things) into place. I did ask for one for my 21st birthday however due to cost my parents said no (I can fully understand this but if you don't ask you don't get ) and bought me my gearbox instead. I am putting this up as there may be others out there like myself who either can't afford one or just wish to save some money and build there own (looks good on a personal statement as well if you are applying to do engineering at university)

While looking around on the internet I stumbled across a link which had four files to download (can't find the link again). The four files turned out to be scans of an article written about three guys who built there own engine crane.

With the amount of miscellaneous junk lying around my dad's and gran's garages I worked out what I needed to make an engine crane. The article says you should be able to make one for about £110. With the stuff I have lying around I worked out mine would only cost £70. My engine crane should be able to lift 200 kg at its furthest reach and 500 kg at its shortest. This may not seem a lot however the bottle jack that I am using is a fairly weedy one. If you compare this to the cheapest one you can buy that is able to lift the same they cost about £130 and you still have to assemble it. If mine had a stronger bottle jack then it would be possible to lift almost 800 kg at its furthest reach. My Vauxhall engine and gearbox weighs approximately 160 kg.

I am not following these guys design religiously however have taken their basic idea. My main problem is making 24 mm diameter holes for my bolts to go through. For the main upright I will be using a 34 mm diameter hole saw and welding in a bush that I will turn on the lathe. As for the other it is a combination of 13 mm drill, hack saw and file.

Here is the article. The final two pictures are my engine crane tack welded together so far and the start of one 24 mm diameter hole. It should be finished early next week so can let you know how well it works then.

All credit goes to the guys who wrote the article in the first place.










(the box section at the bottom is not bent its just the photo)

Edited by M J W J, 07 April 2011 - 11:36 PM.

[Shifty]

I remember that article first time around, that was when cranes cost £400!!

I've just bought one for £120 delivered!!

[M J W J]

I've just bought one for £120 delivered!!

Well that's £50 more than I have at the minute.

I have just noticed the date on it. It was 15 years ago. Never mind.

[Ethel]

Landrover, roof rack, scaffy pole - job done

[M J W J]

Here is today's progress. One of my tack welds broke so decided to burn it all together properly with my new arc welder. Its been a while since I used one so it took a little while to get nice neat welds.



The lower leg may appear to be a bit small but it is made of far thicker material than was specified in the article so should be ok.

[shakey]

its even cheaper if you just use a car jack and drop the engine from underneath and do the same to get it back in

[M J W J]

That works for a series engines however if you look through the build diaries you will see that my mini is having an x18xe1 Vauxhall engine fitted. The design of the frame won't allow the engine and gearbox to be put in from the bottom. I also work on other cars as well so having a crane will be useful. I can use the crane to carry the engine as it will have wheels fitted (tomorrow's job).

I did use a trolley jack to drop the engine out when I took the a series out.

[M J W J]

Right. Haven't done as much as I would have liked this week due to having to disappear to nottingham for a hospital check up and having to empty our trailer to find the strimmer for my mum (cheers dad for putting it right at the bottom under everything else > ). I have also been dealing with trying to produce 24 mm diameter holes which aren't easy. The lathe is the only thing I have that can make them but unfortunately I can't get a 54" long 4" by 2" piece of box section side on into the chuck. Also cutting 1/4" steel plate by hand is hard work. Wish I could have done more on it this evening but have had to start doing some work for uni.

Here is the progress so far:

Drilled all the holes for the braces.
Made the plates to hold the front wheels on.
Made corner strengthening plates.
Made reinforcements for the upright mount.
Welded all reinforcements and plates in place.
Cut second hinge plate out.

Here are the photos.


second brace cut and tack welded to the mounting plates


corner gussets welded in and upright plate strengthening bits welded in


front wheel mounts welded in place.

It looks as though not much has been done but I have spent 2 days doing all the little things. I should hopefully get the back wheels mounted tomorrow, the brace bars fully welded, reassemble it and start sorting out the jib arm (needs cutting and drilling).

[MiniLandy]

Interesting stuff!

Might have a go at this myself, a decent engine crane is seriously expensive...

Also, i'm not sure if it's just your photos, but are your welds getting enough penetration?

Good luck

[icedaddyuk]

I remember that article first time around, that was when cranes cost £400!!

I've just bought one for £120 delivered!!

From where may I ask?

[new_zealand _minis]

do what i do . get a 500kg winch . some chain , some tie downs . good beam with angle iron renforced . and there you go . takes up no room . have done 5 mini motors and 4 metro ones no problems at all

[M J W J]

Also, i'm not sure if it's just your photos, but are your welds getting enough penetration?

I think it is the flash on my camera that make the welds look a bit dodgy. Any bits of my welding that are slightly raised appear to shine. I fully admit that I am not the greatest welder. My work may not be the neatest but has always held together. I have done the BFH test and all is good.

New_Zealand_Minis. A 500 kg hand winch still costs about £30 (plus the cost of all the other stuff if you don't already have it). If you've got one then fair enough use it. I didn't but did have half the stuff to build a crane. My crane can also carry my engine as it is on wheels and doesn't require someone to be holding the chain all the time. Also I am not fitting an A series engine to my mini. I will be using the crane to lift in a Vauxhall engine and gearbox which is bigger and heavier.

[M J W J]

Little bit more done today. I have fitted the front wheels and made and fitted the rear wheel mounts and wheels themselves. Got up late so that was it. I intend to get the bushes and plates sorted out over the weekend if I get chance and are not too hung over. I have also figured out how all the pivots are going to be made.

[Shifty]

I remember that article first time around, that was when cranes cost £400!!

I've just bought one for £120 delivered!!

From where may I ask?

http://www.kmsdirect...ae3417f5684206b

[1984mini25]

I remember that article first time around, that was when cranes cost £400!!

I've just bought one for £120 delivered!!

From where may I ask?

http://www.kmsdirect...ae3417f5684206b

I bought a small folding one of e-bay about a year ago for around the same. Its not too bad apart from having to replace a few of the supplied bolts with some proper ones and add a few washers hear and there. The only big problem I hate with it though, is the width across the front legs. Its just so that you have to be careful of were the axel stands are placed on the front subframe or it just won’t slide under.