"A" frame gantry

[Frank S]

Knowing I had a large toy arriving this weekend I knew I needed something substantial to help lift it off the trailer.
I decided to build an "A" frame gantry for this task. the gantry is 15 feet tall 12 feet wide inside with a 10 ft stance to the legs.
Made out of 6" pipe and a 12" heavy "I" beam with a length of 8" H beam capping the top center to help prevent twisting under the load the braces are 4" pipe
I used my 1+1 to 3 rule for width to height ratio from the vertical center line to the ground for every 3 feet in height the legs extend 1 ft in opposite directions making the base of the legs at 10 ft to the height of the bottom of the beam 15 ft making it very stable against tipping
the beam is embedded between the legs by cutting out a receiving socket
Note the short piece of beam being used as a template to layout and cut the socket for fit.





Tomorrow we will see if my efforts were in vain or if the A Frame will be come of some value around the place,
If nothing else I can convert it into a swing set for the great grand kids to play on

[Altair]

Thanks Frank S! We've added your A-Frame Gantry to our Cranes category,
as well as to your builder page: Frank S's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

A-Frame Gantry by Frank S

tags: crane

[Frank S]

Well it is more than a glorified swing set we had the lathe hanging without any problems
the lathe weighs right at 26,000 lbs and my back how can dead left from that height only about 6,500 a little more than that down on the ground but not much.
So there was at a minimum 20K hanging.

[KustomsbyKent]

Looks great, Frank! Where will the lathe go? I would imagine in the short term it will stay in that spot? Will you build a shelter around it?

[Frank S]

Looks great, Frank! Where will the lathe go? I would imagine in the short term it will stay in that spot? Will you build a shelter around it?

For right now it is secured on the step deck that I had cut the front deck off of to convert it to a goose neck trailer but the conversion plans got put on hold
We just rolled it out of the way I resprayed every machined surface with the cavity coater wax twice then tarped over it I am hoping to get the trusses and roof put on the shop I am building over the coarse of the summer.
I have a pair of 5 ton trolleys for the gantry crane and a couple of manual 4 ton chain hoists to hang from them.
An neighbor stopped by and asked if he could rent the gantry crane to pull an engine out of 1 of his tractors I told him it might be easier if he brought the tractor over and used it here because it would be hard to transport across the county but he would be welcome to use it at any rate.
Jane told me I should move it out near the road and hang a giant swing seat from it LOL. She thought I ws crazy for making it so big and robust until she saw the lathe I had bought. This gives me 5 lathes now

[Frank S]

Funny how time seems to fly by.
Some of my builds show more of a window in time than I realize.
When I made this A frame the only evidence of my having a shop was a few post in the ground

[sossol]

26000 pounds... That just blows my mind.

Neil