[Web.eng]

G'day Guys,

Just picked up a neat SL20 lathe. A few years old but less than 1000 hours on it! I'm told that these are normally lifted with a forklift but I need to lift it with a crane. The lathe doesn't have any lifting points on it though like my mills have and short of making a lifting cradle for it, I'm not really sure how else to lift it. Anyone else ever had to lift one with an overhead crane?
Thanks.

[txcncman]

Without stripping all the sheet metal off of it, I do not think you will find any hard points to lift from the top.

[haastec]

G'day Guys,

Just picked up a neat SL20 lathe. A few years old but less than 1000 hours on it! I'm told that these are normally lifted with a forklift but I need to lift it with a crane. The lathe doesn't have any lifting points on it though like my mills have and short of making a lifting cradle for it, I'm not really sure how else to lift it. Anyone else ever had to lift one with an overhead crane?
Thanks.

You can double check with Haas Factory, but supporting it from under the casting is the only way I know of.

Good luck!

[Geof]

....... Anyone else ever had to lift one with an overhead crane?.....

I have but it was bolted to a pallet and inside a crate. We just used a big sling under the whole thing.

If I really had to lift with a crane I would use a spreader bar spanning almost the full length of the machine.

Then put a length of round bar, as close as possible to the draw tube inner diameter, through the spindle sticking out both past the hydraulic cylinder and the chuck and put a sling on each end with these slings attached to a short spreader bar so they each had the same load. The door would have to be open of course.

At the other end of the machine I would take a sling all the way down to the base casting.

Probably a third sling would be needed going to the top of the frame the control cabinet is mounted on because the machine will be back heavy when lifted on the centerline of the spindle.

And I would lift the first inch two very carefully and check the machine was stable before lifting any higher.

[Geof]

I had a look at your video. That is some neat railway!!!

[Web.eng]

Thanks Guys,

Looks like there is a "lifting kit" available for the later model machines but not the early ones. Might just have to make suitable arrangements for a fork lift.

I had a look at your video. That is some neat railway!!!

Thanks Geof. The railway is a bit of a hobby that started out small but has grown out of all proportion!