Moving 30K lb machine with forklift on rock driveway.

[huleo]

Moving a 30K lb machine with 36K fork, on rock driveway?

Mostly asking for experience. I have decades in heavy moving but can't say I have tried to do this! We need to move one of our machines from someone else's facility where there is literally "crap" everywhere! Just getting to the machine is mentally exhausting. But there are limestone...

www.practicalmachinist.com

Dang it! I forget there is a rigging forum here. I stuck my above thread in the CNC area. Prob should be here if anyone has input.

 

[Steve in SoCal]

Crane mats

 

[gbent]

Crane mats are to thick for most instances. You can't just drive up on them. And to get crane mats smooth enough for a rubber tired machine they will have to be nearly new.

 

[john.k]

I know a hoarder with a 5 acres of heavy machines,tractors ,old trucks and workshop junk.........and people who have stored stuff there ,and cant get it out again........the guy has two big cranes ,but they need a months work to get them going,and hiring a crane to move would be a costly mistake ,as he goes on about this and that with no concern you are paying $200 /hr while he wastes time.

 

[m16ty]

There are a whole lot of variables there. I have carried machines of that weight on a gravel drive with a standard forklift, but it all depends on how solid the gravel surface is and other site conditions. If it's soft loose gravel you're going to have problems, it also makes a big difference on how much room you have and and if the gravel drive is fairly level or not.

Probably going to need some 1" thick steel plates to make a pathway. Cheapest way will likely be just enough 1" plates to get the machine out the door, then a crane to lift machine and put it on a suitable trailer. It's still probably going to be pretty pricey.

 

[J Gilles]

If the gravel is really well compacted it should be fine, but if it's loose at all you won't go anywhere.

You can also try to find something like this.

16.10 – Magni TH

www.magnith.com

I used a 10 metric ton capacity unit to unload a 15k CNC lathe.

 

[surplusjohn]

consider ar least laying down plywood. even if the crushed stone looks good tou can still have a soft spot or if a wheel spins it can dig down though the stone awfully easily and then you have a problem

 

[Garwood]

If the gravel is really well compacted it should be fine, but if it's loose at all you won't go anywhere.

You can also try to find something like this.

16.10 – Magni TH

www.magnith.com

I used a 10 metric ton capacity unit to unload a 15k CNC lathe.

Telehandlers are usually rated extended. With the boom retracted they lift way more.

I'd be pretty confident loading 15k with a 10k Telehandler.

I've boomed out around 15' with 10k lbs on an 8k skytrak and it was still really solid.

 

[Cole2534]

Local landscapers have been using heavy rubber mats, like a stall mat but 2" thick, to keep rutting down on soft ground. I bet those would work pretty well on firm ground. Sunbelt rents them for sure, I bet others do as well.

 

[john.k]

I once sold all the plate cut off a crude oil tank to a guy was building a boat in a swamp..........wasnt a swamp when he started ,but after a wet year there was almost enough water to float the boat.......anyhoo,it was rusted 1/4 and 3/8 plate ,he covered his working area with it ,and sold for scrap when the boat was finished and craned onto a trailer.

 

[m16ty]

Telehandlers are usually rated extended. With the boom retracted they lift way more.

I'd be pretty confident loading 15k with a 10k Telehandler.

I've boomed out around 15' with 10k lbs on an 8k skytrak and it was still really solid.

This is not correct, telehandlers are rated with the boom all the way retracted, just look at any telehandler load chart. While it is true you can exceed the load chart and sometimes get away with it, you are out of chart. Also Telehandlers are more like cranes than a forklift where you don’t have to only worry about tipping loads, you also have to worry about structural failure.