using tractor FEL as engine crane/hoist

[z0lt3c]

I'm going to attempt to use the FEL on my B7800 as an engine hoist this weekend to pull an engine out of a BMW sedan. I'm thinking the best approach would be to use my FEL mounted carry-all forks, attach one end of a pair of chains to the fork and the other ends to the engine lifting points. Up with the loader and back with the tractor until the engine separates from chassis ?? I am also thinking about using chains under the engine as well, to form a cradle.

Has anybody else attempted this with their loader ... any points or tips?

Thanks,

 

[rdln]

I have done this once in my jeep pickup. It was fine, I worked at a seat belt company and had a strap sewn up with anchors on the ends.

I would try chaining to your bucket first, seems like a line attached 4 or five feet away from the pivots would not allow you to feather the controls.

The cradle idea sounds iffy, being below the CG of the engine would cause too much roll.

 

[aczlan]

Use the engine lifting points. That is what they were made for and you will be less likely to break something with them than trying to rig up a cradle.

Aaron Z

 

[carpenter383]

Not sure what exactly you're working on but is that engine meant to come out from under the car?
I've pulled a few from the top that were meant to come out the bottom (don't have a lift yet), and it can be done, but it ain't fun! lol
Just be careful, it's hard to judge how much pressure you're applying with a tractor! Take it slow and double check that ALL the hoses, fuel lines, wires, etc. are disconnected.

 

[CurlyDave]

...use my FEL mounted carry-all forks...

If these are the clamp-on forks, I am not certain they are designed for this amount of weight, if you put the chain out at the very tip of the fork. The fork rating is for a pair of forks with the weight evenly distributed along the length of both forks.

I have grab hooks for either 3/8" or 5/16" chain welded on my bucket, and I can go from the hook, over the lip of the bucket and down to the load.

If it is rear wheel drive, I have always removed the transmission before removing the engine. I have never removed a front wheel drive engine/transmission, but I think they come out as one unit.

Approach the car from the side with the tractor and the load will be closer to your bucket pivot. Lift the engine and then push the car back by hand. If you try to move the tractor with the engine suspended it is going to swing, probably more than you think. Just wheel your engine stand up, lower the engine and bolt it on without moving the tractor.

Go really really slow as you clear the engine mount bolts.

I wouldn't make up a cradle of chains under the engine -- too much chance of it getting snagged on something. Just attach to the proper lift point(s) with as short a chain as practical. The lift point is designed to hold the weight with a safety factor.

 

[Timber]

I would use a come-a-long off the forks. Clamp a pipe across the forks and suspend the come-a-long from the pipe. Thats how I do it with forklifts. You will be able to move in small increments till your sure it is free. especially putting it back in. The loader is rated for a 1000 lbs. I know my clamp on forks are the same depending how far out you go. You will be better off using a pip across the forks rather than 1 or 2 forks in the middle of the bucket.

 

[bigtiller]

I would buy a cherry picker/engine puller. Or even rent/borrow one. Under no circumstances will I work under a loader bucket or pallet forks. It's just too much weight over head should something cause it to suddenly come down.

 

[Pops15]

I would buy a cherry picker/engine puller. Or even rent/borrow one. Under no circumstances will I work under a loader bucket or pallet forks. It's just too much weight over head should something cause it to suddenly come down.

Theres no reason to be under the bucket. He can unbolt everything, support the trans with a jack (if he's not pulling it with the engine), hook the chain to the engine, then hook the chain from the bucket to the chain thats on the engine (and that can be done with the loader lowered and in front of the car).

 

[z0lt3c]

Here is the carry-all I use on the FEL;

You can see there are 2 holes in the lower "fork" which allow me to attach chains at fixed points along the length of the attachment. I was thinking of using a Y type connection to the engine lifting points, so the weight can be centered between the forks.

I have the whole front clip removed, so I have unobstructed forward access to the engine. The engine does come up and out, away from the chassis mounts. I can remove all connections between engine and chassis before even moving the tractor into position, I think it's a pretty safe lift... I am more concerned about damaging the engine!

Using a come along is a great idea, unfortunately I don't have one, but I think that a floor jack under the engine can provide similar minor adjustment that maybe more difficult w/ the loader. For those interested, here is where I am at with the disconnection process;

Thanks,

 

[NH-Rob]

I would buy a cherry picker/engine puller. Or even rent/borrow one. Under no circumstances will I work under a loader bucket or pallet forks. It's just too much weight over head should something cause it to suddenly come down.

I would use the tractor. You have the tractor and are looking to use it any chance you can. You also have a backhoe would this work better than the bucket? Take some pictures you know we love them.
Rob

 

[CurlyDave]

The cherry picker is a hydraulic device, subject to at least some of the same types of failures as the bucket. While it is lighter than the bucket, and harder to get under, it is not such a huge safety advantage as to make the bucket foolish. Every time I look at a cherry picker, I think that is for guys who don't have a tractor.

Plan your work so you don't ever get under the bucket is one of the basic safety rules of tractor operation.

 

[bigtiller]

It looks like I am in the minority in this camp. I have been told "DON'T" my entire working life. But I see people doing it from time to time and I often ask them if they are well insured.

I am just saying, if the correct person seen me under a loader bucket or pallet forks at work I would have been reprimanded at a minimum and the company would have been subjected to the same from O.S.H.A. This was just part of our monthly saftey meeting with hydraulics 101.

 

[Slacker]

boom pole is what I'd prefer. It should pick up a small block safely.

 

[zzvyb6]

There should be a single lift hook-eye on the intake side of the motor that was used to install it at the factory. If its been removed, put another one back on. The factory lift would support the motor + transmission assembly such that it would be nose up (transmission down) to clear the tunnel. But this assumes the motor was fully dressed at thst time. That's the same way you ought to remove it (leave the transmission on or it will be nose down when you lift. That means you need someone there to tip the motor and pull the car out from under it or someone there to tip it while you lift and back the tractor out. Is that the aluminum+mag or aluminum block with an iron head? If so, its pretty light. You already have the heavy dress items of it. Watch out for the intake pipes. They are as fragile as glass. Your lift chain needs to be clear of it at all times.

Take some pictures of the wiring and plumbing before you disconnect too much. You will want to know routing as well as hookups. On reassembly, don't tighten everything down until the motor and trans are hooked up to the final drive. Otherwise you'll be replacing motor mounts so after....

 

[Pops15]

It looks like I am in the minority in this camp. I have been told "DON'T" my entire working life. But I see people doing it from time to time and I often ask them if they are well insured.

I am just saying, if the correct person seen me under a loader bucket or pallet forks at work I would have been reprimanded at a minimum and the company would have been subjected to the same from O.S.H.A. This was just part of our monthly saftey meeting with hydraulics 101.

No one suggested he get under the bucket. There is absolutely no reason to get under the bucket to pull an engine with a loader.

 

[Earl Ohl]

I would buy a cherry picker/engine puller. Or even rent/borrow one. Under no circumstances will I work under a loader bucket or pallet forks. It's just too much weight over head should something cause it to suddenly come down.

I wholeheartly agree! You can get a decent foldable engine hoist for a couple hundred bucks. Check out Toolsource.com or Harbour Freight. One of the main problems with using a FEL for this job is that the hydraulics will be too fast to easily control the small movements that will be needed to remove the engine. This can result in a helper getting fingers or other body parts pinched or amputated. And this can happen in a split second. I had to remove an engine with a FEL one time years ago & I swore never again. I was glad when that job was done. I just never felt safe on that job.

 

[Earl Ohl]

Theres no reason to be under the bucket. He can unbolt everything, support the trans with a jack (if he's not pulling it with the engine), hook the chain to the engine, then hook the chain from the bucket to the chain thats on the engine (and that can be done with the loader lowered and in front of the car).

Maybe in a perfect world he wouldn't get under the bucket, but when you're working on something you don't always think about that. Why not just get the proper tool for the job? They're not that expensive.

 

[Earl Ohl]

It looks like I am in the minority in this camp. I have been told "DON'T" my entire working life. But I see people doing it from time to time and I often ask them if they are well insured.

I am just saying, if the correct person seen me under a loader bucket or pallet forks at work I would have been reprimanded at a minimum and the company would have been subjected to the same from O.S.H.A. This was just part of our monthly saftey meeting with hydraulics 101.

You & I both are in the minority, but at least we are right.

 

[kebo]

Well, I see that you've already busted the windshield on that beemer so now worry about dropping the motor on it!!!! LOL

 

[dfkrug]

Every time I look at a cherry picker, I think that is for guys who don't have a tractor.

That's what I think, too. I used to rent the serious cherry pickers to
remove an engine....the kind that you tow behind your vehicle. I have
used my FEL for this task ever since I have owned tractors.

I admit, there is not quite the precision control with the FEL that a
good cherry picker has, so I use the method for removal, not installation.
I install the engines using my overhead I-beam trolley hoist.

Removing engines from cars is harder than from tractors, usually, as you
can get your FEL closer to the tractor. But the OP's access is
excellent, with the front clip removed. (Thankfully, I got rid of my M3
last summer, or I would soon be doing that.)

In the photo, you can see how far the engine is from the front of my
tractor, and I used a hook on the back center of the FEL bkt plate. I
almost always use or make lifting brackets bolted to the top of the
engine to lift. Here, I have used straps bolted to the exh manifold
studs.