Buying Advice Homeowner Forklift

[bigtiller]

Loading dock isn't an option. I've noticed on FB the name brands Clark, Hyster, Cat, Toyota, Mitsubishi, and Yale as most common. Any preference?

I have operated all of those over my lifetime and the Hyster was by far my favorite.

I operated forklifts 40 hrs. a week or more for 20 some years, and I never had much use for side-shift. I did like having the hydraulic fork-spreader.

 

[WI-citizen]

Problem I'm noticing is that most pneumatic tired models all have over seven foot mast. It won't fit into my garage...

 

[flyerdan]

Definitely need the pneumatic tires for gravel and working on the lawn. Here's my Hyster H50 that I got from work for $500, they were going to ship it off to the auction.
I made a set of 8' fork extensions for more versatility, along with a man basket.
Only drawback is documentation is hard to find and parts are relatively expensive, I had to spend $175 for a water pump rebuild kit earlier this year, only option I could find.
Had it for over sixteen years now, no regrets.

 

[bigtiller]

Definitely need the pneumatic tires for gravel and working on the lawn. Here's my Hyster H50 that I got from work for $500, they were going to ship it off to the auction.
I made a set of 8' fork extensions for more versatility, along with a man basket.
Only drawback is documentation is hard to find and parts are relatively expensive, I had to spend $175 for a water pump rebuild kit earlier this year, only option I could find.
Had it for over sixteen years now, no regrets.
View attachment 2091142

That's a nice unit, and does well even on packed gravel. I'd like to have one, especially at your price of $500

 

[scootr]

Problem I'm noticing is that most pneumatic tired models all have over seven foot mast. It won't fit into my garage...

There are models with 3 stage lifts vs 2 stage that are much shorter. My 3 stage 5k lift will fit in a shipping container. This looks like mine but I have bigger pneumatic tires.

 

[WI-citizen]

There are models with 3 stage lifts vs 2 stage that are much shorter. My 3 stage 5k lift will fit in a shipping container. This looks like mine but I have bigger pneumatic tires.

I'm trying to find specs on a 5K Cat forklift but only thing that comes up is a crawler model.

 

[scootr]

I'm trying to find specs on a 5K Cat forklift but only thing that comes up is a crawler model.

I googled '5K Cat forklift'
Here > 5K Cat forklift - Google Search
If you are using a phone try a PC

 

[WI-citizen]

I googled '5K Cat forklift'
Here > 5K Cat forklift - Google Search
If you are using a phone try a PC

I thought there was a 5K model, you must be saying weight class.

 

[scootr]

I thought there was a 5K model, you must be saying weight class.

Right, 5000 pound lift capacity. It may be more than you need but a pallet of cement or block is more than 3k pounds. Anyway it's worked good for me. It's a name I can always get parts for ( we did brakes and axle seals last year). It fits in the container or barn. There are as others have mentioned lots of options out there.

 

[etpm]

My forklift is is at least 50 years old. I got it for 300 bucks. Propane. I needed a forklift to replace the one I had that failed catastrophically because it was ancient. Anyway, it is a solid tire machine and has a three section mast with an eighteen foot lift. It weighs 8,000 pounds and is only about 6 feet long not counting the forks. It needs the weight so that it won't tip forward when there is a 3,000 pound load 18 feet in the air. My shop driveway is compacted gravel and it has been stuck several times. I knew this would be a problem when I bought the machine but for 300 bucks I figured I could deal with it. If I was spending any more than a grand I would have bought a pneumatic tired machine. If I am careful I won't get the machine stuck but when other folks use it they tend to turn too sharp and the solid tires dig in and it gets stuck. It works great on concrete though.
Eric