easy way to cut wide flange beam?

[deereman75]

You might consider a lube like boelube or even paraffin. Both are available as solids so you could run a line of lube before you start cutting. I use paraffin on my horizontal band saw when cutting thin wall tubings and it works reasonably well. It certainly makes a big difference. There is no reason not to help the blade out if it is easy and not messy.

Ken

+1 for paraffin. I use it for lube with my porta band. Just hold a lump of it on the blade while it spins before I cut. A tag on the saw actually says to do that. (this a porter-cable porta-band from the 50s though)

 

[xtn]

I agree that this is a bad idea... in general; as there are a lot of unknown (to us) variables. But that doesn't mean it's not good enough. It only means none of us can say it's good enough, because we don't know.

If his trusses are close enough together, his little hacked together T might be fine, as there might not be any unsupported pieces. And depending in his method of attachment, the beam itself could actually help spread the load across many trusses by tying them rigidly together. Maybe not, depending on how rigid half a flange turns out to be. Maybe he plans to hang his beam very near a column line instead of out in the middle of his truss span. We just don't know.

Those are just examples of the variables we don't have a handle on in this thread. The safe and proper way is to have a PE look at your building structure and your proposed design. Perhaps he'll give the thumbs up, and perhaps he'll faint.

 

[LD1]

I can say for sure that it wont be very ridgid at all

 

[lostcause]

totally aside from the number of hours it will take to do all of this, i'd try to assess all of the consumables and other materials you will use: grinding wheels for all the splice welds and if required for splitting the beams. welding gases for cutting. some sort of material to weld or bolt to the tee to attach to the trusses. electricity and filler metal to put this creation together. sawzall blades. probably some stuff i missed too. add up how much this stuff costs to replace - even if you have it already, it is still being used up. adding up the consumable cost will often bring out the sobering realization that sometimes it's not cheaper to reuse what you already have.

i understand you have the time to burn and want to do this as cheaply as possible and have some productive time in the shop and be out of the house, but it just seems like a lot of work for this. it's going to take a lot of fitting and grinding to make a nice smooth trolley, and then build a mounting system to attach it to each truss.

if you are determined to use the beams you have i'd at least leave them intact as a W-shape. use the bottom flange for the trolley and attach the top flange to the underside of your trusses. cut and grind the ends so they spice tight together but DO NOT weld the bottom flanges together. instead weld or bolt the webs of the beams together. you don't have to worry about grinding the welds down to clear the trolley that way.

if it were me and i wanted a good functional trolley i'd probably find a lightweight S-beam to start with. you have a single straight piece and you still have the top flange to easily attach to the roof trusses. if i didn't want to spend the $200+ to buy the beam i'd sell a kidney to raise the money before i split the beam pieces into tees and welded them together and tried to hang them from the trusses in the hopes of having a straight trolley.

 

[MF RED in MT]

nice job on the replies.:thumbsup::laughing:

i've got a feeling it's going to work out just fine.:laughing:

Thanks for the kind words, only time will tell if I ever complete this project like so many they seem to just fade away.......... KC

 

[MF RED in MT]

MF Red:

Good luck on this, and I hope nothing bad happens to you with this Red Green rig.

Somehow I think Red Green would use a lot more duct tape and very little welding, :laughing:. Thanks for the post, KC

 

[dant]

When I built my house I used a porta-band (portable band saw) to cut my I-beam, it cut easily and I did not even use the stick type lube available for this.

 

[EMB5530]

After the amount of cutoff wheels you would need your not gonna save much
Maybe look into scrapping that steel and lookin for another used I-beam that is the length you need.
Good luck in whatever you do. Be carefull and Weld em good if you go that route.:thumbsup:

 

[MF RED in MT]

You might be surprised! That crane is only engineered for one ton. The rails are the weak spot between the post. The center of the span beam is the strongest point. Things like this happen when you use scrap material.

There are a lot of factors in building and working with cranes, spans, and radius can bite you if you are not careful!

Wow, I would of guess a lot more weight for your rig. My 2x4 trusses are 2ft OC. I will discard and dismantle this project if looks like going south during the testing stages. Just want to hang a deer/elk and roll it towards the rear of the garage. Thanks for the post. KC

 

[MF RED in MT]

I can envision perfectally well what you are planning on doing, and I still think it is a bad idea.

The beam (even cut) will probabally handle anything your trusses can assuming they are only 4' or less appart. If they are 8'OC, then the beam bay sag with a load in the middle.

But either way, I dont like suspending a steel beam from wooden trusses for use of a trolley. Too heavy of a load and you can bring the whole building down on yourself. Just be mindful that the load capacity isnt foing to be much at all.

If it were mine, I'd do it right. $200-$300 would buy a beam pleanty strong enough to span the entire distance and still be able to lift over a ton. And use your short sections welded together for the colums:thumbsup:

just my :2cents: though

My 2x4 wood trusses are 2ft OC. I might even add some additional strength to the trusses if it looks like they need it. I have been thinking more about the 2ft WF beams I have, think I am going to cut them up and use them instead of the 2x2x1/4" angle at the top of the tee sections.
I may be missing something, but I do not see a failure due to hanging a elk/deer. I have hung animals on the trussess by only laying a 4x4 lumber accross the top of two trusses.
For my 15ft tee section inlcluding mounting tee brackets/threaded rod + 4x4 lumber spanning 20ft + HF trolley + HF chain hoist = 275 lbs. This is going to span 11 2x4 wood trussess that are 2ft OC. Now looking back, kind of wished I did not even post about this, :confused2:. Thanks for the post, KC

 

[MF RED in MT]

That was not meant as a comment on your welding skills, just mine.

I believe your post mentioned a 1 ton chain fall. For a few hundred pounds on a track supported every couple of feet, many concerns go away. My rolling bridge crane uses wide beams with HF trolleys and it works extremely well. When I was designing it, I figured I would use it once a month. But I find that I use it constantly.

You might consider a lube like boelube or even paraffin. Both are available as solids so you could run a line of lube before you start cutting. I use paraffin on my horizontal band saw when cutting thin wall tubings and it works reasonably well. It certainly makes a big difference. There is no reason not to help the blade out if it is easy and not messy.

Ken

Sorry, I only meant that I trust my welds, . The weight of a trolley beam is one reason I plan on cutting it into tee shapes, to cut the weight in two. I have and do use bees wax a lot to help keep things cool, :thumbsup:. I believe the complete setup is only going to add about 275 lbs. spanning accross atleast 11 trusses. If it works out, I will install another one in my main garage with the remaining tee sections. Thanks for the good ideas, KC

 

[MF RED in MT]

Thanks everyone for all your thoughts and ideas, I do not plan on responding to anymore, just getting tired and seems I am not getting any of my projects done. This one, if it gets done will be a summertime project, :thumbsup:. Hope I did not offend anyone with this thread, . KC

 

[rjmack]

Now looking back, kind of wished I did not even post about this, .

sometimes it is easier to build first, ask questions later. :laughing:

 

[MF RED in MT]

sometimes it is easier to build first, ask questions later. :laughing:

Amen........

 

[RickB]

Now looking back, kind of wished I did not even post about this, :confused2:.

That is likely to happen when the responses are less than favorable.

 

[retiredIW]

That is likely to happen when the responses are less than favorable.

all i got to say if it not food grade stainless steel the health department will shut you down LOL

 

[mroldstyle]

sometimes it is easier to build first, ask questions later. :laughing:

X2. I think it will work fine for what your using it for. More work than I would go through, but what concern is that to any of us. Send a pic when (if) you get it done. :thumbsup:

 

[rmully]

t if i didn't want to spend the $200+ to buy the beam i'd sell a kidney to raise the money before i split the beam pieces into tees and welded them together and tried to hang them from the trusses in the hopes of having a straight trolley.

:laughing: :laughing:

 

[5030]

I know you're trying to save a buck; but how do you intend to hang the tee since there won't be a flange to connect to the trusses, which is what I'm guessing you have in mind.

By the way, the roof trusses may or may not be able to handle the load you are planning on lifting and moving.

Get an uncut beam and do it right. Be safe.

For once, I actually agree with ya.....

I can't believe any HF motor would last long enough to make multiple cuts on an I-beam. (as an aside)......:laughing:

Besides, multiple welds will warp the beam sections, that's unavoidable.

 

[crazyal]

I've got an I-beam that supports the second floor of my garage. I've often thought about getting a trolley to hang off of it so I can do what you're talking about but just haven't gotten around to it. It sounds like this is not something you're going to be using all the time.

If it was me and I had the free time I would do it as you planned. In my younger years when I had little money I would a couple of rafters to remove and install engines. I never really trusted it so I made two posts (one for each side of the car) to support the cross beam sitting on top of the rafters. I would say if there's any concerns about the weight being too much you can always put down a couple of cement pads (I thought I read where it was a gravel floor) and get a couple of 4x4 that I could put under the track to help support it in the middle. When not in use you can put the posts in the corner.