"Don Foreman" wrote in message news:328fd1a3-c0cc-43a2-9a9c-1c4deb3779e7n@googlegroups.com...154013307739&product=64042&store=
Anyone here ever made simple shop-made hydraulics? I do have a pretty decent lathe (Enterprise 1550) and I'm a not-half-bad home shop
machinist after decades of very slow learning whilst creating lots of
scrap.
Once a year I need to lift the close-fitting 4' x 4' plywood lid on my
well house to get at the valves within to de-winterize. I pay someone
to winterize in the fall because the consequences of getting that wrong
are too ghastly to contemplate. If I screw up the spring turn-on, the
worst I can get is wet. That happens with regularity that others find
far more amusing than I.
Now that I'm in my ninth decade, lifting that lid is getting to be
almost more than I can handle and I obvously didn't sire enough sons or strong daughters. Hindsight is always 20-20. But wait ... given the cost of university tuition, it'd be cheaper to buy a helicopter than to have more progeny to educate, and probably more fun.
That wellhouse lid is probably only about 50 lb but it's awkwardly situated. I've thought about purely mechanical solutions but
everything I came up with (levers, chains and sprockets, four-bar
Chebychev linkages, gears, yada yada) was unduly complicated. I'm a sparky, not a gearhead.
If I had four little hydraulic cylinders that each could produce about
2" of lift with probably no more than 20 lbf (89 newtons for y'all thoroughly modern mechies) with some $2 bearings from Ax Man Surplus
(already on my bench) I think that might work slicker'n molebdynum
loon poop. That's the very slippery black stuff.
Question is, how to make the cylinders so they won't leak over time.
Might automotive wheel cylinder parts (cups or seals or whatever they
call the anti-leak moving parts) in shop-made cylinders work OK? O-rings? How about fluid: might water with antifreeze work as well as
brake fluid without creating the mess if and when it leaks? We're
talking MN, it gets cold here. Would the glycol antifreeze have
enough lubricity?
No, I'm not gonna try to motivate a big strong Minnesota Swedish girl
to help me out. S.O. Vicki knows where I keep the pistol at the cabin.
Anybody here ever done anything like this? McGyver hydraulics, that is?
----------------------------
I built a bucket loader for my garden tractor from mostly surplus
hydraulic components and steel stock. The four lift cylinders are used
4-ton Porta-Power types that magically appeared in a nearby discount
store at $15 each for the smaller pair and $20 for the larger when I
needed them. They did leak so I had to track down new seals that could
be made to fit, with some modification and some remaining leakage.
For what you suggest a 4-ton kit should do the job, either with the
included cylinder pushing or this add-on unit pulling: https://www.harborfreight.com/5-ton-pull-back-ram-64042.html?ccdenc=eyJjb2RlIjoiNTY4NjYwMjkiLCJza3UiOiI2NDA0MiIsImlzIjoiNTguNDkifQ==&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=20575502102&campaignid=20575502102&utm_content=154013307739&adsetid=
https://www.vevor.com/porta-power-kit-c_10320/6-ton-porta-power-hydraulic-jack-body-frame-repair-kit-auto-shop-tool-lift-ram-p
[...rest deleted]
The alligator on mine is rated 500# at the jaw tips.
This little guy has the advantage of taking up minimal headroom compared
to other hoists: https://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-ton-lever-chain-hoist-67144.html
The HF 60732 truck bed crane both lifts and swings sideways: https://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-capacity-pickup-truck-bed-crane-60732.html?
[...rest deleted]
The parts are pretty heavy to install and it needs a solid foundation.
Personally I would use a wooden A frame controlled by ropes and pulleys
or a boat trailer winch that lifts the lid and swings it clear. _\ | /_
I injured my back in high school sports and it's never fully healed, so
I built a lot of portable lifting gear to help with logging firewood and moving boulders the builder left too close to the house, etc. It all
breaks down into parts weighing 40 Lbs or less.
jsw
If I had four little hydraulic cylinders that each could produce about 2" of lift with
probably no more than 20 lbf (89 newtons for y'all thoroughly modern >mechies) with some $2 bearings from Ax Man Surplus (already on my bench)
Thanks. They have come way down since I last looked. I've wanted to play >with robotics for a long time but don't have a practical use, since >everything I want to lift tends to weigh 500 Lbs or more. I did a little >with Segway robotics, though only the bases for customers to add to. They >make quite capable, relatively fast and extremely maneuverable all-terrain >vehicles. One version had four wheels but could rise up and balance on two >to turn in place or perform acrobatics, a favorite of the engineering staff. >It had been an engineer's "frog day" project. >http://www.segway.cz/products/centaur/index.html
Anyone here ever made simple shop-made hydraulics? I do have a pretty decent lathe (Enterprise 1550) and I'm a not-half-bad home shop machinist after decades of very slow learning whilst creating lots of scrap.screw up the spring turn-on, the worst I can get is wet. That happens with regularity that others find far more amusing than I.
Once a year I need to lift the close-fitting 4' x 4' plywood lid on my well house to get at the valves within to de-winterize. I pay someone to winterize in the fall because the consequences of getting that wrong are too ghastly to contemplate. If I
Now that I'm in my ninth decade, lifting that lid is getting to be almost more than I can handle and I obvously didn't sire enough sons or strong daughters. Hindsight is always 20-20. But wait ... given the cost of university tuition, it'd becheaper to buy a helicopter than to have more progeny to educate, and probably more fun.
That wellhouse lid is probably only about 50 lb but it's awkwardly situated. I've thought about purely mechanical solutions but everything I came up with (levers, chains and sprockets, four-bar Chebychev linkages, gears, yada yada) was undulycomplicated. I'm a sparky, not a gearhead.
If I had four little hydraulic cylinders that each could produce about 2" of lift with probably no more than 20 lbf (89 newtons for y'all thoroughly modern mechies) with some $2 bearings from Ax Man Surplus (already on my bench) I think thatmight work slicker'n molebdynum loon poop. That's the very slippery black stuff.
Question is, how to make the cylinders so they won't leak over time. Might automotive wheel cylinder parts (cups or seals or whatever they call the anti-leak moving parts) in shop-made cylinders work OK? O-rings? How about fluid: might waterwith antifreeze work as well as brake fluid without creating the mess if and when it leaks? We're talking MN, it gets cold here. Would the glycol antifreeze have enough lubricity?
No, I'm not gonna try to motivate a big strong Minnesota Swedish girl to help me out. S.O. Vicki knows where I keep the pistol at the cabin.
Anybody here ever done anything like this? McGyver hydraulics, that is?
http://www.segway.cz/products/centaur/index.htmlThat's really cool and could see many uses for it👍
http://www.segway.cz/products/centaur/index.htmlThat's really cool and could see many uses for it👍
I joined a motorcycle offroad club that hosted competitions like ice races >and moto trials, which emphasize finesse and balance over speed. In the >"boulder kissing" event you stop the bike, raise the front wheel, turn >sideways and tap it on a boulder, straighten out and ride on, all without >putting a foot down. It was what the Centaur could do, on a motorcycle. I >couldn't even stay balanced for more than a second or two at a stop and >barely could make a full-lock turn by balancing with the throttle.
In the analog TV days with a lower antenna that channel showed a
faint -leading- ghost, which I think was the direct path signal arriving >ahead of the stronger reflection from the water tower.
Anyone here ever made simple shop-made hydraulics? ...
Once a year I need to lift the close-fitting 4' x 4' plywood lid on my well house to get at the valves within to de-winterize. ...
...
Anyone here ever made simple shop-made hydraulics? ...
Once a year I need to lift the close-fitting 4' x 4' plywood lid on my
well house to get at the valves within to de-winterize. ...
...
"Don Foreman" wrote in message news:328fd1a3-c0cc-43a2...@googlegroups.com...
That wellhouse lid is probably only about 50 lb but it's awkwardly
situated. I've thought about purely mechanical solutions but everything I came up with (levers, chains and sprockets, four-bar Chebychev linkages, gears, yada yada) was unduly complicated. I'm a sparky, not a gearhead. -------------------------
How about a lighter lid? I made several roof access hatches from corrugated Suntuf polycarbonate panels framed with 1-1/2" square PT near the outer edges and thinner PT purlins spaced 16" supporting the roofing. Steel angle brackets join the corners without complex carpentry. They have survived many years of falling acorns and NH winter snow loads and holes can be temporarily repaired with tape. Window screening over the bottom, resting on and overhanging the well rim, would keep bugs and wasps out while allowing ventilation, or the space could be insulated with styrofoam. Hooks and eyes keep them from blowing off. The ones most susceptible to falling branches have double layers of panel. A 2' x 4' hatch with a grab bar across the center is easy for me to lift open and set aside with one hand from below. https://tinyurl.com/6a95cx4w
Before the polycarbonate panels came out I used PVC ones, and the colored panels held up longer in sunlight than the clear ones. Corrugated steel roofing isn't very heavy either.
"Richard Smith" wrote in message news:lyv8c0n...@void.com...
Don Foreman <don...@gmail.com> writes:
Anyone here ever made simple shop-made hydraulics? ...
Once a year I need to lift the close-fitting 4' x 4' plywood lid on my well house to get at the valves within to de-winterize. ...
...
Hi the Don and all you very experienced contributors.
Opinion of hydraulics shop - what "kills" hydraulics is non-use.
Sounds like once a year application? Not a lot of use.
Mine was "opposite" discussion - could I use over-the-counter
hydraulic cylinder for fatigue-testing, where you'd be driving it
through 10's to 100's of millions of cycles. They said likely no problem.
You have this rig and you are using it once a year...
Other thing is consequence if it does not work - weather window to do
this, winter fast approaching and suddenly you turn it on and it
doesn't work. Then you don't have time on your side to sort it out.
Others are already mention solutions which more come to me too.
Beam on a couple of stands; a lever (crowbar?) and rope - or maybe go
for a strop as used in lifting operations = stiff and load comes on
with minimal stretch?
Or a winch of some kind.
The thing is these solutions have wide-ranging application, you can substitute if any "curve-balls" come at you, things like a crowbar
will be as good when you pick it up as when you put it down whenever
that was, etc.
You'd likely find lots of other applications.
My feeling is that other contributors like Jim and Snag have already
pointed the way...
Rich S
---------------------------
The missing element is a description of the conditions: is this a covered well in a separate doghouse with limited space above or beside for the open lid and places to attach mechanisms, or is the lid the weathertight roof of an exposed well with space around but no helpful structure above, or something else, for instance my Alabama grandfather's well was a tube that came up through the floor of the veranda and the water shuttle hung from the roof. I tried to address multiple possibilities.
jsw
"Don Foreman" wrote in message news:328fd1a3-c0cc-43a2...@googlegroups.com...(snip)
That wellhouse lid is probably only about 50 lb but it's awkwardly
situated. I've thought about purely mechanical solutions but everything I came up with (levers, chains and sprockets, four-bar Chebychev linkages, gears, yada yada) was unduly complicated. I'm a sparky, not a gearhead. -------------------------
How about a lighter lid?
A bit more info of the hatch & its surroundings could answer a lot of questions . I agree with the hydraulics sitting & not working down the road .A couple of actuators with quick connect ball fittings that ya can take off after use & keep in a warmplace could be a solution . Sang's idea sounds like one that could be made to work .. Can the lid have hinges on it so a guy/gal could slip a 3-4 ' bar into that could be used to open the hinged door ? More info could probably get ya a home run .
animal
On Sunday, September 24, 2023 at 7:07:36 PM UTC-5, ani...@psln.com wrote:place could be a solution . Sang's idea sounds like one that could be made to work .. Can the lid have hinges on it so a guy/gal could slip a 3-4 ' bar into that could be used to open the hinged door ? More info could probably get ya a home run .
A bit more info of the hatch & its surroundings could answer a lot of questions . I agree with the hydraulics sitting & not working down the road .A couple of actuators with quick connect ball fittings that ya can take off after use & keep in a warm
animal
I don't think hinges would work, but I hadn't thought about something as simple as a long lifting lever that hooks the front of the lid and lifts it just enough (a couple of inches) so it can roll back a foot or two. Thanks for that idea! The implementcould be kept in the shed when not in use. I need to think about this approach. Actually, just a better handle on the front of the lid might help a lot. That'd be an easy welding project.
Damn, I sorta liked the idea of simple hydraulics, but I didn't know that infrequent use increases likelihood of failure. Do automotive brake systems typically fail if the car is rarely driven, like the 1955 Ferrari kept under a tarp in the barn? (JayLeno's barn, not mine!)
What about the bottle jack in the truck that gets used about once per decade? The jack, not the truck.to winterize) and use the well pump as prime mover. I think the system pressure is about 40 PSIG, so an actuator producing 15 lbf of force (66.7 Newtons for y'all thoroughly modern mechhies) ( one of four such) would need a piston or bellows area of 0.
Pneumatics (air cylinders) could easily handle the light load but there's no shop air at my lake cabin. Ah, but there is water pressure from the well pump! Perhaps I could devise an air over water device that could be drained after each use (so no need
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