Getting a heavy saw into the basement
Does anybody have any suggestions on how I might get a new 400+ lb. table saw safely into my basement workshop? It’s the first really heavy tool I’ll be buying and I’m a little stuck on a safe way to do it. I have a 3′ x 5′ window well that’s easily accessible from my side yard, and I’ve considered using a hoist to lower the saw down that way. Unfortunately, that leaves it sitting about 2 1/2 feet above the basement floor with no obvious way to get it out of the window well onto the floor.
A second option might be to build a temporary ramp from 3/4″ plywood to lay over the basement stairs, and then slide the saw down the ramp with a block-and-tackle arrangement — there’s a good 5′ of access in front of the basement stair door — but the problem here is that while the stairs are about 38″ wide, the doorway at the head of the stairs is only 32″ — the saw I’m looking at (Grizzly 1023) is 34″ wide in its narrowest dimension. Anybody know if the top can be removed easily?
Thanks for any ideas!
Replies
If you approach the problem from the window chute it might be the simper way to go BUT, remember some day you might have to move the saw back out. I have lowered 100 ton machines in to pits with out any kind of a hoisting device. If you live close to a large metropoliton community find men that move machinery& ask them how to raise & lower machines with cribbing blocks & jacks. I would try to explane how , but you would never understand it. It is so simple to do, & so involved to try to explain. Rember that the jack is an extension of the lever & the cribbing blocks are a movable platform. Good luck.
Richard
I have heard of guys getting 1500lb machine down stairs.
Your cabinet saw will be no problem. 3 men and remove the extention wings.
Mark,
Been there, done that ...danced with the grizzly 1023.
First of all, the top does come off and the footprint and weight is a lot smaller and less. (maybe 24" footprint, maybe 150 lbs for the cabinet)
I did not have to take the top off so it is only a guess. If you needed to, I'm sure you could remove the motor and the trunnions also.
When you get the box you'll notice its top heavy because the extension plates (30 lbs. each ?) are on top of the table top. If you remove all the loose stuff, turned it upside down and put it back on a portion of the box, you could slide it down on 2x4's the basement stairs. if the dimensions were not compatible, or working alone, take the top off and do it that way. My basement door is 31" wide..and I fit through with the top on...
I sweated it and it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. good luck
Edited 1/29/2003 5:59:57 AM ET by BG
When I moved my General into the basement, I had to move it down through a stairwell in a Bilco door structure with a 36" wide door at the bottom. My general came fully assembled bolted to a reinforced pallet. What I did was screw three 2"x4"x8' studs about a foot apart with 2' scraps of 2"x4" at the top, middle and bottom of the 8' dimensions to form a ramp, and laid that over the stairs in the Bilco stairwell, which was steep. I wrapped a tow chain around the saw and pallet/crate, and hooked the other end of the chain to the hitch on my truck, using to truck to take up the slack. three of us got the crate over the lip of the stairs onto the ramp, and then we let gravity do its thing, slowly backing the truck towards the stairwell. However, the friction between the crate and the 2"x4"s was so great that it didn't slide on its own. We actually had to push the crate down the ramp, and one person could restrain the whole thing with 1 arm. Naturally, we kept the slack minimized with the truck as a precaution. All in all, it was incredibly easy. I wouldn't want to have to get it up those stairs, however.....
Shoot me an e-mail if you want better instructions.
Paul
For what it's worth, when I move into the present house, I asked the movers how they would like the Unisaw stripped to go into the basement. Mind you, the basement stairs go half way down to a small landing, then double back the rest of the way.
The simply moved it into the house and down the stairs with a heavy duty hand truck and board underneath. The only thing I had removed was the 50" fence and rails; the extension was left on. No damage whatsoever. 2 guys, a strap, a board, and an appliance truck. Of course, these guys do this kind of thing all the time. If I was doing it myself, I'd remove the top, motor, and if needed, the trunnion assembly. It is, in the end, just a collection of metal parts, assembled in a factory and fairly easily dissassembled. Getting it back together again, well......
Be seeing you...
OK, my anxiety level about this just went *way* down. Thanks everybody!
Shucks! I was all set to relate how I got my General 350 TS with a 72" Beismier (sp?) down my right angle stairs with a winder at the bottom. And then my 12" jointer with the 7' bed and later the 12" Boice Crane planer.
Work smart, not hard.
Paul
One of my requirements for the ideal house is a winching point at the top of each stairwell. It would be nice if it were not really ugly, but I could accept ugly if that's what it takes to be able to winch stuff up and down stairs.
how bout walk in points on all levels???
I like that idea too, but it requires either a one level house or a sloped (naturally or artificially) lot. How about a freight elevator that will hold at least a grand piano? :)
Edited 1/29/2003 10:58:23 PM ET by Uncle Dunc
You guys missed th obvious solution. Son-inlaws! There has to be some advantages to having 3 daughters. Funny it's sure hard to get them to visit when the old man gets a new tool LOL>
Jim
Jim,
Not really..uncle dunc mentioned leveraging the wenches....lol Sorry, could not help myself. I'm still trying to picture a grand piano in my shop...
You got me on the wenches and here I thought I'd finally had an original thought. Haven't tried the Grand Piano but do have a pool table. Makes a great layout table :-). This woodworking thing can get to be a LITTLE addicting.
JIm
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