Every once in a while someone posts a question about moving heavy equipment into the shop. Here’s a solution I have never heard of before for going down stairs. The other day my nephew was showing me a large heavy safe he had put in his basement. “How the hell did you get this thing down here?” I asked. He said that after delivery to his door he called a company that sent over a robot that actually walked down stairs with it. He said that it was expensive but well worth it. That’s a new one on me, but next time I have something like a big jointer to take down to the shop I’m gonna consider it. I got no details about how this thing worked or the name of the company at the time, but just knowing that something like this exists is interesting.
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Replies
Sound like you will have to find out for us! What a tease.
My sister (a harpist) has a dolly with 6 wheels that helps you walk up or down stairs. Each group of three wheels spins on an axel. I wonder if the robot uses the same technique.
Safe movers use these, I think they are called stair climbers. Never seen but thats what your friend is probably talking about.
Troy
Yeah. I picture small treads that sit on more than one stair at a time. I'll give my nephew a call later and get the name of the Co that he used here in Northern Va. One thing to consider, how much weight would a set of wooden stairs going down to a basement shop hold anyway? Not knowing what Mr. Robot weighs.
If you run across anything that'll pick up and move a milling machine about a mile at a reasonable price, give me a ring. It only has about a half mile of 30 mph speed limit State Highway and through one of the favorite places for our local police to park and keep an eye on traffic.
Don't know specifically about moving the machine, but once you figure that out, you can almost certainly get the local police to help rather than hinder. At the worst you hire an off duty officer to direct traffic during the move. This is one of the few situations where getting permission is easier than obtaining forgiveness.
I've seen one. The downingtown PA woodcraft store has one and uses it to deliver sawstops. It has very heavy and works with very thick rupper tracks like a tank with wheels and I believ is a hydrolic system. If memory serves it was about 10k to purchase. They charge (this is for delivery of sawstops they don't do general moving) about 75$ and hour portal to portal for the service. Cool machine
If I don't stop gaining weight I'm gonna get one to move ME downstairs to the shop. We need more time separation between Christmas and Thanksgiving and New Years Eve or I gotta get my jaw wired shut.
na build heaver chairs
Na man just reinforce the floor and build some heavier chairs! Cheers: )
Piano Skids
Not quite as exciting, but another way to move big heavy things over stairs or lawns (niether of which are kind to wheels) is to use a piano skid. Looks kind of like a giant taboggan.
Don't forget the strategic placement of the occasional apprentice to "grease" the skids. ;-)
All,
One of my customers told me a story about her husband who brought home his mom's refridgerator, after the old lady passed. The plan was to put it in the basement as a secondary place to keep excess beer, the holiday turkey, etc. So hubby drives the fridge back home to VA from SC, and man-handles the thing into the house singlehandedly with the aid of a mover's dolly. Wife tells me she said to hubby, "Who are you going to get to help you get that thing down the basement stairs?" "No body. I can do it myself," he says. "That thing's awfully heavy. Don't you think you ought to get some help?" (fightin words) She tells me, "I told Bob, ,'I'm not watching,' and went into the next room." Listening, she heard the fridge, hubby, and dolly begin the descent, "Thump." "Thump..." "Thump....thump...thump..thump.thumpthumpthumpthumpthumpCRASH!"
He had to get help to drag it up the stairs, and take it to the landfill.
Ray
gasp
At least he wasn't in front of the fridge. ;-)
Was any beer hurt in this accident?
Swen,
The beverages were never in any danger.
Ray
“[Deleted]”
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