This is an album of the build up for a wood conveyor. Bought the conveyor itself from a Kmart that was going out of business. I want to use it to make loading and unloading a little easier. Want to put some other features into it that will make it more versatile to use it for more things too so here we go!
Album by Kevin Foust. 1 - 406 of 406 Total. 28021 Visits.
1 Got this conveyor off craigslist and it was listed by the manager of a closing Kmart store. It's 20 foot long and has a 2 ft wide with a 18 inch wide belt.
2 Just home here and backing it in to the shop. Luckily they loaded it with their forklift and helped getting it down to the floor. WE took rollers along to roll out then he again lifted it onto the trailer. Sure made it easy and glad they were so helpful.
3 They were using it to feed their storage loft and I bet many a box went up there. It has a 3/4 horse single phase motor with gear reduction.
4 A great feature it has is forward and reverse. I'll be using this flat a lot to load and unload but want to see how it will do loading into a trailer. No paddles or hooks will limit the steepness it can go but the belt is pretty rough and "grippy" so we'll see.
5 It has switches at top and bottom which is great as well. Outside out of reach of an outlet I'll have to take a generator along but it won't be a problem for me. Being able to switch on and off and reverse directions more than makes up for it.
6 My idea is to make a straight substructure so I can have a slide rollers to raise and lower it like a hay elevator. First step is to take off the feet that are on it.m It's all bolted on so it will be easy.
7 Took the cover off and got a surprise. Twine , plastic and tape was wrapped around the shaft. Then I notice something else. See how the chain is straight?
8 Either someone at the factory or whoever assembled this put the gear on backward. Notice the set screw can't even be tightened as it's on 2/3 on the shaft.It was loose and the only thing from keeping it on was the binding of the chain.
9 I think they did it because you have to have a long allen wrench to get in there if you put it on right. Notice all the stuff that was wrapped up in it on the floor.
10 Using Box tubing for the substructure and needed to lengthen the pieces I had. Cleaned them up and put a chamfer so good weld build and strength.
11 Makes for a good weld and I'll hit all sides.
12 Made up some brackets to bolt it all on. I don't want to weld it on as I can change stuff that way. Rails have holes allready in it so it's a no brainer.
13 Welded the ends on at the table then bolted the brackets on and brought the rail over. I then tacked the rail to the brackets. Takes all the measuring out of it and saves mistakes. I put cardbord over the belt to save it from the sparks and such.
14 The rails are this tall to get over the motor and gearbox on the other end. They also have a stretcher in the middle and want to leave that on.
15 Up next are the cross members that will give it strength and will keep everything square. I'm using a chop saw for the majority of this.
16 Tacked them all in and kept checking squareness. Everything came together nice.
17 The center has this tube brace and I want to leave it in. The easiest thing I can think up is an angle tube coming from the cross brace. Not much support under it but I think it'll be fine. Time will tell.
18 Easiest way I have found is to use a paint stick for a pattern. Trim the angles till their right and the length as well. Takes a little time but saves mistakes and wasted metal.
19 Going to run a bolt up from the bottom to secure it. Got a piece of scrap 3/8" metal and marked the center and in measure of the hole. Centered it and pilot drill.
20 Drill the hole to tap size.
21 Then put a tap in and start it. I keep them loose and then finish by hand.
22 All tapped and tube cut to size. Now I'll cut the tapped plug to size.
23 Beveled the edges and set it flush, Tacked it in place.
24 After welding it in I ground the weld to flush.
25 Both of them done and in and gives a pretty clean look.
26 On the end I want to have heavy caster wheels so when loading/unloading on the level it doesn't get tippy and it will be self contained. I'm going to reuse the foot bracket as it has adjustment capability.
27 I cut the feet off and will be mounting it backwards from what they had. Just works out better for my application. Welding it on here.
28 Both of them on and doing all the final welding.
29 With the box tubing you can get pretty strong joints because of the surface area.
30 Frame work serves double duty to strengthen the whole thing and give me a nice track for the lift wheels to follow.
31 Bolted it all back on and the highest the wheels will be is 54 inches.
32 The lowest is 36 inches which is about as low as I want to reach. I like this system as I can take the adjustable section out if I want to use it as an elevator or go into a trailer.
33 Cut the mounting plates out with the chop saw, rounded the corners and smoothed the edges.
34 Laid the caster on and traced the holes. center punched and pilot drilled and then drilled the final hole size. Notice I clamped both of them together for time savings.
35 All done and ready to weld onto the legs.
36 Remember the brackets that attached the box beam rails to the conveyor? I cut 45's on the edges and these are the scraps. Now to use them for strengthening gussets.
37 Tacked the brackets on and rechecked them for straightness. Then put the gussets on and welded everything up.
38 Makes for a nice strong mounting base.
39 Close up of the front leg. I'll drill a hole through both legs and put a bolt in for now. probably put a pin with linchpin later. Single bolt you see here is one of 2 pinch bolts that Have slide inside. Not strong enough to hold it for me.
40 Slid the caster assembly in and rolled the conveyor back over. Starting to come together now.
41 Next up is getting the wheels and lifting system worked out. First up is the axle and wheels. Brother in law came through for me and had some mobile home spindles. Even brought me 2 new rims and tires. Thanks Rod!!
42 I'm doing something a little more involved than just a normal axle. I want to be able to slide it flush with the side so you can pull beside it close and have the wheels to be able to turn 90 degrees. Some idea crunching in my head and started by cutting a couple 2 1/2 inch holes in a 3/4 Inch thick strap.
43 Use a lot of cutting oil and slow speed and those hole saws will last pretty good. After one was drilled I cut it in the middle and cut the rest off. Then did another one for the other side. These will be weld cradles for the outside of the hinge.
44 Used some triple wall pipe I had laying around and they will be what the hinge will ride in. 2 1/2" OD 1 1/2" ID. I want this whole hinge to be able to slide in the axle tube. Hard to explain but as we go along you'll see what I'm after. Trued them up on the lathe.
45 I always add grease zerks on everything so stuff will last and this is no exception. Won't get a ton of wear but it's always nice when something works easy! Easier to drill and tap before welding up so that's what I'm doing here.
46 Drilled a center in the end of the shaft and spun it down to the size of the triple wall pipe. Gave it .002 - .003 clearance. Someone needs to clean their lathe!
47 Nice and smooth and I'll cut the shaft later for the 2 sides. I'm using the same size box tubing on the spindle side and that is next.
48 This is the 4 inch box tubing with the layout shown. 1 1/2" hole for hinge and the 2 center punched dimples will be where the locating pin will be( 0 and 90 degrees) Also going to drill the ends for set screws to hold the hinge pin in place.
49 Drilled the big hole with a short pilot drill first. then switch to a longer aircraft drill to get the other side. This way the holes will be true and no more measuring needed.
50 Didn't have a 1 1/2" drill or reamer so I used a hole saw again. Not real critical as the set screws will keep the shaft in position. Wear will be in the middle where it is right. Pilot drilled for set screws and drilled to tapping size. Put the shaft in and sunk it into it as well.
51 I then cobored the holes so I didn't have to tap so much. No need for that much thread anyway. The indexing holes will be enlarged when it get put together. that way I can stair step drill them so the holes align correctly.
52 I have to cut the reliefs on the sides and going to rough them in with the plasma cutter. IF I had a mill it would be easier but I'm going to have some handwork here. Set up cheater with a 1/2 inch offset. I drill a hole to save backsplash on start up.
53 Doesn't take long at all and now I have a stop line when coming in from the end to finish the rough in for the pocket.
54 Worked out that the tubing was close enough to do both sides.
55 Majority is out and now I'll have some "quality" time with the angle grinders and files.
56 Contoured the ends while I had the torch out.
57 I spray a little dyechem or paint to get a shadow to blend too. Magic marker will work as well. This is after getting it close with the grinders and ran a file over it a few times. Takes some time but the results are worth it.
58 Here it is finished blended. Notice how it fades evenly to the hole side. The opposite side will ride nice on that.
59 Up next is to get the ends uniform and smooth.
60 I use a piece of round as a guide and use a C cl;amp to hold it in place. Rough it real close with a body grinder, then true it with a hand file and finish with 80 grit sandpaper on a soft back pad on a die grinder.
61 I guess I should show some of the tools. I keep a variety of hand files with varying cuts.
62 I use a 9 inch and 4 1/2 inch angle grinders. Both are Milwaukee and I've wore out both as these are replacements. Yes, I use them a lot! With a new wheel on the 9 inch you can use it to get things real flat.
63 This is a die grinder with a 3M roloc attachment. Then a 3M soft back pad. These things are great and I don't know why 3M doesn't promote them more. Sticky back sandpaper is used on them.
64 Here's a close up of it. I like it as I can go cheap with a sand paper. I have a buddy who works at a body shop and he saves all their DA paper. Most the time they use just the outer edges and the center is fine. Not a big deal to cut them out as the pad twists off in a 1/4 turn.
65 They work extremely well on smoothing thins out once you have them roughed in.
66 This one is a little chewed up but wanted to show the surface. You can dress them smaller on a belt sander or bench grinder. Wish they made them in bigger sizes.
67 Here is the result of using these tools. Gives stuff a better than factory finish and looks great when painted.
68 ^The index holes will get redrilled when I get the center tube mount done.
69 I made the hinge a pretty tight fit so I had to have hard corners there. I filed them in.
70 For the center tube I have to weld the spindle collars inside and it needs to be smooth. The weld slag is in there and I used a cold chisel to get most of it out.
71 On the spindle tube holders I had to radius the outer edges to match the inside of the tube. Did it quick with the angle grinder but wanted nice , sharp corners to hold itself in place and allow it to be checked for the correct position.
72 Marked the line and clamped a piece of steel on the line. Then hand filed it. Here it is finished.
73 Drilled 4 large holes down the length. These will be so I can plug weld the spindle/hinge tubes. Hard to get a lot of good weld on the inside so this will work in this application.
74 Crank the amps up and try to push the heat down, then circle your way up to fill. Makes it basically flush when complete.
75 Then welded the front side. Snag ground reliefs on this stuff for stronger joints.
76 I chamfered the tubes as I want some extra there. I have to grind it flush after welding as the other half rides on it. Cleaned everything for welding.
77 Clamped a piece over the hole to keep it clean and put a bead down.
78 Ground down and filed in.
79 All done except the index holes and works great.
80 On 90 degrees it bottoms out on the center tube as I had hoped it would.
81 Couldn't have anymore room than that! I relieved the steel in most places prior to welding so it's even stronger than it looks.
82 Next is to make a box that with hold the axle. I also need to have it "lock" into position for road transport and have something to keep the slop out of it. I cut 2 pieces of angle to length.
83 I'm going to make pushers out of some 2 1/2" box beam. 3/8" thick so it will be strong enough. Drilled the 5/8" tapping size hole through. I'll cut it in half to make the 2 brackets.
84 Cut a couple chunks of solid steel out and ground a 1.05 inch radius to match the box beam on the axle. This will push the axle on 45 degrees making a positive locking system.
85 Here's a trick. When you want to weld a nut on and tap the beam below. Run your old drill up through the tube and nut. This will self center it so you can tap easily. I've had binding issues when tapping the beam prior.
86 I countersunk the blocks with a 5/8" hole. This will keep it in position while the tube is sliding.
87 Back to the angle. Marked where I wanted the brackets to be welded and cut to the lines with a small wheel on the chop saw.
88 Then cut the straights with the plasma cutter.
89 Cleaned up the pockets and ready to weld the pusher brackets on.
90 After double checking and cleaning up the edges for good welding contact I tacked them on. Everything looked good.
91 Final welded them and should be plenty strong. I'd like to double nut them but will either have to find an extra long threaded bolt or modify the ones I have here.
92 Now I'm ready to get the outer box ready to weld. I'll use some .155 thick washers so I have even slop and the tube will slide easy. This will allow fot any warping during welding too.
93 Went to the surplus store and low and behold they had these 5/8 bolts with threads all the way at a $1.00 a pound. I'll cut them to size later. I cut the angle here on 2 sides to get the gaps right for welding.
94 With the box tube inside along with the washers I then stitch welded it all up.
95 Tightened the bolts down and then drilled a 3/4" hole for the pin. It will be a safety to keep the axle from being able to move side to side while in transport.
96 Slid it under for mock up and looks good.
97 Slid a tire and spindle in to have a look see. I'm keeping a 6 ft wide track so it doesn't take up a lot of road while moving. Up next it to weld the spindles to the outer hinge box.
98 My BIL cut the spindles off quick and wanted to true them up so I took them apart and ran them on the lathe.
99 While it was in there I skimmed the flange face and cut the tube to a nominal size. You'll see why shortly.
100 Angle ground the box heavy for a strong joint and cleaned up the flats for welding.
101 Laid the first bead down.
102 Then put a second bead all the way around. Up next is to weld the backside on the inside of the tube.
103 This is what I have looking inside. Going to make up a filler piece that will take the gaps in so I can weld it all up here as well.
104 Got some 1/4" x 3 strap and cut it out with a hole saw while it was long. Rounded the 2 corners then cut it off. I then rounded the 2 remaining corners. The hole saw was a nominal size and that is why I turned the shaft down to that size.
105 Drove the filler in and now it is ready.
106 All welded and done now.
107 Now I'm going to make the brackets for the support/lift arms. Using box tubing here and will drill all the holes first. It's easier to hold for me that way and it's keeps them straight with no flexing while drilling.
108 Did the measurements and allowed for the cut as well. No bandsaw so I'll use the chop saw for that.
109 Once they were all drilled, I used the plasma torch to rough cut to length. I'm going to round the open end so leaving it long. Just quicker to cut this way and less wear on the chop saw blade.
110 All cut up and ready to round the open end. I'll cut a short piece of round stock, center drill a 5/8" hole and bolt it to the bracket. I'll blend it out using the method shown before. Takes a little time but gives it a nice finish touch.
111 Got those all done and cleaned up. I'll work on the arms next. I have to make up some solid pivots for the ends that will be welded into the box tubing and will keep the wear to a minimum.
112 Marked the hole for the pivot and drilled it out. I'm drilling into a long bar and want them straight so I supported the far end and brought it to level with the table. Keeps everything straight that way. You can see I'm getting rid of the honeysuckle in here! Doesn't take but a few pieces to keep the shop nice.
113 These are the bushings I'll weld into the ends of the box tubing. Made them out of bar stock. I chamfered the ends so when I grind them flush there is still weld there.Also drilled/tapped them all for zerks.
114 Recessed the tubing and held it all in place with a 5/8" bolt for welding. this way everything stays true and tight. I'll grind away the excess.
115 Quick welding here and it really is overkill but I want them solid.
116 All blended out and ready to go. This way everything clears the mounts when it swings and just plain looks better.
117 Here you can see the full radius and how it will be able to pivot.
118 Next I had to determine the position of the axle so I needed to find the balance point. Lifted it a few time but got it. I'll use this as a center line on where to put the axle. Still have to add the hitch, jack and such at the end so it will be front heavy as it should be for towing and such.
119 Pulled the axle out and i'm going to weld the pivot brackets on. I want them as low as possible so I have as much of an angle as possible. This will make raising and lower it easier than if it is close to flat with the conveyor. Laid it on the bench and squared everything up before clamping them in place.
120 welded them all up on all four sides.
121 A little later I realized this was a mistake. You need to have the front a solid mount otherwise the axle will flop over.
122 I had to cut one of these off and weld the tube on. You'll see this set up for a while then it will change. Made a boo boo there!
123 Now for the slide brackets for the other end of the lifting arms. Local used steel supplier sells by the pound and the have an extremely well organized place. had the ready cut smalls laying there so I snatched them up.
124 Marked a single piece first and drilled it out for a pattern. Looked good so I grouped the closest sized pieces and drilled them in sets of 4. Keeps everything the same and goes quicker. Once 2 holes are drilled I bolt them together for sameness.
125 Once all drilled and bolted, I true up the ends to make them the same. Easier as a group because you can see the flatness come in. 9 inch body grinder makes quick work of it.
126 I rough them in with an old wheel then lay a new wheel flat faced on the end. Does a nice job as you can see. Every so often I run a cluster diamond over the surface to keep the glazing off of and the cutting going on.
127 Corners rounded and smoothed here. I'll now weld the brackets on 2 of them.
128 Brackets on and they are done. I'm making them bolt on so I can adjust if need be. Once I have exactly where I want I may drill a single hole to bolt through to lock in position.
129 Mounted the bracket on the rail and gave myself some adjustment room on both sides. Always good to have a plan B if need be.
130 With the bracket ready I can now measure and drill the front tube. I'll just drill it for now and wait to weld in the bushings till I have it all checked out.
131 With the 2 finished ends bolted together I drill the opposite end. I used 2 pieces of heavy stock and C clamps to hold the other end straight.
132 Slid some bolts in so next is the back. I need to make up some Spool type rollers to slide on the 1 1/2" rails. I'll turn them out on the lathe.
133 Had some 3 inch diameter stainless so I made them out of that. center drilled the end and started working it all out. .375 shoulders and here I'm basically done. I'll drill the 5/8" hole in the lathe as well.
134 Cut them off and skimmed the ends to bring in the .375. Added bonus I'll have no rust issues since they're 300 series stainless.
135 Should keep the tube captured pretty well. I allowed some clearance for paint on the tube but it'll wear off fast.
136 Clamped the spool at the furthest point possible. I'll take this measurement and cut these tubes to length. I can always shorten if need be. With on the fly making stuff I tend to like to have options.
137 To mount the spools I needed some stout strap. Had some leftover 3/8" that I had cut off something with the plasma. Had a nice cut side so I cut them to the same length. I want them the same and smooth so I'll use the 9 inch to true up the sides. Clamp them together first.
138 After roughing in with the old wheel put on the newer full size and sprayed a dust coat. Lets you see the lows better. Ran it over a few times holding flat and when it stops cutting nice I skim a cluster diamond over the surface of the wheel.
139 In less than 5 minutes you have decrease your scrap pile and found a use for some steel on hand.
140 All four pieces are ready for next step. I need to bend some offsets in the as the spools are wider than the tubing. This is why I went with heavy pieces for this. I need a 1/2" offset on each side. Could weld spacers but I have another idea.
141 Got 2 pieces of 1/2" scrap stock and put them opposite of one another. Then used 2 large chunks of hardened tool steel above and pressed it with the 40 ton. Put layout lines on it so I should be able to make them all the same. Steel doesn't argue with the press!
142 Got all the strap bent and the same. I'll now drill them out and round the corners.
143 Threw the spool in there to double check and looks good.
144 Put the arm in position and clamped on the roller bracket assembly. I'll weld it up now that I now everything is lined up right.
145 With the sides welded I'll make up a extended cap to tie everything together more. It'll also keep moisture/dirt from running down the tube as well.
146 Caps are on so now I'm moving on to tying the 2 arms together and making an attachment loop for the winch cable.
147 Got some 1/2" round stock and cut it to length. I've made up a chart over the years of what sizes are needed for ones I've done. Used the compact bender to them it cold.
148 Makes real nice loops and fast too! I'm going to used tubing for cross braces and will drill through and weld this in on the backside of the tube.
149 Cut a couple a pieces of tubing to length. I want to make it a double box if you will for more contact area and strength. This is the basic layout as I'll build this on the floor. I won't weld it to the arms until I reinstall it.
150 Where the loop goes through I want more meat so I cut a piece of 3/8" out of some scrap and trued the edges. I then marked centerline and 4 bend lines.
151 Put the 3/8" piece in the compact bender and bent the angles equal.
152 Then bent the other ends till they were straight with the middle flat. quick and easy.
153 Here's all the pieces after cutting out a few more braces. Looks like it will all work so I'll tack and weld the center of the strap to the lowest box beam. I'll then drill the holes for the loop, while it's easy to do.
154 Drilling like this allowed me to do it on the drill press. I then drove the loop through the holes. Makes for a very clean install.
155 I ground angles on the loop ends and countersunk the 3/8" strap with a bigger drill bit. I'll now weld it all in place.
156 This part is done and I don't think it'll pull out!
157 Put it back on the floor, squared it up and C clamped it all up. Then tack welded it and rechecked squareness. Once it look okay I took it to the bench and welded it up. I'll now put it all back on to tack the center section to the arms to make sure it is all aligned properly.
158 Put it all back in place and tacked it into position. Then pulled it all back off to bench weld everything.
159 Completely welded up now so next is to make some "stretchers" as I call them to increase the strength of the square tubing. This will eliminate any flexing that could happen. I'm pretty sure the winch will not lift it in the clear down position as the arms are just too straight. I have to have the low level so I'm kind of stuck here.
160 Local yard has some 1 1/2" strap surplus so for $20.00 I got eight 10 footers. I clamped 4 together flush at one end so I can cut them all at once.
161 Makes them all the same this way and it is faster too.
162 Cut 8 short sections of tubing all the same length as well and cleaned up the weld area.
163 Marked the center and welded the upright shorty on
164 Then on the one end I cleaned up where the strap will lay flat and beveled the sides where the strap will lay flush.
165 Had to bevel the bottom of the strap as well because of the welded on roller brackets.
166 Weld on the strap just on the end, letting it lay on the upright. See how it is angled towards the inside of the bracket?
167 I use a C clamp to draw both sides in. This also "loads" up the strap giving it tension. When it is all welded together it makes the box beam way stronger because now it has to stretch the strap on the opposite side of the force.
168 Welded in and just have to do the other end the same. Then I'll weld the center post to the strap.
169 One side all done and installed. Everything looks real good so far.
170 Did the other end in the same manner. With this all done, up next will be getting the winch mount done. The winch will be a safety and will raise it real high if needed. I'm planning on a bottle jack to raise it for the most part.
171 Using previously made brackets on the bolt on side and decided to put the down tube where the splice was in the lower tube. Just added strength at the weakest point. It's about at the perfect location anyway.
172 Cut and welded an upright on and did the same on the other side.
173 I want to mount the winch in the center, under the belt so it is out of harms way. Used 2 pieces of heavy angle and welded them to a box beam.
174 Ground it smooth and laid out where the winch will bolt to. Marked and drilled the holes while it was not installed. Just easier to do the drilling.
175 Tacked the tube on and looks real nice. I'll put some angled braces in later but now I want to work on extending the crank handle. I want to have a nice solid mount so it doesn't flop around.
176 Can't see it too well but I purposely mounted it so the crank's shaft was close to the upright. That way I can use a heavy piece of flat and just weld it to the upright and top bracket.
177 This winch has 2 crank option and I'm going to use the slower on as it will make cranking easier. Doesn't need top be fast. It has a metric thread.
178 I got a piece of pipe and tapped it with the correct size. I'll drill and tap for set screws on both sides later, once I know the length is right.
179 Test fit look fine. I'm planning on using a solid shaft on the outside so I'll just weld that to the pipe. Crank end will have the most stress so I want that to be solid.
180 Got a piece of 1" X 3" flat stock. Did my measuring and drilled a 1.250 hole. I'm going to use a oil impregnated Bronze bushing here for the crankshaft to ride in. Here it is pressed in flush.
181 Sticking out the back side so I'll cut it off in the chop saw. and grind it all flush.
182 I then drilled and tapped it for a grease zerk while it was easy to do.
183 Cut the flat to 4 1/2 inches and rounded the one corner. I then got some bar stock and turned it to just fit the bushing. Test fit it here and slips on real smooth.
184 I then turned the shaft down to slip into the pipe. This way it'll self align when welding.
185 I angled both sides as I have to grind away everything above the shaft so I can remove it if need be.
186 Welded it up with the MIG then I realized I should have just used the TIG as it would have been better. I'll have to smooth this out now.
187 Shaft all smoothed out and blended so it slips right in now.
188 Put the shaft in and made sure it wasn't binding, then I welded the 1 x 3 block in place.
189 For the crank handle I want to be able to reverse it quickly so it's out of harms way. I cut off some round stock and gouged a slot in it with the chop saw in inset the original handle.
190 Didn't want to shorten the handle but it had a indexed hole in it. I stuck a piece of heavy copper under it and plug welded it. Weld doesn't stick to copper so it fills the hole quickly with no blow through.
191 Ground it close then ran a file over it a few times to get to this point
192 Soft pad it a few seconds and "what hole?" ;)
193 Carefully marked the holes on the collar so they were equal and in the center. I want to be able to use any of the 4 possibilities and slide a spring pin in. I stair stepped drilled and it brought it all in true.
194 Ready to weld it up and will make a nice handle.
195 Handle on and done. I triangle filed witness marks on all four possible positions so in a glance you get the pin to drop right in.
196 Handle in and out of the way.
197 Really like how this turned out and the solid feel of it.
198 Put some box tubing on angles to help support the winch assembly.
199 Had an idea for making it easier to move the whole conveyor around by myself. I got some 2 1/2" round stock and cut/ground to 1" thick. Wire cut a .760 square into each of them.
200 I then put them in the lathe and turned some angle reliefs.
201 Got some triple wall pipe and cut 10 pieces to equal length. Then drill and tapped them to 1/2 fine thread. I'll grind some wrench flats on them later.
202 I screw them onto the existing wheel studs.
203 Laid out some holes on a piece of strap. Need a 1/2 inch hole on one end and a 1.250 radius on the other.
204 Drilled the .500 holes and used a 2.500 hole saw to make sides at once.
205 Bolted 5 of them together to confirm they were all the same. They fit real nice.
206 Rounded the opposite ends so they were all the same.
207 I then put the straps on with the center section in the middle. Self aligns and holds it all in place. I cheated old school on the size. Took paper and cut them to the strap width. made a circle with 5 of the and found the center size that was a nominal of a hole saw.
208 Weld them all up. Then took it off and welded the backside too.
209 Now with just a 3/4" ratchet, I can move it around by myself easily. I'll probably shorten the extenders so they don't stick out too much. I wanted to go long at first to see exactly how much I needed to take off.
210 Makes for easy wheel turning too.
211 Making up the axle locks now. Want it safe for road travel so I'm using heavy box opened to a C to hold it in position. Cut them to length on the chop saw and plasma cut the bottoms open.
212 Cleaned up the cuts and rounded the corners. I then decided to make up handles for ease of on and off. Got some 7/16" round stock and bent 2 of them up.
213 Drilled the holes in the C's and drove the handles in. I set the depth with some scraps so it would be even on them.
214 I had countersunk the holes on the inside and didn't bother with making them the same length.
215 I just tack welded them and then cut the excess off with the angle grinder flush. I want this to lay flush on the axle box.
216 Then welded the rest home.
217 Ground them flush again.
218 Drilled a pilot hole in the C on the press then hand drilled it to the axle. Stepped up to 1/2 thread size and tapped it for that. Here it is all done. Simple and strong.
219 I need to have keepers on the lift/support rails to keep them in place while the cylinder is lifting. I cut 4 pieces of strap to length and will attach them to the rollers after drilling the holes.
220 Cut 2 pieces of .875 stainless for rollers and gun drilled them to .500. Could have probably just used the .500 bolts but the larger diameter will roll easier.
221 All the pieces are done and ready to try out. Lots of little things to do to make everything work nicer.
222 Just what the doctor ordered ;). just enough slop to prevent binding but also tight enough to keep the rollers on the rails when the cable is slacked.
223 I want to have wheels on the front as well so I can push it around as a level conveyor table. My Furnace house's floor is higher than the drive so I need to be able to adjust for things. Found this scissor jack and it has 25 inches of adjustment.
224 This will also double as the jack when hitching/unhitching so doing 2 things with one. Need this to have some stability so 1/4" angle gets the call. Made it as wide as the conveyor and cut the ends too.
225 Got my surface grinder up and running again and for stuff like this it is a great cutting tool. Can cut straight and to the .001 of an inch. I'm notching the ends here to lay flush with the sides. Basically make everything self squaring.
226 Clean off the paint and it's ready for welding. I'll bevel the edges as well.
227 Here you can see how nice of a cut it does.
228 Weld it all up and makes for a real strong base.
229 Drilled the holes for the casters and the mounting holes that are on the scissor jack. Ready to see if it all fits!
230 Fit fine but to get the max out of the jack I decided to relieve the ends about .750. Now I have to decide it position and work out all the variations/options of how I will use it.
231 This is the best position for what I want. I will be making the hitch now as well. Wheels will be 8 inches off the ground clear up. Hopefully that is enough or I'll have to make them detachable.
232 I cut another cross brace out of tubing and welded it in. The Jack mount is about 3/8" from being flush with the tubing so I'll make a mounting plate out of some steel that thickness.
233 Cut it out and marked some holes for the mount. Probably won't use these as they are in the way for what I have planned but easiest to get to at the moment. The hitch will come though there.
234 With the fold down table on there the hitch has to stick out a good bit. I also have to drop it some so I'll have some gussets and such to do. Just clamping everything for now till I'm happy with what I got.
235 For the attaching point I got some 1/2" flat stock that's the same width as the box. Need to bend it so I'm using the press. I mark the bend and then use a combo square to make sure it is at 90 degrees.
236 Quick and easy. This will be the top of the mount. I'll bend up another for the bottom next.
237 Cut it to length and drill an .875 hole. I then bent up the lower to match. I gave it 2 inches in the yoke in case I use the big tractor with it.
238 Got it all welded after checking it with tacks. I'll drill the lower hole and round the corners now.
239 Clamped back in pace and it's ready for gussets. Sticks a ways out there so it'll need some extra to keep it from bending and such.
240 Making up a gusset and here is a little trick for straight cutting small pieces. Put a straight edge in your vise and clamp the piece to that. Keeps everything in the clear and easy to do.
241 Welded the tube on as well as the gusset. I bent up a piece that will go under as well but won't weld it on till all the gusset welding is done at tear down. It will have a stand in the middle and I'll stretch it then. Side bracing next.
242 Used a sliding T bevel to get the angle I wanted then made one cut. Laid them on top of each other and cut the other ends angles. 2 identical pieces that way.
243 Welded those on and that should take care of the side to side stress.
244 Beginning to take shape. Next I'll get the potential up and down stress/force taken care of.
245 Made up another piece of box tubing with angles to support the front and on the rear I drew up a pattern and cut a piece out of some flat stock.
246 The plasma really leaves a smooth cut as you can see. Very little work needed after cutting and barely warm to the touch.
247 All welded in and looks good to me. May add some gussets later but this will work for set up and rough build.
248 Road transport and bouncing are what always cause problems so it's better to be safe than sorry.
249 With the adjustable front table it clears fine in the full down position. Don't think I'll ever use it there but it's nice to have options!
250 Now I can check how my balance is doing. Front casters seem a little weak as they move a good bit with the scissor jack arms. I would not want the jack to fold under while moving. I think I'll make it a cross with 4 wheels.
251 I have over 2 ft of front adjustment so I'll scoot it back as much as possible. This is so I can stick the conveyor in as much as I can before the wheels/axle hits something.
252 Added the 2 extra wheels. Won't work when conveyor isn't level but don't plan on using it in that way so it should be a non issue. Put them on and looks/feels a lot better.
253 Now I'll start on the lifting system. Had a coupon so I bought a 20 inch stroke 8 ton jack for $50.00. Hoped this one would work on it's side but no dice. Some brands do others don't so I'll have to do some tear down and see what is up.... or why it won't go up!
254 Took off the piston/plunger and there were 2 passages. One for incoming, the other for outgoing. One check valve on incoming side and they use a washer to hold the ball in place. Gravity seats it after sealed piston draws fluid in by vacuum preventing the fluid from going back. BINGO!
255 Here's a close up. First time tearing into one of these and I can see why it doesn't work on it's side now. I just need the ball to seat after the fluid is drawn in.
256 I'll try adding a real light pressure spring between the ball and washer. Found a spring in the junk drawer that looks to be what I need.
257 Fit perfect in the hole and is right for the ball as well. So far so good. Put it all back together and it works! Tested it with a chain wrapped around and develops pressure just fine. He shoots, he scores.
258 With the jack looking like it'll work I'll start on the pivot mounts for it. Got a couple 1/2" scraps off the pile and laid out some lines. Double cheater bars here doing the cutting.
259 Rounded the corners using an old patter from another project. saves me time as I'm not that good at freehanding things.
260 Got the 2 sides of the lower mount the same by touching up with the angle grinder. Then, While still together I drilled the .875 hole for the pivot pin. Cleaned and beveled the weld are. Next is the lower mount for the jack.
261 Back to the scrap pile again. Cut what I needed with the surface grinder and this is all the pieces. Basically going to trap it in position with one bolt so I can use the jack for other stuff if needed.
262 Welded up here and it slides into the plate on the lower side. Going to weld pieces under all this for the pin to go in. That will be the pivot point.
263 Top side is just a single bolt and it'll keep it trapped so it doesn't come loose. Should make it easy to take on and off.
264 Being that these fit so nice I broke out the TIG welder. Yeah a little rusty and I need more practice.
265 Went all the way around the bottom as well. Not really needed but easy to do.
266 For the pivot mount to the bottom of the plate I went to the scrap pile again. Found this piece of 1 inch flat stock and just needed to true one edge. Cut it off and will drill the hole next.
267 After drilling and chamferring it I welded it the jack mount plate. Put 2 passes on it and this is the second pass.
268 Lower mount is complete and now I'll get ready to weld on the brackets made earlier.
269 Marked a centerline and then 2 lines for inner edges of the 2 pieces. Put a pin through the 2 holes and clamped the 2 brackets and pivot together while it is held up into position. I also added a cereal box thickness spacer for clearance. Bracket welded here and weld looks funny as it was vertically welded and smoke clouds it over.
270 Put the pivot in with the pin and installed the jack. I'm working out how and where I'm going to put the upper mount. This needs to be pretty stout.
271 I again want this to be a bolt on affair to the conveyor so I can change if need be. Got some 3/8" angle and drilled them to line up with existing holes. Got some 5/8" strap to make the center section and drilled a 5/8" hole in the center for the jack's pin to go through.
272 Bent the straps in the press and welded the inside of the bend. This stuff was heavy enough it pushed a pretty good divot in there. worked the 40 ton a little on those!
273 Attached everything on the conveyor and after it checked out, I tacked it all up. Then took it all apart and bench welded everything.
274 Here is one half of the mount. I'm going to trim the corners and probably add 2 straps in the middle to the lower framework so there will be no chance of it pushing this up.
275 Underside view with it installed. I'll make up some spacers for the center but washers will work for set up. I drilled the holes for the straps before putting them back on. You can see the corners have been cut as well here
276 1/4" straps made up and put on. They have a bend at the top and a slight twist to get them to line up with the lower brace. Good to go now.
277 Pardon the mess! It works! This will get me over the hump and honestly probably good enough for most of what I'll use it for. It's 6 1/2 ft high on the end and 25 inches on the other. I'm pretty sure the winch will take it up from there as I have a decent angle now on the lower arms. I'll have to release the jack's pin to do so.
278 One issue I do have is that it is light at the hitch. Need about 200 lbs more weight to the front at this moment. I'll get all the gussets in, install the winch again and see where I'm at. I'm also going to move the electric box to the bottom side. It weighs around 30 pounds and that's a doubler as I'm taking weight from one end and putting it at the other.
279 Rollers look fine as well. They are at their lowest adjustment point here. Sitting on the hitch and that is fine by me.
280 Strengthened up the front arms to correct my error I did with the pivots. I'll put a gussets under as well.
281 The electrical box and wires were all routed on the outside of the conveyor and I need to take care of that when I swap ends. First up is to make up a schematic of the wiring before taking anything off.
282 I think I can just use the existing wiring and just switch it around. They are all the same gauge. I may swap some of the fittings to make easier on the wiring(less bends)
283 Found a good spot for the box and cut a piece of box with angled ends. This doubles as a strengthener to both the winch and the hitch too which is a bonus.
284 Left the existing backing plate on there and used holes that were all ready there. Just drilled the 2 holes in the box tubing and it's nice and solid.
285 On it's side but works out better for wire routing. You can see here it should be out of harms way now. I'm going to do the same with the switches but I have to make them easy to reach so it will be a trade off with that.
286 Cut some heavy angle for the switch box. Want to protect it from any damage. Welded that to a piece of strap to be bolted into existing holes.
287 out of harms way but still easily reachable. Would like them on both sides but will run this for now.
288 For the other ends switch I took 2 pieces of heavy angle and cut them equal length. Cut them on the surface grinder so they were a perfect pair. Then TIG welded them together.
289 Mounted the box as far as I could towards the end. I just used what length they had so no rewire or added cost. Just about right anyway so we'll see.
290 Wanted to go a little heavy on these in case of a roll off and such. Chain drive sticks out just a little farther than the switch so I mounted it sticking out at that position.
291 Now I am going to make some stops for the lift/safety arms. They will lock the arms in position by holding the rollers in place. This way I can also detach the cylinder at it's peak stroke to raise further with the winch. Hole sawed a hole off center in some strap.
292 After cutting it down the center I cut the angles on the surface grinder. I zero the wheel to chuck and downfeed. Shut off and rezero for wheel wear and finish. Normal it is in 2 pieces with a dead true edge.
293 One for each side done and next is to make the bottoms that these will be welded to.
294 Cut a couple of 1/4" straps and clamped a 3rd on top. I'm doing this for a drill pattern to transfer the holes to the rail. I'll save the pattern if I ever want to add a stop hole location in the future.
295 Drilled the 3/8" holes in the straps and got back to the keepers. I ground 2 slots in each piece to clear the 3/8" bolts head.. Used the surface grinder for this.
296 With both of them ground I will weld them to the straps.
297 Both of them done now so I will next drill the holes in the rail. I show you how I get holes to be true and save mistakes.
298 I slide the drill jig in place and line up the sides. Then C clamp it down. Self centering and where they need to be that way with no measuring.
299 Once they are drilled I get a thick piece of scrap and drill the same 1/*" size hole into it on the drill press. You can use an oak board in a pinch as well.
300 Slip the drill through the drill guide and your hole and clamp it down. Now you have a guide that will keep everything straight and true. This works very well and I have been doing it for years when you can't get it to the press or have a Mag drill. Cheap and easy. Really good to do when drilling for tapping.
301 Just where I want them!
302 This basically locks the rollers into position and not all the weight is on the jack while in transport.
303 Got some 1/2" scraps and made a pattern for the cable mount in the front. I laid them together to make them the same and drilled as before. Using a bolt for a pin. Heavy relieved the edge where it gets welded to the front hitch assembly.
304 Welded on here and turned out how I wanted. Hitch mount is plenty strong and a great place to pull from.
305 Put in a few more cross braces on the front section. Need more weight anyway so no big deal.
306 I just drilled a hole in the large round on the lathe and TIG welded the pin on the bottom so it was flush.
307 This is for putting in the hitch hole when you have it clear on the ground. That way the hitch won't dig in the dirt and it'll slide around easier if needed.
308 Lynch pin keeps it in place
309 Drilled another piece of scrap and welded it to the side for a mount.
310 Quick, easy and handy.
311 Wanted to put some safety chains on it. I drilled an 1 1/4" hole through the gusset.
312 Got a short length of 1 1/4" round stock and drilled/tapped it for a 1/2" bolt.
313 Then I welded it in the hole.
314 Bolted the chains on and good to go. Going to make up some hangers for the chains now so they don't drag around when not attached to a pulling vehicle.
315 Bent a couple U's as before and drilled the holes. Tapped them in and welded on the inside.
316 Keeps everything tidy and fast to do so.
317 Going to make a tool box holder next. Need the weight anyway and had a plastic tool box that was given to me so why not? Cut up some 3/8" angle iron for a surround and welded it up.
318 I'll bolt it on using the mounting plates for the lift arms. 1/4" bottom oughta hold it ;)
319 Box fits nice and will mount it underneath. Want to keep it out of harms way and flush. I'll have to make up something to hold the drawers shut too.
320 Bolted it on and ready to put the box in.
321 Just how I wanted it, simple and clean. Came up with an idea for the hold in/drawer lock so that is next.
322 Got a heavy bar of stainless and drilled the hole close to the edge. I then reamed it to 7/16"
323 For a pin I got some 7/16" stainless rod. I spun ground the ends and ground a slot over half way through to the exact size. Flatted the sides some on the long rod to make it basically a press fit. Holds itself together that way so it's easier to TIG weld.
324 Drilled the mounting holes and cut it off the bar. I then ground radii on it so it won't have hard corners to catch me.
325 TIG welded the handle up.
326 All done now and keeps everything in place. Pull the pin and the drawers open or you can pull the whole box out to get into the top compartment.
327 I like it!
328 Moves like a dream on concrete. I think this feature will come in handy loading stuff and you can do fine adjustments without having to move the truck or trailer. Nice to have options.
329 Finally got around to drilling out the 90 degrees axle locks. Using a 3/8" long bolt that I cut the threads off of. Just a simple drop in pin that way.
330 Had a big cast iron bar that has been laying around here for years. Decided to use it for front weight. Cut it in 3 pieces and will bolt these on as well.
331 I'll add them near the front and the angles will follow the front mount to the hitch. I'll weld this plate in the center and bolt from underneath. This will hold them in place.
332 Drilled 2 holes in the center and drilled/tapped the center piece of cast as well. Adds over 100 pounds and one less thing to trip over in the scrap pile.
333 With the balance issue worked out took her for a test lift. With the tires like this more weight is to the front. 2 people hanging couldn't get it to even flinch. Higher up makes it even better. About 7 ft high at the lowest point here.
334 With everything checking out fine it's time for disassembly and final welding. Supported the far end and raised the conveyor with the hoist on the other end after unbolting everything.
335 I can then just simply pull the whole running gear out. This is why I made it bolt on.
336 Need to add some gussets here and there too so I'll do that now. Plus I can roll it around/over for easier welding. Cheat when you can!
337 Gussets all tacked in. Weight is a non issue on the front end so only helps.
338 All the welding done now so it's the pain of cleaning, smoothing to get ready for paint. Not my favorite part of any build, that's for sure.
339 All cleaned up and started painting. I did one side of the main framework and some smaller pieces. dad came down to help as it takes a while with all the nooks and crannies. Used hardener in the paint so there was a time issue.
340 Covers pretty good with a brush and mini roller. Would have been quicker with a sprayer but more of a mess and would have used a LOT more paint.
341 Hubs are getting grey to match the rims as close as I can.
342 Flip the main frame over and did the lowers as well. They were small enough we could flip them over and get it all done in one shot. Used a quart of paint to do all this plus the small pieces hanging.
343 On the bottom of the axle tube, in the center and inside the outer axle tube I'll put a coat of graphite paint. Sometimes called Slip Plate. Makes thing slide freely as it wears.
344 Here's the inside of the outer tube coated. with it. It's used on farm equipment a lot of times in grain wagons and such to keep stuff sliding easily.
345 You can get it at most Ag equipment dealers. Really useful stuff for a lot of different apllications. Just don't try to walk on it on a slope. You slide right down!
346 Painting all done and put the caster all back on. With it easy to move now I'll slide it under the conveyor and start reassambling it.
347 On some of the pivots and where the rollers are I'm gun driiling the bolts and installing press in zerk fittings. Gun drilling the 5/8" bolt here. It a grade 5 so a sharp bit, oil and clean out strokes are needed.
348 Here's the press in zerk. I ream the hole to .245
349 Then just press it in with the arbor press. Quick and easy.
350 Before pressing in I crossdrilled through one side. You want to drill before the zerk is in so you can blow it out clean.
351 Loose assembling the lower framework here and slid the axle in. Out the hubs on as well.
352 This is the fun part of any build as it comes together quickly. So far so good.
353 Put the tool box in and the keeper also doubles as a rod holder when you want in the box. Pat. Pending ;)
354 Cut all the spacer to length and ground some wrench flats on them. I guess they are wheel nut locks as well.
355 Close up of the 7/8" wrench flats.
356 Cut the as short as I could so they don't stick out any more than necessary. Being able to move/adjust with the 3/4" drive ratchet will be nice when by myself.
357 I got customs spinners on my ride now! :0
358 Got it all painted and back together so here are some finished pics for you.
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367 This is at a level 36 inches high. It will go down to 30 inches but that is a little low for me but I wanted the adjustment, just in case.
368 This is at full extension with the jack. 7 ft at the end of the conveyor so that is fine for a dump trailer and normal truck. I think I'm going to make up an extension to slip on the end of the javck as it is just so easy to use.
369 Now I'll show the axle slide. I remove the U collar that holds the knuckle straight. The 3/4" bolt holds it in place.
370 Once off the outside part of the knuckle is the same as the inner. This will allow the whole thing to slide in flush. With the scissors jack and the hydraulic jack locked, you can take all the weight off the wheels.
371 Just push it all in flush. The casters are holding all the weight now but you can let it back down if you want the tires toi support as well.
372 No I can back a truck up and load/unload from it's side. Will save so many steps.
373 Truck backed in and everything looks fine. Level height here is 54 inches.
374 Bad pic but you get the idea.
375 Side reach is kept at a minimum this way. If the wheels was sticking out I'd have to be a lot further away. You need the width for stability when moving and such.
376 Close up of oppisite side shows the amount of adjustment.
377 Jack was almost all the way up and it looks like 56 inches is the max at level.
378 For the ram extension I'm going to try a simple, slip on affair. End will have a hole to attach like the jack has. Weight will keep it in place. I started by gun drilling a large round to 1.25" all the way through.
379 Shaft I'm going to use is 1.37" and the jack had a metric size. Didn't have the drill or reamer in the size and no boring bar. My friend Tony used a boring bar and put the in size for me. Works perfect and smooth as silk. Thanks Tony!
380 I had a 1.37" stainless bar that was true so I used that. Drille a 5/8" hole for the upper pin.
381 Tried it out and it was fine so I TIG welded the mild and stainless together.
382 Finished extension.
383 Rolled it out with the extension on and works fine.Still have a tilt on the roller table so that is nice.
384 With the extension in I have a reach of 9 ft to the bottom of the top roller.
385 If you look on the rail you will see the roller keepers. I jack it up and put them in. Then release till it rests on them. Then un pin the jack and put the extension in. Not the slickest but it was a comprimise as it's easier than the winch. I still have that as a backup too to go even higher if needed.
386 Here's the keepers again.
387 There's another set of holes for the keepers too. Just less of a falll if something goes haywire or you want to move it with it up.
388 Here I'm pivoting the wheels around using the long 3/4" rachet. REAL easy to do.
389 Wheels in place and 3/8" pins are slip in to lock them into position.
390 With the ratchet, the whole thing can be swung around in an arc or straight sideways if needed.
391 Closeup of the knuckle and the way the pin is.
392 Pins store in the keepers extra holes on the rail.
393 Decided I'd better make up a holder for the extension and jack handle so they wouldn't get misplaced. Decided on a design and used some scraps of stainless. Here's the clip end.
394 Turned a shoulder on a short round with enough slop that you can feed the extension over it. The other end goes through the welded pin and a clip holds it in place.
395 For the handle I drilled through the pin and bent a piece of 3/8" on a 90 degree. Drill it for some cotter pins so now it swivels out. Wanted it longer to insure it would slip off when straight.
396 Simply slip the extension on and pin.
397 Slide the handle on and swivel in and pin. Either one can be taken off in any order and they are both trapped in place. This keep my feeble mind form forgetting to bring them along.
398 When the conveyor is in the up position the hitch becomes at such an angle that it would bind the pin. I needed to come up with a swivel knuckle of sorts. Did some idea crunching in my head and came up with this.
399 Drilled one round to the pin size and made it a snug fit into the yoke of the hitch. The other half uses a 5/8" pin. I welded flats on the sides for the universal type effect.
400 All together here. I drilled and tapped the pin so 3/8" bolts and washers hold it in place.
401 This won't be a road transport thing. I'll just slip it in when I have it on site when I want to raise it high.
402 Gave it enough clearance to keep it smooth.
403 Full up is a little over 30 degrees so that will be more than enough.
404 Turns 90 degrees sideways as well.
405
406 Being that it has the same pin size as the skid foot, I can just use it's mount to keep them all in place and will stay with the conveyor.
