Chain Hoist and Chains

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ctwo
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Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by ctwo »

Harbor Freight had grade 43, 3/8" chain on sale, 14' with hooks for $20. I bought two.

I also used the 25% off coupon for a 2T chain hoist with grade 80, 1/4" chain for $52.

I'm expecting the links on the grade 43 chain to be larger, but they seem about thrice the diameter than the chain hoist and that is a little puzzling. I have not measured them as I packed the oil saturated hoist away until I need it. Also, the hooks on the grade 43 chain are about 1/2 the size of those on the hoist, which are huge. You just cannot hook the hooks together (I do not even think the two chain hooks come together), so I had to make a loop with the hook on a link for initial testing, which I think is not ideal...for what I know, it's probably not ideal to hook the hooks together anyway...?

I read an old post on a forum far far away that said the 1T chain hoist warning labeling said it was rated 2000#, not to exceed 4000#. That is puzzling! I'm now expecting my hoist will have a similar warning stating not to exceed 8000#.

No worries, I consider this rigging to safely lift 2500#, because that is the most my heaviest machine weighs. Now I just need something to hook this to...
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STRR
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by STRR »

ctwo,

The difference in size is due to the grades. Grade 43 and grade 80 with 80 being the stronger due to better alloy and appropriate heat treating.

As for the chain, it is totally fine to hook back to a link and make a loop to go on the chain hoist hook. You should NOT hook to hook. I puts weird stresses on the hooks and could cause twisting and failure. Also, you should NOT loop the hoist chain back to itself. That chain needs to be straight to transfer the loading properly.

The rated load for the hoist should NEVER be exceeded. The "not to exceed" weight should be the actual rating for the hoist. Venturing over the hoist rating puts you into the safety margin. The manufacturer should NOT tell you what that safety margin is. If they do, most people will think it's fine to go over the hoist rating and get themselves in trouble real quick. If a hoist fails, and the manufacturer can tell you exceeded the hoist rating, that will make YOU liable for all damages. With chinesium products, you can never tell how big the safety margin is. Not like American made where the safety margin is usually darn big.

Good Luck,
Terry
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BadDog
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by BadDog »

Agreed. There are 2 main types of hooks, grab and slip. Slip hooks are big open hooks made to drape chain or straps over, or hook into an eye of some sort. These are like the one on the chain hoist. Grab hooks are the ones with a much narrower gap with parallel sides. These are sized to slide over appropriate sized chain links such that the link next to the one in the hook is preventing movement along the chain. These are designed to hook at whatever point makes using them convenient. Sometimes to form a loop, sometimes to effectively shorten a chain, and other creative uses.

And as with all import things from HF, I would be very cautious about using it for overhead loads or where anyone or anything could be damaged. Always be very aware of everything in the fall path.
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ctwo
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by ctwo »

Thanks guys. Happy with the chains and like all of it can fail at any time.
Standards are so important that everyone must have their own...
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spro
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by spro »

We had a few Yale chain hoists in the family and they were mostly rated 1/2 ton. That was exceeded but these are relatively light weight for rigging and such. Although all the castings weren't cast iron, they were built well. One thing was the chain. It was an especially smooth chain with no welding lumps etc. I think a lot of them were damaged by introducing the wrong chain into them. I don' t mean something obvious, because that is. The chain is the final drive and if isn't spaced right, smooth , it is like gears of different PD clashing under load.
John Hasler
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by John Hasler »

ctwo wrote:Thanks guys. Happy with the chains and like all of it can fail at any time.
I'd trust the chain more than the hoist. I wouldn't worry about using the chain at rated load but I wouldn't use a Harbor Freight hoist at over half it's rated capacity.
johnfreese
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by johnfreese »

I think that only grade 80 chain is rated for lifting.
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ctwo
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by ctwo »

You mean lifting or overhead lifting?
Standards are so important that everyone must have their own...
To measure is to know - Lord Kelvin
Disclaimer: I'm just a guy with a few machines...
John Hasler
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by John Hasler »

ctwo wrote:You mean lifting or overhead lifting?
80 chain is rated for overhead. I wouldn't trust a Harbor Freight hoist for overhead, though. In fact, I'm not sure I'd want a Harbor Freight hoist over my head even with nothing hanging from it. Parts might fall off.
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ctwo
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by ctwo »

It came with a manual with an exploded parts diagram and list.

What specifically is meant by overhead lifting? I read one definition here: http://www.jrclancy.com/Downloads/TrimChains-ESG.pdf
Standards are so important that everyone must have their own...
To measure is to know - Lord Kelvin
Disclaimer: I'm just a guy with a few machines...
John Hasler
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by John Hasler »

ctwo wrote:It came with a manual with an exploded parts diagram and list.

What specifically is meant by overhead lifting? I read one definition here: http://www.jrclancy.com/Downloads/TrimChains-ESG.pdf
So if I lift it by a single chain and it is heavy enough to hurt my foot I have to use grade 80 chain to lift it high enough to get my toe under it. If it's fragile enough to be damaged should I drop it I also must use grade 80.

Seems a bit excessive.
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Harold_V
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Re: Chain Hoist and Chains

Post by Harold_V »

John Hasler wrote:Seems a bit excessive.
Depends.
Sort of reminds me of the guy who doesn't have time to do something right, but all the time in the world to do it over.
Guidelines are established to prevent problems. Some folks don't care. Some do. By publishing guidelines, people can be properly informed, so they can make intelligent choices.

Electrical code is a good example. It may seem outlandish, but it may be the very thing that prevents a future problem. You'd never know, because it didn't happen, yet it may have prevented fires or death. I'm old enough to remember when wiring was a simple two wire affair. No ground required.

Harold
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