Topper Hoist?
From : charles
Q: i want to make a topper hoist for my garage. then i can disconnect my topper and hoist it up to the ceiling out of the way. lower it again to put it back on. does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. thanks charles .
Replies:
From : tom lawrence
does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. sure - pick up a manual winch like the one in this link and mount it to the wall. run the cable through a pulley that you suspend from the ceiling and make up two lengths of additional cable with positive-locking clips on the ends carabiners would work fine for this that can clip to some mounting points on the top of the cap attached to a ladder rack or something similar. slip these two cables through the hook of the winch and crank it up. http//www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.tafitemnumber=30905 of course if youre into a little more high-end an electric winch bolted to the rafters would make things easier http//www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.tafitemnumber=44006 .
From : big al
does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. sure - pick up a manual winch like the one in this link and mount it to the wall. run the cable through a pulley that you suspend from the ceiling and make up two lengths of additional cable with positive-locking clips on the ends carabiners would work fine for this that can clip to some mounting points on the top of the cap attached to a ladder rack or something similar. slip these two cables through the hook of the winch and crank it up. http//www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.tafitemnumber=30905 of course if youre into a little more high-end an electric winch bolted to the rafters would make things easier http//www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.tafitemnumber=44006 i guy i know has one of the harbor freight jobs to remove the hardtop from his prowler. he hung it from a large pipe on two harbor freight pneumatic tired casters. he just removed the tires and runs the wheels on the pipe. there is enough space where the tire was to allow the pipe to pass through. he can lift the top and just move it to the end of his garage. works well. al .
From : nosey
mac davis wrote on mon 27 feb 2006 150533 -0700 charles cstoyer@interpex.com wrote i want to make a topper hoist for my garage. then i can disconnect my topper and hoist it up to the ceiling out of the way. lower it again to put it back on. does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. thanks charles been there done that... used 2 pulleys on the rafters and lifted from a 2x4 across the bed rails under each end of the cap... bottom line not worth the trouble besides the fact that id rather have the cap bolted to the truck as opposed to clamping it on so it can be easily removed.. it also looks really funny from the street seeing a camper shell stuck to the garage ceiling.. *g* note if you do it... remember that its going to catch dust dryer lint etc.... and murphys law says that it will make a mess when you take it down.. *g* it was worthwhile for me because i could remove and store or re-install my cap without help. i had mine setup similar to you but i didnt use any pullys. i had 4 eye bolts screwed into the rafters over the garage stall and two 2x4s with an eye bolt in each end. i used 4 cargo straps to pull the cap off. -- ken .
From : mac davis
on tue 28 feb 2006 203136 -0500 nosey kfrei43@removethis.hotmail.com wrote it was worthwhile for me because i could remove and store or re-install my cap without help. i had mine setup similar to you but i didnt use any pullys. i had 4 eye bolts screwed into the rafters over the garage stall and two 2x4s with an eye bolt in each end. i used 4 cargo straps to pull the cap off. well you were in the navy ken... whole different mindset... in the army we didnt do anything that required manual labor if it could be avoided.. *g* btw i did that with my first shell a lot of years ago... before i learned that if it was off i didnt have anywhere to store all my junk.. *g* had them on several trucks since and never taken one off.. mac https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis/woodstuff.htm .
From : budd cochran mrd150 preciscom spam net
i had one on the d-150 back when i had the truck an took it off rather quickly after nearly backing over a little girl that i couldnt see in the right hand mirror or thru the side windows on the topper ... but she was tall enough i could see her over the tailgate topper open. the bottom of the windows were 5 higher than the tailgate. if she had walked with her parent thru the lot instead of running ahead it wouldnt have happened either. -- budd cochran romans 323 romans 623 john 316-17 ephesians 28-9 on tue 28 feb 2006 203136 -0500 nosey kfrei43@removethis.hotmail.com wrote it was worthwhile for me because i could remove and store or re-install my cap without help. i had mine setup similar to you but i didnt use any pullys. i had 4 eye bolts screwed into the rafters over the garage stall and two 2x4s with an eye bolt in each end. i used 4 cargo straps to pull the cap off. well you were in the navy ken... whole different mindset... in the army we didnt do anything that required manual labor if it could be avoided.. *g* btw i did that with my first shell a lot of years ago... before i learned that if it was off i didnt have anywhere to store all my junk.. *g* had them on several trucks since and never taken one off.. mac https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis/woodstuff.htm *** free account sponsored by secureix.com *** *** encrypt your internet usage with a free vpn account from http//www.secureix.com *** .
From : nosey
mac davis wrote on tue 28 feb 2006 203136 -0500 nosey kfrei43@removethis.hotmail.com wrote it was worthwhile for me because i could remove and store or re-install my cap without help. i had mine setup similar to you but i didnt use any pullys. i had 4 eye bolts screwed into the rafters over the garage stall and two 2x4s with an eye bolt in each end. i used 4 cargo straps to pull the cap off. well you were in the navy ken... whole different mindset... in the army we didnt do anything that required manual labor if it could be avoided.. *g* i did it that way not to avoid the labor but to minimize it enough to do the job alone safely. i know i can lift it myself from the inside but its very awkward. i didnt want to risk dropping a fiberglass cap from the height of a 2500 4x4 bed. you still have to lift some of the weight by hand to cinch up the straps but its less than 100 lbs on each end. lifting the cap from inside the truck bed to get the 2x4s in position is the hardest part but even that is relatively easy due to your body position. once the padded tape seal is broken the rest of the job is easy. btw i did that with my first shell a lot of years ago... before i learned that if it was off i didnt have anywhere to store all my junk.. *g* had them on several trucks since and never taken one off.. a crafty woodworker like you should be able to come up with a simple shelf to put over the 2x4s supporting the suspended cap. think of it as a lower level attic. also i dont have any dust problems. my garage ceiling is textured so i always put an old blanket over the cap think grey wool with the letters u.s. in the corner before hoisting it tight against the ceiling. no scratches in the cap that way and any dust accumulation can be cleaned off of the blanket outside. -- ken .
From : budd cochran mrd150 preciscom spam net
buy two canoe hoists or just one if you can rig a way to hook up and youre done. http//www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/productdisplaystoreid=6970&productid=669132&r=669132 -- budd cochran romans 323 romans 623 john 316-17 ephesians 28-9 i want to make a topper hoist for my garage. then i can disconnect my topper and hoist it up to the ceiling out of the way. lower it again to put it back on. does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. thanks charles *** free account sponsored by secureix.com *** *** encrypt your internet usage with a free vpn account from http//www.secureix.com *** .
From : mac davis
on mon 27 feb 2006 150533 -0700 charles cstoyer@interpex.com wrote i want to make a topper hoist for my garage. then i can disconnect my topper and hoist it up to the ceiling out of the way. lower it again to put it back on. does anyone have any suggestions the topper weights around 180 pounds. thanks charles been there done that... used 2 pulleys on the rafters and lifted from a 2x4 across the bed rails under each end of the cap... bottom line not worth the trouble besides the fact that id rather have the cap bolted to the truck as opposed to clamping it on so it can be easily removed.. it also looks really funny from the street seeing a camper shell stuck to the garage ceiling.. *g* note if you do it... remember that its going to catch dust dryer lint etc.... and murphys law says that it will make a mess when you take it down.. *g* mac https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis/woodstuff.htm .
From : mac davis
on wed 1 mar 2006 120502 -0500 nosey kfrei43@removethis.hotmail.com wrote a crafty woodworker like you should be able to come up with a simple shelf to put over the 2x4s supporting the suspended cap. think of it as a lower level attic. actually this garage already has a loft.... i could put the dakota cap up there if i cleared years of family stuff out of it i guess... the dakota looks and rides so much better with the cap that it hasnt been off since we got the truck in 01.. the other problem is that the garage is also the full time wood shop and even with a dust collector and air filter things get pretty dusty in there... mac https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis https//home.comcast.net/mac.davis/woodstuff.htm .