I need to occasionally lift a 55 gallon drum containing waste oil onto a truck, using a forklift. Do those scissor type attachments that squeeze the drum at the top work? I was thinking about something like this:
The waste oil won't explode, and probably won't catch fire, but it would sure make a mess if I dropped the drum. Would I be better off strapping to a pallet?
Make a skid the size of the drum so you don't lose floor space. A strap aint a bad idea either.
I built one like the HF style several years ago and it worked well. My thoughts were the chance of a single drum tipping off of a lifted pallet was greater than if lifted by the clamp. Steve
On Tue, 16 Aug 2005 10:52:55 -0700, snipped-for-privacy@localnet.com wrote (in message ):
Since you already have a forklift the skid is probably the best option. Another option would be to tie a barrel sling from rope or chain; any good book on knots & splices will show you how.
We handle 55's full of steel wire, 1k lbs or more, all the time. We just spread the forks so they jam-fit tightly under the ridges in the drum.
I bought a Wesco horizontal clam-shell type locally on ebay for about $50. Works great, self adjusting and quite secure.
Two pieces of chain (or one relatively long piece) with grab hooks, one wrapped around the middle of the drum snugly (meaning as tight as you can get it without mechanical advantage). Connect the other piece to the first
180° apart from each other to form an inverted basket and lift. I've lifted many full drums this way without incident.Shawn
the unit we use looks exaclty like the photo, it works fine
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