Pictures of a double hook that I welded together

How will you verify that the load is in fact 4000#?

This 4000# proof test should be adequate, and will shut off all (well most) of the commentary about the inadvisability of welding such hooks. Now, I agree with much of the spirit of the technical commentary, but if you will not sell these fixtures, a real proof test (described above) should be adequate. And you know the name of the likely victim if it is not.

Joe Gwinn

On Sat, 01 May 2010 10:06:38 -0500, the infamous Ignoramus26879 scrawled the following:

You _pulled_ on it in a _press_? Bar through the eye over the jack backstop, chain under the ram fastened through the two hooks, I'm guessing?

I'd think the eye would be by far the weakest link. Weld some 1/4" rod around the top, eh? I'm sure you already know enough to not get

-under- anything lifted with it.

-- Courage is the power to let go of the familiar. -- Raymond Lindquist

Something will always be the weakest link. This eye has a 1/4 of a square inch in the smallest cross section. At 50000 PSI, it works out to 10,000 lbs. I am not losing my sleep over it.

On Sat, 1 May 2010 14:04:57 -0700, the infamous "anorton" scrawled the following:

That one worker is sure lucky he bailed when he did. I wonder if he heard the twang of a cable wire starting to detune...

-- Courage is the power to let go of the familiar. -- Raymond Lindquist

Unofficial motto of Crane Component Company:

We stand behind our work, but not under it -- and neither should you.

Nice work. Looks handy. JR Dweller in the cellar

If the eye loop is 1/4" by 1/4" square, that's (0.25)(0.25)= 0.0625 square inches, or 1/16 of a square inch. At 50,000 psi, that would be 50000/16= 3,125 pounds, which is a bit too close for comfort, for lots of reasons. Not least of which the steel in hot rolled plate may not always be that good. And the eye loop geometry may not be perfect. And so on.

Joe Gwinn

No, it is exactly as I said, 1/4 of a square inch. 0.25 square inch. Two 1/2x1/4 areas in the smallest cross section.

Ahh. That's better.

Joe Gwinn

Steve, this is my thinking to the letter. It will work really great loading or unloading a parts washer or a compressor, and this is all that I care about. I do not get under the stuff that I lift.

At trailer stores, you can buy the weld ons that are intended to be welded onto loader buckets. I would have used those, and used a thicker plate.

After reading several comments in this thread, I will say this. It's not according to Hoyle, but it would PROBABLY work on loads that are a lot less than the failure limit.

As a professional rigger and crane operator, I have done some things that were not according to the book, and they worked out all right. And then I have done it right by the book and had a failure.

Just like Gorilla welds, it if holds for the use, it's good. Just don't use it on anything important, don't lift anything really heavy with it, never get under it, and when you do use it, stay clear and remember that flying pieces travel a good distance.

Steve