Moving pins upstairs - somewhat eccentric solution!

[carl lawrence]

My apologies I only saw 5” bolts and not the 12 “ threaded bar ones sorry !

Chemical fixings in my experience are fantastic in stone , concrete and Engineering brick ,everything else not so good. The best type of Chemical fixings are the ones you use in a gun . As bricks are about 4” thick , by drilling more then this you will be into the Cavity so any Chemical fixings will be pushed out and into the cavity . Always a good call to make sure you have the perfect fixings is to go back and Re-tighten the bolts , they should embed themselves into the block of wood .

 

[C&C]

My apologies I only saw 5” bolts and not the 12 “ threaded bar ones sorry !

Chemical fixings in my experience are fantastic in stone , concrete and Engineering brick ,everything else not so good. The best type of Chemical fixings are the ones you use in a gun . As bricks are about 4” thick , by drilling more then this you will be into the Cavity so any Chemical fixings will be pushed out and into the cavity . Always a good call to make sure you have the perfect fixings is to go back and Re-tighten the bolts , they should embed themselves into the block of wood .

This is something I have done. The nuts can be tightened pretty much as hard as I can tighten them with a 14 inch long spanner, and the bolts in the wall do not move at all. The nuts (and washers) do pull a very little into the wood, but as it's oak (chosen for strength), it doesn't compress very much. Basically they are very solidly anchored in the wall.

Anyway, BKSoR is now set up upstairs in time for Christmas, so Happy Christmas to one and all.

 

[J85M]

That’s amazing and sure beats pulling them upstairs which I’ve done a few time. I know you said it obviously needs to work with minimal effort but did you look into a simple 3 or 5 way pulley system?

 

[kevlar]

I worked for Konecranes for 5 years installing and maintaining everything from similar sized hoists to 370T overhead gantry cranes. Your solution looks plenty over-engineered to me but I doubt it would pass a LOLER inspection . Top marks for ingenuity. My only concern, are the beam and supports staying there? you have a VERY understanding better half if so, I would have guessed you'd have been single if you hadn't mentioned better half.

 

[daveyp]

Only comment ill say is are they Karabiners your using to attach the slings? Personally a bow shackle should be used for peace of mind and less chance of failure.

 

[Scylla52]

This is definitely not for everyone, and in many ways, it doesn't make a lot of sense (especially the cost unless you take into consideration the "cost" of a damaged back/knees), but I thought I'd post this up if for no other reason than to potentially provide a little amusement/interest.

Currently the only permanent space in the house for pins is in a front room upstairs.

When I got TNA, 3 of us manhandled it upstairs, but it was a heck of a struggle - especially the 90 degree turn at the top, so I decided to try to sort out a better solution for the longer term, as TNA wasn't going to be the only pin, and I'd need to be able to get any new pin upstairs, and likely get pins downstairs to swap in future. Given advancing years and vulnerable back/knees etc, it had to be a solution requiring minimal effort, and ideally something I could achieve on my own.

I realise this is a long way from what could be considered "normal", and that my better half is more than a little understanding, but I came up with the idea of installing some type of hoist which would enable the pins to be taken up the stairs, and then slid over the bannister on the landing (thus avoiding the 90 degree bend at the top of the stairs), and lowered onto a trolley.

Well, I finally finished the solution, and am very happy that my Black Knight SOR is now safely upstairs, and I managed it on my own with minimal physical effort.

Bottom of stairs:
View attachment 155572

Hoist:
View attachment 155577

On the way up:
View attachment 155576

Hanging at the top of the stairs:
View attachment 155575

On the banister (sitting on memory foam mattress topper for protection):
View attachment 155574

On the landing (lowered onto the trolley):
View attachment 155573

And finally, here's a link to a bit of video on FlickR.

I realise it's a bit Heath Robinson, and probably over-specced - I didn't want to take any risks of it failing, so the hoist will handle 500Kg, and everything else (straps, carabiners, RSJ etc..) significantly more than that.

I hope it provides a bit of amusement, and in any case, I'm happy as it works pretty well, and now means that moving pins (and any other heavy items) up/downstairs is something I can achieve on my own with minimal physical effort!

Ok. I just saw this. First, it's brilliant. Second, I MUST show this to my wife so that she sees there are much 'zanier'(?) pin home accommodations out there than my one pin in our main lounge! I moved one upstairs at my current house and it was a real chore. So main lounge it is! Great pins BTW.

 

[Itch]

First time seeing this thread for me as well, well done con, I’m deffo asking you for help on any engineering projects I’m doing,

 

[C&C]

Only comment ill say is are they Karabiners your using to attach the slings? Personally a bow shackle should be used for peace of mind and less chance of failure.

I did initially look at bow shackles, but couldn't really find one of a suitable size. The larger they were (to go through the straps and over the winch hook), the thicker they were, so were actually too thick to fit the winch hook.

I also looked at quite a few carabiners, and settled on this particular one as it was a reasonable size (2 will fit on the winch hook) and has an open gate strength of 8kNewtons (around 800Kg), and closed gate (which is obviously how I'm using them) of 24kN - so 2.4 tonnes. I'm pretty confident that they are unlikely to fail under the type of load I'm using them for.

 

[J85M]

I did initially look at bow shackles, but couldn't really find one of a suitable size. The larger they were (to go through the straps and over the winch hook), the thicker they were, so were actually too thick to fit the winch hook.

I also looked at quite a few carabiners, and settled on this particular one as it was a reasonable size (2 will fit on the winch hook) and has an open gate strength of 8kNewtons (around 800Kg), and closed gate (which is obviously how I'm using them) of 24kN - so 2.4 tonnes. I'm pretty confident that they are unlikely to fail under the type of load I'm using them for.

You will be fine with carabiners as long as the rating is suitable, we use them in conjunction with strops (fabric and wire) and a petzel for lowering and lifting crew to casualties and the petzel is the weakest part of the system.

There’s some insanely strong stuff out there these days. Either way you have to win the 2021 commitment to pinball award for your set up, it’s bloody brilliant.

 

[daveyp]

I did initially look at bow shackles, but couldn't really find one of a suitable size. The larger they were (to go through the straps and over the winch hook), the thicker they were, so were actually too thick to fit the winch hook.

I also looked at quite a few carabiners, and settled on this particular one as it was a reasonable size (2 will fit on the winch hook) and has an open gate strength of 8kNewtons (around 800Kg), and closed gate (which is obviously how I'm using them) of 24kN - so 2.4 tonnes. I'm pretty confident that they are unlikely to fail under the type of load I'm using them for.

No fair enough with them just worried if they were cheap ones but you've done your homework on them. From a lifting point of view I don't think id get away with that on a site but 10/10 for the twist to shorten the 1 ton strops lol.

 

[Asiapinball]

What an effort Conrad, and I suspect useful for many who have space upstairs thanks for the share, one other advantage is you can also double it as a chairlift for you and the Mrs when you get older

One question I had though was how many pins are you putting in the games room upstairs? I just wondered if there was any limits/concerns on the floor loading? Not sure how your house is built but I'm assuming it has joists running across with ceiling on the lower side and floorboards on the top side?

Neil,

I had all my first floor joists replaced a few years back as the floors had sagged so had a lot of interest in floor loadings so found out a lot about this. I started a new post which answers your question titled "Can I put a pinball machine upstairs?"

Paul

 

[Asiapinball]

Just showed my wife the pics. Her response was "there's someone nuttier than you"