want to install lift in my trailer, any thoughts

[ApexKartSports]

Currently have 48' pace Gooseneck trailer and thinking of putting a lift in to enable us to carry 2 formula cars with out giving up shop/work space in the front. Considering purchasing a stationary 4 post lift on line and installing as they are 110v and not too terribly heavy 1400-1500 lbs.. Any thoughts or better alternatives. thanks in advance George V @ ApexkartSports

978-479-7974 (P) apexkart@comcast.net (E)

[provamo]

get a trailer with a lift gate.

[mdwracer]

I think a custom dual aluminum ramp set up that pivots at front and uses a winch to dead lift the back up to an above desired height and safety pin it, would work well.. I don't have one but have seen some at events with FV and FF guys. These folks would be the guys to have post photos of their setups... I always wanted one but the store bought lifts are just too heavy and are way overkill for formula car weight and towing capacity of a lot of trucks.
My thought was to have nice heavy duty benches that match the height of the lift which would allow a car in raised position to roll forward and tie down on bench. I could potentially tow three cars and pit vehicle or total of four cars in a 38 foot gooseneck trailer.
Great posting and like to see some pictures from FV guys, as these guys always seem to haul a lot with small trailers and under spec tow vehicles ( I know this because I am one of these guys!)

Mike

[S Lathrop]

For years I had a trailer with the second deck that tilted down at the rear. when down you had a continuous ramp from the ground to the front of the top deck. Just behind the rear door was a frame that that supported the pulleys that lifted the rear deck. When the deck was in the up position, the rear of the deck rested on a beam that went between the legs of the lift frame. the frame work was largely made from 2x4 .080 steel tubing. The decks were bent sheet steel. My guess would be that the whole setup was under 500 pounds.

I had well over 100,000 miles on that trailer when I sold it and all that stuff worked when it left.

[problemchild]

I have used arrangements like Mike and Steve talk about so that I could get a 3rd and 4th car in a 40 ft gooseneck (or a 2nd car in a 20 ft trailer). For 2 cars in a 48" gooseneck, I would not go that route , but would build shelves and racks that let the cars stay on the floor below them. Another option would be to put benches and cabinets in the middle section that will hold a car, and have the 2nd car on the floor at the back.
After being at the track for 3 or 4 days, when it is time to go, I just want to push cars in and go.
The one thing that I do know is that you do not want to add a 1400 lb lift to the rear third of a trailer so that you have 3500 lbs of high cargo hanging out past the axles.

[Purple Frog]

Most big semis park them overhead or on stainless steel benches.
I copied that concept and just rolled the cars up unto benches that ran front to rear, Just have to have the upper cabinets mounted high enough to allow tires to roll under.

[provamo]

like Rice says at the end of the day you just want to load and go!

we had a big old trailer from Tom Gloy that we used to carry three (3) Trans-Am Buicks with, just drive em up the platform, raise the lift to the second story and roll the car along the ramp

no muss no fuss

[Lotus7]

something to consider as well, before creating additional effort to load cars, is the (eventual) likelihood of having to get a crashed slider or two into the trailer at the end of the day

[stownsen914]

I have a Dannmar 4 post lift in my garage. I'm not sure how well the storage lifts would fit in a trailer. They are also much heavier duty than you'd need for a formula car, so may be overkill in terms of construction, size and weight. The units I've seen in stacker trailers seem to be much lighter duty construction, but my opinion is a relatively uninformed one.

Scott

[TDI PILOT]

Check out this ad. I inquired with the seller if he wanted to sell the lift separately, he said he would. I never pursued it as my attention span is quite short....Contact him.


http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74436

-Eric

[HazelNut]

I've had two shelf/pivot ramp setups. One for 3 cars in a 44' and 4 cars in a 50'. They work. A bit sketchy when you have a car dangling in the air on a which cable, but functional. Ive always used two winches. One to drag the car up the rather steep incline on the ramp, and one to lift the rear of the pivot up. One if my former crew guys referred to it as a "rolling osha violation".

Make sure your lifting winch is secured to major structure in the trailer. My 50' came with the lifting ramp system installed, and the guy who installed it only used big washers through the wood floor. It damn near ripped through and dropped a car. I installed steel plates (welded to structure) under the word floor and bolted to that. Also remember winches are rated for overhead lifting, but they do seem to get the job done.

My new rig i ordered with a liftgate.

If you're going to go internal lift see if you can find one of the ones that Ray Donna / Rexxon Engineering used to build. They're aluminum and specific for formula cars. I don't think he builds/sells them anymore but maybe you can get a set of plans from him? He used to be here in apex.

Much better than the steel stinger lifts as the lifting platform itself has a thinner profile and it makes it easier to load the car with smaller ramps.

[Rondo]

Enterprising folks I race with have a platform with a pivot in the center - probably a 2" steel pipe - and 3/4 plywood boxes for the ramps. The ramp pivots down, you roll the first car on to it (I think tail first), then pivot it down at the front and ready to roll the second car in. There are a few locking pins to keep everything tight in transit. I will get pics but next season! Very liteweight and appropriate for a FF. I have watched the ramps while loading for deflection and none I can see. I will do a similar arrangement for a second car at some time

[RSS]

Visual Aid

[lhowardmo]

I put a Stinger four post auto lift in my trailer. 12 volts DC with a solar panel on the top to keep the battery charged up. Very solid construction and powder coated white. Super easy to use and very durable.

[BeerBudgetRacing]

Links not working for me.....

Visual Aid

[reset1]

A long time ago, we used a pivot at the front, lift the back with a winch for a couple of F440's.
I still have the loading ramp setup, all aluminum, lower ends connected with a pipe, and a lifting eye. The forward ends are designed to hang over ( if I remember) a 2" pipe. I could not bring myself to dispose of this, so if someone has a need?? Unfortunetely the ramp is in Oregon, and I am in Az. But if not in a hurry I can get someone to take pic's. I don't remember the length of the ramps, but the cars were 80" wheelbase, so that or longer.
Worked great, btw, One guy could do it.
John Puccini

[RSS]

Links not working for me.....

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...HRCUG1IbkZCNWc

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...UR2aXdXMXBjeE0

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...G56ZkxrUU9vekE

[BeerBudgetRacing]

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...HRCUG1IbkZCNWc

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...UR2aXdXMXBjeE0

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1...G56ZkxrUU9vekE

Awesome setup. What is the inside height of that trailer?

[cjsmith]

A point Greg mentioned is weight distribution in the trailer. You need to be mindfull not to have too much weight past the rear axles. This may not be an issue with a 30' or longer trailer but somthing to keep a mental note of when laying out your trailer. I saw this video a while back and its a great simulation of how the trailer responds to tongue and tail weight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jk9H5AB4lM

Have a great Thanksgiving,

Chris

[CGOffroad]

My trailer is designed almost identical to the trailer shown above. I can make some comments on it after having my stacker installed and in use for a little over a year now. With my stacker stowed, I have just over 44" clearance for the lower car to roll under. The car on top rack has a little over 2" clearance to ceiling. This has proven to be fine for suspension travel during transport. Trailer was built with 12V and 110V fixtures. Flourescent lighting that was mounted in the center had to be moved to make room for roll hoop of upper car.

Pros of tilting setup:
* I am pretty confident to say the materials needed to make this type setup will weigh a bit less than installing a 4 post
* Area around front post never sees the ramp coming down to floor. So, this is a good area for storage of things that dont' need to be moved for tilt ramp to work
* Winches are not badly priced and if they ever go out, you can probably find one in your town that will be fairly easy to mount in place of the one you pitch out
* Possible to run winches off of a battery and lift up a car. A 4 post might require more power than that to operate.


Cons:
* A 4 post typically has safety's that 'click' on the way up. If you have a failure the most it will drop is approx 6" or 8" until the platform rests on the next lower safety. With a tilt ramp, if you have a complete failure of the lifting winch, or part a wire, it is gonna make some noise, and something is most probably going to be bent!
* On a tilt ramp, the car continually wants to roll with gravity until you get it level and secured. This means you need to be very vigilant about keeping yourself and spectators out of the path of a car rolling backwards during the whole loading process of the upper rack
* When at the track and cars are out of trailer, the upper rack is in the way and I have to duck under it all the time. Mine is made with cross members at the front and rear. Some people lift the rear end as high as the winch will pull it so they have use of the rear of trailer. Some lower the rack and have no cross member in the front, so it is easy to walk through trailer. I haven't figured out a good way of dealing with this just yet!

I looked at many types of stacker trailers and if I had it to do all over again... I think I would stick with the tilt ramp style. Once I figure out where to store the 8 tire/wheels I bring to the track there will be more room for dressing out and other creature comforts. The trailer is something that is always in a state of change to suit your changing needs.

[RSS]

Awesome setup. What is the inside height of that trailer?

Right around 8' i believe.

[RSS]

A couple comments on CGOffroads post.

The winch does not hold the car up while in motion on the above setup. In the first picture with the car on the slant you can see the rear ramp supports are swung out of the way. All 4 ramp supports are on hinges allowing them to be rotated out of the way and use the full width of the trailer if need be. So when traveling the ramp posts are supporting the car with the winch slightly slacked and used as a backup.

The rear lift crossmember is also removable so it does not block your pathway once the cars are unloaded at the track

Both upper ramps can be removed and folded up against the side of the 4 posts if you want to free up space after unloading we usually leave one down for a table and the other folded up to give some room.

[MarkBrannon]

i HAVE TWO DIFFERENT TRAILERS WITH LIFT RAMPS i AM GETTING READY TO PUT ON THE MARKET. ONE IS A 32 FOOT TAG, ONE IS A 40 FOOT FIFTH WHEEL, BOTH HAVE RAMP SETUPS. USED THEM FOR S 2000, INDY LIGHTS LOTUS 23. iF INTERESTED EMAIL ME MBRANNON@BRANNONDENTAL.COM OR 602 999 2968