Tips for Moving Large Machinery

[Patrick Harper]

The wife and I, just put an offer in on a new house. The house doesn't have an HOA, so I will be free to do whatever I need to the garage workshop. It's right down the street, so moving shouldn't be too bad. This will be the first time I've ever moved big machines from one residence to another and wanted to know what tips everyone had to offer. Here's a list of my biggest stuff:

Minimax FS30
Sawstop PCS
Rikon 14" bandsaw
Roubo Workbench

Everything else should be easy. I am considering renting a truck with a liftgate. My biggest concern is the Minimax. It doesn't have a mobile base. Has anyone moved one of these? Can I use a pallet jack to get between the two feet and carefully ease it onto the lift gate? I'm guessing I should strap it down inside the truck, due to the fact that it's top heavy.

What about the Sawstop? Should I remove the fence and side table or just keep it on? Thanks in advance for any tips you might have!

[Matt Day]

I have never moved a Minimax, but all the large machinery I've moved I have taken off as much as it is reasonable to get the weight down. So for the tablesaw, definitely remove the wings And fence. Doing so should allow you to just use a hand truck to move it. I just moved a Powermatic 65 and if it were not for steps I had to go down, I would have been able to do it by myself.

Are you basically backing up in a moving truck with a liftgate to your garage, and doing the same at your new garage to unload? If so, I might reconsider what I said above.

Make sure you have a hand truck, moving dollies, and a lot of ratchet straps. And lots of boxes and packaging material for all the small stuff.

[Patrick Harper]

I have never moved a Minimax, but all the large machinery I've moved I have taken off as much as it is reasonable to get the weight down. So for the tablesaw, definitely remove the wings And fence. Doing so should allow you to just use a hand truck to move it. I just moved a Powermatic 65 and if it were not for steps I had to go down, I would have been able to do it by myself.

Are you basically backing up in a moving truck with a liftgate to your garage, and doing the same at your new garage to unload? If so, I might reconsider what I said above.

Make sure you have a hand truck, moving dollies, and a lot of ratchet straps. And lots of boxes and packaging material for all the small stuff.

Matt, thanks for the reply. The SS PCS has a mobile base, so I don't even think I'd need a dolly.

I will be backing the liftgate truck up to the garage on both ends to make the runs as short as possible.

[Jim German]

Having recently moved a 2200# Bridgeport into my basement, I think the key things to keep in mind are to use tools that are meant to deal with the weight you are using. A car jack for instance came in extremely handy a few times during my move. Also try to never rely on friction to hold something in place. Always strap or bolt it down.

That being said your move sounds pretty easy, even the FS30 is only 650lbs. If you've got a pallat jack that should work well. If not you can get a dirt cheap dolly from harbor freight that I've had good luck with. Make sure to check the capacity of the lift gate before you start though, and be careful as a liftgate can tilt when it starts to move, so make sure your machine is stable and isnt' going to roll off.


Also, swivel casters are the devil.

[David Kumm]

Instead of renting a lift gate, rent drop deck trailer and a pallet jack. Should be easy as your machines are pretty light so a narrow fork manual jack should work fine. Dave

[Patrick Harper]

Instead of renting a lift gate, rent drop deck trailer and a pallet jack. Should be easy as your machines are pretty light so a narrow fork manual jack should work fine. Dave

A trailer is a good idea.

Has anyone every moved the FS30 around with a pallet jack? Did it do okay?

[Chris Merriam]

A trailer is a good idea.

Has anyone every moved the FS30 around with a pallet jack? Did it do okay?

I would put it back on the pallet it shipped to you on, bolt it down then use the pallet jack. Too much money to let teeter totter on a pallet jack. Also remember it has the lifting holes on the sides, so you can use s hoist or lift to raise it up and slide a pallet underneath

[Floyd Mah]

Okay, don't get mad, but here's a National Geographic (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpNuh-J5IgE) solution to the problem. Just get three thick ropes and three dozen of your most able neighbors.
And then, "heave, ho, heave, ho".

[Allan Speers]

The only thing I can add is, with the TS, wedge some 2X4's under the motor, so there's no chance of cracking the trunnions.

[rudy de haas]

hi:

If it's just down the street.. I'd look around for someone who rents out electric pallet lift trucks of the kind used in warehousing. These tend to be
fairly narrow and can pick up anything the tines can get under (like the minimax), take it where you want it, and set it down gently.

A few years ago I brought in 32 tons of granite (from solid Rock Quarries in Montana) on a flatbed. To get the 2 ton pallets unloaded I got a guy who rents them out to bring one over and do the work. The whole process took about 30 minutes (18 pallets), cost about $200.

They're distance limited, but utterly hassle free and offer very low risk of damage.

[Patrick Harper]

I would put it back on the pallet it shipped to you on, bolt it down then use the pallet jack. Too much money to let teeter totter on a pallet jack. Also remember it has the lifting holes on the sides, so you can use s hoist or lift to raise it up and slide a pallet underneath

I no longer have the pallet. After looking at the machine again, I don't think a pallet jack would be a good idea without the pallet either. I might just rent an engine hoist and get it on a trailer. I'm also considering one of the welded HTC bases, but I'm having a hard time finding one close enough to the base measurements.

[Mike Heidrick]

Build the pallet. 2Xs and plywood.

[Earl Rumans]

Rent a low drop trailer and go down to HF and buy one of their cheap engine hoists. Moving everything on and off the trailer will be easy with the engine hoist and you can position the FS30 exactly where you want it with the hoist. After you are done with the hoist, list it on CL and sell it for what ever you can get. Way cheaper then renting one and you can keep it as long as you want

[Patrick Harper]

Rent a low drop trailer and go down to HF and buy one of their cheap engine hoists. Moving everything on and off the trailer will be easy with the engine hoist and you can position the FS30 exactly where you want it with the hoist. After you are done with the hoist, list it on CL and sell it for what ever you can get. Way cheaper then renting one and you can keep it as long as you want

I think we have a winner!

Thanks again everyone!

[Bob Falk]

If you have to move your Sawstop over any surface that is not perfectly flat, the base will hang up...just moved mine from basement to garage and over thresholds and steps (I built wooden ramps)....engine hoist is a good idea...I rented one ($40) to lift and disassemble my Oneway lathe (1200 lbs) for moving.

[John Sincerbeaux]

All the machines you mentioned can be moved "easily" with just a piece of plywood under the machine. Grab a couple of neighbors and simply push, slide, and pull. I've moved lots of smaller (<700 lbs) machines this way.
A few years ago I bought a 24" planer and a shaper off of CL. I rented a flatbed trlr and moved the machines on and off by the method above.

[Dick Brown]

Just take your John Deere tractor with the front end loader, pick the stuff up, drive down the street, put it in your new place. DON'T HAVE ONE??? You could use mine but Oregon is a bit far to go to borrow one.
Dick

[Prashun Patel]

If you only have to get stuff into the garage and on/off the truck with liftgate, I'd rent a pallet jack.

I've put casters on my Hammer a3-31 and am happy with it. You may wish to do similarly to the FS30.

[Jesse Busenitz]

321132321133
Just take your John Deere tractor with the front end loader, pick the stuff up, drive down the street, put it in your new place. DON'T HAVE ONE??? You could use mine but Oregon is a bit far to go to borrow one.
Dick
LOL I just moved shop 3 miles down the road and did exactly that!

[Chris Merriam]

I think we have a winner!

Thanks again everyone!

If you go the Harbor Freight route, and you're the type of person who follows manufacturer recommendations, they say you cannot move the lift around when it's under load, the casters won't support it. I ended up renting a lift from Sunbelt Rentals, $35 a day. It used a simple slip fit construction technique and came in five pieces. It had heavy duty cast iron casters so I was able to "drive" it around my garage and driveway.

[David Linnabary]

Always take the bed off your bandsaw, that way there's less chance of breaking the trunions

David

[Earl Rumans]

If you go the Harbor Freight route, and you're the type of person who follows manufacturer recommendations, they say you cannot move the lift around when it's under load, the casters won't support it. I ended up renting a lift from Sunbelt Rentals, $35 a day. It used a simple slip fit construction technique and came in five pieces. It had heavy duty cast iron casters so I was able to "drive" it around my garage and driveway.
I think they do that for liability purposes. I have had one of their hoists for years and I have moved weights over 800lbs with it and never had any problems. That's why I keep it around, it's just handy to have and didn't cost much.

[John Lankers]

Moving just down the street shouldn't be hard, but be careful with the Minimax, avoid any hard drops, knocks or picking the machine up at one corner - you don't want the tables to get out of alignment.