Got my Light Material Handling Crane (LMHC) today!

[Awesomeness]

I picked up an LMHC, and it finally arrived. The crate was weathered pretty bad, but everything inside looks ok. Data plate says it was made in '07. I got it all unpacked, and assembled in the truck. I haven't had a chance to clean the cables and terminals, so I haven't powered it up yet. Should be fun!

I'm a little surprised that it only has an 800 & 1500lb rating. The thing is built like a brick-s**thouse... way sturdier than crappy engine lifts I've had that were rated for far more. I'm not sure if there is an actual reason for that, or if it's just ridiculous military factors of safety so no dumb Joe could possibly ever break it?

 

[NDT]

Did you get the one that recently sold on ebay? My finger was hovering over buy it now quite a while.

 

[Awesomeness]

Yep. A little pricier than I would have liked, but I figured it would save me a lot of time building one.

 

[gentrysgarage]

Was there a NSN or part number on the crate...have to put one of those on my wish list!
Thanks

 

[Awesomeness]

Was there a NSN or part number on the crate...have to put one of those on my wish list!
Thanks

No, NSN, but here's the data plate...

I've only seen one other member buy one in two years, which is why I went ahead and paid $1500. They seem pretty rare (maybe because the Army never bothers to take them out of the crate? haha).

Got everything cleaned up with a bucket of soapy water today, cleaned the cable connectors with DeOxIt, and plugged it in... worked the first time. Played around with it for a little while, but I'm going to have to find something heavy to test it with.

 

[Nomadic]

Looking good. Another tool in the toolbox. Does the boom extend? It kind of looks like it. I'm guessing that would be the 800 lbs. configuration?

 

[Awesomeness]

Yes, the boom extends, and yes, that's the 800lb configuration.

 

[tobyS]

I wouldn't be surprised if the floor mounting isn't the weakest point. I have an LMTV (new) bed and was looking the four holes over. The metal around them is not all that thick.

 

[Awesomeness]

It doesn't really put much force on the bed floor. The force goes into the "hitch" tube in the floor, which is welded to the c-channel structure under the bed. It's pretty strong (in this context, of a couple thousand pounds). Also, if that was the limiting factor, they should be able to increase it with a wide plate that sat on the floor, but this has no contact with the floor at all, besides a small lip on the mast of the crane which is more just to stop it from falling down through.

I think the most likely weak point is the leverage moment on the rotary waist of the crane. It's about a 2.5"OD, 1/4" wall tube.

 

[lrholding]

Oh man.....i need one of those soon bad!!! Super cool

 

[tennmogger]

That is very nice! I know the cable winch is electric, and can see that the 'rotate' is a manual crank, but is the boom lift/lower manual too?

Can you reach the 'rotate' crank handle from the ground?

I have a jib crane in my LMTV but have to climb in and out of the bed to hook up then operate it, and that's a lot of work for many hook-ups.

 

[Awesomeness]

The boom does not really "raise/lower". It has 3 different settings, which you can pull the pins and move it to manually, but there is no ability to raise/lower it while loaded.

No, you can not reach the rotation crank from the ground. Unless it was powered, you'd pretty much never be able to, considering the bed itself is 5' high.

 

[Pop Alexandra]

Oh man.....i need one of those soon bad!!! Super cool

Same here! I'd love to get one some day.
_________________________________
Alex from Chariots GCS

 

[NDT]

Well today was not the day, GP sold two for $3200 ea, then add 300 for freight, I don't think so.

 

[marchplumber]

VERY NICE!! Rich for my blood, but wouldn't consider it "outrageous" either.......................Looks sweet...............but as others have mentioned, beefing up the deck wouldn't be a "bad" idea, just saying

 

[marchplumber]

Well today was not the day, GP sold two for $3200 ea, then add 300 for freight, I don't think so.

That IS WAY more than I'd want to pay....................Still, darn sweet.........................LOL

 

[Awesomeness]

I thought the cranes were expensive when I bought it, but honestly, I use it all the time. It's really worth it.

 

[aleigh]

I love mine. So useful.

 

[olly hondro]

I love mine. So useful.


View attachment 750560

Now THAT is cool.

 

[aleigh]

Yeah. If you put the crane in one of the front pockets (instead of the rear where it is normally mounted) it has no problem reaching over the engine. We had a couple of beers and were debating whether or not this means the LMTV could self-replace its own engine. Although the stated weight on the cat vs the crane, pretty marginal.

It made the radiator job downright easy.