Best way to get car on rotisserre Options

[corpselaurel]

I am wondering what all of you who don't have a lift do.

[r_towle]

engine hoist, right off the ground.
Bolt on the bars to the car.
Pick up one end and put the two wheeled stand on it, put the pin in to hold the car level.
Move the hoise back and pick up the back so the car is now level and the first two wheel piece you put on rolls up to plumb.

Its simple and not scary at all.
After its up in the air, install tie piece to tie the two end pieces together.


Rich

[Gudhjem]

engine hoist, right off the ground.
Bolt on the bars to the car.
Pick up one end and put the two wheeled stand on it, put the pin in to hold the car level.
Move the hoise back and pick up the back so the car is now level and the first two wheel piece you put on rolls up to plumb.

Its simple and not scary at all.
After its up in the air, install tie piece to tie the two end pieces together.


Rich

Two wheeled stand? You mean the rotisserie stands? Hmmm, mine both have three wheels, and so the car has to be all the way up, and close to level, before I can fit the bumper attachments into the stand. They can't tilt forward, as I suppose they could if the third leg bolted on.

[VaccaRabite]

Hmmm, mine both have three wheels, and so the car has to be all the way up, and close to level, before I can fit the bumper attachments into the stand. They can't tilt forward, as I suppose they could if the third leg bolted on.

For the sake of you and anyone working with you, tie you rotesserie together BEFORE you put the car on it.
What you are showing here is VERY dangerous:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads/post-7629-1294105199.jpg)

You need to tie the frame together at both ends like this:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/farm1.static.flickr.com-1435-1294147329.1.jpg)

Otherwise the car will not sit evenly, and the rotisserie will kick out and collapse the first time you try to move or rotate the car. I am speaking from experience here. The picture I posted up is mine, and that is the MkII version. The MK1 version of the rotisserie looked like yours. The car was on it for under a minute before I had to pull it off due to the very dangerous attitude of the rotisserie uprights. The front wheels will want to lift off the ground unless there is a steel bar holding them down.

I put my car up on the frame using 5 people, including myself. One at each corner, and me running from side to side getting car properly mounted.

if you get 2 inch square tube, it should be a perfect fit into the upright.

Zach

[Richard Casto]

For the sake of you and anyone working with you, tie you rotesserie together BEFORE you put the car on it.
What you are showing here is VERY dangerous:

While having the ends tied together is absolutely a good idea, I would like to hear why you feel it is dangerous if it is not?

(Edit, I just re-read your post and you describe problems with your original rotisserie that wasn't tied together. By looking at the OPs photos it looks like the rotisserie was built using the plans I have put up on the 914 Wiki. As mentioned below I have not experienced the problems you describe with my design. However I still recommend (even in the plans on the Wiki) connecting the ends together for ease of moving and to prevent extra stress on the body while moving.)

IMHO, I think if you have something (i.e. bolts) that prevent the ends from sliding out of the stands you should be OK. In fact I think those are mandatory even if your ends are tied together. You should not rely upon having it tied together as a way of preventing the rotating mounts from sliding out of the stand.

Mine has been "untied" for years and I have not had a hint of problems. I can't count how much it has been rotated and rolled around. However, I would say the #1 advantage of having them tied together is that when you move it around, it doesn't put extra stress on the body. Example being if you are moving it and one end catch a crack in the ground or hits something that stops it from moving, but the other end is free to move, it will put an unnecessary twisting load on one or both ends of the car where it mounts to the rotisserie. And if the body is not in good shape to begin with, then anything can happen regardless if it is tied together or not.

To the OP's question. I personally think that if you can easily get five people total (as Zack describes) is the easiest way to do it. It is very easy for four people to handle if the car is completely stripped. I personally think that unless you have proper equipment (such as lifts of some type), that trying to do this by yourself by cribbing up stuff, etc. that you risk damage to yourself and/or the car if something slips and the car slides off.

Richard