Building a Rotisserie Options

[9fourteen]

Just one question. I plan on putting my 914 on a rotisserie but the front bumper holes are quite rusted. Is that a problem?

Lee,

I have the same issue and assumed "yes" since that is where I plan on mounting the rotisserie. I am a complete novice on this stuff so I figured this was a good place to start perfecting my welding and metal working skills since it would not be visible and not as critical structurally.

Here is what I found when I pulled the bumper


Here is what I have cut out, still need to grind it a bit


Here is my patch. (second attempt) It's starting to look ok. Just need to get it cleaned up and welded in.


Here is a crude drawing of what I was thinking as a solution to getting the car up high enough to spin. (this drawing is missing a lot of stuff. it's just to show my raising and lowering idea)

[scotty b]

I know the bumper holes are the standard mounting point, and that is where I made mine for. But IMHO the best spot is the front suspension mount. I don't think I have ever seen one rotted there, it is a much more stout spot. My initial jig was intended to be a temp until I can make the permanent ones that will mount to the susension in the front and the trans mount in the rear. I plan to then make a complete under body jig to tie the front and rear together with pickup points for the suspension ears in the rear that can be used to locate the pass side when rust repair is done. By tying the front and rear together, the whole body is well braced for hell hole repairs, basically creating a light duty Cellete / rotisserie

[scotty b]

Put the jack on the inside. Placing it on the outside you are pushing the framwork into itself. By placing it on the inside you are lifting directly verticle on the load point. I would also recommenr using a hydraulic jack like on an engine hoist and soild mounting it to the lower leg. The set you have planned is going to be a little awkward with having to jack,set pins, raise jack, re-jack reset pins etc. A bottle jacks throw is VERY limited, whereas the tyype I am using has a long throw and can be mounted on the base and left

[scotty b]

this

[McMark]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) Lee, you should fix the bumper mounts FIRST, then put it on the rotisserie.

Scotty, my thoughts on attaching to the front suspension/rear suspension points is that then you're dealing with a long lever arm, and lots of weight far away from the support structure. Are you concerned about this? Or do you have plans for additional support? Maybe that 'lever arm' isn't even a problem. Just thinking out loud...

Okay, pictures from yesterday. I also stopped and grabbed 16 new cutoff wheels. So I'm set for a little while. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) Hoping to get wheels mounted today...

BTW, this is some 3" square tubing scrap I've had laying around. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/aktion035.gif)

[strawman]

To get the body on the rotisserie, you should strip off everything possible so the tub is as light as can be. Truth be told, I still left about 100 pounds of stuff on the tub that should have been removed first -- it would have been easier to lift the car onto the rotisserie uprights had I not rushed into it.

As mentioned above, using an in-floor lift or a combination of cherry pickers/A-frame hoists would be optimal, but human power works, too. For how I did it, I first mounted the rotisserie crossbar-mounts to the factory bumper holes. See post number 17 in the link below for details:

Suby-powered rustoration

As then explained in post number 21, I used a cherry picker to lift the rear of the tub while I slid in the rear rotisserie upright, and then three of us hefted the front up while a fourth person slid the front upright into the crossbar-mount. It really wasn't that difficult -- and I'm a 150 lb. weakling! I would say six normal-sized guys could lift the tub off jackstands while another person (or two) could slide the uprights into the crossbars.

I dismounted it by myself, because I have no friends. Actually, I built an A-frame/hoist during the 27 months the car was on the rotisserie so that I could raise the Subaru engine and trans into & out of the tub (again & again & again (IMG:style_emoticons/default/headbang.gif) ) while on the rotisserie as I fabricated suitable mounts. See post number 169 for pics of how I lowered the car back onto jackstands solo. The combo of a cherry picker and A-frame/hoist worked great.

Your neighbors are going to love you... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[McMark]

Goeff, adding a ring to the top of your body cross member for an engine hoist is a great idea.

[McMark]

Got the wheels and the center legs completed. Now I need to get two more casters and figure out how to approach the rotational junction. The tube-in-tube setup works fine, but I'm hoping to see if I can find something slightly more elegant. Gotta shop McMaster-Carr. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[scotty b]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) Lee, you should fix the bumper mounts FIRST, then put it on the rotisserie.

Scotty, my thoughts on attaching to the front suspension/rear suspension points is that then you're dealing with a long lever arm, and lots of weight far away from the support structure. Are you concerned about this? Or do you have plans for additional support? Maybe that 'lever arm' isn't even a problem. Just thinking out loud...

Okay, pictures from yesterday. I also stopped and grabbed 16 new cutoff wheels. So I'm set for a little while. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) Hoping to get wheels mounted today...

BTW, this is some 3" square tubing scrap I've had laying around. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/aktion035.gif)

My thought is to use the forward A-arm mounts for the front point. That is only 10-12" ( ? ) further than the bumper holes. In the rear I plan to use the trans mount for my pickuo point. That too is only an additional 12-ish inches. ( i haven't actually measued either yet in case you couldn't tell (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) )

[Elliot Cannon]

Are those casters big enough?

[URY914]

My advice is to use at least 5" steel caster wheels with locks.

You must have missed this previous post of mine. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Did you get those casters for free? That rough concrete will eat those things up.

[9fourteen]

I am curious as to why you put the casters on the flat bar extensions versus putting them directly on the square tube. I would think it would be stronger on the square tube. Are they going to be bolted on?

[McMark]

Casters were from another project. If they die, I will weld new ones on. I welded angle iron on the end of the square tube because I was a little shorter on the side beams than I wanted to be, so this was my fix. If I notice those bending up, I'll add triangulation.

Part of this build is just using up crap I've got lying around the shop.

[EdwardBlume]

Casters were from another project.

What... Like a limo or something?

[strawman]

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads/post-419-1324678498.jpg)

Those welds are far too nice for a rotisserie (IMG:style_emoticons/default/KMA.gif)

Where are the farmer-blow welds that a rotisserie deserves?!?! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif) Show-off...

[leebenedi]

Thank you for the responses. My rust is not as bad, but the metal is quite thin. Sorry for highjacking the thread, what can I use to repair that area? What metal thickness should I use?

Lee

[jimkelly]

looks good.

the caster brackets look like ankle biters.

no more low rise converse in the shop : )

now you have to decide if it is faster to not strip the car down to do a repair or if stripping it down is a time saver.

jim

[aircooledtechguy]

My advice is to use at least 5" steel caster wheels with locks.

You must have missed this previous post of mine. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Did you get those casters for free? That rough concrete will eat those things up.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

With the weight of a car on that thing, you will instantly realize that the casters are WAY to small especially for the floor finish in your shop. Change those thing out now before you have a car on it. Casters do have weight limits. . . Tools By The Pound Harbor Freight has really nice large locking casters in-stock; CHEAP.

[mepstein]

Thank you for the responses. My rust is not as bad, but the metal is quite thin. Sorry for highjacking the thread, what can I use to repair that area? What metal thickness should I use?

Lee

Scotty B did that repair on my car. There are pictures and info on the "mepstein build"

[shuie]

I welded angle iron on the end of the square tube because I was a little shorter on the side beams than I wanted to be, so this was my fix. If I notice those bending up, I'll add triangulation.

JMO, but you should go ahead and do that now. Or, just weld some 1/4" flat plate under the square tube and forget the angle. That looks like 3/16". I built a set of shop dolly's that bolt into my suspension consoles w/ 3/16" plate like that. The ears folded over like cardboard the first time I tried to roll the tub. I'm honestly embarrassed to admit that I did something this dumb. I'm really lucky I didn't drop the car on my feet. Be careful.

(IMG:https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uZMjgtXIInE/TvYRN2GhIBI/AAAAAAAAKK4/JAl4sLn9PGY/s640/IMG_0077.JPG)

The 3/16" angle may hold on yours since the caster is half under the square tube, but I don't think your casters are stout enough either, tho. I had 5" 350lb casters on my dolly's and decided to replace them after moving my tube maybe 3 times. Now I have 5"x5"x1/4" plates mounted to huge 8" 450lb casters. The dolly setup is rock steady and I can move my tub easily now without worry.

Here are the casters Im using now. These are 8" and rated for 450lbs. They were ~$18 each from Harbor Freight.

(IMG:https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-gClbTKcdq7Q/TvYTvwjoOMI/AAAAAAAAKLU/D7w1HI4uxUs/s512/image_16951.jpg)

Here's the updated rear dolly.

(IMG:https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-k9bsvcoUC9c/TvYWbu9U_lI/AAAAAAAAKLg/I9tO5HF_xdE/s512/IMG_0064.jpg)(IMG:https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2e3_QvKIR_A/TvYW1i0_7AI/AAAAAAAAKLs/-TXjkFvMlCs/s512/IMG_0063.jpg)