Forklift Built From Old Chevy Pickup

Forklift Built From Old Chevy Pickup MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT Forklifts 20-3-3 "It saves us a lot of labor and cost much less to build than buying a new skid steer loader," says Jacob DeKorne, Ellsworth, Mich., about the self-propelled forklift he built out of a 1976 Chevrolet 1/2-ton shortbed pickup by reversing it and mounting an Allis-Chalmers forklift mast on back. DeKorne operates a bee keeping business and uses the forklift to load pallets of bee hives onto his pickup, with four sets of hives per pallet. He then tows the forklift behind the pickup as he drives to his customers' farms, using it to set hives out in orchards. He first rebuilt the pickup's 350 cu. in. V-8 gas engine and automatic transmission. He then removed the pickup cab and box and turned the steering wheel and seat around and repositioned the clutch and brakes. He made a new cab out of 14-ga. sheet metal and flipped the rear end over to put the forward gears in reverse. He cut 3 ft. off the frame, and moved the rear axle forward. The mast can be shifted up to 6 in. from side to side by extending or retracting a hydraulic cylinder that's connected to a steel shaft that slides inside a steel tube welded onto the bottom of the mast. "A new Bobcat skidsteer loader would have cost at least $18,000, but I didn't spend even half that much to build my forklift," says DeKorne. "I bought the mast from a forklift dealer for $800. A hydraulic pump that's belt-driven off the engine crankshaft is used to operate the mast and to provide power steering. The rig has three hydraulic cylinders - one to raise or lower the mast, one to tilt the forks up or down, and one to shift the mast from side to side. Being able to side-shift the mast makes it much easier to load pallets because we don't have to line up perfectly with the pallet. "The cab has big windows on all sides. The front one is about 40 in. square and has two windshield wipers - one for the top part and one for the bottom. There's only one door and it's equipped with a recessed handle so nothing can catch on it. A steel box mounted on a running board holds tire chains, bee hive smokers, and other tools. Inside there's a radio, CB radio, and gauges for amperage, oil pressure, water temperature, and hours. We mounted a ventilation unit and electric fan from an old mobile home on top of the cab to provide ventilation. The cab also has a new seat that we bought from a forklift dealer. "Only about 10 in. of the original driveshaft is left. We mounted a collar on it so that we can quickly disconnect the automatic transmission whenever we tow the forklift. The rig has only a 72-in. wheelbase and will æfishtail' easily so we don't drive very fast with it." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jacob DeKorne, Box 93, 10758 Essex Road, Ellsworth, Mich. 49729 (ph 616 588-6062).

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