"McGuyver'd" Lifting devices (IE for adding-on to a Porty/etc type bollard....or in-place-of!)

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arborjunky
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I know the GRCS is tops...I cannot afford one yet though, and I want to lift....

I see Schultz's videos where he's got this big wheel attached to his bollard (presumably a hobbs or grcs or something diesel), and then I glance at the ratcheting-style winches attached to the cheap russian ebay lifting devices (basically cheap ripoffs of Reg Coates' RCW2000 unit, where the winch is an 'arm-type' that sits atop the fixed-bollard-plating, it accomplishes lift by a friction hitch pulling the line *into* the bollard, instead of simply cranking the bollard itself like a GRCS)

I can't imagine there's no "middle ground", even if it's clunky, ugly and only 1/20th as powerful (or 1/100th), I don't need to lift 1ton loads I just want to be able to lift say 500lbs max which with a 3:1 setup I know I can generate the force myself, cannot help but thinking "You could simply buy a $50 ratcheting 'maasdam type' winch from walmart, setup slings on it &position it on trunk above the Porty, and use that to tighten/feed the line into the Porty" to accomplish basic/light lifting!!!

I just don't wanna reinvent the wheel, I know that something useful, reliable and safe can be built here, for at least a 500lbs / 3:1 type system, even if it's large and a whole separate accessory....hoping you guys(&gals ;D ) can help point me to any keywords, posts/threads or whatever of this type that I may glean ideas from!!!
 
I know the GRCS is tops...I cannot afford one yet though, and I want to lift....

I see Schultz's videos where he's got this big wheel attached to his bollard (presumably a hobbs or grcs or something diesel), and then I glance at the ratcheting-style winches attached to the cheap russian ebay lifting devices (basically cheap ripoffs of Reg Coates' RCW2000 unit, where the winch is an 'arm-type' that sits atop the fixed-bollard-plating, it accomplishes lift by a friction hitch pulling the line *into* the bollard, instead of simply cranking the bollard itself like a GRCS)

I can't imagine there's no "middle ground", even if it's clunky, ugly and only 1/20th as powerful (or 1/100th), I don't need to lift 1ton loads I just want to be able to lift say 500lbs max which with a 3:1 setup I know I can generate the force myself, cannot help but thinking "You could simply buy a $50 ratcheting 'maasdam type' winch from walmart, setup slings on it &position it on trunk above the Porty, and use that to tighten/feed the line into the Porty" to accomplish basic/light lifting!!!

I just don't wanna reinvent the wheel, I know that something useful, reliable and safe can be built here, for at least a 500lbs / 3:1 type system, even if it's large and a whole separate accessory....hoping you guys(&gals ;D ) can help point me to any keywords, posts/threads or whatever of this type that I may glean ideas from!!!

I think Stein makes one that's cheaper than the GRCS.

Honestly, we only bust out ours a few times a year. But occasionally we're on a job and I think, "Man, I wish we remembered to bring the GRCS"

You can get along OK for quite a while without one. Save 100 bucks a week and in 6 months you'll have enough.
 
I think Stein makes one that's cheaper than the GRCS.

Honestly, we only bust out ours a few times a year. But occasionally we're on a job and I think, "Man, I wish we remembered to bring the GRCS"

You can get along OK for quite a while without one. Save 100 bucks a week and in 6 months you'll have enough.
That's the thing I really don't expect to use it much at all so don't wanna drop real $$ on it, figure if I go light-duty and just deal with more rope-movement (and more complex/PITB mech-advantage setups) then some kind of rope-puller (like maasdam) can be anchored, separately, above the porty on the trunk....don't even think I need to go more than that, it'll be ugly but should be able to tether everything appropriately in low-enough positions on the trunking to use it properly, and just pull rope into the Porty...can't find a fault with it (and it's cheap & does what I need IE give me ability to generate a couple hundred pounds lift when needed, not in a practical manner but in a reliable manner!)
 
It is a long journey to mastering the grcs. I suggest starting asap.
The device itself? Or lift-rigging? Expecting the latter to be so, but wouldn't have thought so w/ the former!!

That said, am gonna be doing some maasdaam type rope-puller (or even a z-rig or fiddle block setup) because I do expect that, like learning more traditional forms of rigging, that I will not be doing heavy pulls/lifts for a while anyways... then hobbs/GRCS/or DIY-equivalent (I know people sneer at such things but if I've ever seen an excuse to go get a welding setup -- the last "tool area/niche" I haven't gone through -- the price tag on a GRCS would be it!!)

ANY thoughts on truck-mounted-winches would be helpful, I have ramps for my truck (and can easily setup / create a ramp for them as needed) so when I saw winches for $200-->400 I couldn't help but thinking "I could not only drag heavy chunks up-ramp into my truck bed, but - if fairled properly - this winch could be used for lift!!!!

Possible? Obviously there's limits, but again I'm new to lift-rigging so would not be needing over a quarter-ton of force probably not half that at least in the beginning!
 
I would just wrap it up for now. Go get a job dragging brush, start at the bottom. If you’re really that good (and not a total a hole), you should be able to move up through the ranks pretty quickly!!
 
This might be of interest. I haven't used one myself but cmi tends to make decent quality gear.

https://cmigearusa.com/collections/arborist/products/rope-jack

I have used a grcs quite a bit. While very useful, I'm not overly impressed. It's very heavy and clunky. It really takes two people to set it up. The setup angle of having to get it verticle on a tree is annoying at times. Price seems very high for what it is. A good Harkin winch is around $800 last I checked. I think its a great idea but it lacks refinement.
 
I would just wrap it up for now. Go get a job dragging brush, start at the bottom. If you’re really that good (and not a total a hole), you should be able to move up through the ranks pretty quickly!!
Are you sure you're replying to the right thread? If so and that was just meant as an insult then it flew over my head lol :p but I've spent plenty of time at the bottom, then plenty of time contract climbing, and am now very happily doing bigger jobs every month as I enjoy my first year "solo" :) Will be going for my ISA in a couple weeks (have about half the book left to study but honestly it's mostly remedial stuff for me as I have a strong background w/ nursery-trees)

Had watched the '19 TCIA presentation by Schultz Re "close-quarters rigging" and loved his love of lifting, so wanted to mess around trying to employ it if/when possible, frankly I've realized that for my purposes I can probably do this with fiddle blocks as I'm rarely doing removals I almost exclusively do 'branch over ____" type limb removals, like this kinda thing:
pic from gary's.pngso lifting (and tip-tying) is just an area I want to begin feeling-out is all, a grcs or hobbs would be me buying gear I simply don't need (like my safebloc and XL ringed slings that just collect dust lol, am usually natural-crotch rigging or just using a 2lrg-ringed ultrasling as it's simplest for me and I rarely deal w/ weights that I can't 1-hand with ease, 1-handing the rope I mean not the actual piece of course!) Just like w/ double-whipping, I expect if/when I get a good feel for tip-tying (and/or lifting) that I'll be able to begin taking bigger pieces again, am still moving towards the sized pieces most of you probably take as-routine, just working my way up :)
 
How many rigging take downs have you actually done?
Not even 2 dozen... I'm "working my way up" and actively trying to find more removals, I average 3-4 jobs a week almost exclusively doing limb removals or reduction cuttings, rarely enough to require a 2nd trip to the dump for any 1 job (of course that's by design, I seek work that requires far more time on the ropes than on dump-runs)


(edited-to-add: just for context Re experience climbing & roping though, I certainly have the better part of 100 jobs involving rigging over serious targets, almost always the roof but sometimes pool cages / etc, don't want the paltry # of removals imply I'm still learning how to use my saws!)
 
I think Stein makes one that's cheaper than the GRCS.

Honestly, we only bust out ours a few times a year. But occasionally we're on a job and I think, "Man, I wish we remembered to bring the GRCS"

You can get along OK for quite a while without one. Save 100 bucks a week and in 6 months you'll have enough.
What instances have you found most-elicited that thinking, of wishing you'd brought it?

It's not an issue of insufficient funds, just spending wisely -- have realized how easily I could spend 10X what I could earn, "building the best kits" for every aspect of this...a lot of it is unnecessary (no matter how much, say, I try justifying a mechanical ascender, or a lifting device!) Since making this thread, being back rigging, it occurred to me just how little lift I would be looking for in most cases, am confident I could use a z-rig 3:1 type setup if I use my stiffest (1.4%) rope, am eager to find first time to try!! Have been tip-tying for a bit now and believe I've "got the feel" enough (had butt-rigged everything since beginning) so am eager to find ways to work in lifting, IMO every new trick/technique just makes you that much more prepared/capable for future scenarios yknow! And my goal is to get far more heavy rigging into my days, like literally more of a goal than making more $$, would certainly appreciate tips because I've been approaching it stepwise - IE little-by-little, raising prices / going for bigger projects slowly over time - but the reality is I can finish most regular trees in 1-2 days (fully solo, so much of this time is just bucking & dump-trips) but have found it so hard to find removals like for every 1 removal I find to bid/quote, I find 10+ limbing jobs, and end up spending all my time there "for easy money" when I should probably figure out how to get myself to more removals (by myself, I could go do removals this week if I called other companies in my area who'd be happy for me to come do a removal or two and pay me $250-300 :p )

How large is your setup like how many people/etc? How long have you been at it? I'm literally in my 1st year "being solo" (not 1st year doing this lol), but goal isn't really to "build up a company" honestly I just wanna take down bigger stuff, I aspire to guys like Reg Coates would say his operation is the one I most admire / would most want to aim-towards, large wood not large machines/large # of people, if that makes sense!
 
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