What do you look for in a forklift?

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Great advice so far. I'll amen a few things others have said. #1, and first thing I would look for if I ever bought another forklift....pneumatic tires! #2 Propane powered....and have a few tanks. At least one to run on and a full spare waiting in the wings. #3 get one plenty big enough to do what you need, but not so big it will always be in your way when it sits. One the size of the Yale Steve posted in reply 16 should be plenty. Have fun with it!
 
i spend a fair amount of time on forklifts and my favorite by far is nissan the controls , shifter and seat position is the best , second would be toyota . The worst and i completly hate is catapillar there like driving a Lada . Hino and clark are better than the cat .as far as dependabilty there all good even the cat is fair but hard to work on .
 
When I mentioned tank I ment the propane tank. We have two and glad we do. There were times we ran out doing a job and the place we get it filled was closed. Keep a full one on hand. We liked our Nisson just very hard to find parts. Yale is like John Deere. You can get any part you need. Go to your local Home Depot or Lowes and see what they use. More than likely it will be a Yale.

Having an engine machine shop we see all kinds of engines. Toyota the most and never had a Yale come in for engine repairs. The Nissan we had we could not get many of the parts we needed so we scrapped it.
 
Righty Tighty said:
I'm going to look at an older Hyster this morning. It's advertised as a '97, but it's clearly a late-70s or early-80s machine, and is gasoline operated. I don't mind it being older, but the idea of gas exhaust doesn't tickle my fancy. We'll also see what the forklift place has to offer.
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Righty, Its common to convert a gas forklift to propane, there are kits to do it. Ask the forklift dealer about an LPG conversion.
 
I have an old dual wheel front pneumatic Hyster that I paid $1600 for 10 years ago. Like others have mentioned already, unless you plan to just use it inside on smooth concrete you want a pneumatic tires first and foremost. After that it depends on what height you want to achieve. Older single stage mast are tall and can only lift the height of the mast. A dual or three stage mast offers a lower overall mast height and can lift far higher than a single stage will. Then you start getting fancy with side shift. It's wonderful to have, but not necessary for a home shop guy. As far as tanks I have two aluminum propane tanks and they are a lot lighter than the steel versions. Just remember to wear a seatbelt if you have it outside or on uneven surfaces. Even the smaller ones are 5,000 - 6,000 pounds minimum and they can be laid over.

Tom
 
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Everyone pretty much nailed it..pneumatic tires that can crawl over uneven/loose surfaces, propane powered, buy a little more than You 'think' You'll need capacity-wise..
 
PROSTOCKTOM said:
I have an old dual wheel front pneumatic Hyster that I paid $1600 for 10 years ago. Like others have mentioned already, unless you plan to just use it inside on smooth concrete you want a pneumatic tires first and foremost. After that it depends on what height you want to achieve. Older single stage mast are tall and can only lift the height of the mast. A dual or three stage mast offers a lower overall mast height and can lift far higher than a single stage will. Then you start getting fancy with side shift. It's wonderful to have, but not necessary for a home shop guy. As far as tanks I have two aluminum propane tanks and they are a lot lighter than the steel versions. Just remember to wear a seatbelt if you have it outside or on uneven surfaces. Even the smaller ones are 5,000 - 6,000 pounds minimum and they can be laid over.

Tom
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Prostocktom, You are dead right on the seatbelt issue, pun intended. OSHA forklift statistics indicate that tip over is the #1 cause of forklift fatalities. If a forklift begins to tip (hopefully you'll have your seatbelt on) but with or without it, do not attempt to jump off, as you will most likely be injured or killed by the overhead guard coming down and crushing you. Instead, brace yourself, hold onto the steering wheel, keep arms and legs within the operator compartment, lean away from the direction of tip, and ride it out. You may be injured but you won't be killed. Clark Equipment did a lot of research into forklift tip overs in the '80s and published "white papers" on the issue. They call it the "fly swatter" effect, it starts slow and gets very fast, you can't outjump it.
 
I was at Clark when those tip over tests were done. We went to a "winged" seat that kept the operator in place, if they were wearing a seat belt. A seat belt alone has a tendency to whip the operator's head against the floor. We had a stunt man intentionally tip some over ("lateral overturn") with a helmet on.

Back to the LP tank, if I remember right (it was a very long time ago) forklift (and maybe other industrial tanks) are not like your barbeque grill tank. The latter feeds vapor, forklifts need liquid, which gets vaporized in the carb. So the two tanks have a different pickup location.
 
Chuter said:
I was at Clark when those tip over tests were done. We went to a "winged" seat that kept the operator in place, if they were wearing a seat belt. A seat belt alone has a tendency to whip the operator's head against the floor. We had a stunt man intentionally tip some over ("lateral overturn") with a helmet on.

Back to the LP tank, if I remember right (it was a very long time ago) forklift (and maybe other industrial tanks) are not like your barbeque grill tank. The latter feeds vapor, forklifts need liquid, which gets vaporized in the carb. So the two tanks have a different pickup location.
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Chuter, Great information, I was not aware of the "head whipping " from the tests, makes sense. Yes, LPG tanks for forklifts are not configured the same as BBQ grills. Grill tanks are smaller and upright 'cause burners need vapor. FL carbs need liquid, they have a larger tank, laying on its side, pickup tube in tank on bottom (when properly mounted) to draw liquid. There's a pin on the tank cradle that fits into the tank collar to assure tank is orientated properly to use full fuel charge. Sometimes operators don't install the tank with the pin in the tank collar, or the pin is broken off, and they run out of fuel 'cause the tube starts transferring vapor, engine dies. Operator thinks he ran out, tank removed and operator feels fuel sloshing around in tank and scratches head thinking why did engine stall when I can tell it still has fuel? Answer: Tank is turned in cradle and pickup tube not on bottom.
 
Agree with everything, above. How high do you need it to lift? That will tell you if you want a two, or three stage unit. Also, remember that a side shift reduces the capacity by about 500lbs, as they usually push the load, further out on the forks. We had good luck with Hyster counter balance, and Raymond reach trucks
 
Thanks, everyone. Lots of very helpful and informative advice given, as always. I ended up buying the old Hyster I looked at yesterday. It's a 1971 S40C-P, gasoline engine, 4,000lb capacity. Unfortunately, it's got solid tires, but my pockets aren't quite deep enough for a unit that has pneumatic tires. I think it'll do what I need it to do, and I can easily make my money back if and when I decide to upgrade.

The owner was a nice Asian man who didn’t speak much English, but we made due. He didn’t realize it’s a 2 stage — he indicated the lift height by drawing a line across his chest, and was amazed when I lifted the forks all the way up.

I think she’ll clean up nicely.

E136FEC5-3E55-4B56-9EC5-1DAB6E46F24C.jpeg
 
If you can swing it, you should consider getting that 10' strip of gravel paved to make life easier with the forklift. My gravel drive is packed road bond and is harder'n a minsters :eek:! I buried my old forklift to the belly pan faster than I could even think "Uh oh!" :BangHead: Congrats on the purchase!

:thumbsup:
 
Righty Tighty said:
Thanks, everyone. Lots of very helpful and informative advice given, as always. I ended up buying the old Hyster I looked at yesterday. It's a 1971 S40C-P, gasoline engine, 4,000lb capacity. Unfortunately, it's got solid tires, but my pockets aren't quite deep enough for a unit that has pneumatic tires. I think it'll do what I need it to do, and I can easily make my money back if and when I decide to upgrade.

The owner was a nice Asian man who didn’t speak much English, but we made due. He didn’t realize it’s a 2 stage — he indicated the lift height by drawing a line across his chest, and was amazed when I lifted the forks all the way up.

I think she’ll clean up nicely.

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Keep the mast chains and carriage bearings lubed. Periodically raise it to full height to "exercise" the mast components and keep it all working smoothly. Don't leave it stored outside for extended periods unless covered. The sun and rain will dry up the lube and UV rays will damage the rubber hydraulic lines. If you are ever lowering the forks and the chains go slack, the fork carriage could be hanging up due to worn carriage bearings or lack of lube. If that happens, they can suddenly fall and cause injury. Never stand under, or allow another person to stand under the raised forks, with or without a load.
 
JDMopar said:
If you can swing it, you should consider getting that 10' strip of gravel paved to make life easier with the forklift. My gravel drive is packed road bond and is harder'n a minsters :eek:! I buried my old forklift to the belly pan faster than I could even think "Uh oh!" :BangHead: Congrats on the purchase!

:thumbsup:
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Thanks! And I agree completely. I would love to not have the unpaved gap, but it's not my property and I don't want my rent to raise. I know I should've listened to the advice given and purchased a pneumatic tire unit, but I just don't have the funds.
Bob Jasinski said:
Keep the mast chains and carriage bearings lubed. Periodically raise it to full height to "exercise" the mast components and keep it all working smoothly. Don't leave it stored outside for extended periods unless covered. The sun and rain will dry up the lube and UV rays will damage the rubber hydraulic lines. If you are ever lowering the forks and the chains go slack, the fork carriage could be hanging up due to worn carriage bearings or lack of lube. If that happens, they can suddenly fall and cause injury. Never stand under, or allow another person to stand under the raised forks, with or without a load.
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Thank you! The chains are a little gunked up, but move smoothly, so I plan to clean and re-lube them. I've found a few points of "consideration" that I'll address before putting it fully in service.

I really appreciate the advice from everyone.
 
Bob Jasinski said:
Understand that a forklift's rated capacity is based on a 24" load center, the center of a 48" pallet with the forks fully inserted in the pallet. That may be an important consideration if you plan on lifting loads with a load center farther out than 24". Adding counterweight to a forklift that is not designed to accept more counterweight is in violation of OSHA 1910(q)(6), and is unsafe. Having said that, you can lift a load farther out than 24", but the capacity is reduced. Let's say the data plate states a capacity of 4,000 lbs. @ 24" load center, 4,000 x 24 = 96,000. 96,000 divided by 36 = 2,666 lbs., so your 4,000 lb capacity forklift is now reduced to 2,666 lbs @ 36" load center. The most common forklift type is the class 5 counterbalanced pneumatic (air) tire type. They can be used indoors and outdoors on concrete, asphalt and packed gravel, but not rough terrain, it may get stuck in dirt. A solid tire (class 4) also called a cushion tire lift, can be used outdoors on level concrete and maybe asphalt, but they can sink in if the asphalt is hot. Solid tire forklifts also have a lower ground clearance and don't do well on ramps or uneven surfaces, they can high center and be very difficult to move once stuck. Electric forklifts are fine, most are solid (cushion) tire, but don't do well outdoors. The battery can be very expensive to replace, in the $1,000s of dollars, and you need a 240VAC charger or you will be waiting 24 to 48 hours to charge at 120VAC. I'd stick with an LPG type, pneumatic tire, 4,000 - 5,000 lb capacity. I've been involved with forklifts for over 40 years, have trained over 5,000 operators, and 1100 instructors. I'm now semi retired and only do forklift expert witness work.
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What he said. I been at these things for 40 years. I currently have 3, a brand new Uni-lift, a 1983 Komatsu and an electric Crown. All for hard surface work. Propane is probably best. Clean indoors and easy to service. Bob is much more precise than me, and a more patient typist. Lol
 
Our propane Clark (solid rubber tires, Don't get it out in the dirt!) had two tanks. One on the fork, a full spare to change in when necessary. Three minutes downtime. If we put the second one on, the first went straight out to get filled. And we used it three days out of five, for forty years. Used indoors and out for all that time.
( and if my depth perception wasn't such garbage, I could still make good money driving one at one of the big warehouses.)
 
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