Bed mounted hoist, any one do one yet?

I was looking for something more convenient then pulling my engine hoist out of the shed and assembling it every time I needed to remove my 5th wheel hitch.
My hitch is over 250 pounds, so it is a chore.

I picked up one of the cheap HF "truck cranes" on sale ($69) and a 2500 pound remote controlled winch on sale ($59) as well. Took some experimenting to make things work well.

http://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-...0732-9889.html

http://www.harborfreight.com/2500-lb...rol-61297.html

Some of the issues with any of these inexpensive units are:
a) they are cheap, so not exactly the heaviest of materials and design
b) reach, limited reach from the corner of the bed to the center - balance point of the hitch
c) height, height goes with reach, the higher you go, the longer the reach needed
d) capacity, goes with height and reach
f) vertical lift - drop limits. A simple hook at the end of the jib will not lower your hitch to the ground
g) rotating ability once you hang 200+ pounds on the end of it

What most of these little cranes don't tell you is that the 1000 pound load capacity was probably measured with the jib all the way in and at max elevation (shortest distance from the pick point to the cranes base centerline)

After some trial and errors I think I got this working pretty good.

 

First trial - error resulted in the bed not being able to support the load.

I used a piece of 3/8" aluminum and 1/2" bolts.
Aluminum plate on the bottom as well

Easy to see here where the bed started to bend when I rotated the lift with the hitch hanging.
And it was very difficult to rotate with all that friction on the tubes.

 

Having a Spitzlift put on my TM Bed @ Monroe Equipment on the way from the factory. Haven't had one before but a friend in the military said they use them regularly and highly recommended them. Not the cheapest but removable and 900# capacity.
http://spitzlift.com/images/stories/...tories-fp1.png

 

Plan B
My overall plan was to have the support plates permanently bolted but have a quick removal for the entire hoist assembly

Some 1/2" aluminum plate, about 18x12
Two more bolts added as the hoist upright tube was causing the mounting plate to bend downward in between the two outer bolts.

Test to see if the jib is actually long enough at height to make the picture frame location. It is just long enough.

A little hard to tell, but with the now 1/2" plate centered over steel supports under the bed, there is only a little deflection. Some from the mount, some from the hoist it self.

Looking at the bottom pics and you can see it - the top of the hoist compared to the "V" in the Haligan bar. The two pictures are not perfectly in alignment as well, so the "look" is slightly exaggerated.

 

I have been thinking of a Spitzlift for some time. But the $1200-$1500 price has always turned me off. I'm under $200 for something I will only occasionally use. But, I am always looking for a Spitz, someday I just may find the garage sale special.

The Spitz looks really nice and hopefully you will come back with some pics and a report.
They are lightweight (all aluminum AFAIK), fold up for storage, have a nice mounting plate that is pretty substantial too.

 

12" X 18" X 1/2" aluminum plate.

The white stuff is vinyl trim that I had laying around. thought it might help act as a bearing surface to allow the hoist to pivot easier.
I also used a 3 1/4" hole saw and some cutting board material to make a disk shaped bearing that sits on top of the base tube inside the hoist's upright tube.

The hoist swings very easy with these two additions.

The center bolts were added because after the first try the steel base plate was bending.The base sits atop the mounting plate bolts. This makes it easier to remove the entire unit if I want.

Power is from a 12 volt source at the trailer hitch. I have a 2/0 cables running from the engine compartment to the rear bumper and using industrial battery connectors.

 

Here is why the standard hoist will not work as purchased. Once the hitch is hanging how do you get it down far enough?
The electric winch is bolted to the side of the main jib. This winch is also remote controlled with a key fob.

Drop it on the dolly and roll it under the RV for storage

 

1st pic
McMaster Carr 3" pulley (bronze bushing, not a ball bearing unfortunately), piece of aluminum flat stock, 1/2" stainless bolt and lock nut.

2nd pic
This is the original position I mounted the winch. After adding the 1/2" plastic bearing the boom's tube it would no longer swing under my roll top cover.
Had to lower the hitch mount and then wrap the wire the opposite way so that the wire would clear the control box. The control box is just mounted with 3M tape.

 

It stows away nicely but could be removed in 5 minutes.

So overall it works pretty good. Once I try it out a few times I will most likely shorten the wire up quite a bit. Every wrap on the drum takes away pulling power.

(another misnomer with winch capacities, most winches are rated with only one or two wraps on the drum. Every layer of wire drops the rated load)

If my garage was big enough for the DRW - I already have a winch mounted on the ceiling ........ But alas, my truck will never see the inside of the garage

 

Nice work!.. I've always thought about something similar, more for engines for my custom trucks and spares.. but expected to have similar problems.

weight for me would be higher

 

I don't know how much more weight I would want to try at the reach I need. If you are just loading stuff in the bed you can shorten up the length. The center line and balance pick of my hitch is an issue. I need to be past the centerline to lift, and the lift has to be straight up, otherwise the hitch binds.

I will be giving it a test in the next few months though. I have a Navy style stockless anchor off a WWII wreck that I plan on donating to a local museum.
I estimate it at 750 pounds, but I have separated the stock from the flukes, so it may be 500/250 now. And I will not need as much reach. Just enough to clear the tailgate.

"If" I was going to do this on a regular basis I would look into the Spitzlift. But, I am not sure it would work for the hitch. The basic Spitz has a 3'11" reach I think at the lowest setting.

If it was easy enough for me to work with steel, I would probably go with a 18 X 24 X 1/2 base plate. That would cover several under bed supports, with the additional strength of steel.
Aluminum just made for an easier project in my driveway.

 

That's cool, looks like it was a fun thing to figure out. I love making stuff too.

While reading your post I just can't figure any other solution that would stow and travel so nicely. A custom A frame with a trolley/hoist would be the ticket but no way to carry it and stow it.

The other option? Park the trailer, release the hitch from the truck bed, air down the truck and drive out. Then, have a winch/hoist mounted in the pin box to lower straight down onto the dolly.??

 

You guys must have heavy hitches. Don't know what mine weighs, it's the 25k Ford one (B&W?). I can lift it in and out on my own but it's a bear so I'd rather have another set of hands but I can do it.

 

Mine is about 250 pounds without the picture frame adapter it uses to fit the factory prep. And it doesn't break down for removal.


I have tried hanging the hitch on the pin box - 1 time.
It was a mother to get lined back up into the truck. And, I dented the trailers front basement door when I backed in on an angle to far. Only took 2", but I hit it.

 

Shows how often I look at my hitch It's a Reese Elite 25k. Their site says it weighs 151lbs. Maybe my 58yr old back shouldn't be carrying that much around. LOL