h a l f b a k e r yThe word "How?" springs to mind at this point.
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The Car Easel™
Work on the bottom of your car at eye level. No bending over! no crawling! | |
The other day I was in the junkyard when I noticed that there was a car turned on its side as the yard mechanics dismantled the parts from underneath the car.
I figured that this is a very convenient way of working under the car because you don't have the hassle of attempting to drag yourself into
a dark, dangerous, dirty place in order to accomplish the task. So I thought of the Car Easel™ which is a fork-lift type of tool that will lift your car and tilt it over on its side so that you can clearly see and safely work on the components under the vehicle.
The lift mechanism is heavily padded (to avoid scratches and dents) and is very well stabilized so that your car will not tip over while it is sitting on the easel.
a Car Easel?
http://www.theroto2...body_rotisserie.htm
[jhomrighaus, Feb 02 2007]
El Cheapo version
http://www.geocitie...oy/easel/easel.html
Easel do nicely [Ling, Feb 05 2007]
[link]
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This is ok if you don't have anything in your car that you are worried about falling to one side. |
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Such as gasoline, for example. |
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+Well I like it, but of course I have never worked on my car. I would like an easel that sets up on my dashboard so I could draw stuff when I pull over at a scenic view. |
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About 20 years ago, somebody developed a set of steel rockers that bolted to the wheel lugs on the car. Bolt the bad boys on, give a lift and a shove, and the car was over on its side a few feet above the ground. That's all that I can recall--I don't think they were ever popular--and that may have been a mention in a What's New article, not even an advert for a real product. |
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I just googled around, but can't find anything. |
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I've seen these things advertised in a classic car magazine. Supposedly great for restorations. |
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[baconbrain], they are real - I've seen them in use (albeit only at a display at a local car show). I always wondered if the wheel lugs were designed to be capable of supporting the loads developed. |
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yes they are. Corner loads at the bottom of a wheel during high speed maneuvering are right up there with the vehicle's weight, and that doesn't even include the radial offset, vibration, etc. |
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A car can be tilted sideways onto two wheels and driven (carefully). Hit any bumps like this and you'll be copping more than the vehicle's weight axially through the bearing, coupled with the normal radial load. |
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I think this is a fantastic idea, except that it's baked. I tilt my ATV sideways or onto it's back wheels to work on it, only problem is fuel seepage (sometimes out the breather) and oil bypass in the cylinder. solution - turn (bar) the engine a few times with the sparkplug out to make sure you're not going to hydraulic it. |
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Love the rotisserie, [jhomrighaus]. I wish I had had one when I got rid of my Vauxhall Cavalier <spits>. I would have strung it up and roasted it alive over hot coals in revenge for all the non-pleasure it gave me. |
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And yes, this is for sure a good idea, being simpler and more compact than a lift but still giving decent access. |
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Ling did you notice that it looks like he is welding on the fuel tank in that photo as well? |
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That's OK. I think he made sure it didn't any vapour in it, by filling it to the brim. |
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That rotisserie thing is indeed good for restoration but now that I think about it, this would be terrible for cars that are being driven because of the oil and trans fluid that will leak out. |
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If it could bolt into the frame it would be better. Are fluid
containment lids designed for this possibility? |
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There is a TV show that keeps getting repeated on Yesterday of tank restorations.
One featured a cut-and-shut operation on two different halves of Sherman tanks at a museum on the Isle of Wight.
To do the welds properly, they built a rolling cage around the two halves, so, kind-of baked (at least for WW2 armoured vehicles) |
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Rotating gimbals for doing intense work in professional
shops are nothing new. I think what is being proposed here
is something that you could shove under your car in your
own driveway and tilt it up on one side to replace the
muffler or whatever. Two points: |
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1) Cars are not built to sit sideways for extended periods
(or at all, for that matter). Using this device more than
once on the same vehicle would start stress fractures in
the frame/unibody. |
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2) This device would be about as expensive to buy and
operate as a small 2-poster car lift, which can be installed
in a home garage with reasonably high ceilings or even
outdoors. |
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Not a bad idea, but not a great one. Keep thinking! |
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