Page 202 - It's a Rum Life Book 3 "Ivy House Tales 1970 to 1984"

THE PRINTING PRESS

As time went by, I became more and more used to just what the crane was actually
capable of.
In the home yard, I had found out that the lorry could be tipped over by the crane even with
its outrigger legs extended fully. These legs extended on the side of the lift to counter-act
the effort of the crane at full extent.
The crane was so powerful, it could at full stretch managed to tip the lorry to 45 degrees if
the load on the crane was sufficient.

OFF TO ST NEOTS
On this memorable day. I had travelled to St Neots in Cambridgeshire to collect a printing
press for delivery to Sleaford on my way back.
The press was heavy and had been rolled out of its factory location by two fork lift trucks. It
was about 10 feet wide and 15 feet long. A mass of rollers and wheels encased in heavy
steel.

THE FIRST BANG
I estimated it could weigh four tons and affixed two of my strongest lifting straps.
The lorry crane was rated, (manufacturer’s maximum lifting design and capacity) at five
tons. I manoeuvred the lorry right alongside the machine so the jib would be bent double
for the lift, using its maximum capacity.

(The press was similar to this picture
in dimensions.)

Problem one was that we, (me, the lorry
and the machine) were still under a low
roof of some 12 feet clearance. This
meant that the crane jib could not be
actually doubled over like one’s elbow to
give me maximum capacity of lift. If I left
the jib bent, as I lifted it would go up and
penetrate the roof above. I had to
compromise.
I gave it a try and revving up the lorry engine to make the hydraulic pump work harder I
began to lift. I managed to get the “thing” well off the ground and rising when with a large
sharp bang, one of the lifting straps snapped into two pieces.
The machine immediately sagged dangerously and I quickly lowered it back to the ground.
That is one benefit with a hydraulic crane, it reacts quickly and response to controls is
rapid. A good job in this case as the machine could have been badly damaged if dropped
from a height!
I now knew the thing weighed more than four tons!

THE “FINAL” BANG
It took me simply ages to persuade the factory foreman and his colleague to bring their
fork trucks to shuffle and slide the machine from under that roof. After my initial lifting
attempt they were very unhappy about touching the machine with anything close. They did

202