From: Peter J. Thomas <pjthomas@ntplx.net>
To: Shop Talk <shop-talk@autox.team.net>
Date: Thursday, January 11, 2001 9:23 AM
Subject: Getting a car into the garage.
>
>There has been occasions where I would like to get a non running car
>into the garage. Unfortunately, there is an slight uphill grade and I
>can't push it in by myself. I could push with another vehicle, but I
>don't like this option. One thought would be to strategical place large
>eyebolts into the garage floor and use a comealong to tow the car in.
>Any thoughts, warnings, alternatives, etc.?
At my other house, I often just clamped the hook on my come-along into the
bench vise.
The new place is a little trickier, since the vise is roughly 47 feet from
the front garage door. Also, such things usually seem to happen in the
winter, and I am loath to open the door between the 30-foot heated shop and
the 20-foot cold garage.
The first concrete driveway panel outside the front garage door is 14 feet
long and rises at 14 percent. A bolt at floor level seems a bit
counterproductive, especially if there is snow out there. Also, I'd rather
work the come-along standing up, so a higher mount is needed. I don't trust
the insulated wall between the shop and garage for serious horizontal
forces. It's not designed to be structural except for triangulation across
the garage (1/2 plywood instead of waferboard).
My roof trusses are tied together fore-and-aft. I decided that a loop of
chain up there would be as strong as anything I was likely to find in this
structure. I've winched a 6-cylinder Jeep up the 6% grade and I didn't hear
any really scary noises. Haven't had to drag the Suburban up yet, and I
don't think I'd look forward to it.
I have a 120V winch lying around which needs to have an electrical gremlin
exorcised. It's pretty far down the list. Til then, a regular come-along
and a nylon rope seem to do the job. If you use rope, and you were not a
Boy Scout, now is a good time to learn to tie a bowline. It won't close up
on you and you will be able to untie it again no matter how hard you had to
pull on it. I have a half-inch nylon rope I have been using for decades.
It was 88 feet long when I bought it. It might be interesting to measure it
sometime and see how much longer it is now...
Phil Ethier Saint Paul Minnesota USA
1970 Lotus Europa, 1992 Saturn SL2, 1986 Suburban, 1962 Triumph TR4 CT2846L
LOON, MAC pethier@isd.net http://www.mnautox.com/
"It makes a nice noise when it goes faster"
- 4-year-old Adam, upon seeing a bitmap of Grandma Susie's TR4.
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