Horizontal pulling

Like...how many things? Or is it just a spate of pulling things recently?

Might be useful to just get some snatch blocks and put them into a block & tackle as needed. I think that, fundamentally, or a powered winch are what you'll want. Come-along or ratchet strap systems aren't intended for long distance pulling. Enough to hold stuff in place or pull out whatever you're stuck in, but if it's more than foot or so you fundamentally need a winch. Or block and tackle, or both combined depending on the need.

Just curious, why don't you want to mess around with an electric winch? Not the cheapest solution but seems easiest.

personally, I think using a block and tackle system is a great idea. I got a 3x3 pully setup to pull some concrete from some rotten posts when my fence blew down. it made it possible without having to dig up the yard. The concrete poured around the base of those probably weighed 80-90lbs each, and there was just no way I would have been able to pull them out of the ground without having to do a LOT of digging. With the block and tackle, I just wrapped one piece of rope around the concrete and clipped on 3x pulley on that, and hooked the other tackle to a bolt in concrete that was nearby, and just pulled. It popped right out with not having to pull too hard.

https://www.amazon.com/4000LB-Ton-65-Fe ... 6702&psc=1

that's the set I used. worked great.

I've done that sort of thing fairly often including manually winching a 40ft shipping container (new and with doors on both ends it's my classic motorbike ride-thru garage) into position behind my house with a Wyeth-Scott puller, four railroad ties and some pipe for rollers.

Winches don't spool quickly enough for my liking so while my pickup truck has a nice Ramsey industrial worm gear winch for what you want I'd do what I did and buy a suitable length of wire rope, chain grab hooks (because they don't slip when connected to chains), slip hooks too if you like those, wire rope clamps (Crosby or other quality brand because safety matters), a snatch block or two, suitable chain and if you use trees as deadmen something to pad the chain with. Then you can drive as slow or fast as you like from as far away as you have wire rope. I used to spool out winch rope for this but it's faster to use separate rope of shorter length than a full winch spool. I store mine in an old riding mower tire (tires are rightly popular among wrecker operators for this). I also use this setup to control tree falls precisely (cut to the holding wood and drive off) from further away than the tree could reach from any angle I wish. I cut wire rope using a zip disc on an angle grinder and keep the end strands together with by sliding scrap tubing over them and bashing it flat.

I have a Maasdam rope puller (loved by arborists because it acts as a capstan rather than stowing the rope on a spool) and while it's slow it works well with no resets if your rope is long enough and it's much easier to handle than cable. I pair it with a couple of marine fiddle blocks for more advantage and use that with my box trailer to load non-running motorcycles (I fabbed a rolling, castered motorcycle chock to hold the bikes vertical) or move them across the yard since my destroyed back prohibits hard pushing. While the winch is slow you can use it like a ratchet to take up slack then push in the middle of your rope (or cable if using a cable puller) for speed. That's an old tree rope trick but unless there's a deadmanned snatch block between you and the load the load will try to follow you. BTW the fiddle blocks are underwhelming for pulling heavier loads on their own and the fiddle blocks help but everything that improves mechanical advantage reduces speed.

I get good control using the truck but for my container move I wanted more precision so I spooled cable from my winch through two snatch blocks then interposed my Wyeth-Scott for control down to the inch. If I had no winch I'd do the same thing with my cable and the Wyeth-Scott (I love those and own three). I didn't break a sweat moving the 40' High Cube and the snatch blocks let me make two 90-degree turns. The truck sat outside my fence as an anchor with no pulling function needed.

If you've a fat wallet the ultimate cable puller is a Tirfor. I don't have one yet but my 4x4bro has one and they're amazing.

Typical sheet metal "comealongs" are trash designed to exasperate owners. Avoid them and quality for life.

My latest addition to the kit is a "kinetic rope" but I've not used it yet. I've some larger trees to fell and want the stored energy pulling them away from me since I work alone. Youtube vids show how they work.

https://www.wyeth-scott.com/

The US military rigging manual is worth a read: https://www.marines.mil/Portals/1/MCRP% ... 01%20z.pdf

Rigging hardware is typically best bought online. Avoid hardware store crap though if you see Crosby rope clamps etc those are fine. Read how to install them in the rigging manual ("never saddle a dead horse" is the old way to remember to put the saddle on the live line of a loop). 4x4 recovery videos are a good way to learn about hardware like snatch blocks etc.

You may prefer synthetic rope which is stronger than wire rope while being light and easy to handle. Some of my uses would abrade synthetic rope but yours may not. Synthetic rope stows much more easily than wire rope and your kit could be left in your vehicle for emergency extractions. You can order a Wyeth-Scott with Amsteel instead of wire rope.

For chains I use wrecker chains with J-hooks etc which I REALLY like for much more than vehicles.

I've read Amsteel Blue is great for tow/pull. It's a synthetic that's super strong with very little give and fairly lightweight and flexible.

The wire rope options are appealing, as using my truck to do the pulling instead of me speeds things up tremendously. More often than not, I am pulling in an open area. The main concerns I would have there are ability to manage the "action" while it is happening, but I suppose you could solve that by turning it into a two man operation. One person in the truck, one person monitoring things.

Click to expand...

Having the manual puller next to the load makes it a one person op for fine adjustments and when I need to go a short distance with the truck I use a stick or boot print as a marker below and outboard of the door sill and open the door to watch that. Take small bites and you won't need a spotter. The slower ya go the quicker you'll finish. My truck rarely blocks line-of-sight to the load but if needed I'd hang a snatch block off another vehicle should my work area lack an anchor point. Off-roaders use an interesting variety of ground anchors for recovery many of which one could fab easily. The Pirate 4x4 forums are a great resource. When falling trees I leave stumps as anchor points. (Satellite view is handy to quickly view your property from above.) Bonus if my separate wire rope is trapped I can disconnect the shackle and drive off to attack from another direction to free it. I consider it like a fishing line leader. Most of my winch and Wyeth-Scott wire ropes are the same 5/16" diameter.

When buying I look up individual items then buy at the best price (often from Ebay where buyers piece out industrial auction buys) but Westech have an excellent selection with good pics:
https://www.westechrigging.com/

Wyeth-Scott sell direct and buying used is fine since they sell parts.

Crosby are a rigging industry leader and though you won't need much, perhaps hooks and wire rope clamps (which you would buy retail), the more ya learn about rigging the more potentially useful ideas you're exposed to: https://www.thecrosbygroup.com/catalog/

4x4 suppliers are good sources for affordable shackles, tree strap, kinetic rope etc.

Moving objects horizontally is part of the job but many need jacking. Most hydraulic jacks have short strokes so raising a something like a container takes a while. I accumulate wooden blocks and use scrap steel shims for fine adjustment. The jacks I prefer are not hydraulic, they're mechanical and haven't changed much since the early 1900s. Simplex, Duff-Norton etc are quality brands. Inspect the ratchet and the teeth on the ram and use penetrant and motor oil or similar to lube them. I have one of these in steel which are still in production with aluminum parts.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Tool-S ... SwOcpcHTCV

Price is why I buy used::
https://www.ohiopowertool.com/p-1106-si ... a1538.aspx

They're designed for placing and pulling telephone poles with a chain loop and pear link to grab the pole hooked to the top of the ram so they work with your choice of chain accessories. The base is hinged to pivot with a pole being winched to vertical. The foot is like other "railroad" jacks and works nicely for lifting containers. They're big, they're heavy and I use a hand truck to move mine. You probably don't need one but if you score it cheap (I gave 90 for mine in better condition than pic related and would go ~150 for a clean one) they're a good lifetime addition to your kit. I use pipe or my long pinch bar (pinch bars are handy too) as a handle. Many sellers think mechanical jacks are man cave decor since they've no idea how they're used. The more common style are like this Simplex and the price is why I buy used. They have a foot near the base and a pad on top. I've never seen one worn out but ensure the teeth are in good condition with little more than flash rust.

https://www.amazon.com/Simplex-RJ84A-Me ... 3109&psc=1

Antique advert with drawings worth a zoom:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1935-ADVERT-2- ... Sw5ZBWF9Sj

Hydraulic fork lift jacks are handy for containers, machine tools etc.

I lift very short distances between blocking and shimming so if a load like a container falls it won't drop more than an inch or two. I treat every load as if it will fall then ensure that won't pose a problem. The grounded parts of your load can stabilize the end you're lifting so I consider load and lifting gear as a system. I've manually placed containers with my machinist bros (who use them for shop space) and moved many machine tools safely without paying a rigger.

Moves over gravel and earth are interesting. For my bike container move I used four railroad ties (landscape ties in good condition are 15-20 bucks each and the seller can fork lift them into your truck/onto your trailer) and various steel pipe 2" OD and larger placed as shown below. I bridged the outboard tie pairs with pipe so I could roll the container from the lagging pair to the leading pair then leapfrog the ties (by rolling them on other pipe and pushing by foot as legs are strong and arms weak):

To turn I placed one tie centered at the end of the container with the container atop wide blocking (stacked blocking acts as a pivot) then placed another tie beneath the opposite end perpendicular to the container but angled so the container would be over the tie for as much of the turn as practical. (How will be obvious when you see it, play with paper or cardboard cutouts to visualize if needed.) Add single overlapping ties to pivot as far as ya wish.

When that container was placed I used one tie beneath each end (containers are supported by the corner fittings) as a foundation and placed the other ties outboard of those as steps. That's common in the container reuse world. I had extra ties from a load I scored cheap (private owners sometimes remove landscape ties and want 'em gone) so I cut a couple into blocks for convenience with a chain saw. Expect to ruin the chainsaw blade but I wouldn't spend on a carbide demo blade for one job. You don't have to have short RR tie blocks for a container move. When I welded two 40's side by side for my machine shop I pulled them together with a Wyeth-Scott and chains at the outboard corner fittings. It was much easier than joining the halves of a double-wide mobile home.

The work is simpler and easier than it sounds. I'm old, disabled and had C3/4 fused and a shoulder joint replaced. I do nothing to risk injury and take every mechanical advantage. I plan so I'm under no time pressure. It's a game for me like a kid playing with blocks but saving mad cash while getting precisely what I want.

For my needs I rely on hardware overkill so no need to calculate loads but I do know what the big stuff (containers, machine tools, vehicles) approximately weighs. I compare to familiar weights like cars and trucks people move often. Ground pressure matters.

For light work like shed moves PVC pipe in large diameters is rightly popular for rollers. If you build a shed (or tiny house) use a skid base for easy placement.

Pantograph AKA "scissors" jacks from pickup trucks and SUVs (I like GM) are light, cheap or free, and versatile for lifting and pushing. For homeowner lifting a shed they're outstanding. I tack weld a downward-facing piece of angle steel to some of mine (and various other shapes, I've many jacks) from a few inches to about a foot long and have one with upward-facing channel to capture truck frame rails, 4x4s etc. I made one with upward-facing channel to fit Harley Sportster frames beneath the engine and use those with long angle iron to bridge wider frames. I slice off the manual handles with a zip disk (every DIYer should own a 6" angle grinder for the thin kerf 6" cutting discs) then use a socket on the hex and my 20V impact driver to raise and lower. I barely use my heavy floor jacks for vehicle maintenance as these fit in a tool bag. Ford truck screw jacks work decently and their flat top is handy but their awkward handle connection design means I'll have to tack weld a nut or bolt to mine to spin quickly. I've not modded any yet as I like the length of pantograph jacks for easy reaching beneath loads.

Most mechanical car/truck jacks have holes in the base plate you can bolt to larger plate or angle for stability or lag screw to thick wood to spread load on sand etc. Jacks have high ground pressure without a load spreader so I collect suitable steel and wood.

I needed an easy way to pull vehicles into my shop. Since the slab is framed by steel beams I welded a Reese socket to that for various attachments but for my bros typical garage I copied a rigger trick by notching a hunk of wide 3/8" thick angle to fit tow chains and torching a hole to fit slip hooks. A cutting disc and a drill will make the notches if you lack a torch or plasma, or your local weldor can cut them in minutes and may have suitable scrap handy as may your local steel supplier (who often sell cut-offs for less than retail and angle in small quantities is cheap or reasonable). I drilled three ~ 5/8" holes through the bottom for expandable concrete anchors. The plate sits against his back wall so it's no tripping hazard and when he pulls a car in he hangs a snatch block off the anchor, places scrap angle facing down as chocks (2x4s work too) then winches the car into place from outside the bay. When pulling you can copy tow truck drivers and lock the steering wheel using the seat belts. Note angle bolted to the floor loads your anchors in shear so there's no risk of pulling free if anchored correctly.

This arrangement keeps the load close to the slab applying little upward force to the anchors.

Load <----- I____

.......Angle ^

Using what you have matters especially on a budget. I accumulate chain load binders to secure loads but with a long cheater pipe (leverage provides control without strain) they can pull heavy loads short distances or as far as you're patient enough to tolerate. If you're pulling a load which slides back, use two or have another way to secure one chain etc while you leapfrog the binder down your pulling chain.

Large ratchet straps as used by truckers are capable too and like chain require many resets but if you're doing one job where you can trade convenience for buying more gear they're worth keeping in mind. You may need the slower options like chain and straps to position snatch blocks and with them you can move the blocks under load with good mechanical advantage. Truck equipment is mostly for securing loads but "strap winches" and other flatbed trailer accessories are worth understanding.

Safety note:
I don't overload my gear but never forget rope and cable store energy. There is nothing to stop you using paracord or light rope as an arrestor to limit movement of something like a puller should a component fail so you don't launch it into your truck or skull. Kinetic rope dampens shock loads and is popular with the military for good reason. Synthetic rope rules the marine industry which once relied on hemp. Study recovery techniques to improve your pulling skills.

I've wanted to scrounge some "mule tape" polyester pulling tape from cable pullers and Arsians may have more opportunity than most to score it free or in trade for frosty libation. If needed I'll buy a roll as it's long, light, strong and expendable.

Chain is for pulling, not snatching unless shock is dampened by wire or synthetic rope.

A piece of plywood behind your back window can stop flying hardware but I prefer snatch blocks so I'm not pulling potential rockets towards my truck in the first place on a heavy pull. I fucking love snatch blocks. Keep an eye out for name brands like McKissick at yard sales. They aren't cheap new and a price check is easily done on your phone.

Connect loads safely. Conventional hitch balls can snap off under shock loads as most of their threads are cut rather than rolled and the ball/shank radius can be a stress raiser. I rarely shock load but when I do I use shackles or slap on a pintle hitch instead of my tri-ball. (Used pintles go cheap used as most who aren't farmers or in construction don't use them. Ensure any bolts are Grade 8.) Shackle mounts are cheap from off-road suppliers if you don't make your own. I don't drive in rugged terrain or my trucks would have them for pulling from any angle. "Soft shackles" work well too and save expensive synthetic rope while not turning into missiles if they fail.

I learned a lot about safe load handling here when I drove a wrecker (including how to make and use rollover sticks to roll any load, search rollover stick videos for why that's cool):
https://www.towforce.net/forum/56-light ... ecoveries/

Thanks to hunting pics for this thread I scored an exceptionally cheap Tirfor on Ebay minus rope I already own.
I look for less-informed sellers and by the outside condition it's probably fine internally. I expect the last user lost the wire rope which is often removed from Tirfors for transport. Ebay is a good place to find detailed pics of any hardware you're interested in. https://www.ebay.com/itm/GRIPHOIST-TIRF ... 2749.l2649

I've read Amsteel Blue is great for tow/pull. It's a synthetic that's super strong with very little give and fairly lightweight and flexible.

Click to expand...

It's stronger than steel and very popular with off-roaders. Arborists also use synthetic rope.

http://www.masterpull.com/differences-i ... nch-lines/

Thanks to all on this thread. M0nkey - I have looked thru the whole post, and have used the links - thank you. Here's my question - I have a shed I'm moving into position on a raised wooden platform. The platform is strong enough to hold the shed, but I need to slide it into position. It is raised up to the right level (about 12") I have a strong anchor point - the garage foundation, but this is below grade. I want to anchor to the foundation, then use some sort of pulley mounted on a shopmade block that will move the chain from the anchor point - traveling at about 30 degrees, over the pulley - transitioning to horizontal so the shed is pulled directly over the platform - clearly the friction will be a stress on the platform, but if the force is horizontal, and I'm using a controlled puller, I think it will be ok (I will take all safety precautions mentioned of course).

Here's the question - and recommendations on where to find such pulleys? My equipment, jack, chain, and hooks are all rated at 6000lbs.

Thanks!

Please list all relevant "equipment" for best situational advice.

Pulley AKA snatch block size of course depends on chain diameter but used large blocks are often inexpensive used. I would not buy new unless I was going to do enough work to justify that and one or ten shed moves would not be that much. I haven't used mine for chain yet despite owning them many years. New large snatch blocks that clear common light tow chain easily go several hundred dollars. They're heavy, bulky and awkward.

A large snatch block whose wire rope capacity matches or exceeds your chain diameter would work but unless there's one handy and cheap locally (Facebook Marketplace etc) I'd pass. Mine were bought opportunistically at flea markets. I gave 15 bucks for one because few home gamers know what they're good for but the little ones get all the use.

Though I've many ways to pull things I get frequent use out of a length of wire rope (matching my winches as I pulled it off one of them then reinstalled the hook, which is always a chain grab hook for positive position control/slip proofing which wire rope doesn't do conveniently) with a loop on each end.

You can buy premade wire rope lengths with loops then install clevis hooks of choice.

Random 3/8" winch cable with preinstalled eyelets:


Clevis hook (note dragging load is much less than the weight of an object in normal cases):


Quality small snatch block with chain:

Random cheap wire rope snatch block. These work fine and being light are popular with off-roaders:


View: https://www.amazon.com/GRIPWAY-Recovery-Snatch-22000lb-Capacity/dp/B0C6X65L4H/ref=sr_1_11?c=ts&keywords=Towing+Winch+Snatch+Blocks&qid=1704577423&s=automotive&sr=1-11&ts_id=379523011


Recovery rings are simple and light because they don't incorporate side plates with a hole or anchor hook or chain like a snatch block.

I'd connect one end of the wire rope "leader" (as in fishing tackle leader) to the chain as close to the load as convenient. The other would run through a common cheap wire rope snatch block. I use pinned or bolted clevis grab hooks for this as they're so quick to remove and install. Rigging equipment should work with as much other rigging equipment as practical even if an immediate job doesn't require that.

I pull the leader rope with a puller and often a vehicle as distance suggests, and have placed pullers between the load and the wire rope so I can pull coarsely with a vehicle than finely with the puller. My leader rope loops are sized to fit over my triball bumper pull hitch. For light work of several thousand pounds and zero jerking that's fine. For heavier work and recovery a properly attached frame anchor is best.

For deadmanning a snatch block light vehicles will do since they're not doing the pulling. I've run soft slings, rope and chain around subframes when that was useful in salvage.

The snatch block can be chained or cabled to any suitable anchor including another vehicle which can be any convenient distance away.
For pulls without ground anchors two vehicles work nicely and as none need be in line with the load can be most anywhere convenient. I've used pullers for adjustable length snatch block retention.

Now to elevation. Your snatch block will be horizontally positioned for a straight pull (when you tension everything ensure it stays that way) but may not be at the best heightl. Height supports are not under load so you can use whatever is convenient. I've used buckets, drums, saw horses, cribbing, old rims and of course wood.

A "rollover stick" is ideal and easy to make from a log, PVC, pipe etc. That simple tool can reduce the load on the front of your shed/base interface because the stick forces the cable to pull upward. Pull until the stick overcenters, halt, make some slack, reposition stick, repeat. I like to place the top of a rollover stick at about ten o'clock then I stop pulling for reset about two o'clock or depending on load/base clearance I may pull until the stick falls away (on loads where the load will not slide back, "control is the goal").


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=uT3LSJSO56w


A fine old loggers trick is tensioning a cable or rope then stepping on or pushing the middle at the far side of your snatch block so you do not change direction of pull. That can move your load faster than hand winching which you can then do to take up the slack you just made. Because it's fast with no intrinsic distance limit arborists use that trick to pull a tree over quickly after cutting to holding wood, of course keeping well out of line of the tree by being on the far side of the snatch block. Stomp/push, reel in slack, repeat.

Wear gloves. You can push and pull much harder than naked and won't get wire rope lube on your skin.

EDIT: I just thought of using a pintle hitch ring AKA lunette eye for a chain guide ring. How you anchor it is up to you but chain will certainly slip through the lunette eye. Lighter and cheaper than a large snatch block. There's room for a soft sling to clear moving chain.


View: https://www.amazon.com/Buyers-Products-RM1225E-Receiver-Mount/dp/B0001DDLMK

Reducing rolling resistance is wise. On dirt logs work well and hunks of pipe roll or skid easily.

Once on rollers I don't let the load completely off until placed so I don't have to jack as much. I use whatever comes to mind for skids as a job may benefit from skids and/or rollers or I may not have enough of one handy. I've used plastic logging wedges, scrap hunks of polyethylene drum and scrap steel to skid. Logging wedges and wood cribbing can lift loads for insertion of same size cribbing which pinching can interfere with.

You probably won't need to but for the sake of completeness note you can halt load travel by chaining or cabling the opposite end. If you're pulling an object off a tilted dump bed or rollback (whose winches are built in) and need to control slip as when moving machinery you can overcome friction by taking small bites with your puller while halting the load from the opposite direction.

Wire ropes can be shortened and modified using wire rope clamps and ferrules. Ferrules are optional wear protection and rope being cheap I routinely make loops much larger than ferrules suit (normal with industrial slings etc) for convenience. I anti-seize all wire rope clamp threads for easy re-use. A trip to any decent farm or hardware store should yield all you need.

Pic shows how I hang/carry my leader on a hunk of poly with a loop through the small hole to keep my hands clean. Black snatch block at left. Tirfor make magnificent pullers (I don't own one yet because they're not cheap in the US but that widget isn't a puller. It's a sliding gripper I found on Ebay cheap that acts like a prusik letting me effectively shorten the leader length without adding hardware in the middle or making two cables out of one, though I carry wire rope clamps and a cordless angle grinder in the field just in case.