I'm thinking about building a rotisserie

[KTJMcG]

And have narrowed it down to 2 that I liked. One kinda looks alittle flimsy and the other looks like it'll twirl the house if it was bolted to it.
This is the kinda flimsy looking one. It's kinda more compact.

This is the redwing steel works one that looks more than enough for what I need.

The 1st has the plans on the website, The second has the plans available for 12.95.
The more I see the redwing design,the more I'm liking it.

 

[lethal289]

i snagged these a few years ago off the vmf. I have no idea who it belonged to anymore. He used some harbor freight bottle jacks. IIRC, it was a total DIY job.

 

[lethal289]

more pics...

 

[lethal289]

last few

 

[B67FSTB]

Thats a very , very nice rotisserie.
You can make very fine adjustements , so the car can tilt very easily by hand.
Love it so much I saved the pics to my computer. :thu :thu :thu :thu

 

[KTJMcG]

That looks a lot like the plans I found on eBay. That is a nice looking one. The guy selling the plans also sells the lazer cut pieces for the spinning set-up. Thanks for the pics.

 

[ZFORCE]

i snagged these a few years ago off the vmf. I have no idea who it belonged to anymore. He used some harbor freight bottle jacks. IIRC, it was a total DIY job.

Hey, I own that rotisserie now! I made some minor mods to the locator wheel, other than that, this thing ROCKS, and ROLLS! Here is a current picture, showing what I'm doing now. That is my 61 Ranchero on it now. It is completely balanced and rotates 360 degrees with one hand! Desertstang, down here in Tucson, sold it to me for cost after he sold his 72 stang project.

If you want any pics or dimensions, let me know.

 

[Horseplay]

Desertstang, down here in Tucson, sold it to me for cost after he sold his 72 stang project.

You might want to take a bit of time and search out any used ones for sale. Guys finish projects or lose interest and sell off their stuff. Might not save you any cash but would save the effort of building one.

 

[Anonymous]

Just some observations. I don't think the hydraulic jacks are necessary and I like a Farm Jack (like an old bumper jack sorta). It seems that with hydraulic jacks you have the car in the air when you attach the roto. Second, the wheels are too small if you have any rough area or a lip in the concrete to roll over. A flat free tire like used on a wheel barrow works wonders, but they cost a bit more. The one in the first photo is ugh.......jsut don't do that one. The others look pretty strong. Something else I'd look for is a safety pin that will keep up when you raise or lower the car. And especially lock when the car is up. Just my experiences.

 

[RyanG85]

You might want to take a bit of time and search out any used ones for sale. Guys finish projects or lose interest and sell their off their stuff. Might not save you any cash but would save the effort of building one.

:stu
I picked up a non hydraulic auto twirler with mustang adapters and off road wheel kit for $600 about an hour away from my house. Like brand new, the guy finished his project and put it up for sale. There would have been more money in materials to build it. When projects are done, most people want them gone. They are big and clumsy. Take up lots of valuable garage space.

 

[KTJMcG]

Thanks for the responses and some of the ideas. I had planned on pinning the uprights after I got the car in the air. I also gave some thought(if I don't buy the eBay parts kit) to putting a pin in the pipe where the pipe rotates. I kinda ruled out the first one when I realized the turnbuckle and threaded rod used as a stabilizer.

As for buying one, Wheres the fun in that! I'll start picking up the steel in a couple of weeks and put my welding skills to the test. Besides, finding will happen after I build this and start using it. Then Buffalo's Craig's list will have a whole section devoted to them.

 

[FordDude]

Besides, finding will happen after I build this and start using it.

You know the old saying "When you are not looking for it you find it."

fd

 

[RyanG85]

As for buying one, Wheres the fun in that!

Cant argue that. I did a lot of research and planned on building one also before coming across the one I bought. I'm having a hard enough time finding the time to work on the stang though. Building the rotiss would've set the project even further back....

 

[KTJMcG]

Started doing some homework on it.

Found the bottle rams at harbor Freight(where I planed on looking for them):
http://www.harborfreight.com/3-ton-super-heavy-duty-long-ram-hydraulic-flat-bottom-jack-36468.html

They also had the farm jacks:
http://www.harborfreight.com/48-inch-3-1-2-half-ton-farm-jack-6530.html

I think I'm leaning more toward the hydraulics.

This is the indexing kit:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/LASER-PARTS-HARDWARE-KIT-Ultimate-Rotisserie-Plans-car-/250851398091?pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr&hash=item3a67e891cb

Will see what happens.

 

[ZFORCE]

I too was going to build my own, but when Desertstang PM'd me that he was selling his project car, I jumped on the offer to buy the rotisserie. I know they go for less sometimes, but he did a nice job and it was like new, never left out in the rain.

It has an indexing wheel, however the holes are not perfect so sometimes, only one side can lock in.

Here's my advice after using this one.

Buy the indexing wheel. Even though it is so balanced that it will hold any position, once you lean on it it wants to spin.

Buy quality wheels so they don't flatten. I have a double scored concrete driveway and have pushed my Ranchero all over it, inside and out for power washing. I wouldn't go with the large wheel barrow wheels, unless you are on dirt or gravel, they'll bounce when you work on your car.

Go hydraulic! I jack this thing up and down all the time to get the best angle for whatever area I'm working on!

You don't need pins if you buy the plans from the guy selling the laser cut indexing wheels as those are the plans that this rotisserie is built from and it includes infinite height adjustable lock down bolts, so the vehicle doesn't slide down after you jack it up. With pins, you are limited to locking only where the pin is.

Here is my mod to the indexing lock down pin. I added a piece of angled steel to operate similar to a bolt action rifle. You pull the spring loaded pin and lock it into the angled steel. Since the Rotisserie has 2 indexing wheels, you do this on both sides, then position the car and release the bolt into the indexing wheel and your car is locked from rotating.

Finally, after some adjustments, I was able to load the car on with the front and rear suspension in place!

I rolled the front rotisserie into place and bolted it to the jack mounts, then did the same for the rear. Jacked up the hydraulic jacks, THEN removed the front and rear tires. Next, out came the rear axle and then the front suspension. No jacking on the car to mount it to the rotisserie, so it was a ONE PERSON job, which around here, can make or break a project!