Everybody knows that forklifts are rated for X lbs at X from the face of the forks, but what do you do if you are outside those parameters? My standard equation has always been to figure the forklift rated capacity distance from center of front wheel. Then divide the rated distance from the center of front wheel by the distance of the load you want to pick. Then multiply that number by rated capacity.
For example, our Hoist 60/80 is rated at 80,000 lbs at 36” load center. The distance from the center of the front wheels to the 36” from fork face is 69”. If I wanted to find out the capacity at 48” I would do this-
69+12=81
69/81=.852
.852 X 80,000=68,160
Luckily, I have the load chart for this particular lift, all the way out to 72”, and the 68,160 number is awfully close to the factory load chart.
The problem I’ve ran into is other calculators and formulas for figuring this that I’ve found on the web. These sites say I’m wrong. They say you should just divide the rated load distance by the actual load distance, then multiply that number by the rated capacity. Using the same figures above, it would go like this-
36/48=.75
.75 X 80,000=60,000
This is vastly different from the factory load chart that I have. Like I said, I have a factory load chart, all the way out to the tip of the forks, for the 60/80, but I need to know that I’m figuring it right for other lifts that only have the one rating at a certain distance.
For example, our Hoist 60/80 is rated at 80,000 lbs at 36” load center. The distance from the center of the front wheels to the 36” from fork face is 69”. If I wanted to find out the capacity at 48” I would do this-
69+12=81
69/81=.852
.852 X 80,000=68,160
Luckily, I have the load chart for this particular lift, all the way out to 72”, and the 68,160 number is awfully close to the factory load chart.
The problem I’ve ran into is other calculators and formulas for figuring this that I’ve found on the web. These sites say I’m wrong. They say you should just divide the rated load distance by the actual load distance, then multiply that number by the rated capacity. Using the same figures above, it would go like this-
36/48=.75
.75 X 80,000=60,000
This is vastly different from the factory load chart that I have. Like I said, I have a factory load chart, all the way out to the tip of the forks, for the 60/80, but I need to know that I’m figuring it right for other lifts that only have the one rating at a certain distance.