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Wing and fuse crates

wirejock

wirejock

Well Known Member
My wing and fuse crates are at the shipper ready for pick up. Can anyone tell me how big the three crates are and how much each weighs?
I have a 6x10 cargo trailer and planned to strap the long crate on top of our SUV, but now I'm thinking about renting a moving truck or a flat bed trailer for a day. The truck sounds like the best and safest option.
Either way, once home, I need go get them out so weight would be nice to know.
 
thanks

Thanks Larry.
No way that long box is going on the roof!
I think a flat bed would work best. Close to the ground to take them off.
Do you know if they can be stacked?
 
wirejock said:
Thanks Larry.
Do you know if they can be stacked?
Click to expand...

I would not. They are made of 1/4 plywood and 1x2 corner and edge pieces stapled together for shipping purposes only not weight bearing boxes. If you want to stack them I would suggest building a simple 2x4 post / beam frame over the fuse kit to support the wing kit above.
 
Dimensions

Assuming the VANS dimensions are correct, :eek: ,I should be ok.
I rented a flatbed with 82" of deck space between the wheel wells. They actually measured it for me.
All three boxes add up to 82" leaving 2" of play.
It's cutting things pretty close. If they won't fit without stacking, I will build a quick frame to support the wing over the fuse box.
Thanks everyone. It's silly but I feel like a worried expectant father! :D
 
uhaul

I changed my mind after looking at the flat bed. It was pretty beat up.
I reserved a uhaul truck. Only one problem left. How to get the crates off and down the ramp.
 
The crates usually have some timber bracing underneath that allows forklifts and such to get underneath. What that means is the surface friction is at a minimum because the weight is only on that one piece of timber if you raise one end of the crate. A hand truck leveraged under one end and someone pushing on the other will allow the crate to slide fairly easily. I think it can be done fairly easily if you have a helper....and your helper wont even have to be that strong.
 
wirejock said:
Only one problem left. How to get the crates off and down the ramp.
Click to expand...

You can do it solo with several furniture dollys assuming a smooth driveway and standard build crates. I slid the crate half off the truck and put the end on the dollys and rolled it away until I could grab the end still on the truck. They're too heavy to lift all at once but only one end just enough to lower to the ground or get a dolly under is possible. The cheap Harbor Freight dollys worked fine. I used four. Here's the finish kit where you can see one of the dollys.

IMG_2131.JPG
 
Larry,
I carried QB wings and fuselage in a 6x10 trailer. It took some imagination, but it worked. Here are a couple pictures

photo5-1.jpg
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This is a picture of the wing kit I ordered before I got the QB wings. It was easy to move around myself.
 
I rented the flat bed from Home Depot. $20 for 75 minutes. The ramps make it easy to push the crate down to the ground.
 
u haul

Thank everyone. I love all the ingenuity.
I ended up reserving a u haul truck for several reasons.
Estes Park doesn't have a lot of choices.
The rental flat bed was pretty bad.
I could have found more in Loveland but the added trip would have burned time and gas.
I figured I had to put gas in something so using someone else's vehicle to haul up the mountain made sense.
If weather goes bad my stuff is safe.
That's life in the mountains!
 
One related tip (didn't notice QB in your original post, so assume they are the standard kits), regarding the fuse longerons that come in that long crate with the wing kit. After unloading, checking and storing most of the fuse stuff, I was scratching my head trying to figure out where to keep those long, long angles while I built the wings, until I needed them. DUH! How about using those beautiful long 1 x 8's that form the crate in which they were shipped? A few (8) angle shelf brackets from WalAircraftMart, and you have two 8" x 15' shelves that store the longerons, and a lot of other tools, parts, & stuff, plus you can hang dowels with spools of wire below them, waiting to be reeled off, as well. Glad I thought of that before the trash man came and got them.
 
OLDSAM said:
A few (8) angle shelf brackets from WalAircraftMart, and you have two 8" x 15' shelves that store the longerons, and a lot of other tools, parts, & stuff, plus you can hang dowels with spools of wire below them, waiting to be reeled off, as well.
Click to expand...

Just what I did (top right of photo) and it has worked well. I also added clamp lights above the workbench and colorful LED lights that my daughter gave me. The LED lights make it feel like a party.

IMG_1912.JPG
 
idea

Thanks Larry.
I'll try it. I also have 15' of shelving with nothing on the top. It might be a good place for the long stuff too.
I go to Denver tomorrow to pick up wing and fuse.
Exciting!
 
crates are home

Wow. That was a long day. The U-haul worked out nice. The loading ramp made it much easier to load and unload with two furniture dollies. Since my reserved hired help fell through at the last minute, Sweetie and I unloaded by ourselves. Our driveway makes any haul a challenge and this one was no different. I'm pleased everything is safe in my garage and crates look undamaged. A few days to rest and inventory begins. Thanks for all the advise.
 
Good deal Larry, glad you got your kits to your house. I made it to Boise with my complete airframe and engine - though I took the engine and gear off for the trip. I will be putting it in a hangar tomorrow in Caldwell Idaho. then I head to Michigan for a 2 month project.

good luck with your build!
 
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