How to hang a glider from the ceiling of a hangar

[Chris]

We are looking to put a 1-26 on a lift or hoist. Its a steel building with a very beefy structure.
This is commonly done in Europe. Has anybody experience and sketches/pictures/BOM for such a construction and is willing to share?
Thanks.

[Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot)]

Early 1-26's, open he turtle deck, hang from the tripod behind the main spar. Other models....likely similar but may require to cut surface skins.
Spar is rather close to CG....

[[email protected]]

On Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 4:33:52 PM UTC-4, Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot) wrote:
> Early 1-26's, open he turtle deck, hang from the tripod behind the main spar. Other models....likely similar but may require to cut surface skins.
> Spar is rather close to CG....

That is a good description of what we do. We use a 400 lb electric hoist from Harbor Freight. One connecting loop to the roll cage. At the tail we run a loop down from the ceiling and use it to support right in front of the tail.
Works great.
UH

[[email protected]]

Chris,

A harbor freight electric winch and a sling on the wing connections should work.
I know where you are trying to doo this :>

Tim


On Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 3:16:40 PM UTC-4, Chris wrote:
> We are looking to put a 1-26 on a lift or hoist. Its a steel building with a very beefy structure.
> This is commonly done in Europe. Has anybody experience and sketches/pictures/BOM for such a construction and is willing to share?
> Thanks.

[JS[_5_]]

On Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 4:46:50 PM UTC-7, wrote:
> Chris,
>
> A harbor freight electric winch and a sling on the wing connections should work.
> I know where you are trying to doo this :>
>
> Tim
>
>
> On Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 3:16:40 PM UTC-4, Chris wrote:
> > We are looking to put a 1-26 on a lift or hoist. Its a steel building with a very beefy structure.
> > This is commonly done in Europe. Has anybody experience and sketches/pictures/BOM for such a construction and is willing to share?
> > Thanks.

Having recently seen the devastating results of trusting the specs of cheap tools from China to hoist an aircraft, I'd suggest using more trustworthy manufacturers.
Jim

[Mike Schumann[_2_]]

On Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 2:16:40 PM UTC-5, Chris wrote:
> We are looking to put a 1-26 on a lift or hoist. Its a steel building with a very beefy structure.
> This is commonly done in Europe. Has anybody experience and sketches/pictures/BOM for such a construction and is willing to share?
> Thanks.

The MN Soaring Club at Stanton hangs a bunch of gliders using electric chain winches and a custom made cradle that fits over the top of the gliders with hooks at the front and back that hold web straps that go under the fuselage in front of and behind the wings. Properly positioned hanging sandbags over each wing keeps the glider level after it is winched into place.

They use this system for a K-21, K-8, and other gliders.

[Eric Munk]

1: don't save on equipment and buy the good stuff
2: always have a backup system (chain, etc) for when the good stuff fails
anyway
3: when somebody tells you otherwise, always remember 1 and 2

Two examples spring to mind where 1 & 2 were not adhered to. The first
destroyed two gliders, seriously damaged three others and effectively put
the club out of action for 3 months when a glider fell from the ceiling
when the hoist failed (poor quality cable brake) and there was no back up.
The second seriously damaged three gliders and injured two club members
when a glider fell from the ceiling when poor quality steel cable snapped
and there was no backup. Seperate airfields.

[Steve Leonard[_2_]]

And for God's Sake, please understand the difference between a Winch and a Hoist.

https://www.gregsmithequipment.com/What-Is-the-Difference-Between-a-Winch-And-A-Hoist

https://www.grainger.com/content/supplylink-hoists-winches-which-one-does-job

https://lug-all.com/blogs/blog/winching-and-hoisting-can-your-winch-double-as-a-hoist

There are lots more, if you like. But, these should be enough to keep you from buying a winch to do a hoist's job.

Steve Leonard

[[email protected]]

I regularly suspend my Pegasus from the main support structure in the hangar, utilizing a hoist from Harbor Freight (1,500 lb. capacity). The hoist is higher capacity than needed, as I prefer a substantial safety margin. A trolley on a 5 inch "H" beam allows the hoist to travel 25 feet, making it handy for many other uses besides just raising a glider. The hoist cable attaches to a "Strongback" with an adjustable CG screw. The strongback is "T" shaped, with one 2" webbing strap in a "U" under the cockpit, forward of the landing gear. The rear strap loops once around the fuselage to prevent rotation (side to side tilt). Two PVC pipe stands attach to the wingtips to hold the glider level when the wing wheel is removed for hoisting. The tail dolly is also removed. The glider is suspended in a slightly tail down position after I learned that if the main wheel touches the floor first when lowering, the tail slams down rather hard. The CG is adjusted with the Acme thread screw to a position that holds the main wheel a few inches higher than the tail wheel. After seven years of flawless operation (and regular cable inspections) I discovered some minor "birdcaging" of the cable, along with some broken strands. Not willing to rely on cheap cable for replacement, and dissatisfied with the flexibility and specifications of other cables, I went with a 1/4 Dyneema cord with a 10,000 lb. rating. It winds on to the hoist drum neatly and exhibits less tendency to twist and stack unevenly. All in all, I am pleased with the hoist system. It makes the hangar much more spacious for other temporary projects or to allow a guest aircraft from time to time.

[Chris]

Thank you all for the responses. Mark, would you be able to send a picture via PM when you have a chance. Thanks!

[[email protected]]

On Wednesday, June 12, 2019 at 2:13:43 PM UTC-6, Chris wrote:
> Thank you all for the responses. Mark, would you be able to send a picture via PM when you have a chance. Thanks!

Easiest is to send me a phone number thru my email (on website mmfabrication dot com) and I can text some shots to you.

[Ian[_2_]]

On 2019/06/11 21:16, Chris wrote:

> We are looking to put a 1-26 on a lift or hoist. Its a steel building with a very beefy structure.
> This is commonly done in Europe. Has anybody experience and sketches/pictures/BOM for such a construction and is willing to share?
> Thanks.
>

My LS3a lives suspended from the hanger roof. There are about half a
dozen gliders suspended from roofs around our club, all of them use
similar devices.

There are webbing slings behind and in front of the wings. These hang
from a steel frame which is suspended above the glider. There is a cable
from the frame over a pulley in the roof, around a couple of other
pulley's and onto a chain block which hangs near the hanger wall. When
you wind up the chain block it pulls the cable and lifts the glider.

Then there is a light support rod which bolts to the tail dolley and the
hanging frame. It's job is to ensure that the frame lifts from exactly
above the glider CG. The length of the rod was adjusted to achieve this.

Last component is a set of light cords which support around the wing
tips. They route over some small pulleys and are then attached to the
main lifting cable. When the cable is pulled the wingtip cords move in
unison to keep the wings level.

When the glider is parked, there are two chain slings hanging from the
roof which are hooked around the lifting frame as protection for the
cable and hoist. We also have a cord that hangs down from the ceiling
and is attached to the tail dolly to prevent the glider swinging while
parked. The tailplane pushes up against padding on the roof.

The chainblock, cable, pulley's etc as well as the support structure
have all been designed for lifting a design load of 500kg with a safety
factor appropriate for lifting purposes. They get inspected
periodically. We keep a step ladder in the hanger so we can conveniently
check things at any time. We monitor for funny sounds and behaviour
while lifting - this is normally the first evidence of pending equipment
failure.

Lifting and lowering takes about 10 to 20 min, depending on whether
there is another glider that has to be moved. Our downstairs neighbour
is an LS4 and that can go upstairs, depending on which a/c is expected
to be flying more frequently.

If you do it properly, there should be no problems. I am not aware of
any incidents with any of the hanging gliders in our club in the last 10
years or more. During lifting/lowering, there should be no people, cars
or aircraft underneath. Thus only one glider is at risk. When it is
parked there are safety chains etc to provide redundancy for all
potential failure points.

You need to carefully check everything in 3 dimensions to ensure it will
fit and you need someone with engineering and/or rigging experience to
check what you are doing.

But there is some training required and it is is only suitable for
privately owned gliders. If random club members had to start lifting and
lowering gliders, there could be a lot more hanger rash.

Ian