Moving a VM-16

[ImTippmann]

Information, I love information. Thank you, confirmed parts narrows my research a bit. Knowing its not the original drive also keeps me from doing a bunch of research on a drive that it does not have on it.

[rl49]

I moved a P1H with a 60 inch table 45 inch X travel on a deck over goose neck trailer from Ohio to New York. We had 4x4s to go thru holes previous owner had cut for chains in containment in an x pattern with 4x4s cut to keep chains spread apart. I didn't have time or manpower to take pics of that.

We had to put on sideways as it was over width. I then picked off goose neck with a friends 12000 lb fork lift and set on a sunbelt rental tilt bed trailer to move the final 9 miles to my shop.
I don't have a fork lift and I used some 1/8 inch diamond plate and winched into shop after removing containment. It took about 45 mins to pull containment and about an hour to position some 11 gauge metal under rock base to make sure we didn't dig up trailer.

I think you'll find once you pull containment its quite narrow, other that the lower steel panels to the rock base and the 60 inch table on my P1 the width without those is around 48 inches with the tool changer




Also it weighed 6600 lbs

I have a video winching off trailer buts it 59 mbs

Ron

[ImTippmann]

SportyBob,

I am getting conflicting information on a few points. Im hoping you can resolve them, and they steer back to the original point of this thread, moving a VM.

1. Machine weight. This one is a 96 VM16a. The person I am getting it from claims its 7k-8k lbs. I saw a post on another thread from a few years ago that you said they were about 5k. If its close to the 8k mark that changes the trailer I am going to take. Can you confirm the weight on a VM16a?

2. The base. The base looks like cast iron on this machine and with it having minimal floor contact area I assume it is cast iron. But is it the cast stone on these machines as well?

3. Actual dimensions and needed floorspace. I can find a handfull of references to floorspace being 86w 72d but that seems more like actual dimensions. How much room is needed around the machine?

[sportybob]

The VM-16 A is a "rock base" ( composite granite) machine, The weight is ~ 6K pounds. best way to move is to use long forks, pick up from the back side, fork ends out the front 6" blocks in the back. lift to make contact, tilt back slightly then lift. I use my 4K forklift for this all the time.(but it is a beast)
The best trailer to use is a air ride flat bed. Car trailers pose a problem as to, the machine wont fit "side ways. between the tires. now you are "making it up as you go" see pics in the previous thread.

The dimensions are about the 86 X 72 X 80. the machine should be placed so that the door to the electrical cabinet can fully open, this is required by NFPA and is code in most areas across the US. This allows access to the panel when it needs to be serviced. ( try removing or installing the control (you did remove it before shipping, right?) with the door only opening half way. The "extra" room ~ 4 ft of space in the back can easily be used for a "rolling" shelf unit.
While were on the subject of removing and installing the control. On C5 controls there are 2 internal threaded pins on the center of each side. It is my suggestion that these pins be modified, on a grinder / sander remove the flat top and make it a rounded head. install the pins on the machine and use them to guide and help support the control as you are installing the 4 screws for the rubber mounts. (I have replacement pins that I modified for this.
C6 controls have 2 springs attached to the top of the control for support. One could also modify the C5 with a couple of #10 screws above the control and add some springs to that.



cast iron bases started showing up about 2002, this added considerable weight to the machines. if in doubt, bring a magnet.

sportybob


the amount of room needed on the sides of the machine is a personal choice

[ImTippmann]

I have not left to get it yet as its a 3 day round trip that required some scheduling. Me and my youngest son ate leaving next week to go get it. I am doing the final clearing of the space where it will go this week to streamline shoehorning it into my garage (gonna be a tight fit height wise through the 83" tall garage door) . Thanks for the tip on the block size. I have a piece of 6x6 here, I will cut it into couple pieces to use at the rear on the forks.

per the rear access, the door is ~4'? That was the info I was truely in need of. I knew I wanted/needed room to the rear to swing the door open, I just cannot for the life of me find a drawing (which is odd because Im a huge nerd that can find anything online). I am extremely limited on space (i need less junk or to build a shop, lol), so I want to make the hole just big enough.

The control will be removed and safely buckled into the back seat of the truck as well as the screen and any other component that may jiggle loose or be damaged on a 14 hour road trip.

[ImTippmann]

Well, its mine and its on the trailer for better or worse. I picked it up mid afternoon yesterday, strapped the snot out of it, put a bottle jack and a block under the z and gave it the smoothest ride of its life to my in-laws. Today I can go through and get it strapped down the way I like without being in the middle of the street and I had all day to do it. We left Wednesday at 6pm and didn't get to the in-laws until 5pm Thursday so I put every strap I own on the machine to make sure it wouldn't move.

I pulled the computer, I'm debating pulling the servo amps.

Apparently I misunderstood, it wasn't the computer that was dead, its the user station/monitor. I will start a new thread and diagnose more when its in the garage under power. For $2500 it seems like just the right project machine for a nerd like me.

Thank you all for making me more comfortable taking on this project. Without this forum I may not have been brave enough, but I got enough information to sort out in my head how the electrical is supposed to work so I should be able to diagnose it pretty quick

Sent from my P00I using Tapatalk

[ImTippmann]

For future reference and to document the part that made me nervous, a 1996 VM-16A dimensions are exactly as follows:

Width = 86"
Depth not including monitor bulge = 70"
With bulge = 75"
Height = 77.25"

Control cabinet door width = 36"


Getting the Z axis down.
Standing on the table I removed the Z motor cover which is a cap on the top of the column. I then put a bottle jack under the head (not the spindle) and loosened/removed the Z belt. Once the belt was off, wearing leather gloves, I turned the ball screw to lift the head and get the jack out, then just let the screw pulley freewheel using my hand as a brake to keep it slow. Torque required to lift and slow the head is minimal, maybe a few foot pounds. I could turn it with fingertips. Definitely not a scary amount of torque there.


Strapping. I will post pictures later of how I am strapping it down.


Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

[ImTippmann]

For future reference and to document the part that made me nervous, a 1996 VM-16A dimensions are exactly as follows:

Width = 86"
Depth not including monitor bulge = 70"
With bulge = 75"
Height = 77.25"

Control cabinet door width = 36"


Getting the Z axis down.
Standing on the table I removed the Z motor cover which is a cap on the top of the column. I then put a bottle jack under the head (not the spindle) and loosened/removed the Z belt. Once the belt was off, wearing leather gloves, I turned the ball screw to lift the head and get the jack out, then just let the screw pulley freewheel using my hand as a brake to keep it slow. Torque required to lift and slow the head is minimal, maybe a few foot pounds. I could turn it with fingertips. Definitely not a scary amount of torque there.


Strapping. I will post pictures later of how I am strapping it down.


Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

Correction on the above, height is without leveling feet and with the z motor cover removed

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[sportybob]

Hi Tipmann, if the monitor is bad you can plug in a desk top display into it. If the control has been updated at some point it will be OK. If it is original then the video would be 350 X 480 some newer LCD will not display that video mode.

I do have industrial LCD kits available. But for now just put a display on top of the cabinet.

call if you have questions.

sportybob