engine hoist & straps

["George Graham" <georgergraham@zzzzzzzzzzz>]

Hi Edie,
Just a few tips to pass on.
If your torso , or any piece does not have a good shape for hooking straps
to, its sometime safer to lay the piece down, and use two straps to safely
pick it up and not worry about the straps slipping off. As was said , having
someone working with you is a must, especially when you are unfamiliar with
doing this kind of stuff.
I always keep a couple of  8" wood beams (4'long), and some thick rugs handy
when moving and laying down stone. For example, put a rug on the floor, then
put the wood on the rug, then cover the wood with another rug. Then if you
lay a tall piece of stone down across the wood so its balanced, you can
easily slip straps or rope around the ends. Its much easier to stand up a
stone from this position , rather then picking up from the floor. Just pick
up (with your helper) the top end. The bottom is already protected by the
floor rug.
I really like the advice given to watch out for moving a piece across the
studio when is hanging from the hoist.  Its a lot safer and frankly easier
to use the hoist to put the work on a 4 wheeled dolly, or just set it down
and use a hand truck with that rug for protection. I like to use a tie down
strap , or rope, to tie the piece to the hand truck so it can't tip off .
Try to use the weight and balance of the stone to help yourself. With a
little experience you'll be moving quarry blocks around like the egyptians!
Be careful
George Graham