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Lifting Heavy Objects


NJW
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I decided to post this after reading comments on needing roadies to carry 8x10 cabinets, and someone commenting on how their Ashdown 8x10 required a 3 man lift. You should be able to lift these cabs easily with 2 men.

I don't know if this is obvious or not, but lifting items much larger than 8x10's is a simple task with a simple set of structured guidelines on how to lift. These are things I routinely need to know when working as crew for PA companies, and I thought it would be useful here. It mostly applies to things which are fully flightcased, but in the case of cabs, extra care should be taken to make sure the 'grill' side ends up where you want it.

Right. Lets lift an 8x10 onto a high surface, 1.5 metres up, from the floor. Place the cab with the grill side facing AWAY from the surface we are lifting it onto. Each person lifting stands at one side of the cab. Make sure the cab is at least a cab-length away from the ledge, as we are going to tip it head first towards the floor. The person standing at the right hand side of the cab (assuming we are looking towards the grill) should place their LEFT hand towards the bottom of the cab, and their right hand should be towards the top of the cab. Try and space this evenly so the weight of the cab will be evenly distributed. The person on the left puts their right hand towards the bottom, left towards the top. Ok, now, begin to tilt the cab back, and as it drops, you want to place your 'top' hands in their positions and allow it to slowly tip. When it's tipped to a suitable angle, both people should then place their 'bottom' hands in their position and lift the bottom end of the cab into the air. You are now holding an 8x10, face up with the speakers pointing at the ceiling. You should be surprised at how little it weights!




Now, we are going to use the motion of lifting the bottom end UP, and move towards the ledge whilst still lifting the bottom end and place the TOP of the cab down on the ledge we are lifting onto. Once the top is placed down, keep tilting the cab upwards, so it is standing upside down on its top with the grill facing inwards, towards the stage. With some bass cabinets you have to be careful with this as the footprint of the top of the cab is smaller due to the angled part where the handle is attached. However, it should stand with no problem.

Now, both men climb onto the stage, and do the same procedure by tipping the cab and again turning it 180 degrees and ending on its correct 'bottom'. The user can then wheel it to the desired location. When you've practised it, this procedure is easier on the back, AND less time consuming, than lifting most guitar heads.

Loading out of a lorry/van/off a stage uses the same principles. Wheel your cab to the edge of the stage. Stand on the floor below, and tip the cab, slowly lowering it until it is horizontal. Then, when you have it horizontal and still, simply lower it so its head first on the floor, and then do the turning procedure again.

This is the same technique we use for large 2x18's and full range PA cabs which are larger still than an 8x10, and we only ever need 2 men.

The hard thing is lifting heavy items that are SMALL!

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