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old

03-20-2007 11:38:35




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I have a mobile home I-beam that has a bow to it. I want to use it for rebuilding my old/new hay barn. I need to figure out what might be the best/easy way to strighten it out. I have been thinking about laying it on a couple blocks of wood and then driveing one of my tractors on to it and leave it for a few hours. Its 14 foot long and has about a 18-24 bow in the center. What do you guys think?
Thanks
I doesn't need to be 100% just close since it will be used to hold the roof trusses and will sit on up rights spaced 7 foot apart.

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A big tree???

03-20-2007 18:47:59




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
take two tractors on each end of the beam, drive up side of a big ol tree and block the wheels on the one tractor, and pull the other end with the other tractor. maybe a RR iron corner post might hold up too? Bigger tractor the better, but should not take much.



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msb

03-20-2007 15:13:56




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
Weld a bead on the side you want to pull. That is how they take the natural bow out of beams before they build house trailers on top of the beams.



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old

03-20-2007 15:23:55




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 Re: How to in reply to msb, 03-20-2007 15:13:56  
This bow was to big to do that to it. I did the tractor and wood block thing and got it good enough for what I need it for. Its not 100% but shoot the building isn't either since its being built out of all scrap/salvage stuff any how. Nice thing about building this way when they look at it for taxes they see something that looks old as the hills so they don't put much if any tax on it

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Howard H.

03-20-2007 14:04:40




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  

Just get it on flat ground and park a tractor over the bow. Then use a jack to press most of the bow out.

You can also use wood blocks under the high spots on the opposite side of the bow and drive up on it with a tractor tire to straighten it.

I've straightened two railroad rails that a hired hand bent by dragging up a bunch of wet soil in the middle of. It really was a lot easier than I expected.

In fact, depending on how heavy your tractor is, you may have to really watch over-correcting. I was using a 4840 JD with a pretty good rack of weights on the front end on the railroad iron.

Howard

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old

03-20-2007 14:18:19




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 Re: How to in reply to Howard H., 03-20-2007 14:04:40  
I figure on useing my ford 841 with loader on it. It has the rear tires full of fluid. If that one doesn't work I figured on my case 930 but I figure that would be way to heavy since its around 8500lbs and one of the rear tires is full of fluid and the rear tires on it are 23.1X26s so it has to be a very heavy tire



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RVS

03-20-2007 13:08:04




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
Old if you have another beam that is stronger than the one that bent you might try laying the bent one on top of the other one than tie each end down with a chain and put a bottle jack in the middle where the bend is and jack it up. Not seeing the way the beam is bent ,this might not work. be carefull that the jack doesn't kick out. I have straightened a couple of truck frames this way,



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old

03-20-2007 14:21:10




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 Re: How to in reply to RVS, 03-20-2007 13:08:04  
Well the way its bent is this. Just look up at the moon when its a new moon and thats about what it looks like. Thats why I figure the tractor would do the job. I'll know here in a little if I ever get off my butt and do it that is. Been cold and wet here today so I haven't got out to do much for some reason LOL

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IH2444

03-20-2007 12:30:35




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
Mobile home beams are very weak unless braced from side to side. They will fold over and up on ya if you don't watch it.



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old

03-20-2007 12:38:25




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 Re: How to in reply to IH2444, 03-20-2007 12:30:35  
Don't know about that. I have 2 of them that span 20 foot in my shop and I have a 3 ton chain hoist on them and lift tractors all the time with the hoist and never had any problems and have been useing them for 20 plus years. Guess you have just worked with the newer light weight ones. Shoot most of my buildings are made from them and they have been here for that 20 or so years also. Plus the way I'm useing them how weak of strong they are will not matter since they are only there to tie things togeather not hold any weight

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JMS/MN

03-20-2007 12:21:33




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
Chain each end to a tractor. Pull it sideways with another tractor untill it's straight.



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Eric in IL

03-20-2007 12:08:22




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
I don't know which direction it is bowed, but if it is bowed from the side maybe you could torch cut several evenly spaced (maybe 18 inches apart) slots from the outer edge to the center web of the beam. It would be easier to straighten, then weld the cuts up after it is straight. If you cut the slots on the "long" side of the beam they would close up as it was straightened. May or may not work, but I am thinking you are going to wish that tractor was alot heavier when you start trying to bend it back to straight.

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Wyokid

03-20-2007 11:51:05




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
You can also do it with a rosebud torch. Heat the top of the bowed area up to just below where it starts to turn red and the wipe with wet rags. The heated steel will shrink and start to pull down. then do the botton side of the bow. do small areas, amazing how much kink you can pull out of apiece of steel.



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old

03-20-2007 11:56:56




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 Re: How to in reply to Wyokid, 03-20-2007 11:51:05  
If it was short I would agree with you but this is 14 foot long and 10 inches wide so theres no way in the world I could even think about heating it up hot enough to do that. That works well for small stuff but thins is just plain to big



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Wyokid

03-20-2007 12:55:02




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:56:56  
Not real dependendent on steel size to make this way work. Don't have to heat the whole thing up a once just small sections at a time. When I worked in the oil patch we had a 143' drilling mast that had been through a fire (not pretty). Had an old ironworker/drilling had that was tasked to straighten it out. When he got done you could have used it as a straight edge, used truck loads (literally) of oxy and acety but that was a fraction of the cost of a new mast.

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old

03-20-2007 14:14:57




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 Re: How to in reply to Wyokid, 03-20-2007 12:55:02  
Thats also part of the problem heating it would cost way to much to make it work out. $70 per bottle for acetlene is just to much plus I don't have a rose bud either.



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135 Fan

03-20-2007 15:12:51




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 14:14:57  
Old, maybe you could rent a rosebud and use propane instead of acetylene? When I used to build large oilfield skids up to 10 tons we always had to straighten them when finished. This was even after the checker plate was put on. We flipped them over so the bow was up and put small blocks under the 4 corners. Then we heated only where the larger cross members went across. Usually only in about 3 spots. They were heated just till you could start to see the steel turn orange. Very rarely did we have to use a wet rag to cool it more but sometimes. Drilling rigs are also straightened this way but do need faster cooling with water more often. I would try driving on it with a tractor first but put a block under the bow so it doesn't over correct. If you need to go more use progressively smaller blocks. You shouldn't have to leave the tractor sitting on it. If it's going to move it will. The only thing is that you might have to push it slightly past straight so it will spring back to straight position. When you block the ends to straighten you can move them closer or further together depending on where the bow is. Another thing you could try would be to put a hydraulic jack on the bow and under the back of the tractor. This way you could monitor how much it is straightening without going to far. It sounds like you're doing better. Good to hear. Dave

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old

03-20-2007 15:27:22




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 Re: How to in reply to 135 Fan, 03-20-2007 15:12:51  
I always get by just theres times when I hurt enough I don't get much done. Been working on this hay barn now for about a month and I still don't have any of the roof up. Oh well it will get done maybe by this time next year. LOL. When done it will be 20X35 foot and about 20 foot tall in the center.



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Allan In NE

03-20-2007 11:44:52




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 Re: How to in reply to old, 03-20-2007 11:38:35  
I do that all the time. Always straightening this or that by crawlin' up on it with a tractor tire.

You'd don't have to leave it set either; either it will or it won't.

Allan



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Brian in NY

03-20-2007 12:00:22




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 Re: How to in reply to Allan In NE, 03-20-2007 11:44:52  
Allan,

I hear you there.....problem is that I have done it a time or two unintentionally, and bent things that I had to bend back (oops...darned short fixed tongues)



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