Moving large rocks


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Old 02-25-07, 11:57 AM
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Moving large rocks

I apologize in advance if this topic has been dealt with before. I did a perfuntory search but found nothing that specifically addressed my urge to move large ( 400+ lbs) stones from the back of my property to the future new wall I have planned for the lower drive.

I have been building new stone walls on my property for 15 years. It is not out of necessity but because I can. I enjoy it. Up until recently the largest stones I have used top out at around 150 to 200 lbs. Recently I re-claimed some property from the jungle here in Maine and discovered the missing granite foundation pieces from the original farmhouse that used to sit here. They would be perfect for the next wall building phase. Well just about any rock is perfect I guess. These are just more perfect than the normal field stone I dig up around here on a regular basis.

Anyway, to the point. I want to move them myself without any outside help or hired equipment. Any advice or tricks you folks might have in your bag o tricks would be much appreciated. I have to move them about 100 yards or so.

And also, is there not a formula to figure the weight of large stone by measuring their dimensions?
 
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Old 02-25-07, 06:03 PM
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I assume you don't have a skid loader? My grandpa used to have a pickup that he used to lift and move heavy things. He welded up a pole in back that had an arm on it. (kind of looked like a hangman's scaffold). It had a hand winch and steel cable. He could drive next to the object, hook onto it, turn the crank, lift it up, then rotate the arm 180 degrees and swing it into the back of the pickup. If you know how to weld maybe that's a contraption you could make. Kind of like an engine hoist on wheels.
 
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Old 02-25-07, 06:23 PM
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Going by the specific gravity of granite, a cubic foot should weigh around 165 pounds.
 
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Old 02-25-07, 06:39 PM
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Originally Posted by XSleeper
I assume you don't have a skid loader? My grandpa used to have a pickup that he used to lift and move heavy things. He welded up a pole in back that had an arm on it. (kind of looked like a hangman's scaffold). It had a hand winch and steel cable. He could drive next to the object, hook onto it, turn the crank, lift it up, then rotate the arm 180 degrees and swing it into the back of the pickup. If you know how to weld maybe that's a contraption you could make. Kind of like an engine hoist on wheels.
Yeah, my neighbor rigged up something like that. But he sold the truck. What I use now is a hand winch attached to a homemade trailer. And I also use a skid I made from some trees I took down. The problem is I am not sure if this equipment will be up to handling the weight of the large granite foundation stones I found. If chfite's calculation is close, these rocks weigh more than 400 lbs. Closer to 1200 lbs using his 165 lbs/cu ft figure.

Thanks guys.
 
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Old 03-21-07, 09:45 AM
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we used tree ball carts to move most our boulders for landscaping. Some of the bigger ones tended to take 2 people for wieght but it was fairly easy. If you have a general understanding of leverage you can pry them up fairly easy with a stack of logs/boards to rest the a pry bar on. we use a pry bar used for breaking up concrete pads and you can buy at any local improvement store. Obviously, if you have a tractor with a bucket or skid steer with forks or bucket that would be the easiest way.
 
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Old 04-01-07, 12:21 AM
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Smile About to move the rock !

Becaust you use the rock for stone wall , so I think it's a better way for you that you split it into two or more pieces . As long as they are fit for building wall .
If you want to judag the weight throught its dimension , i think it's hard to be accurate . Each stone has its density . Weight= dimension *density .

My pleasure
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