It is suggested to often inspect the front end of your lift truck as part of your pre-shift or daily inspection, in order to help prevent expensive lift truck repairs. By catching any problems ahead of time or as they occur, you can also help avoid damage to any kind of cargo as well. The following includes several of the common guidelines on what particular things to inspect during frequent inspections of your material handling fleet.
Forks
Regularly inspecting the forks is important because if these are worn out or cracked, they might fail without warning. Any type of fork damage means that your lift truck should immediately be removed from service until it is safe and repaired once again. Visually check your forks for any noticeable signs of wear or damage. If the cracks run deeper than on the surface, replace them. Any kind of wear on the forks beyond 10 percent is another indication that you must replace the forks.
Mast
Ideally, the mast should tilt back and forward and be able to smoothly move down and up. If you find that the sliding surfaces are binding, you might have to grease the mast strip sliding surfaces as well as their fittings. On the inner mast there is a fitting situated on every side. The lift bracket side rollers are a different lubrication point and there is also one on each side roller. Once the lubricating has been done, tilt it forward and backward and also lower and raise the mast several times in order to make certain that the lubricant is worked correctly into the fittings.
Tilt Cylinders
Uncontrolled mast movement could be caused by oil leakage; therefore, your inspection should include checking for oil leaks and for damage. Whether the leaks are located inside of the cylinder or are external, the end result may be loss of fluid and cylinder drift. If there are any signs of damage or leaks, you might need to replace the entire cylinder assembly, or just the seals.
Chains
The mast chains need to be checked to see if they are being stretched beyond their acceptable limits. What's more, check the chain wear guage or check the chains for indications of damage. If there is wear beyond 2 percent, replace the chain. Also replace it if the chain seems kinked or rusted. Both the chain rollers and the sheave bearings must also be checked for indications of wear.
Normally, mast lift chains wear at the pin-to-link connections. If you notice wear, you can experience chain failure. This could end up damaging front end parts or even the product. If you do not have time on hand to carry out frequent fleet inspections or if you need help determining what precisely to check on your lift trucks, simply call your local lift truck dealer. Their skilled service technicians would help your perform PM or planned maintenance checks according to your scheduling and application needs.