Forklift Components in More Detail
There are numerous components that make up a lift truck. The lift truck's major parts include the truck frame, the engine parts, the overhead guard, the tilt cylinders and the wheels. In addition, a forklift has different types of attachments. All the components making up a lift truck are all essential because they work together to make the machine's operation possible. The subsequent paragraphs describe in detail a few of the lift truck parts.
The Overhead Guard - this guard forms the forklift truck's metal roof. It sits on top of the cab area and protects the machinery operator while he or she is sitting and driving. The overhead guard ensures that nothing falling from above onto the truck will damage the controls inside the cab or harm the driver. The overhead guard is vital to the frame assembly on various units.
The Mast - the mast is a vertical assembly made of interlocking rails and mounted either to the forklift frame or the front axle. The mast provides lateral stability and allows the forks to move upwards and downwards. The interlocking rails could either have rollers or bushings as guides. There are a couple of ways the mast could be operated: chain operated with motive power provided by a hydraulic motor or hydraulically by one or more hydraulic cylinders.
Forklift Carriage - the forks and other kinds of attachments are mounted to the carriage. The carriage is attached to the mast directly to the hydraulic cylinder or it is attached by chains. To allow the forks to be raised and lowered, the carriage could have either bushings or rollers to guide it in the interlocking mast rails.
Load Back Rest - When the carriage is raised to full height, there is a back rest made of metal which prevents a load from falling backwards. The back rest is either welded or bolted on to the carriage.
Forklift Attachments - a variety of attachments could be fixed to the front of the lift truck. The most common type of attachment is forks. Moreover, there are rollers, rotators, L-shaped members, roll clamps, pole handlers and so on. These various attachments are useful for transporting different types of loads.