Forklift Components in More Detail
There are many components that make up a lift truck. The lift truck's key components consist of the truck frame, the engine components, the overhead guard, the tilt cylinders and the wheels. Moreover, a forklift consists of a variety of attachments. All the components making up a lift truck are of equal importance since they work together to make the equipment's operation possible. The following paragraphs describe a few of the lift truck parts in detail.
The Overhead Guard - this guard forms the forklift truck's metal roof. It sits above the cab area and protects the machine operator whilst he or she is sitting and driving. The overhead guard makes sure 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 some models.
The Mast - the mast is a vertical assembly made of interlocking rails and mounted either to the front axle or the forklift frame. The mast provides lateral stability and enables the forks to move up and down. The interlocking rails may either have rollers or bushings as guides. There are a couple of ways the mast may 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 various other types of attachments are mounted to the carriage. The carriage is connected to the mast directly to the hydraulic cylinder or it is connected by chains. In order to allow the forks to be lowered and raised, the carriage can have either bushings or rollers to guide it in the interlocking mast rails.
Load Back Rest - a back rest is a metal rack which keeps a load from falling backwards while the carriage is raised to its full height. The back rest is either bolted or welded on to the carriage.
Lift Truck Attachments - There are many attachments that can be fixed directly to the lift truck's carriage. Forks are the most common type of attachment. Also, there are rollers, rotators, L-shaped members, pole handlers, roll clamps and so forth. These different attachments are very helpful for moving different kinds of loads.