How to set up your own optical tables
with only three people in less than ten hours!

We had some bad experiences with our local physical plant in setting up some optical tables years ago which led us to purchase what equipment we didn't already have for setting up optical tables than can weigh more than a ton each.

Equipment list:

    ü   Gantry crane (2 ton capacity) with chain hoist
    ü   Mule
    ü   (2) 6 foot, (2) 8 foot, and (2) ten foot straps with loops at each end.  4000 pound capacity minimum.
    ü   Engine Hoist
    ü   two heavy duty four wheel dollies for each table
    ü   "come along" straps, two per table
    ü   lengths of chain
    ü   plenty of 4' by 8' particle board sheets
    ü   lots of 2 by 10 boards about four feet long
    ü   assorted tools including snips and pry bars

Total cost of all this stuff was about $2500.   But we have used it to set up two table systems and it is only about 3% of the cost of the tables! 

The boards we got at our local hardware store, and the heavy equipment we ordered from Grainger

Our plan is to set up three tables in a "T" configuration as shown in the diagram below.  The order we set the tables up is given by the numbers.

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1)    The optical tables usually arrive on a truck laying flat.   Getting them off either requires a forklift or several people with "mules" (a big pry bar on wheels) and some heavy duty dollies.  You lift them onto the dollies using the mule and wheel them under the gantry crane.  Put a strap around them and hoist them so they are standing on end and put a dolly under each end.  Unfortunately I didn't get pictures of this process.   It will become clear from the description of setting up the tables below though.

2)     Once you get your tables on edge and strapped tightly to the dollies with the come-alongs you wheel them to your lab.  The wheels will put grooves in the floor so we made a "road" with the sheets of particle board.

Here is a photo of the empty lab with the 4 by 8 sheets of particle board along the wall on the left.

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3)    Now set up the gantry crane in the lab where the tables are going to go.  You need a pretty high ceiling.  We used an engine hoist to set up the gantry crane since the I beam is really heavy.   This is shown in the photo below.  The gantry crane is in three pieces on the floor.

Michelle Castle, Freshman Research Scholar, hangs a plumb-bob from the ceiling to mark the location of the tables.

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The assembled crane ready to set up tables  You can see the particle board road on the floor we use to protect the floor tiles.

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4)      Wheel the table under the crane, put a strap around it, undo the come-alongs and lift it off the dollies.  You have to be careful to make sure the table in centered in the strap which is done mainly by trial and error.  We lowered in onto some 2 by 10 boards so we don't pinch the strap.   Then you can use pry bars to take the wooden crate off the table. 

Here we are attaching the hoist hook to the strap in preparation for lifting the table.   I am adjusting the strap,
Roger McGowan in behind the table, and John Madison is stepping over the dolly.

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5)    The next step is to lower the tables.   We did this successfully with table #1 and are ready to lower table #2.  The photo below shows the crane over the table prior to strapping.  Table #3 is visible to the right of the picture strapped to the dollies with a come along strap.

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6)    Now comes the tricky part.  You hoist table until it is just lifted off the floor, then lower it while you push the top of the table in the direction you want this to go.  Make sure the wheels of your crane are locked and don't stand near the table for safety!  We do this by attaching a rope to the hoist which can move horizontally along the I beam.  By slowly lowering the table while one person stands outside the crane and pulls on the rope it is fairly easy to get the table tilted.   This is shown below.

Here Kati McClatchey is pulling the rope to get the table to tilt.  The weight is supported by the
crane and Kati is standing outside the crane in case anything slips!

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7)     Here is the table lowered most of the way.  Make sure you put some 2 by 10 boards under the table to rest on or you will never get the strap out.  This is shown below.

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8)    Now that we have tables #1 and #2 down we are ready to start on table #3.  Note we haven't lifted any of the tables up on their legs yet.   Positioning of the tables isn't too critical at this stage- leave plenty of room between the tables to maneuver the crane.

Here John Madison is uncrating table #3 in preparation for lowering it into place.

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This is me posing as table #3 is lowered into place.   If you look at the bottom of the picture, you  will see the strap has broken one of the boards of the crate.   This sounds awful and will cause the table to jump a little, but isn't dangerous.

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9)    The most important thing here is safety!   Make sure you know what you are doing and think through every step.  NEVER get under the tables or between the table and the gantry crane while you are lowering a table.   If something slips it can kill you!

Little Billy the Obnoxious Freshman thought he knew what he was doing!  Oops.   Little Billy was wrong. 
Don't be a Billy!  Kati and John look on in horror!

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10)    Now we are ready to set up the tables.   We start with table #3 since both other tables couple to it.  Get your table legs uncrated. 

Here Michelle and Justin Waits help me uncrate the legs.

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