I know one should not really be surprised over the quality of some of the products coming out of China but
this simple rope hoist is sold all over the internet and local stores here carry the identical product.
If anyone has purchased one or thinking of it, there is a few issues with it I have found so far, but can easily be corrected.

These hoists claim 7:1 but are in fact only 6:1 due to the cleat not secured to the top Block, rendering the last pulley ineffective, (as can be seen from the pic) this can easily be corrected be reattaching to bottom of the top block to make it 7:1.
Second: After extended usage, I found it to be hard to operate due to binding and squealing of pulleys.
I thought maybe silicon grease on the sheave bolts would help
Removing the bolts I found that the pulley bolts were threaded all the way causing cutting of pulleys, actually had a thread indentation on them, it requires bolts partially threaded with straight shank for pulleys and just enough thread for the nuts.
Third: The rope is lousy quality and should be replaced with superior type.
Once these are done, it makes a handy hoist.
Max.

 

Sounds similar to the genuine antique axe: only the blade and the handle had been replaced .

 

Once these are done, it makes a handy hoist.

What is it rated for, 100lbs (50kg)? I'm assuming that the entire thing is diecast zinc alloy.

 

Believe it or not, out there on the internet they are rated for 1000lbs to 4000lbs! I have enough problem lifting a 25litre beer pail!
It is made of plated steel.
I can't believe the difference when fitting the correct shoulder bolts, that with the amended 7:1 mod, I am not surprised that many complain about sore hands when operating the original.
Max.

 

I have enough problem lifting a 25litre beer pail!

Hint: drink the beer first, then lifting the pail is much easier .

 

Another thing with both those hoists and most of the ratchet tie down straps sold, don't leave them exposed to sunlight. The materials aren't UV resistant and degrade very rapidly. But then again, maybe people in China only use tie downs and ropes indoors?

 

This reminds me of my experiences purchasing from Harbor Freight. Many of the HF products get bad reviews about quality and cut corners. I have learned to think of products from HF as "kits" and that makes them easier to be happy with. For example the bandsaw and mini-mill that they sell. You need to unbox them, dump the gearbox oil, finish cleaning the sand out of the castings, replace the plastic gears with metal ones, put real oil back in, and a few other things. They are not "ready to go" out of the box. If you look at it that way, as a kit with some disassembly and reassembly required, you can get a decent outcome for the price.

On a related note, if you happen to visit Taco Bell, the food is much more enjoyable if you don't try to consider it Mexican food. The tacos are not tacos; they are crunchy quasi-meat sandwiches with artificial cheese product sprinkled inside, and as such, are surprisingly tasty and good value dollar per pound of "food."

 

Another thing with both those hoists and most of the ratchet tie down straps sold, don't leave them exposed to sunlight. The materials aren't UV resistant and degrade very rapidly. But then again, maybe people in China only use tie downs and ropes indoors?

The rope it comes with is Nylon so it should be sun resistant, but hard on the hands and a cheap feel to it, but I changed it to a braided Polypropylene for more comfort etc.
Max.

 

The rope it comes with is Nylon so it should be sun resistant, but hard on the hands and a cheap feel to it, but I changed it to a braided Polypropylene for more comfort etc.
Max.

They must have updated these. The one I had came with a poly rope and soon got so degraded that it just kept breaking under even a light load.

 

Hint: drink the beer first, then lifting the pail is much easier .

Dunno about you, but after 25 litres I would be legless looong before that!
Max.

 

Ah, but then you wouldn't care two hoots whether you lifted the pail or not; assuming that you even remembered you intended to lift it .

 

Hi Max, I have had something very similar for a long time. Small multi wheel pulley set with about 72 feet of fairly thin cord on it. Have used it numerous times to lift things.Heads off engines, ride on mower, motorbike(when it laid down due to tiredness). It must be at least 25 years old by now and its still useable. The rope is rather small diameter and can be painful to hold a heavy weight but its ok with gloves.
I seem to remember it was supposed to be rated at some ridiculous weight but I never believed that so never stood under anything it held.Still got and will certainly be using it if needed.

 

Dunno about you, but after 25 litres I would be legless looong before that!
Max.

What happened to the original title? Forced to change it?

 

What happened to the original title? Forced to change it?

Never noticed it go changed, apparently someone didn't have the courtesy to mention it!
I guess dissing China is against the forum policy?
Max.

 

Hi Max, I have had something very similar for a long time. .
I seem to remember it was supposed to be rated at some ridiculous weight but I never believed that so never stood under anything it held..

Did yours have the end of rope/cleat error mentioned making it only 6:1 ?
Many out there being sold quote 4000lbs capacity, which means I would have to exert ~570Lbs on the rope in order to lift that kind of weight!
Max.

 

Let it be understood that "Chinese Engineering" spans a wide range of quality levels and the TS's complaint appears to have more to do with business practices than engineering.

 

TS's complaint appears to have more to do with business practices than engineering.

On the contrary, it was design errors e.g. these are sold all over the internet by many many vendors, and whoever produces these all show the primary misunderstanding of sheave hoist engineering principles.
All claim 7:1 ratio when in fact as delivered, is 6:1 as can easily be seen in the displayed picture. But easily corrected.
The other sheave bolts were also a grave error in construction causing a short operating life .
Max.

 

On the contrary, it was design errors e.g. these are sold all over the internet by many many vendors, and whoever produces these all show the primary misunderstanding of sheave hoist engineering principles.
All claim 7:1 ratio when in fact as delivered, is 6:1 as can easily be seen in the displayed picture. But easily corrected.
The other sheave bolts were also a grave error in construction causing a short operating life .

Max, if the vendors are proclaiming the 7:1 ratio, and they were told it's really a 6:1 by the customers or the manufacturer, the vendor is at fault for peddling a lie. I hope the customers are storming the vendor's websites and commenting on this error in hopes of limiting the income to those lying vendors.

Any idea on who actually manufactured these items? Ever think of making a video on youtube about this issue?

 

Max, if the vendors are proclaiming the 7:1 ratio, and they were told it's really a 6:1 by the customers or the manufacturer, the vendor is at fault for peddling a lie. I hope the customers are storming the vendor's websites and commenting on this error in hopes of limiting the income to those lying vendors.
Any idea on who actually manufactured these items? Ever think of making a video on youtube about this issue?

I have an Idea that many do not even realize it that the item has an error, there is 7 sheaves on it, which there should be of course for 7:1, but the incorrect position of the end cleat makes the 7th sheave ineffective, it is incapable of turning.
I should make a Utube video, I have posted feedback on a few sites already showing the error.
Someone is either making all of them or copying the original vendor.
I told one guy on Ebay who was selling from the U.S. and he just said 'Did I send you the wrong item?'
Max.