Why Is An Engine Hoist Called A Cherry Picker? What Does History Reveal?
I’ve always wondered about the name of a device, why a machine that lifts and moves heavy objects is called a cherry (a small delicious fruit) picker?
I didn’t find any logic to call a machine that is used for construction work and reach higher places a cherry picker. Cherry is little that takes a little effort to pick, so how can a cherry picker lift heavy objects? Then I decided to research it and found a good story behind it. And now I happily call this engine hoist a cherry picker. What is the story that satisfied me to do this? Interested in knowing why is an engine hoist called a cherry picker? Then scroll down and run with me.
What Is A Cherry Picker?
Before we know why is an engine hoist called a cherry picker, we need to know actually what this cherry picker is!
A cherry picker is a hoist that is used to lift heavy objects such as engines, transmission, or other large equipment from one location and then place it in another. Plumbers, construction workers, and mechanics have used it for centuries to lift heavy objects into the air.
It can be defined as a device with three or more telescoping arms that work in tandem to pick up something and move it to another location. The word “cherry” is derived from the fruit cherry. A cherry picker was originally called a “cherry-picker” because it would be used to pluck cherries from trees. The name has changed over time, and now it can refer to any type of hoist used for lifting heavy objects.
Why is An Engine Hoist Called a Cherry Picker?
Back in 1994, it’s a long time; First, this engine hoist was designed initially for picking cherries off of trees. From there till now, an engine hoist is called a cherry picker. Let’s not drag anymore and know the story behind it.
In 1944, an 11-year-old boy named Jay Eitel was picking cherries during his school holidays, but he became immensely frustrated with the slow picking. Then he realized that a machine could pick a thousand cherries in an hour. This led to the implementation of an engine hoist for cherry-picking. He did hard work, and the result is we are using this to complete our work. With our own hands, we could never pick up something so heavy, but by maintaining this machine with our hands, without putting in the hard effort today, we can lift any heavy things without touching them.
This device became very popular, especially during the early 1950s and ’60 s when most farmers had young children who spent their school holidays struggling with the heavy picker. As a result, more cherry-picking machines were bought to help them out of their busy hobbies. Due to their popularity, the engine hoist became the best-known name for this device.
How Cherry Picker Becomes an Engine Hoist?
After two decades, John L. came into the story and improved the design, he did it so finely that there were no similarities between a cherry picker and an engine hoist. But as this machine was built based on that cherry-picking idea, still we call it a cherry picker.
The modern use of the engine hoist is still quite prominent. Not only it works for picking up and placing heavy loads but also used in gantry telehandler systems to perform their duties safely with secure clamping without any obstruction like railings or other solid objects that might break when the hook is pulled across the side of a truck. That’s why a cherry picker is also known as a gantry crane, or aerial crane, or engine hoist.
How does a Cherry Picker Works?
Engine hoist works by pulling down and lifting the load, sometimes up to 6 tons on the hook & being a larger truck than intended, but that’s life! To reach higher places, cherry pickers use a special forklift that reaches high places.
A forklift is one kind of scissor lift that allows the operator to pick up objects or materials from above. The load is jacked down by a crane (usually hydraulic) in order to save expensive fuel and then raised again.
The operator may lift the item on the forklift directly into position over which they will set their equipment. One typically uses what’s called an air cushion truck as one of their special equipment when lifting heavy loads. It’s made to bear a crane load just as we would with our own forklift.
In conclusion, an “engine hoist” is a device for pulling an engine out of a vehicle. Engines are heavy, and when a vehicle owner takes his car to get repaired, the mechanic usually needs some way to lift the engine out of the car to perform the work. The engine hoist is attached to the underside of the car and uses cables to lift the engine clear off the ground. This video shows how it works.
