Forklift Forks AKA, Forklift Tines or Forklift Blades
Good high quality Forks are one of the most essential parts of your forklift because they are the link between the forklift itself and the load that is being lifted; this is why we only supply high quality industrial grade Carbon Boron Steel Forks from British or European Manufacturers.
Boron Steel is Tough and hard-wearing:
Boron steels are ideal where through hardening is important in achieving consistent wear performance. They are medium carbon steels with the addition of boron to give the hardenability equivalent to higher carbon steels. Boron steels attain improved levels of toughness compared to high carbon steels.
This gives our Forklift Fork customers strength for added safety, and durability for increased usage life, and so better value for money.
However over time and usage all Forks will need replacing, and it is vitally important for obvious safety reasons to do so, and in a timely manner (Your forklift will fail its LOLER if your Forks are too badly worn/damaged, bent or at different angles, or are not a matching pair). One of the most common reason for Forks causing a forklift to fail its LOLER is wear at the heel; if your forks are 10% or more worn at the heel then they need replacing. This is essential to help prevent accidents that could result in personal injury and/or product damage, both of which are costly.
We offer a wide selection of Forks on our website:
https://www.liftruck.co.uk/shop/forklift-forks/forklift-forks.html
We can even have specialist Forks manufactured in the UK for our customers.
So with so many different options, how do you know what are the right Forks for your forklift?
As with all equipment used in Material and Manual Handling we always recommend that customers conduct their own Health & Safety Risk Assessment, and selecting the correct forklift and Fork combination for their application should be a part of this.
When people call us to order Forks they often know or measure the dimensions of their existing forks and replace like for like.
Other customers often tell us the make and model of their forklift, unfortunately this does not tell us the Forks that they need, because two people can buy the same make and model forklift but at the point of order select two different specifications of Forks, based on the forklifts intended application.
For those that are not 100% sure of the Forks they need there are size selection and measurement guides on our Forklift Fork page above, on the “INFORMATION” tab.
Most forklift users have ITA style Forks; these are the ones that tend to have a pin at the top of the forks that can be lifted to adjust the position of the forks along the carriage, and the carriage that they connect to tends to be “castleated” (have little ridges at the top t, which look like those on the top of a castle). A key consideration is the class required. This refers to the height from top to bottom of the carriage of your forklift (the rectangular plate that the forks attach to). This is important because the top and bottom hooks on the back or your forks need to fit your forklifts’ carriage. Examples for Forklift Fork Classes can be seen below:
Forklift truck forks are mounted on a carriage which can be approx. 400mm, 500mm or 610mm deep. These are known respectively as Class 2, 3 or 4 carriages and are common to 95% of all industrial forklifts. The final dimension is fork drop which is measured from the inside of the lower fork mounting to the underside of the fork. See the picture below.
[caption id="attachment_4488" align="alignnone" width="300"] Fork Guide[/caption]
Below is an example of a Forklift Fork Specification:Example
To explain the part numbers of the forklift forks above e.g. 150-060-1200-4AWidth (150mm) - Thickness (60mm) - Length (1200mm) - Fork carriage and fork drop (4A)
If you have any queries or questions regarding Forks or any other Forklift related questions please don't hesitate to contact us on 0800 458 8025. All of our products can be found on our website www.liftruck.co.uk or you can email us at info@liftruck.co.uk
