Chain Hoists - How they work - Differential - Chain Fall - Lever/Roller Chain 

I also love vintage tools and machines.

I am a chain hoist nerd too. I own 6, but a Coffing, Yale and H.O.K. each need repair. I set up a 3 ton gantry and I was intending to use my 2 ton H.O.K. and matching trolley until I stumbled on a JET 3 ton and matching trolley for $150. I was unprepared for the exquisite condition of the JETs. They were manufactured in the mid 1970's, but were never uncrated. They were NIB flawless condition. I was too sissyfied to tolerate the slow 3 ton operating speed, being accustomed to powered hoists at work, so I set up a 1 ton hoist on a parallel trolley for lighter loads and faster operation. This 1 ton hoist was my grandfather's and was likely hung in his shed in the 1920's. It is the endless chain type like you demonstrated. I have few tools from my grandfather, but this hoist now gets routine use. My gantry is commercial built and just clears my 16'+ shop ceiling. The gantry was never loved at work and saw virtually no use. I was able to nab it at the right moment for almost no cost. I would love to add a jib hoist in the shop, but the gantry suffices and does add portability. I don't own a loader or own a forklift. I don't understand how folk get by without some hoisting equipment. I built my shop as a retirement present for my hobby pleasure. I included a 14k #, 2 post vehicle lift. This lift would lift all of our family loaded service trucks, but one of my boys just added a larger cab and sevice body truck to his fleet that might exceed the lift capacity when loaded. Hoists are magnets to small children. It is rare that my small grands don't play on the chain hoists when they are in my shop. I played on my grandfather's. It was why I rescued it from the shed when I cleared out my grandmother's estate in the late 1980's. Two of my sons each housed and used it for awhile. It now has a place of honor in my shop. I expect that one of my grands will repurpose it again when my shop is dispersed. My grandfather likely purchased this hoist second hand. Mine has no makers mark or brand on the castings. I cannot be certain of its history, but it was already significantly rusty when I first played on it around 1960. It sports paint now, but was most likely not originally painted. Vises and presses are other personal fetishes. I have sons that are even more afflicted with quality vise collection and use than me. I just restored a 50 ton H frame press with a 3 HP wet kit. It is a dandy and so new to me that it hasn't run a real press job yet. It was supposed to have a bad hydraulic pump, but in testing it I unknowingly bowed 1 7/8" thick test steel 1/2" before I realized that it was pressing. That proved that the pump was good enough to warrant other restorative repairs.