Anyone have a gantry crane? Need to move 600lb pumpkin

A suggestion, dig a hole next to the pumpkin large enough to place a a few 2" x 8" x 4' on the ground.  Place a floor or transmission jack on the boards.  Place a pallet on top of the jack, now place a a blue poly tarp on the pallet. secure the pallet to the jack.  Roll said monster pumpkin on top of the pallet.

Jack the pumpkin up as high as possible.  now using use cribbing (orther boards/blocks of wood) stabilize the load.  relieve the pressure on the jack.  if it is not high enough to get in to the back of the truck,   place more boards under the jack to raise it higher.

Repeat. Once it is high enough, pull the blue poly tarp with pumpkin on it on to the truck bed and secure it.  To get it out, do the same thing.

While this sounds hokey, I once read an article in National Geographic where India placed there first Nuclear Reactor, back in the 60's into, doing essentially the same thing.  In fire/EMS we use cribage to stabilize large loads all the time.  Blue poly tarps are how I have gotten more than a few big boys out of houses.

Reading this does sound a little "hokey" (exactly the word I'd use).  I used this method (minus the hole digging) to get a V8 engine off a pallet and into the back of a truck by myself.  Dicey operation but it works

Very cool punkin ya got there.

The perfect jack is a set of air bags but I doubt the local Fire Department will loan you those.

You might be a redneck if.........

chuckin pumpkin!!  (i hate that show!) 

Make a tripod with three 16' 4x4s. Attach a good come along in the center and go to town. Cheap portable and works well for big rocks as well.

-Eliot

just paint it like an uni and call bigjim