Milling machine advice

[taysidedragon]

I'm going to transfer a Naerok RDM350M Milling machine from my father's workshop up to mine. It's a heavy piece of kit and access is restricted so lifting gear is not an option.
A manual I found for it shows it being delivered/moved in one assembly. It must be possible to partly dismantle it for ease of transport and for maintenance. I tried to remove the main head assembly from the vertical column last time I was there but it would not lift past a certain point. I had removed the motor and the column clamp bolts but couldn't see anything else preventing the assembly from lifting off. Am I missing something, or do I lift the head assembly and column off the base plate together?
Any advice from our engineering experts would be greatly appreciated.
Manual pages attached.

[Orcade-Ian]

Hi Gareth,
The head lift mech works on a rack and pinion, so when you tried lifting it off did the pinion come to the top end of the rack and perhaps stop there?  Is the external rack bolted to the base casting in some way?  If so, that would need to be undone and the head lifted off the column complete with rack and reassembled the same way.  Otherwise with as much removed as possible, is it still too heavy for a 2 man lift down onto a trolley or sack truck?

Ian

[taysidedragon]

The rack and pinion don't go all the way to the top of the column. The head assembly is bolted to the top of the column, the rack is low down on the column and the vertical adjustment moves the whole column up and down through a hole in the baseplate.
I haven't found a total weight for the whole machine yet, but I think that it's too heavy for a 2 man lift. I might have to try it though.

[Orcade-Ian]

So will the head and column together pull out from the baseplate?  Looks a great machine - do you have a selection of cutters and how are they fixed?  I have some stuff here.
Ian
Just seen the other detail drawing - can you just unbolt the 4 bolts from the flange (number 40) and lift all the lot off the base casting?

[taysidedragon]

Yes Ian. It looks like I can just unbolt the casting no. 40 and lift off all above.
It'll be very top heavy so I'll get a helper to hold it steady.

There are lots of tools in the cabinet below so I should be ok thanks. 👍

[taysidedragon]

This is the beast in the flesh.

[Orcade-Ian]

Certainly a great addition to any workshop.  Is there anything strong enough in the roof structure above which could have a rope lashed around it and the head for safety's sake?  As it's now without the motor, I would think it's still a 2 man job (oh sorry, 2 person job!) but quite doable.

Ian

[taysidedragon]

Ian, the roof has been insulated and boarded so no handy beams to loop anything over. I'll have a better look next time I'm there to see if I can rig something up. 👍