This is the complete guide to forklift forks.
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We&#;ve put together everything you need to know about them, including:
What the standard forklift fork dimensions are
How forks are classified
The different types of forklift forks
How to inspect forklift forks
Let&#;s dive in!
Quick Summary
Don&#;t have time to read the entire article? Here&#;s a quick summary of the main points:
What Are the Dimensions of Forklift Forks?
Forklift fork dimensions are expressed in the order of width (W) x thickness (T) x length (L).
For example, 1 ½&#; x 4&#; x 42&#; forks are a common forklift fork size.
A forklift&#;s fork thickness can be measured along the shank.
What is a fork shank?
Also called the &#;shaft,&#; a fork shank is the vertical part of the fork.
A shank has 4 surfaces:
The most common forklift fork thickness is 1 ½ inches.
Other common fork thicknesses include:
Choosing the proper fork thickness comes down to the forklift&#;s capacity and the amount of weight it&#;ll be lifting.
Additionally, you can go thicker or thinner to compensate for more or less fork width to accommodate different loads.
For example, if you can only use 4-inch wide forks but need to maintain a higher weight capacity, you can increase the fork thickness.
Width is the measure of the fork along the shank face or blade at its widest point.
The width of a forklift fork depends on its class.
For Class II forks, the standard forklift fork width is usually 4 inches.
Other fork widths include:
Some jobs may need wider or narrower forks depending on the application.
The width of a telehandler fork depends on its capacity and model.
A 5,500 lb. capacity Genie telehandler (one of the most common models) uses 4-inch wide forks, in both heavy-duty and pallet fork styles.
A 10,000 lb. capacity JLG telehandler (a common model in construction) uses 4-, 5-, or 6-inch pallet forks and 6- or 7-inch lumber forks.
A fork&#;s length is measured along the fork blade from the fork tip to the shank face.
What are forklift blades?
The forklift blade is the horizontal part of the fork that supports the load.
The blade has 4 parts:
At the end of the fork blade is the fork tip.
This is the pointed part opposite the shank that first enters the load.
Tip flanks (also called &#;toe flanks&#;) are the sides of the tips and come in several styles:
A standard forklift fork length is 42 inches (for both Class 2 and Class 3).
This allows them to fit into standard-size pallets without sticking through the back.
But 48 inch forklift forks are becoming increasingly common.
Also, 60-inch and 72-inch forklift forks are popular because of their long reach.
And finally, there are 96-inch and 120-inch forklift forks.
These are the longest forks you&#;ll see and are generally reserved for high-capacity (15,000 lbs.+) forklifts.
Yes and no.
Yes, because forks are designed to be interchangeable between different forklifts regardless of the manufacturer.
No, because forks must match the lift truck&#;s lifting capacity.
For example, you can&#;t use forks for a 3,000 lb. capacity forklift on a 6,000 lb. capacity forklift.
So this brings up the question:
The most basic way to classify forklift forks is by referring to the ITA carriage class.
It&#;s any one of 5 forklift carriages with a standardized height between the bottom of the carriage fork bar and the top bar.
The ITA carriage size corresponds to ITA forks.
Also called &#;clip&#; and &#;hook&#; type forks, ITA forks are the industry standard for forklift forks and the most common type.
These forks are designed to hang on the forklift carriage with opposing top and bottom &#;hooks&#; that engage the lower and upper carriage fork bars.
Fork hooks, also called &#;clips&#; or &#;hangers,&#; are the most common way of mounting forklift forks on ITA-style carriages.
They&#;re designed with an L-shape to hold the forks onto the carriage.
Hooks are usually welded to the back of the shank and have 2 faces:
How do these forks mount on a forklift carriage exactly?
The top hook hangs onto the top bar of the carriage and the bottom hook enters the carriage through a cutout in the bottom center.
Then, you slide each fork over to one side to complete the installation.
The distance between each hook corresponds to the distance between the top and bottom carriage fork bars.
Thus, what you have between ITA forks and an ITA carriage is a standardized measurement that allows forks to be interchangeable between various forklift manufacturers and models.
The ITA carriage size is used to determine fork classes.
You&#;ll commonly see a fork&#;s class size noted following the measurements.
For example, 1 ½&#; x 4&#; x 42&#; Class II forks are a common size for 3,000 lb. capacity forklifts.
There are 5 forklift fork classes, which are classified by the carriage height and the forklift&#;s rated capacity.
Let&#;s go through each.
Forklifts with lifting capacities greater than 25,000 lb. tend to have shaft-style forks, which are different from ITA forks.
We&#;ll cover shaft-mounted forks in an upcoming section.
Forklift fork classes can be further subdivided into versions &#;A&#; and &#;B.&#;
For example, for each class, there can be:
Each fork version is defined by the fork drop, which is the distance between the top of the bottom hook and the floor.
These types of forks are uncommon and most often found on articulating forklifts such as Flexi&#;s.
Besides the measurements we&#;ve talked about already, there are additional fork measurements to be aware of:
How do I identify a forklift fork?
You can identify forks by taking their measurements.
So, how are pallet forks measured?
Using a tape measure and 4 simple steps:
Now, put it all together to get the full measurement (T x W x L + Class).
How Forklift Forks Are Made
Manufacturing forklift forks involves various materials and metalworking processes.
Let&#;s go through what&#;s all involved.
What material are forklift forks made out of?
Forklift forks are made from high-strength alloy steel.
And what kind of steel are forklift forks made out of?
Answer: Chrome-manganese steel.
Other steel alloys include:
These types of steel are preferred due to their toughness and ability to maintain a high tensile strength during forging.
You can watch the whole process (for Bolzoni forks) below:
The main steps in the fork manufacturing process are:
Lock pins also called &#;positioning pins,&#; &#;locking pins,&#; &#;latch pins,&#; or &#;pin assembly&#; are designed for fitting each fork into a particular spot on the carriage.
There are 2 types of pins:
Once the forks are hooked onto the carriage, the pins on each fork lock the fork into place using the notches on top of the carriage bar.
This helps to prevent the forks from shifting and from losing the load.
Forklift forks are heat-treated to increase the forks&#; toughness, which is their ability to absorb energy without fracturing.
The heat-treatment process also improves the forks&#; hardness, which is their ability to resist indentation and abrasion.
Types of Forklift Forks
There are dozens of forklift fork types depending on applications, forklift type, and the loads handled.
Let&#;s go through some of them.
We&#;ve said that ITA forks are the most common type of fork style.
Shaft-mounted forks are a different style from ITA forks in both their design and application.
Whereas ITA forks use top and bottom hooks to mount on the carriage, shaft-mounted forks consist of a collar mounted to the top of the shank.
The collar attaches to the lift truck with a long shaft that connects to both sides of the carriage.
Shaft-style forklift forks are commonly found on:
Some of the types of forks covered below are shaft-style, while others are ITA-style.
Block forks are very thin with an enlarged heel for more strength.
They&#;re used for lifting concrete and cement blocks and are available in different hook/mounting styles.
What are lumber forks?
Lumber forks for forklifts have wide, thin blades used for getting underneath lumber and boards without damaging them.
They&#;re especially useful for &#;scooping&#; un-palletized loads directly off of the ground.
Drum handling forks are used to lift barrels &#; either the standard 55-gallon types or custom-sized barrels.
They have a contour cut out on the blades that fit around the barrel.
Depending on the application, they can lift 1 or 2 drums at a time.
They also have the advantage of being multipurpose, as the forks can be used to lift regular pallets too.
These are high-tech alternatives to fork extensions.
They use hydraulics to extend an outer fork shell that fits over the inner fork, extending the lift truck&#;s reach.
And after use, they can retract back to normal fork size.
Scale forks are designed to allow operators to weigh loads without having to stop at a scale.
Cascade weigh forks, for instance, use integrated Bluetooth technology to transmit the load&#;s weight to an LCD screen that the operator can read.
They&#;re commonly used for tasks such as incoming goods control, dosing, filling, and overload prevention.
These are rare and normally used on large forklift trucks.
Holes in the shank allow the forks to be bolted onto the fork carriage, instead of being hung using hooks or a tube.
They&#;re best for handling loads that are all the same size since the forks can&#;t be moved around once installed.
Coil forks are designed to straddle steel coils, concrete piles, reels, wire rolls, sheet polythene, and paper rolls.
They feature a chamfer or radius on the inner or outer blade flanks to cradle rounded loads.
The radius or chamfer can be customized to fit particular loads.
Tire forks are like coil forks but are specially designed to carry tires of different shapes and sizes without damaging them.
They accomplish this by using either a chamfer or custom contour on the top inside of the blade to cradle the tire.
Also called &#;box tip&#; forks, these are tapered forks with a very thin 3 mm tip.
They&#;re used to get under and lift thin materials such as corrugated sheets, cardboard boxes, and steel sheets up from flat surfaces.
They have a polished and fully-top-tapered blade, which allows for a gradual transition in thickness.
Offset forks are designed to go wider than the fork carriage.
Inset forks are the exact opposite &#; they go narrower than the fork carriage.
How wide or narrow they go can be customized based on the application.
Peek-a-boo forks are designed to allow for better operator visibility &#; mostly in the lumber industry.
They have a wide, thin blade (less than 50 mm thick) and a shank width that reduces towards the top.
Because of this design, less shank material is in the way of the operator&#;s vision.
Quick detach (QD) forks are designed to be quickly and easily detached and removed from the carriage.
Their key feature is an open upper hook or lower pin-release-style hook that allows for attaching and removing the forks without having to lift them off the carriage bar.
They&#;re best for applications that require frequent detaching or switching of the forks without incurring downtime.
These forks have a hinge near the heel that enables the fork to fold up.
Additionally, there&#;s a chain and pin that secures the fork vertically in place.
They&#;re most useful for forklifts that are used in confined spaces or frequently transported via truck and trailer.
These are designed with product protection in mind to handle sensitive gypsum and other wallboards.
They use a replaceable polyurethane or neoprene pad that covers the shank.
This pad won&#;t mark, dirty, or damage the wallboard.
Furthermore, the blade is polished, all sharp corners are removed, and the heel is squared &#; all to prevent damage.
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These are designed primarily for loading metal sheets in tin can-forming plants.
Their tapered and offset tips allow for easier entry into small skids, and their polished blades reduce resistance.
Additionally, a replaceable polyurethane or neoprene shank pad prevents the dimpling of metal sheets.
Anti-slip forks are primarily used to handle plastic pallets and cold storage loads.
But they can also be used for general applications, including handling wooden pallets.
What makes them anti-slip?
They have an abrasive metal surface on the top of the blade that grips the load and prevents it from coming off the forks while moving, stopping, or changing direction.
Also called &#;spark-retardant&#; forks, these are designed to work in environments at risk of explosions like grain mills, chemical plants, and munitions factories.
Their blade, shank face, and flanks have a brass cladding that prevents sparking if the forks collide with another metal.
These are used in wet environments, like food, beverage, pharmaceutical, and chemical applications.
The main benefits of stainless steel forks are:
Rotator forks fit on a rotator attachment, which can invert the forks and tip loads into other containers.
For example, apple orchards use them to dump bins of apples into hoppers.
They&#;re basically regular forks, but with an extra hook installed upside-down just under the top hook.
These are special forks designed for high-capacity lift trucks, like those used in ports and rigging.
They use a roller-guided mounting arrangement, which enables heavy forks to be easily moved side-to-side on the carriage.
Boat forks are used in marine applications to transfer boats between the water and storage.
They have a rubber coating on the blade to protect the delicate hull of boats.
They&#;re also usually coated to prevent corrosion from exposure to seawater.
Tow hitch forks have load-bearing top and bottom mounting hooks which allow them to be used for pulling and pushing loads.
They mount to standard ITA carriages and can be installed alongside existing forks, eliminating hassle and downtime.
These forks are permanently mounted upside-down and designed to lift suspended loads, like bags and sacks.
The main disadvantage of inverted forks is that they lose 15% lifting capacity compared to regularly-hung forks.
If you only occasionally need long forks for a forklift, fork extensions are a cost-effective option.
For example, many companies like to keep a pair of 60- or 72-inch fork extensions around to handle the one-off long load.
We cover fork extensions in more detail in a later section.
How to Choose Forklift ForksSelecting the right forklift forks helps prevent injury to your employees along with damage to goods, equipment, and infrastructure.
But how do you choose the right fork for both your forklift and operations?
Let&#;s go through the key considerations.
The guidelines below are general considerations. It&#;s always best to have a qualified forklift professional help you choose the right forklift forks.
Recall that the most basic way to categorize forklift forks is by their carriage size.
This is by design, to allow forks to be used across multiple manufacturers and forklift models &#; so long as the carriage sizes are the same.
Also, remember that the carriage size corresponds to the ITA fork class.
So, you&#;ll need to find out what your forklift&#;s carriage size is to get the right fork class.
If you don&#;t know your forklift&#;s carriage class, measure the carriage from the top bar to the bottom bar.
Then, compare it to the ITA specifications listed at the beginning of this article.
For instance, a Class 2 forklift carriage height is 16 inches.
So if your carriage is 16 inches as well, you know you&#;ll need Class 2 forks.
Every forklift is rated to handle a particular weight capacity.
And it&#;s important to ensure your forks are rated for at least what your lift truck can handle.
For example, if your forklift is rated to lift 5,000 lbs., your forks must be rated to handle at least 5,000 lbs.
You can find your fork truck&#;s weight capacity rating on the data plate.
Then, use a forklift fork size chart to compare the weight capacity to the required fork dimensions (thickness and width).
You can reference Cascade&#;s fork capacity chart on page 2 of this PDF.
Attachments like rotators have specific fork requirements you must abide by.
Check the attachment&#;s operator manual for specifics.
The type of loads your forklift will be carrying dictates the type of forks you should mount.
Are the loads palletized?
Or are they non-palletized and stacked, like cardboard or steel sheets?
This helps you determine the fork style, such as the taper and tip types.
For example, picking up non-palletized loads where you have to slip in between layers of material may work best with fully-tapered and polished forks.
Forklift forks can have several different taper styles:
Taper refers to the degree of slant between the shank and the blade tip.
Most forks are tapered along the bottom of the blade, with a flat space left near the tip.
Fully-tapered and polished forks, on the other hand, have a full taper from the heel to the tip.
For a more detailed breakdown of fork tapers and tip styles, reference page 19 of Cascade&#;s Fork Facts document.
What length pallet forks do I need?
The first step in answering this question is to determine how long your loads are.
Why?
Because you don&#;t want to have your forks too long.
Using forks that are too long can cause problems like:
Striking pedestrians
Hitting racking
Damaging products
But you also don&#;t want your forks to be too short.
Otherwise, the load could become unstable and unsafe.
So, how far should the forks extend into the load?
Forks should reach at least 2/3 of the way into the load.
If you only occasionally handle long loads, you probably don&#;t want to have long forks on all the time.
What&#;s the solution?
Fork extensions.
They come in thicknesses of up to 7-inches and lengths up to 96-inches
They&#;re prone to wearing out quickly, so they should only be used occasionally
They increase the load center, which reduces the forklift&#;s lifting capacity
It&#;s important to use the manufacturer&#;s guidelines for calculating the new lifting capacity to avoid lift truck instability
If you&#;re wondering &#;How long can my fork extensions be?&#; the answer is that they can&#;t be more than 150% of the length of your installed forks.
For example, if you&#;re using 48-inch forks, fork extensions should be a maximum of 72 inches.
And just as with regular forks, fork extensions should reach at least 2/3 the length of the load but not all the way through it.
You&#;ll want to reference the manufacturer&#;s guidelines for how much weight their fork extensions can handle.
For an example of what their fork extension capacity chart may look like, you can review the one provided by Horizon Attachments:
Forklift Fork Inspections: What You Need to Know
During forklift maintenance and inspection, don&#;t forget about the forks.
You should always ensure that your forks are well-maintained and in compliance with OSHA, ANSI&#;s guidelines, and any other relevant safety standards.
Here are the basics of forklift fork inspections.
For one, worn, cracked, and damaged forks can fail, causing injuries or fatalities to workers and causing damage to infrastructure, equipment, and product.
For another, forklift fork inspections are required by OSHA as part of the pre-trip forklift inspection.
What Rules Govern Forklift Forks?
OSHA, ANSI, and ISO provide the industry standards for forklift forks.
OSHA&#;s key forklift guidance and requirements include:
ANSI&#;s forklift fork standards and requirements include:
The ISO&#;s forklift standards and requirements include:
Forklift forks should be replaced once they&#;re 10% worn.
A fork that&#;s 10% worn out experiences a 20% reduction in lifting capacity.
And this can make using the forks dangerous.
Before every use.
As mentioned, this is part of the pre-trip inspection required before operating a forklift.
Several factors often act in combination to wear forks out:
This is one of the biggest factors and also one of the reasons why you should drive with the forks 4 to 6 inches off the ground (the other being to increase stability).
Alternatively, you can use fork heel protectors to guard against wear and extend the life of the forks.
In particular, this causes the fork hooks to erode.
And it&#;s amplified when using a fork positioner since these forks are often constantly moving back and forth throughout the entire shift.
That&#;s why it&#;s important to keep both the upper and lower carriage bars regularly greased to reduce friction and wear.
Moreover, sliding can increase locking pin wear, requiring them to be replaced more frequently.
Everyday wear and tear
Collisions with walls and columns
Improper forklift chain tension
Overloading
Improper forklift attachments
Some of the fork inspection items can be done visually.
Others will require a fork caliper:
Don&#;t have one?
Check with your local material handling dealer &#; they&#;ll be able to get you one.
Now, let&#;s go through how to perform each forklift fork inspection action.
If the heel passes over the inner teeth, the fork is worn 10% or more and must be removed from service.
Note: This procedure does not apply to tapered forks. You&#;ll need to know the factory thickness of the fork, then consult the manufacturer for allowable wear.
2. Insert the knob into the fork hook:
If the caliper arm makes contact with the hook lip, remove the forks from service.
When checking for fork cracks, pay particular attention to the following areas:
Remove forks with cracks from service.
This is required for both the blade and the shank.
If either is more than 0.5% off, remove the forks from service.
Check the angle between the blade and the shank:
The angle must be within +/- 3 degrees of 90 degrees.
That means if the angle isn&#;t between 87 and 93 degrees, you&#;ll need to remove the forks from service.
Check the alignment between both tips of the forks:
If one tip is higher than the other by more than 3% of the blade length, remove the forks from service.
Checking the locking hardware is simple.
Make sure the pins or latches are in place, working as they should, and free from damage and wear.
If any deficiencies are found, remove the forks from service.
Fork markings are usually stamped on the side of the shank.
All markings must be present and legible.
If neither is the case, remove the forks from service.
Forklift Fork Dos and Don&#;tsHere&#;s a quick summary of the dos and don&#;ts of forklift forks:
Many people ask the following questions:
And the answer is that it&#;s prohibited to do any of the above without approval from the manufacturer.
So, if you want to make modifications to your forklift forks, consult the manufacturer or your local authorized material handling dealership first.
Conclusion
There you have it: Everything you need to know about forklift forks.
I am working on a cart and would like to provide what I am calling sockets so that it can be lifted and moved using a forklift with some degree of safety. The entire cart is made from welded aluminum. The weight of the entire rig (with equipment on it) will be in the order of 750 lbs.The sockets are 4 x 8 in nominal rectangular -T6 with 1/4 walls. Yes, I have some concern for damage from less-than-careful forklift operators. I suppose I could switch to bolted-on steel for the sockets. I am trying to keep this as light as possible.Anyhow, the question I have is about the horizontal spacing of for these sockets. What you see here has a spacing of 48 in on center. Not sure what standard fork spacing might be. I know there are forklifts that are adjustable. I guess my question is: What should the spacing be so that this can be handled by the average forklift without having to adjust the forks.I understand fork blade dimensions are typically 1.5 x 4 in. I am providing at least 1 inch on each side for clearance.EDIT: I took a look at standard pallet dimensions. What I found is that somewhere around 28 inches max width seems to be favored. That's quite a bit less than what I am allocating here. Is that mainly for pallet jacks? Now I'm thinking 48 in on center is way too much.Thanks,-Martin
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