Truck

A truck, comprising:

• (A) a frame having
• (i) a base movable toward and away from a generally horizontal orientation in use, said base having a rear end,
• (ii) a first upstanding portion at the rear end of said base and extending upwardly along a longitudinal direction from a lower end to an upper end of said first upstanding portion,
• (iii) two main wheels at the lower end of said first upstanding portion,
• (iv) a lift means support on said first upstanding portion and extending rearwardly thereof above said main wheels,
• (v) an auxiliary wheel mounted on said lift means support upwardly and rearwardly of said main wheels when said base is in said horizontal orientation,
• (vi) a handle portion at the upper end of said first upstanding portion, and
• (vii) vertical rail bars extending along the longitudinal direction from the rear end of said base to said handle portion;
• (B) a load support mounted on the frame for upward and downward movement along the longitudinal direction, said load support having
• (i) a second upstanding portion extending along the longitudinal direction adjacent to said rail bars, and rail rollers rollably engaging said rail bars during said upward and downward movement;
• (C) a lift means mounted on said lift means support, said lift means including
• (i) a reel having a reel axis,
• (ii) a reel casing mounted on said lift means support for encasing said reel,
• (iii) a hollow sleeve shaft journaled in said reel casing for joint rotation with the reel about the reel axis,
• (iv) a rope wound about the reel axis about said reel and having one end connected to said load support for moving the same,
• (v) a driven shaft mounted within, and extending along the reel axis through, said hollow sleeve shaft, said driven shaft having opposite end portions extending axially outwardly beyond opposite ends of said hollow sleeve shaft, and being rotatable about the reel axis, and
• (vi) a transmission means operatively connected between said driven shaft and said hollow sleeve shaft, said transmission means including a transmission casing mounted axially adjacent one side of said reel casing, and a set of meshing gears within the transmission casing, and operative for transmitting the rotation of said driven shaft to said sleeve shaft at a reduced speed, one of said gears being fixedly mounted on one of the opposite end portions of said driven shaft, and another one of said gears being fixedly mounted to said hollow sleeve shaft;
• and
• (D) a first operating means for rotating said reel and paying out said rope, said first operating means including
• (i) a driving shaft extending coaxially with said driven shaft and having a first toothed clutch end adjacent to said driven shaft, and
• (ii) hand crank plate connected to said driving shaft.