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Engine crane vs gantry crane

Updated: October 2026

You need something that will pick an engine up. Engine crane vs gantry crane is one condition each: a folding crane when the jib has to reach over a wing, and a gantry when the load has to travel along a beam. Capacity sits on the [engine crane buying guide](/hub/workshop/workshop-crane/sub/workshop-crane-buying-guide). A 2.4 m beam in a domestic ceiling is on [engine crane for a home garage](/hub/workshop/workshop-crane/sub/workshop-crane-home-garage). Prices are on our [workshop crane comparison](/hub/workshop/workshop-crane). Products Compared used Sealey’s SG1000 instructions on 16 October 2026. A purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You need something that will pick an engine up. Engine crane vs gantry crane is one condition each: a folding crane when the jib has to reach over a wing, and a gantry when the load has to travel along a beam.

Our top picks

Sealey Sealey SC10 1 tonne folding crane

Best overall

Sealey Sealey SC10 1 tonne folding crane
4.6/10about £275.68
View offer
Sealey Sealey SG1000KITG 1 tonne gantry kit

Alternative

Sealey Sealey SG1000KITG 1 tonne gantry kit
4.5/10about £1,023.35
View offer
Garvee Garvee 2 tonne folding engine crane

Best value

Garvee Garvee 2 tonne folding engine crane
3.8/10about £199.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Two machines, one aisle name
  2. 2.Over a wing, or along a beam
  3. 3.What you are allowed to roll
  4. 4.The stand and the chain block

Two machines, one aisle name

An engine hoist and an engine crane are the same folding tool under two names. The jib, the ram, and the legs are the crane. A gantry is a freestanding frame with an I-beam. The load hangs from a trolley and a chain block and travels along the beam. Clarke lists a folding workshop crane, a portable gantry, and an engine stand as neighbouring tools, not as one product.

Over a wing, or along a beam

Choose the folding crane when you must reach over a wing, lift, set the engine on a stand, and fold the crane away. Sealey’s own SC10 chart, which the amazon file does not print, is 1,000 kg at 830 mm and 250 kg at 1,190 mm. The Garvee and JHflor titles say 2 tonne or 2 tons and do not print those millimetres. Choosing the family does not invent the missing chart. Choose the gantry when the load must travel along a beam and the room can take a frame whose listed height starts at 2,400 mm. The SG500 is 0.5 tonne and says tackle is not included. The SG1000KITG is 1 tonne, and its package line names a trolley and a chain block.
Sealey Sealey SC10 1 tonne folding crane

Testsieger

Sealey Sealey SC10 1 tonne folding crane
4.6/10about £275.68
View offer

What you are allowed to roll

Move means two different things. On these Sealey gantries the frame stays put while the hook is loaded. The SG1000 instructions say the gantry is not designed to be moved whilst under load. Once the load is clear, you may roll it along the crossbeam and then lower it. The SG500 listing says the frame is not to be moved while loaded. On a folding crane the castors position the crane over the bay. None of the four folding listings states that you may roll the frame with an engine on the hook. Sealey’s SC10 instructions say lower the jib before you move. Do not read the silence on the Garvee and JHflor pages as a yes.

The stand and the chain block

An engine stand holds the engine after the lift so you can turn it and work. It does not reach over a wing, and it does not replace either crane. A chain block is gantry tackle. It is not a folding crane, and it is not in every gantry price. A folding crane’s hoist in this set is the ram and hook. Adding a chain block does not turn it into a gantry.

Common questions

Is a folding hoist the same machine as a gantry?
No. A folding hoist, also called an engine crane, is a ram and a jib on legs. A gantry is a beam on a frame, with the load on a trolley. They sit next to each other in a catalogue, not as sizes of one product. The hook can look similar in a photograph. What moves, the jib or the beam, is what you are paying for.
Which one reaches into an engine bay?
The folding crane. The jib clears the wing, and the rated load at that reach is smaller than the title tonne. A gantry lifts in the open space under its beam. It does not poke a jib into the bay. If the engine is still in the car, the folding crane is the family, provided the chart covers the weight.
Can I push a loaded gantry across the floor?
Not these Sealey gantries. The SG1000 instructions say the frame is not to be moved whilst under load, and the SG500 listing says the same. You may traverse the load along the beam, then lower it. Pushing the legs while the hook is loaded is the move the instruction forbids.
Can I push a loaded folding crane?
Only if that crane’s manual says so. The SC10 instructions say lower the jib before you move. The Garvee and JHflor listings do not state a loaded-travel rule, and silence is not permission. Position the crane, lift vertically, lower onto a stand, and move the crane as the sheet requires. Castors are not a gantry beam.
Do I still need an engine stand?
Yes, if the engine has to stay up while you work. The crane lifts it out. The stand holds it afterwards. Sealey says a folding crane is not for holding a load indefinitely. The stand is a separate tool, and its rating has to match the engine, including the gearbox if it is still fitted. This page does not choose a stand.
Which gantry in this set includes the chain block?
The SG1000KITG, on the package line: frame, PT1000G trolley, and CB1000 chain block with a 2.5 m drop, at about £1,023.35. A safety line says tackle is not included, so both stay visible until you see the carton. The SG500 at about £652.15 says tackle is not included. Buy tackle to the same 500 kg if you choose that frame.

Related pages

How to use an engine crane

Workshop crane

Best engine crane: top pick, best value, who skips

Engine crane buying guide: chart, tackle and ceiling

Engine crane for home garage: ceiling, fold, weight

Sources

Public UK sources and maker pages used for this comparison, last checked on 16 October 2026. Listing prices, stars, and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines in this set.

  1. HSE, LOLER overview (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  2. LOLER 1998, regulation 7 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  3. HSE, thorough examinations of lifting equipment (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  4. HSE, work equipment FAQs (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  5. PUWER 1998 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  6. Sealey SG1000 instructions (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  7. Sealey SC10 folding engine crane (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  8. Tooled Up, engine cranes (retrieved 16 October 2026)