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Moving your HEAVY Sony TV...Tell your story

55K views 68 replies 38 participants last post by  Quantumleaper 
#1 ·
We all have one unless your rich and hired some pros to do it.


To me it's the elephant in the room when it comes to buying and selling any 32" and up TV.


I sort of snicker when people complain about how heavy 50" plasma Tv's are at 75 to 100 lbs not including the box.
 
#2 ·
Couches, bed components and CRT TVs are things where having very, very good friends is necessary if you don't want to hire a professional mover.


Just about as bad are those 60" RP CRTs, which are not only heavy, but really, really fragile.


A friend of mine left one at a house he sold since it was cheaper to simply buy a new LCD screen than pay a mover. That thing wasn't going in his Honda Accord...
 
#3 ·
I actually think that they aren't that hard to move. The built in handles on my 34XBR800 make it easier to move than smaller TVs with no handles. This of course only applies to moving across level ground. The truly difficult part is moving one up stairs. The person on the lower side basically ends up supporting all the weight.
 
#4 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by cavalier240 /forum/post/15640165


I actually think that they aren't that hard to move. The built in handles on my 34XBR800 make it easier to move than smaller TVs with no handles. This of course only applies to moving across level ground. The truly difficult part is moving one up stairs. The person on the lower side basically ends up supporting all the weight.


yea those 'grab handles' are a life saver!


my old 160lbs 32" XBR was just about impossible to get a grip on it's round shaped plastic. there was literally no area you could get a firm grip on.


then there was my trusty old KV-27" Sony at 95lbs also no way to get a grip except grab it from the front of the tube. I could barley lift it and move it myself and hated it when I had to. darn thing would barley fit into the front passenger seat when took it to the local TV shop and had the guy rejuvenate the picture tube for $90.
 
#5 ·
It was fun getting the 32HS510 down to the family room from the garage workshop. Had to go about 80 feet, half down outside stairs. I set up the picnic table as a "rest stop" at the bottom of the stairs, and with 3 lifting, we barely made it! I held it under the screen, and I had cramped arm muscles for 2 days after, I felt like I was holding the whole weight! It was easier to go from the "rest stop" over to the family room on level ground. After removing the window, because it was too awkward to go in the doorway! After resting it on the window sill, we heaved it onto the stand, it's still there working well..I now have a 34HS510 in the garage, it will not go downstairs when it is fixed!
 
#6 ·
Took two people to move my 36XBR400 (about 240lbs) into my little Ford Ranger (fit fine even with the cap). Then the same two of us to move it up my front steps into my living room. We used the little cut out "handles" and I think also one handed because the width of the cut out was too small for both hands. Our arms were very sore (the muscle underneath the fore arm) afterward since the weight had to be supported by the fingers and that muscle is responsible for bending the fingers...
 
#7 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by kevm14 /forum/post/15647135


Took two people to move my 36XBR400 (about 240lbs) into my little Ford Ranger (fit fine even with the cap). Then the same two of us to move it up my front steps into my living room. We used the little cut out "handles" and I think also one handed because the width of the cut out was too small for both hands. Our arms were very sore (the muscle underneath the fore arm) afterward since the weight had to be supported by the fingers and that muscle is responsible for bending the fingers...

true. those handles are small but just imagine if they weren't there.

It's not like moving a heavy piece of furniture where you can bump it around and drop it if you have to.

it's a unique thing to move and yes you find out how out of shape you are after the move.
 
#9 ·
I have a 32 inch Sony XBR monitor in the garage.


200 lbs.


I can move it myself, but I prefer not to.
 
#12 ·
For both of my 40XBR800's I used child labor-my girlfriend's son & his friends. They did most of the heavy lifting and thought it was cool they could show off. Amazing how much teenagers can lift. He & I carried the 34HS510 with no problems. The 34HS420 about killed us though. It sucked moving it on stairs!!! Luckily the other tv's all were left on the ground floor. Might move one of the 40XBR800's upstairs to my bedroom...and boy won't that be fun!!! Thank God for Aleve!!
 
#13 ·
When I bought my Philips 30" hdtv(about 165 lbs.), I didn't take into account the fact that I had to haul it up a flight of stairs to my 2nd floor apartment. Plus side was that it was still in the box, so I simply cut hand holds into the sides of the box and sorta limped it up step by step. It probably looked pathetic but hey it worked.


Now when I had to move out 4 months later I was actually able to carry the heavy SOB all by myself. I placed the front of the screen against my chest and held the bottom on each side, kinda tilting the set into myself for support. Luckily, the tv wasn't that deep, which is surprising considering its a CRT, so moving it using this method was a piece of cake, as long as you dont have a bad back or anything.


Now I have a Sony 30HS420 which is pretty deep and definitely requires 2 folks to cart around.


Crazy thing is, I paid $550 for the crappy Philips brand new, and I got the Sony used(mint condition) for less than half that, $250.


I actually want to pick up another Sony since they are all over craigslist these days.
 
#17 ·
Basically if any TV has handles they would likely be located on the sides, at the center of gravity so that the TV won't tip forward or backward when you lift by that point. That means they are only a few inches back from the front of the unit since the glass is obviously the heavy part. I also noticed my 36XBR400 had a handle at the rear, but we didn't use it. It was pretty balanced as it was.
 
#18 ·
In the ultimate display of male stupidity, I moved my XBR970 upstairs by myself. I bought an appliance dolly from Big Lots for $60 (cheap junk of course). One of the wheels had a big chip in it, making it kind of square. Strike 1. I set the tv on it's edge, with cardboard covering the screen and strapped it screen-side-in to the dolly. Lucky I didn't crush the plastic case. Halfway up the stairs, I looked down at the rubber tracks to see why this thing was so damn tough to pull. Turns out when the track wheels aren't turning, those rubber tracks provide great friction against carpeted stair edges. Guh. Strike 2. I somehow got the 190 lb set up on its stand in the bedroom, and set it up. Then I spent the rest of the evening scrubbing black rubber marks out of my light grey carpeting.
You're out, Dolly. Back to Big Lots with you.
 
#19 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jdre /forum/post/15652343


I checked the Service Manual. There are none that will help. Can grab the foot and maybe underneath. My 34HS510 actually has trapdoors in the sides with 2 sturdy handles. However, you still have to get around the front.

thanks anyways. Quite dissapointed the XBR960 dosen't have any handles. Oh well. No moving it upstairs for me!
 
#21 ·
Bought my xbr970 when CC was closing them out...they were on sale for $599+ free delivery. 2 big guys brought mine in the house and they were glad I didn't have a stand ready. Just left the box on the floor. They had 4 more in the truck and were not happy about it.


I actually had a tough time finding a stand that would hold the weight... finally got one

at Micro Center that I was happy with.


It was everything me, my wife and 14 y/o kid could do to lift that up.
 
#22 ·
I sold my 36" WEGA (KV36HS500), bought in 2002, this week. This is the third time I've moved it. I originally bought it from Circuit City and paid for delivery. The truck shows up with one guy and no dolly (!) and so I help him haul it upstairs to my apartment. The second time, a few years later, back down the stairs and into my new house.


Those stairs are killers with that TV. Front heavy, 250lbs, and no handles.


This time was the easiest. The buyer backed into my garage, and we took the TV straight into the garage, maybe 20', with no stairs and not been moving an entire apartment already. I also had learned to wear work gloves.


And now that behemoth is out of my house (huzzah!) and replaced with a marvelous plasma. Thank goodness the era of poor geometry is finally behind me and straight lines will actually be straight on my TV
 
#23 ·
Just picked up a XBR-910 to go with my couple of year old XBR-970 and I'm moving in about a month... should be interesting! Paid too much for both probably (970 brand new $800 shipped, XBR-910 used $550 delivered via Craigslist) I've moved the XBR 970 once already and it actually wasn't too bad at all, but I love these TVs and won't cheap out while moving them.
 
#24 ·
Not sure about people here but let's face it. In this day and age people have grown a bit lazy and afraid to work physically hard. No, it's true, don't lie to yerself. Look, if 2 normal guys can't lift and move a 200lb anything then oh my christ....hit the weight room, eat some energy bars....do something. Are you serious? There is a way to carry anything....just think about it instead of getting scared.


I have a feeling that some of these whiners are overweight slobs who do nothing BUT watch tv. Sorry for rant....but give me a break.


Quote:
Quite dissapointed the XBR960 dosen't have any handles. Oh well. No moving it upstairs for me

Handles? There is problem # 1 that people need to throw in the trash. Get UNDER the monitor and lift. Handles do nothing unless you are moving it 3 feet. I'd love to watch you lift it WITH handles and go up stairs. WRONG.
 
#25 ·
I got our 34XBR800 when it first came out from Tweeter as a surprise to my wife. Picked it up in my Ranger but knew I was going to be alone when setting it up in our home, which is a raised ranch.


I backed up the Ranger over the lawn to the front steps leading to the mid floor landing. I then used two 2x10s as a ramp so I could push the box up to the front door, then walked it on it's corners through the doorway. Inside was going to be more of a problem.


Now with it on the inside landing, the box just fit in the area in front of the stairs to the second floor. I had a bad back, so I had to be careful on this move. I've used dollies enough to know that was just not going to work. So the 2x10s came inside and were placed on the stairs, but it was too steep for me to be able to push or pull the box up that ramp. Time for the farm boy and engineer sides to merge.


I was able to place a 4x4 across the top stairs newel post and the doorway into the kitchen. Put a motorcycle tie down strap around the box and used a cable come-a-long to winch it most of the way up. So now it's sitting about 16 from the top of the stairs and no more room left with the come-a-long. And I still could not push it up.


After tying it off to the 4x4 with more motorcycle tie downs, I took a long commercial strap (like used on trucks or tractor trailers) and put it through the two windows in the wall on the opposite side to the stairs. From there I was able to attach the come-a-long and bring it up to the second floor. Now I could slide it into position in front of the stand.


Once out of the box, I grabbed mass quantities of the hard cover books that my wife had in her library. I was able to pick up one side of the TV, so I just blocked up the TV one side at a time with one layer of books, inching it up stair like the 2-3 until the TV was at the same height of the stand. Note - remember to take the slippery covers off the books.


Les came home later after it all was set up and sat in the kitchen where she could look sideways and see the TV. She had completed a wedding setup on that Saturday (she's owns a hair salon) at the bride's home and the father had just bought a 50 TV. Since we were talking about getting a new TV, she started to talk about the one she saw, remarking how something like that would never fit where we had our TV setup. As she said that, she turned to the TV location and just stopped in mid-sentence. Priceless.


Of course the conversation went whom did I get to install the TV. Glad she wasn't home to see the process.
 
#26 ·
I bought my 34" XBR960N from sonystyle.com in 2005. I believe two delivery guys wheeled it into my apartment on a dolly. It sat in the front hallway until my youngest brother and I lifted it into the entertainment center in the living room, which was only about 6 feet away. Not bad.


Well about 6 months later it was moving time. Now that townhouse had two entrances. A front door, and a back patio with a sliding door. I had a friend this time for the move. It was gonna be a squeeze to get it out the front door, so we moved it out of the back patio. The entertainment center was only about 6 feet from the back door. From the back patio to the street, where the SUV was parked and waiting for the TV, was about 70 feet though! We moved it in one shot from the entertainment center to the street. There was no place to stop and rest. Now this TV is about 200-220 lbs., which isn't a lot for two guys, but this thing is big and awkward to carry. If it has handles, we didn't know about them. That 70+ foot walk was brutal! It was by only sheer force of will that I didn't stop, and set my precious $2000 TV on the lawn to take a break. My arms and lungs wanted to stop, but I wouldn't allow it!


It fit nicely in the back of the SUV. We drove it to my new house, and backed the SUV up to the side door. Now it had to go downstairs, and onto a coffee table. That wasn't too bad. Maybe 20 feet from the back of the SUV to the coffee table. This is a big strong all solid wood table, that I trust a lot more to hold the TV, than any TV stand.


I haven't moved it since. But, in about a month I'm gonna be moving again. I'm not looking forward to it either! My XBR960N is worth all the trouble though.
 
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