The fork must be lowered gently onto the oil pads attached to the top of the telescope base. The fork is moved or stored horizintally on a special steel pallet, which protects the hydrostatic bearing from impacts. The tricky part of this procedure is turning the fork from horizontal to vertical to get it off of the pad, and doing so depends critically on setting up the slings as described below. A set of three pneumatic cylinders in the base allow you to support the fork and lower it slowly onto the oil pads.

1. Clamp the three alignment jigs onto the inside of the azimuth slewing ring with the six C clamps provided. Attach the three pneumatic lines to the cocks on the three air cylinders inside the base, using CABLE CLAMPS so they don't slip off at the most critical time.
2. If not already done, remove the protective plywood sheets over the bearing plate on base of fork and replace the screws that were holding that shield on with the socket-head cap screws provided (30 lb-ft). Thread three of 9-ft slings through holes in the sides and bottom of the fork base, forming choker configurations. One sling goes horizontally through the bottom holes, the others, vertically through the two side holes. N.B. To remove the telescope and put it back on the pallet, put two slings through the side holes only so they are both closest to the arms of the fork. In that configuration, you might put a sling through the top hole, but if you put one through the bottom hole, you cannot rotate the fork to horizontal to get it back on the pad.
3. Attach the crane to the two slings and start lifting. The bottom sling will start lifting first, tending to make the fork rotate into a vertical position.
4. Using the crane, center the fork as closely as possible over the base/slewing ring and lower to within two to three inches of the oil pads, using the alignment jigs to guide the fork base into place.
5. Place the wooden spacers (one plywood rectangle and an oak cylinder) on top of the three air cylinders, then activate the air cylinders with appx. 125 psi air supply, using the manifold device provided. Gently lower the fork onto the air cylinders with the crane, preferably operating the controls from within the access room in the telescope base. (This works well at the hanger with the chain hoist we used there.)
6. Disconnect the air hose, but BE SURE THE VALVES ARE CLOSED FIRST. Lower the fork onto the oil pads by slowly letting air out of the cylinders with the valves on the manifold.
7. Turn on the oil bearings (or take pressure off the bearings by tensioning the crane) and slide the fork so the lateral pivot is centered in the middle of its hole in the azimuth slewing ring. Slide the attachment ring between the central pivot (flexure) and the slewing ring, then secure it with screws provided (24 5/16-in hex-head cap screws on the inside and 12 3/8-in hex-head cap screws on the outside, torqued to 30 lb-ft). Adjust the height of the oil pads as needed to make the bearing surface parallel to the slewing ring.

1. Set up the alignment jigs and pneumatic cylinders as described in step 1 above.
2. Attach the 9-foot slings as described above and tension with the crane. Lift the fork off the oil pads with the three pneumatic cylinders.
3. Lift the fork with the crane, using lines between the rings on top of the tines and the lift line to keep it upright.
4. Position the fork over its pallet, rotate it to the horizontal, and lower it onto the pallet with the crane.