Types of Forks
There are many different types of forks, each one designed for the materials to be handled and the method of handling to be used.
Pallet forks with the standard taper are designed for routine material handling tasks handling pallets, skids, and containers of materials.
The short section of the blade with a bottom taper up to the tip allows the forks to be used for occasional chiseling under loads when the mast is tilted forward.
Full bottom taper pallet forks are designed for applications where pallets, skids, and/or containers are handled but also where other types of loads are frequently handled which require chiseling under the load such as bales, bundles, and certain non-palletized materials such as lumber and drywall.
The forklift truck must have sufficient forward mast tilt to get the fork tips down onto the floor in order to chisel under the non-palletized loads.
Full top taper pallet forks are designed for applications where the primary load handling tasks require chiseling under the loads; non-palletized materials such as bales or bundles of textiles, bulk materials, lumber, drywall, etc.
The fork tips can be placed tightly on the floor surface for chiseling under loads when the mast is vertical or tilted forward only slightly.