chain motor

A type of hoist used in Arena and touring rigging. The most popular is the Columbus McKinnon Lodestar. Originally designed solely for industrial material handling applications, in the late 1960s early pioneers of Rock 'n' Roll Touring re-purposed the product and the manufacturer, seeing a new and viable market, has worked diligently to tailor the product specifically for the needs of the entertainment industry.


Many different companies make chain hoist controls, two of the most popular are Skjonberg Controls and Motion Labs.

Another brand of chain hoist growing in popularity is Chain Master. For very specific, computer controlled movements, the Cyberhoist, using aircraft cable rather than chain, is often used.