Regarding the question of whether my barn structure can support a 1-ton load, because it's a metal building.....I'm no engineer, and I may be drawing false conclusions, but I would be shocked if this structure was deemed inadequate.
Below is a picture of my barn. It's where Ol' Red (the truck) lives. He's in there now, wondering why I don't have the game on. But I'm not there.
The barn has 10" or 12" I-beams every 10 feet or so along the side walls. It has 4 I-beams spanning the 40' width of the structure (2 at each end and 2 evenly spaced in between). It has a 16' ceiling, and an attic. The middle 2/3 of the attic, from front to back, is framed out for a one-bedroom apartment (by the previous owner of the house). The roof has wood sheathing and composite shingles. My point being, this structure is already supporting all of that. (Interestingly, the previous owner of my home & barn was an engineer who liked to convert buses into travel coaches, like Willie Nelson might ride in (heavy on the ash trays). This was going to be his hobby in retirement, but he got transferred!).
I plan to mount a trolley on one of the horizontal I-beams that spans the structure. Bartamos does make a great point about the span (unsupported length) of this I-beam. There is a 4" steel post (it's really a thin-walled pipe, not a solid post), about 10 feet in, so that would make about a 30' span. The trolley will be near the post, rather than in the middle of the 30' span.
My other piece of evidence is a video I saw on YouTube. A guy went into the attic of his garage, laid a 14' 2x4 on edge, and screwed it to a joist or similar piece. He then punched a hole in the ceiling drywall and hung a hoist from it (not sure if it was 1/2 ton or 1 ton). So I'm thinking, if this arrangement works, then surely my arrangement will work. Hopefully I don't find out otherwise. I appreciate all your cautions.
