[masraum]

Originally Posted by rick-l

mass in this is a stone

edit or maybe a slug

slugs are the American unit that would go with 32fps^2

Hugh, you're over working this, but you've hit on the answer. Once the guys are all in the air, assuming that the pulley isn't moving up or down, the crane is supporting the weight of all three guys as gravity pulls down on them. So the downward force on the spot where the pulley is attached is the gravitational force of all three guys. Whether the guys are moving up or down, gravity is always pulling on all three, so the force acting on the top of the pulley would be the same as