Something...'different'.

[elcamino/wheelhorse 9,021]

@farmer I follow this built daily and always read for thread first ( to the other guys threads sorry about that ) . I don't know how you do everything that has been done so far or will need to be done. I like your idea about safety switch ,bells and unnecessary gizmos ( they are just something to break).Waiting for your next installment. By the way we still use inches , feet and yards , we haven't figured out the 10s unit of measurement. 

[953 nut 51,464]

14 minutes ago, elcamino/wheelhorse said:

By the way we still use inches , feet and yards , we haven't figured out the 10s unit of measurement.

The Nuclear Power Plant I retired from was built during the Carter administration. Everything was supposed to be going to the Metric System and many of the instruments were in metric units, we had conversion charts next to them so the readings were compatible with others we recorded. The metric system is great for Physicist and Chemists but we Americans  will go kicking and screaming clinging to our system rather than adopting it.  

[farmer 1,075]

Well here we are again, update time. 

 

@Lee1977 I know I mentioned the cat earlier, but to avoid any confusion that's not a giant kitty litter tray, 'er indoors has a couple of horses and that was just about 18 months of their 'accumulations'. No sign yet of the cat, but let me tell ya, you won't be able to miss it when it makes its appearance.  

 

@elcamino/wheelhorse  I'm glad your enjoying this topic, and yes I'm with you, just making something complex doesn't always make it better. Over the metric system, l just find it easier, it's all about what you've been brought up with. 

 

So, very brief tonight...

 

 

PTO engagement level, cut the rod length down, drilled through the bonnet support and added a second tab for the lever to pivot on, it falls nicely to hand. 

 

 

 

Just a couple of pictures to finish tonight showing how the back end is taking shape. I haven't done it yet, but I'll be making a guard for the pump/pulley/belt.  

 

More tomorrow.  

[Pullstart 59,529]

Great build, it's awesome to see what a WH can turn into!

[19richie66 16,876]

So cool!

[farmer 1,075]

Time to go to the 'business' end of the loader. 

I have to be honest this was a pretty straightforward decision to make, the type of material I was going to be dealing with ment I wanted a bucket that was strong and didn't have a deep profile (a long bottom section). 

If it was to be used for mulch, snow or lighter materials my choice would have been wrong, but I needed it to load dung, spread scalpings and sometimes soil or Cotswold stone. Of course shallow profile would mean less capacity unless it was relatively wide. 

Local to me there is a 'tractor & plant' dealer who carries a very large stock of second hand excavator buckets, backhoe buckets, well just about any plant bucket of any size you could imagine. So I went and had a browse...

 

 

 

 

 

Yep don't hate me for it, but I bought a 48" John Deere bucket from a sub compact, as you can see from the pictures it had done nothing except be dented, it was  rusted inside from catching rain for years. 

 

 

 

I paid £75 for it,  which made it a no brainer. As you can see in the last pictures nice shallow bottom, even see the stencils on the wearing edge!   I haven't weighed it yet, but I wouldn't want it dropped on my foot. 

Let the bracket butchery begin...tomorrow. 

[953 nut 51,464]

1 hour ago, farmer said:

paid £75 for it,  which made it a no brainer.

   That is about $ 100 US, could't build it for that.      We will forgive the green color knowing you will make it RED soon.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

On 4/23/2017 at 6:04 PM, farmer said:

Talk about vague Texas.... with an answer like that your gonna be right, you a politician? 

And Horsefixer, you've go buckets on the brain,  l reckon your a little jealous of that steel, having to wait on yours.  

 

Yeah just had to bring that up didn't you?      I think ya got yer BONNET a Lil too Tight!   By the way yer doing a POP up JOB!   But just wait next year when I get My METAL!  

Edited April 27, 2017 by HorseFixer

[farmer 1,075]

Mmmmm, the green does sort of grow on you after a while.   

[953 nut 51,464]

1 hour ago, farmer said:

green does sort of grow on you

Mold is Green and will grow on you if you don't get to painting that bucket!            

[farmer 1,075]

Don't worry yourself, the greens gonna go.  

 

As the pictures show the bucket had a few dings and dents, so with a sledge and the anvil I beat them out as best I could. Then came the turn of the angle grinder to cut off the brackets. 

 

 

They were well made and heavy duty with  welded bosses which coincidentally were the same ID as my cat 1 pins OD, so not wanting to let them go to waste, they got cut out and cleaned up. 

 

 

Next came the 'new' brackets, metal cut from an old car lift. Because the loader booms are 200mm wide the brackets needed to be quite deep to accommodate them, these scrap pieces cut and drilled seemed just about right, but a bit weak. So I cut gussets to beef them up. 

 

 

3 brackets, 12 gussets and I saved 8 bosses. (I later had a friend with a lathe make more of the bosses for all the remaining pivot points on the loader)

 

 

 

With the booms tack welded square with a piece of angle, standing on level concrete a piece of 200mm box was used as a spacer from ground level. 

I put the brackets on the booms using worn out cutting discs as spacers clamped them up, then moved the bucket into place. When things were where they should be l spotted them on. 

 

 

From there on went the bosses and gussets. 

 

 

Lastly I welded the brackets on the bucket  permanently. Attached it back onto the loader and took a look,... should be ok.  

Only a few things left to do now.  

 

 

 

 

Oops doubled up with a few pictures. 

Edited April 27, 2017 by farmer

[WVHillbilly520H 10,369]

@farmer, looks like you are using "box" tubing (with that smooth radius) that was split for your brackets vs angle iron, I too like to use split box for a few projects like the snow plow skid shoes, BTW I'm sure all FEL buckets are made by outside vendor and painted to manufacturer colors/specs, Jeff.

Edited April 27, 2017 by WVHillbilly520H

[farmer 1,075]

Hi Jeff,

I'm sure your right, manufacturers outsource many components for their product lines, buckets being just one.  In the U.K. there are several specialists, Albutt, Strimec etc, just ways to keep costs down. 

[HorseFixer 2,012]

23 hours ago, farmer said:

Don't worry yourself, the greens gonna go.  

 

As the pictures show the bucket had a few dings and dents, so with a sledge and the anvil I beat them out as best I could. Then came the turn of the angle grinder to cut off the brackets. 

 

Farmer You are not pronouncing a SLEDGE properly, it is called SLUGGO!      Now if your gonna be fabricating, and run with the big DOGS namely "THE DUKE"  your gonna hafta start calling these tools their proper names. Incidentally I Just got back from picking up my Metal and Steel so Sparks will be flying soon!   

Edited April 28, 2017 by HorseFixer

[farmer 1,075]

Glad to hear your finally getting yourself organised Horsefixer, letting the side down a bit there old chap.  

(and I'll leave the technical workshop terminology to your good self) 

 

No fabbing tonight because I want to share what happened today. I went to a collective agricultural auction, it's held four times a year and I try to go because it's only 20 minutes away and there's always a lot of stuff there, anyway..

 

 

 

Yes I bought a 48" kubota dung fork, now I've got to make some more brackets, but how could I leave it behind. Cost £90 but it's  gonna look good on the ILS.  

Back to fabbing tomorrow. 

[Lee1977 6,209]

Got a bucket and a fork, farmer's going to the ____ hauled.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

31 minutes ago, farmer said:

Glad to hear your finally getting yourself organised Horsefixer, letting the side down a bit there old chap.  

(and I'll leave the technical workshop terminology to your good self) 

 

I figured if I agitated you long enough you would start pulling chains and scratching your head.    Yep works every time.  

[ACman 7,505]

WOW... where I've been...but I'm glad to have found this thread . Couldn't stop reading it .

 

This is one epic build and your attention to detail is over the top  . I'll be following this for sure!

[953 nut 51,464]

2 hours ago, farmer said:

dung fork,

We do become excited over the strangest stuff don't we.   

[Texas Todd 1,024]

Well his cup runneth over. What would a brit do with his cache of dung? Inquiring minds......

[farmer 1,075]

I know I know, I'm a sad individual who got excited at the sight of a kubota dung fork, but it fits so well into my grand plan, the need to share overwhelmed me. 

Postman brought some tyres yesterday so pictures tonight. 

[HorseFixer 2,012]

There is only 1 thing that gets a Brit more excited than a DUNG FORK     and that's a Kidney Pie!    

[farmer 1,075]

Well, here as promised new tyres,

 

 

I didn't really have to get these as the original   marked turf savers held air and had tread, but my luck would mean they'd probably let go after the rims had been painted. (bit of dry cracking) These are 10.50/12 6 ply and 6.50/8, the ags on the rear should give a bit of bite for steering. 

 

 

A couple of other things, firstly note the rust, this picture was probably taken 8 months later. It shows one of the two tabs I made and welded to the towers to bolt the dashboard/steering assembly too. 

 

 

Around the same time I made up a bracket to carry the spool block, it falls nicely to hand here, plus the 'in' pressure line can be routed neatly under the main boom pivot. My plan was to make the 'out' return line drop down then go back in between lift ram and tower. 

Bucket bracket, crowd and dump ram tomorrow. 

[AMC RULES 36,940]

 That mount looks good...  

just seems dangerously close to that pinch point. 

 

[Lee1977 6,209]

3 hours ago, AMC RULES said:

 That mount looks good...  

just seems dangerously close to that pinch point. 

 

Look close the control handles are behind the plate when bolted down.