Combo Base frame / material handle tine attachment

[jimgerken]

I finished up my combination base frame and material handling (tine) attachment. It is quick-attach like the stock JD bucket, so goes on and off in seconds. The 4 tines are simply 1/2" x 2" hot rolled steel. If they bend (they are only bolted into the frame, easily removed) I will next try cold-rolled, and possibly move to heat treated if necessary. So far, they have withstood picking up the rear end of the tractor so I dont think they are going to bend easy. This same base frame has several additional uses, through the use of optional attachments. Stay tuned to this thread for more info. Thanks!

 

[jimgerken]

Here's an unpainted shot, back in January. This shot may show the details better as the stock JD loader frame (410 on a 4100 tractor) is green, and my stuff is raw steel.

 

[jimgerken]

Here's the first optional attachment I built for the base frame. Its a material grapple. I usually think of it for brush handling but it will also work well for logs, and if used carefully for construction materials. The cylinder is a 2x10, off an old combine grain head (and repainted). The nice curved steel used to form the grapple arm was found in the steel recycling junkyard one day last winter. It was rolled up in a hoop, and I cut sections of it and bolted them together with pipe-section spacers. The bellcrank arm that the grapple arm bolts to and then the cylinder pins thru in the back, rotates in the welded mainframe on greased bronze inserts. The grapple opens four feet and closes to under 2 feet. The plumbing will be described later when theres a photo.

 

[jimgerken]

Closed view of the grapple.

 

[jimgerken]

Closer view, shows some hydraulic details. Theres a loop to allow the normal range of the (bucket) curl. The hoses are 3 feet long and just enough. Those are couplers, mounted the the cross member on the loader frame. So attachment simply requires quick-couple to this point of the 3 foot hoses which are part of the grapple. On the loader frame, I have routed a couple of 10 foot hoses with zip ties onto the original hardlines, plumbed all the way to the normal coupler area for the loader, where I have another set of couplers. So, when you put on the loader, you connect six couplers instead of four, and this allows the couplers for the grapple to be active. On the tractor, I have a dual-spool Prince valve mounted on the fender. The valve has four couplers screwed right into the back of the valve body, and two of these are "T"d off, and routed forward to the new couplers by the loader atach couplers. So I can use the one valve either front or back, and I always have another one in back for my toplink.

 

[jimgerken]

Another optional attachment to the base frame is this gin pole, which bolts on even when the grapple is in place. The gin pole bolts on with four small bolts thru the plate and into the threaded holes in the face of the base frame in the middle, and there are two 1/2" pins thru holes in the upper part of the base frame uprights for the gin pole tension elements. Theres a large chain thru-hole in the front end. Expected capacity is only 400 pounds on this device. It really is painted a beautifull deep shade of genuine JD Yellow, but my camera sucks.

 

[jimgerken]

Heres a front top view of the gin pole. Lift height is doubled with this device. Should work well for poles this Spring. You should be able to pick out the three attachment points in this terrible photo.

 

[Harv]

I'm eatin' my heart out here, Jim.

Not just for the most excellent attachment, but for your ability to make such a thing.

Nicely done! /w3tcompact/icons/cool.gif

 

[Rowski]

Nice work. Looks very professional. Do you design it first on paper or computer or just build it? I've got lots of ideas too, just not enough time to fabricate them/w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif.

Again great work!

 

[jimgerken]

Last on the list of optional stuff for the base frame: the Personell Lift. Its a safety cage for tree trimming, apple picking, garage and house painting, pole building erection, roof edge work, deck construction, that kind of stuff. It is made of some super fun 0.065" wall tubing of diameter 7/8". There's darn near 75 lineal feet of it in there so its good that its real light weight. the cage is very secure and ridgid feeling since it is all triangulated as seen. You step in from the side, over the diagonal brace and ducking under the toprail. The cage is 4 x 3 feet and the height of the rail when Im standing inside is about 10 inches above my waist. the floor is recycled traction planking from the junkyard, cleaned up and painted (it is real pretty in person, deep JD yellow, my wife's an EXCELLENT painter). Three one-foot wide pcs of the traction planking were cut to drop into a 1/8" form angle frame. The form angle was 3 x 4 inches, so that provided a nice lip to set in the traction planking on, and then also provided a nice 2 inch high lip all the way around so small stuff wont roll out when it tilts a little. Stuff like your cordless drill, hand tools, chainsaw, apple basket, paint can, you know. the photo is real bad (my trademark), but maybe you can make out the two small 2" pipe sections down in the front. these allow the tines of the comb frame / tine unit to slide in. And then there are two holes near the back, that mate up with the small holes up high in the base frame uprights to accept a couple half-inch bolts with nylocks. These two bolt points are the same as was used with the gin pole attachment in an earlier post, except there I show a couple pins thru the holes instead of bolts and nuts.