Added a ripper to my Woods BH90x: Trees beware

Ok, I just heard from Bob at Michigan I&E that he would be happy to build another ripper for what I paid: $495 plus shipping.

I thought that was a very reasonable price especially given the precision fabrication needed for the pin bushings. Not a job for an amateur welder at least not my kind.

The cut outs may not be necessary. We did them to save weight but I'll also say that the ripper is tough as nails and has zero flex.

At this point I wouldn't change anything about the design. It has a nice balance of ripping power, depth and ability to dig. I am toying with an idea I think IronHorse introduced which is to weld a single small hook tooth on the backside of the ripper tip so that a big root could be more easily ripped on the backstroke. So far I've not encountered any root that required more than a couple of rips but a big root would be more easily torn apart if the back of the ripper could snag a chunk each pass.

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Originally Posted by spo307

When I change bh buckets I have a pin 12" long and a 1/4" small in diameter, use this pin to start the alignment from one side then start the bh pin from the other and wiggle it in.

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Great practical idea.

Some sort of adjustable wheeled cart would be nice though both to store and maneuver the attachments.

Attach a boat trailer winch to the wall in your garage/ barn, attach a pulley to the ceiling, & hang the ripper from the cable. You'd be able to swing it around & rotate it easily, & adjust the height easily with the winch.

If you don't want to leave it actually hanging there, just lower it down to the floor & let it sit there until you're ready to crank it back up & re-install it again.

Edit: By the way, that ripper looks awesome! Perfect for what I need. Problem is, I gots no backhoe. :(

There is definitely a market for a ripper like you had made. I think Bob has a winner on his hands! Maybe a little advertising or have someone who sells implements ship them out. If I had a backhoe...I would get one.

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Originally Posted by IslandTractor

The cut outs may not be necessary. We did them to save weight but I'll also say that the ripper is tough as nails and has zero flex.

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That's an interesting design approach, ISLAND. It looks quite effective.

Have you tried using it to grasp objects between it and the thumb?

I never really considered cut-outs in my design. What do you think yours
weighs?

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Originally Posted by dfkrug

That's an interesting design approach, ISLAND. It looks quite effective.

Have you tried using it to grasp objects between it and the thumb?

I never really considered cut-outs in my design. What do you think yours
weighs?

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Mine weighs 80lbs if I recall correctly. It feels like at least that much or even a bit more when manhandling. I cannot lift it with one arm so maybe 100 is closer to reality. It does weigh less than the standard 18" bucket though.

We included cut outs in the design after initial weight estimates were well over 150lbs and I was concerned about being able to install it singlehandedly.

I haven't played with the thumb yet. I might convert the thumb to hydraulic which would be useful but as you may know from previous posts I am no fan of the manual thumb (at least for someone with a grapple up front).

I guess I am spoiled. On my little Yanmar, I just flip a switch and push a button and the bucket drops off, reverse to grab the next. 30 seconds tops.

If you are going to tempt us , at least give us some contact info for him.

Robert J Piro PE
Michigan Iron and Equipment
10231 Rose Blvd.
Morrice, MI 48857
517-625-4590

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Originally Posted by wedge40

Some more close ups and different angles of the ripper would be appreciate.

Wedge

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Here you go:

Looks like an interesting thread...

Thanks Island for the kind words. Glad we had the opportunity to help get you fixed up with the ripper. We think your idea for the backbone plate was novel, and turned out to be effective in ways we didn't think about when you had us add it. It has both structural and various application advantages.

Thanks again for getting us involved.