Must have mods or attachments for new LS.

[Fitzwaryn]

I agree.. the Bucket chain hooks...they have been used more in the month I have owned my 4041 than anything else on the tractor.
I do want to do a protection pan for the underbelly but I have too much work to do to mod right now..that will be wintertime stuff.
I also suspect you will want to add some lights to the ROPS. Every tractor with a FEL has the same issue.

CHAIN HOOKS on the FEL if you do NOTHING else!!

I didn't have them put on before I got it and have cursed myself every day for not doing so. Don't have a welder at the moment and I'm getting really tired of dragging heavy chain and wrapping it here or there to secure it.

 

[Guesseral]

When you guys are welding the hooks on the FEL bucket are you also welding extra support to the bucket to keep them from bending? I haven't welded mine on yet but because I haven't got any steel to reinforce the top of the bucket it seems pretty flimsy compaired to what I am used to expecially in the center. The top of my bucket is just straight flat metal without any extra support. Has anyone had any problems with this or do your bucket have extra support?

 

[platinumaa]

All great ideas.. i appreciate the suggestions..

never thought of the hitch in center of bucket to move trailer.. i have 3 and are always moving them w/ truck trying to b/u.. this may be much easier

thanks again

 

[Fitzwaryn]

When you guys are welding the hooks on the FEL bucket are you also welding extra support to the bucket to keep them from bending? I haven't welded mine on yet but because I haven't got any steel to reinforce the top of the bucket it seems pretty flimsy compaired to what I am used to expecially in the center. The top of my bucket is just straight flat metal without any extra support. Has anyone had any problems with this or do your bucket have extra support?

Guess it depends on the brand. The top bucket edge on mine is a rectangular tube. Maybe 4 inchs front to back and 1-1.5 inches high. Not sure how thick the plate steel is but it looks pretty hefty.

I had intended to weld a stiffener on the top edge but once I got a good look at it I saw I really didn't need to.

 

[Short Game]

I didn't reinforce mine. Haven't ever pulled anything really hard yet. I like to put grab hooks on the ends of the bucket and a slide hook in the middle. When I chain up to something, I throw the chain into the slide hook, pull up the slack and lock it into one of the end hooks. Works great that way. If there is not enough extra chain to reach one of the end hooks, I just chain it back to itself and use only the center hook.

 

[Guesseral]

Yea I guess it does depend on the Manufacturer. The tractor is manufactured by LS I think the tag on the frame says it a 4047 but not completely sure of the exact number. I am not sure who made the FEL but I think it's US made. I guess it also makes a difference on just what bucket is ordered in the first place. Mine just doesn't seem that sturdy in my mind. Of course my mind sometimes wants more than it sees no matter what it sees LOL.

 

[Short Game]

My R4010 LS's loader is an LL4100. I believe it's not made in the US because all the cylinders are metric, whereas my Mitsubishi made Cub Cadet's loader is a Cub Cadet 417, which seems to be the same one as a Woods 165, and has cylinders that measure in inches.

 

[DwightD123]

The loader that came with my R4041 already had reinforcement in the bucket. When I had the chain hooks and hitch recvr added I did it as a bar. This way there is even more reinforcement- Kept from welding directly to the tractor too. All these electronics and I would have fried something for sure. It's just my luck.

 

[platinumaa]

have a question about the ball hitch on front of loader yall recommended.. i assumed drilling a 1 1/4" hole in bottom of loader behind scrape blade for a 2" ball.. and just put hitch ball on/off as needed.. but i did some searching and noticed this option which is a couple of small holes

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forus/a...524-trailer-ball-front-forks-bucket-hitch.jpg

also, found these on this forum too.. anyone have these (or similiar) and like em or not?

forks
Silver Lake Fabrication - Belmont, NH - 603-630-5658 - BUCKET FORKS


this ball accessory a better choice than drilling a hole in the bucket?
ball
Paynes Forks Ball Clamp with 1 3/4in. Stem | Bucket Accessories | Northern Tool + Equipment

im guessing alot of these items are owner preference.. but its good to know what others thought


thanks for replies!

 

[LittleBlueTractor]

I realize I'm a little late to this thread, but here's a pic of my jazzed up OEM bucket:



The dealer added the 2 funky grab hooks on the outside. Then I read on TBN that any hooks you use for heavy work should be at or inside the loader arms to keep from tweaking the arms, so I had a friend weld on a 2" x 2" x .25" angle iron to the top of the bucket and add the weld-on grab hooks and the 2" receiver tube.

But the main reason I decided to post was to say you might want to consider buying dedicated attachments instead of the add-on stuff. In my particular case I found it cheaper (surprisingly) to just buy a set of QA SS forks instead of bucket forks and a QA SS bucket with teeth instead of a bucket toothbar. Then when you need forks or a toothed bucket, you simply change out a QA implement -- which I find really easy to do. The only problem I have is storage room. To be honest I haven't really used the toothed bucket, but the SS forks work great with better leverage than bucket forks and no worries about bending your OEM bucket. Just something to think about.