Building a BX cleanout bucket
- Thread starter Scooby074
- Start date
Sfrankland
Silver Member
I thought my 24" bucket would be the max but after using it I love it. As you said it can handle a heaping of heavy material and sling it around no problems.
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Scooby074
Super Member
24 is a good start. After you get a feel for what your tractor can handle you can build bigger. I built mine considerably deeper and taller so I can move more per bucket than just what the added width allows. I bet volume wise the new bucket is 70% more than stock. Also I leaned the sides more forward (70* vs 60* IIRC) so that the bucket is deeper on the front which means I can heap it greater.
Toothbars are good in the hardstuff. I didnt want one on mine because it was originally intended to be a grading/cleanout bucket so a smooth cutting edge is what you want. Ill see how it digs in harder ground before deciding on teeth.
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Scooby074
Super Member
Yeah it is a bit of a slipery slope for sure. My biggest annoyance about the BX is the time it takes to do anything, because of the small implements and buckets. My original idea was for a 30 or 32 way back in december when I first thought about it... I still may build one eventually, but it likely wont be as deep as my 24,
That's cool. I noticed the sides were scaled up and wondered how it would perform with less breakout force. I'm glad it did well. My backhoe is available with an 8, 12, or 16" bucket from the factory. I think 24" would be fine. I have never found a need to dig narrower as I use my 12" to put in lots of French drains. It's perfect for this task but sucks when cleaning out ditches or digging for concrete pads/ pavers
Sfrankland
Silver Member
I added four bolt on teeth to my skeleton bucket. I have the same teeth on my stock bucket and on my front bucket. They work great but are $30 a tooth in my neck of the woods. I am thinking that they would be better than a tooth bar and only take a few minutes to remove.
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Scooby074
Super Member
Did you build that bucket from scratch? How does it work for you? Any video of it in operation? I imagine it would be real handy for screening from a stockpile to make top soil. Id probably run a sightly smaller mesh for that job though. Looks real useful.
Sfrankland
Silver Member
Yes I built it last week but its been raining ever since so no video yet. I dig out and spread a lot of gravel so I want to remove the larger rocks to make it easier to level out. I have the ribs spaced 1.5" apart and it does the job. I tried it out in a pile of old sod my neighbour had and was thinking that it would work better with a screen to get good topsoil but I would rarely use it for that. I have plans to build a topsoil screener which I think would be a lot faster. This is more for removing rocks from the top layer of gravel.
Nice job on the skeleton bucket:thumbsup:
Renze
Elite Member
I'm going to make a 70cm (28") cleanup and grading bucket for my Bobcat backhoe, but before i do that i need to extend the dipper stick a foot or so, too. Now it just doesnt have the reach to clean any ditch. I have already extended the support feet to give it more clearance, but now i need the longer dipper to get a little reach. I'll swap the bucket and dipper cylinder because the bucket is very slow, and the dipper could use some extra force if i extend it.