Carolina Implement Grapple?

[Gypsyman]

In the link I added, the 3rd picture shows a Carolina and HD-(?) sticker. Again, maker or importer to me, wouldn’t be that important. If I was buying a bucket for a 100hp+, I’d want to try before I buy. Without doing something dumb, this grapple looks well put together and is a pretty good deal. Would I back drag using the upper teeth, no. Would I wrap a chain around the upper and pull, no. Would I push /pull a tree using the upper, no. Picking up trees / brush, junk, old fence posts, yes.

I missed that. Had to go in on my laptop to be able to zoom in on the pictures and sure enough, there it was. Thank you for bringing that to my attention.

 

[Gypsyman]

My first grapple was a single lid unit I bought online. Used bolts for pins and the holes for the pins were cut using a flame torch. POS. Re-welding broken buttered welds covered with globs of high hide black paint is good fun.

I'd recommend checking it out in person before dropping cash.

I plan on running over there this weekend if they’re open on Saturdays. I’m curious to see the welds and such in person. Hopefully I won’t give up too much lift capacity going with the 68” version. Might drop back to the 62” just to be safe.

 

[aesanders]

I plan on running over there this weekend if they’re open on Saturdays. I’m curious to see the welds and such in person. Hopefully I won’t give up too much lift capacity going with the 68” version. Might drop back to the 62” just to be safe.

Hey, I just found this post of yours. I have been eyeing this grapple as well. I like the Ocala FL dealer these are posted from (I assume this is the same dealer you saw it at, but maybe not). They seem like standup guys. Let me know what you find out from the visual inspection.

 

[Gypsyman]

Yes, it’s the listing from the Ocala Florida dealer. I’ll post my findings if I can get over there this weekend.

 

[Gypsyman]

I drove down to pick up the used Land Pride FDR3690 mower that I had been working a deal on and stopped by Connor Tractor to look over the grapples. Liked what I saw and loaded up the 62" HD version for $1895.00 out the door. After getting it home I went over it even more thoroughly. Here are my observations.

• The cylinders have English (rake) and Korean (grapple) wording on them. Take from that what you will.
• Heavy wall cross tubing.
• All pivot points have grease fittings. The zerk fitting on the bottom eye of the cylinder faces down possibly exposing it to damage. If this becomes a problem I will plug the hole, drill, tap, and reinstall the zerk in a rear facing position. This would protect it and also make it easier to grease.
• There is an opening that can allow limbs and such to come though the main body and possibly damage the hoses or break a cylinder fitting. I pointed this out to the owner and he stated that he had already put in a request with Carolina to plate over these openings on the next production run. It’s a simple enough process for me to make a couple of weld-on or bolt-on plates to better protect the hoses. A few dollars and a little bit of time investment. No big deal.
• Curious to see if the upper can close even further than in the attached picture. The very tip of the outer teeth on both sides make light contact when fully closed. I need to see if the cylinders are at max extension or if a bit of light grinding for tooth clearance will allow the clam shell upper to close even further.

Unless I find something drastic during use I’m very happy with what I received for the price.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

I drove down to pick up the used Land Pride FDR3690 mower that I had been working a deal on and stopped by Connor Tractor to look over the grapples. Liked what I saw and loaded up the 62" HD version for $1895.00 out the door. After getting it home I went over it even more thoroughly. Here are my observations.

• The cylinders have English (rake) and Korean (grapple) wording on them. Take from that what you will.
• Heavy wall cross tubing.
• All pivot points have grease fittings. The zerk fitting on the bottom eye of the cylinder faces down possibly exposing it to damage. If this becomes a problem I will plug the hole, drill, tap, and reinstall the zerk in a rear facing position. This would protect it and also make it easier to grease.
• There is an opening that can allow limbs and such to come though the main body and possibly damage the hoses or break a cylinder fitting. I pointed this out to the owner and he stated that he had already put in a request with Carolina to plate over these openings on the next production run. It’s a simple enough process for me to make a couple of weld-on or bolt-on plates to better protect the hoses. A few dollars and a little bit of time investment. No big deal.
• Curious to see if the upper can close even further than in the attached picture. The very tip of the outer teeth on both sides make light contact when fully closed. I need to see if the cylinders are at max extension or if a bit of light grinding for tooth clearance will allow the clam shell upper to close even further.

Unless I find something drastic during use I’m very happy with what I received for the price.

Nice looking grapple, hopefully it will work out for you.

 

[stuckmotor]

I haven't been following implements for some time. Can I assume that this relates to EA?


Good eye. That kind of observation is the type of input I was looking for. I wonder how hard it would be to source the correctly sized pins to replace the bolts?

Are the bolts metric or American?

 

[Gypsyman]

Haven’t made it that far. Long day of driving and it was dark by the time I grabbed some chow. My guess is that the whole unit is an import.

 

[aesanders]

Looks good. Please keep us posted how you like it. One might be in my near future.

 

[Advil]

That looks very nice. I like their take on putting the little wedge feet at the bottom back so it will stand itself up easier. Nice touch.

It definitely does need something welded in front of those fittings on either side, but the rest of the protection channel is nice.

That's going to be a winner of a product long term if they keep making them.

Do they make any mention of what steel they are using? It looks good, but you can't tell the difference between mild steel and AR plate just from a glance.