Ventrac power bucket

[zmountaineer]

I'm contemplating the purchase of the power bucket with the grapple and teeth. Anybody have this set up on here? Does it work well for picking up loose brush?

I'm trying to clear brush/small trees on my property to thin it out. I've been taking the chainsaw to all these bushes and trees then trying to gather them together, hook a chain and drag them a good distance to the back of the property for proper burning away from the house. It's a slow process as it is right now. The area that I'm working on at the moment is about 3 acres. I'm only saving trees greater than 8 inches. I could have all of the unwanted stuff cut in a day but I hate letting it lay there so I'm only doing small sections at a time. I'm hoping the bucket/grapple will allow me to organize things faster to make larger piles to drag.

Once I'm done thinning, I'll need to do something with the stumps and while my father in law has a large stump grinder I'd be more interested in total removal since they are small. Does the bucket with teeth grab into the ground good enough to rip small (and by small I mean like 3 inch max) stumps out with shallow roots? I do have plenty other uses for it for leveling some sites but just wondering if this is possible. I could just saw them at ground level and leave it be. I'm looking to get some grass growing and dressing up the area. Where they had to chisel out my driveway there are numerous "boulders" (the largest is about the size of 3 basketballs together. Most are single basketball size but are HEAVY) that need moved as well and my back doesn't much like picking them up (and some I cannot budge). The ventrac is perfect for weaving in and out of the trees to get to the places that the bigger tractors we have cannot get to easily.

Anyway, looking for opinions of the bucket/grapple/teeth combo. The closest dealer keeps everything in stock so once I decide I want it, I can get it same day.

 

[johara1]

Never used the one with a grappler, i did trade my old bucket in to get the teeth, a total joke. The old one dug better than the power(less) bucket did with teeth. Should have kept the old one and got a tooth bar for it. These are made to carry loose soil and mulch and a couple of branches. .... easier than a wheel barrow i guess....... jim

 

[JackIL]

The grapple works as shown on the Ventrac videos, and works well for my applications. It works great for increasing the amount of mulch that can be loaded and carried as shown in the photo. The teeth are intended to loosen soil to aid in filling the bucket. They are not sharp, so I doubt they would do much for root cutting. Maybe the Piranaha bucket teeth would do better for that purpose.

Bxpanded.com

Also, the grapple reqires the installation of a kit to provide a second set of hydraulic couplers for the front.

 

[zmountaineer]

The grapple works as shown on the Ventrac videos, and works well for my applications. It works great for increasing the amount of mulch that can be loaded and carried as shown in the photo. The teeth are intended to loosen soil to aid in filling the bucket. They are not sharp, so I doubt they would do much for root cutting. Maybe the Piranaha bucket teeth would do better for that purpose.

Bxpanded.com

Also, the grapple reqires the installation of a kit to provide a second set of hydraulic couplers for the front.

I was quoted the bucket, grapple, teeth and dual hydraulic kit. At msrp then he added a promotional discount of 13%. I also told him I wanted the foot pedal and it's looking like he is just going to include it.

 

[johara1]

Sharp has little to do with digging but location and spacing does. No teeth on the outside corners is a killer...... jim

 

[TNMark1]

I have the bucket.....

Basketball sized rocks, logs that will fit in bucket, fine, not an issue.... It will lift about 500lbs (my estimate)...

Digging... NOPE... Scraping dirt, yes....

Easy ones done....

Brush it will pick up brush and clamp it.. The clamp, grapple or whatever you call it has VERY LITTLE closing power... It will keep things from falling out of the bucket. PROBLEM becomes when you move.... If there is material hanging out of the bucket and you are going forward, chances are you are going to run it over and pull it out of the bucket... If you have a large load of brush, plan on moving it in reverse... You can't clamp onto roots and pull them out of the ground, its not going to work, I've tried it...

Small roots...

If you need to pull roots, get a BRUSH GRUBBER (I dont sell them, link is an illustration)... They come in various sizes.... They work really well. Work best with a helper... Cut trees off 2' off the ground. Put bucket on tractor. Helper hooks grubber to tree, you pull it. Helper removes Grubber and attaches to next "tree" and tosses the one you just pulled in the tractor bucket... When bucket is full, go dump it... Helper saves a LOT of on and off the tractor hooking the Grubber up...

More questions, just ask..

BrushGrubber 14 in. Heavy Duty Brush Remover Tool-BG-8 - The Home Depot

 

[zmountaineer]

I have the bucket.....

Basketball sized rocks, logs that will fit in bucket, fine, not an issue.... It will lift about 500lbs (my estimate)...

Digging... NOPE... Scraping dirt, yes....

Easy ones done....

Brush it will pick up brush and clamp it.. The clamp, grapple or whatever you call it has VERY LITTLE closing power... It will keep things from falling out of the bucket. PROBLEM becomes when you move.... If there is material hanging out of the bucket and you are going forward, chances are you are going to run it over and pull it out of the bucket... If you have a large load of brush, plan on moving it in reverse... You can't clamp onto roots and pull them out of the ground, its not going to work, I've tried it...

Small roots...

If you need to pull roots, get a BRUSH GRUBBER (I dont sell them, link is an illustration)... They come in various sizes.... They work really well. Work best with a helper... Cut trees off 2' off the ground. Put bucket on tractor. Helper hooks grubber to tree, you pull it. Helper removes Grubber and attaches to next "tree" and tosses the one you just pulled in the tractor bucket... When bucket is full, go dump it... Helper saves a LOT of on and off the tractor hooking the Grubber up...

More questions, just ask..

BrushGrubber 14 in. Heavy Duty Brush Remover Tool-BG-8 - The Home Depot

Thanks for the link. I've seen those before but I've never known anyone who had one and been able to tell me first hand how well it works. My problem is that help is non existent or at least minuscule. Especially when I need it.

I ended up buying the bucket and grapple last Friday. One thing that irked me unrelated to the actual bucket was when I had the dealer install the dual kit and they attached the bucket, I got it home to test it out. Took my first load of brush up the hill and the bucket fell off and I bent the mount. Silly me for not checking that it was locked in. Took a hammer to it and straightened it out. I was literally shocked how easy it was to bend the thick steel.

First impressions of it was, like you said, the grapple does not have much closing power....it was kind of disheartening. Curling was weak as well. I was thinking why the heck did I spend nearly $3k for this thing. The first day took a lot of getting used to and I was frustrated at the controls and thinking why was the grapple closing when dumping.....then I looked at the owners ma gal after the first day. Apparently the dealer also installed the hoses wrong as well. I switched it around it and suddenly became much easier to use. Second day was a glorious day with it. I started at the top of the hill, lowered bucket, tilted down so only the teeth were in the ground and then began to push. I gathered so much brush up into a pile that was taller than I am. I was the. Able to move the whole pile (in sections) without ever getting off the tractor....which is the reason I wanted it in the first place. I have a technique for grappling by holding then curl and rapidly pressing the button to clamp as it curves. Then as I'm lifting I hold the clamp down. I have had 0 problems holding onto the brush and running it over after perfecting my way of doing it. Today was another glorious day of scraping up deadfall and brush. I would just push everything into one giant pile and then pick away at it. I really wish I took some before pictures bc I am so impressed on the way it is turning out. Though I will say that I sawed everything down first and had cut the stumps at ground level to make the scraping easier. Occasion I had to bump over a stump. As far as digging/scraping, it is doing what I need it to do. I think mainly bc I am working mostly downhill. I'm cutting off highs and filling in lows. My soil is also soft right now so I think that is making it easier.

So, first impression was this thing sucked. By the end of day 3, I don't know how I could live without it.

I did find the limit of carrying capacity. I had at least 20 inch oak log (whatever it was, it was about 2 inches smaller than the grapple opening) about 5ft in length. It picked it up, but absolutely would not curl.

 

[TNMark1]

Brush grubber works without a helper, but its much faster with a helper... Depends on how much stuff you need removed....

Glad its not just me that thinks clamp is weak... If you try to grab something you also need to be sure you grab it with the "points" on the clamp

I may not have explained it well... The carrying brush problems happen when you have very long (or wide in the bucket) pieces... If you have a 10' limb its going to catch on the ground and pull out of the bucket... If you have a lot of "softer" more flexible stuff that hangs out 2' or more, then you are eventually going to run it over with the front tires and pull it out of the bucket...

Logs are better when they are cut to fit in the bucket... I usually cut for 3', then you can cut those in half for 18" firewood... Getting them inside the bucket makes it easier to "roll" the bucket back to get them to fall in... If the bucket doesn't want to roll (a time to use full throttle... I normally use 3000 RPM on the diesel), start moving and as you are moving, it tends to roll easier because of the tractor bouncing...

I had a big (28" approx) log in the teeth of the bucket one day... It was held by the clamp against the teeth of the bucket... I was moving it down a paved road as fast as it would go (and downhill... 9MPH??), Hit a small bump and the log rolled out of the bucket and I had to chase it downhill... I caught it and picked it up again... Actually had a nice straight one with no knots... Go figure...

I assume your hydraulic problems were that the dealer didn't understand the concept of matching the colors on the hydraulic outlets?

 

[zmountaineer]

I assume your hydraulic problems were that the dealer didn't understand the concept of matching the colors on the hydraulic outlets?

I wish this was the case as I double checked the hose ends. Now I have to remember to switch the white and black when I use the bucket/grapple.....either that or change the ends on the cylinders.

 

[TNMark1]

Honestly, I'd take it back and let them change it... For what it all cost, they should make it right.... For that matter they should send someone over to fix it at your house.....