It's time; either get started or....

[NormL]

Here goes!! I'm getting started. Here are some pictures. I wanted to start the mounting platform for the pivot and control valves, etc, but since I don't have the right material yet, I'm having a go at the boom. I'm using a reciprocating saw to make the cuts and all went well for a little while - till the blade jammed in the work and broke. Kind of brings it all to a halt!

The photos:
1): First cut - free hand. 2): Closing the gap. 3): Yeah, I blew a hole in it. 1/8th" material and the welder operator is as rusty as the material, or worse! 4): I'll grind that down and try another layer over that. I'm not too concerned about the strength of the weld; there's heavy plate going on each side of that for the boom and dipper cylinders to mount onto. 5): The reciprocating saw before the blade busted.

What do you gentlemen think. Am I going to get the needed strength and rigidity from 3" x1/8th" tubing for the boom and dipper? I have lots of it and can go double if it is necessary. If bracing it will suffice, I can do that, too. I will lean heavily on the advice of builders with more knowledge and experience than I. If you tell me I am crazy, I will believe you and heed your advice (short of abandoning the project). If you tell me I am brilliant, I'll laugh just as hard at that as you will.:laughing::laughing:

 

[Rustyiron]

Are you making a backhoe?
Excuse me if I have mis understood but I have very serious doubts on the stregnth of the 3" - 1/8" wall tube for the boom. Don't know how big you are making it, but 1/8" wall is not much more than a tail pipe. The round of the pipe will also make the attachment of the cyl. mount/plate difficult as you will only have one point of contact for welding. You say that you have a bunch of it, maybe you could horsetrade for a pc of sq/rectangle tube with at least a 1/4" wall. (4x4-4x6) Good luck.

 

[o2batsea]

I think he's making a rust bucket

 

[NormL]

Are you making a backhoe?
Excuse me if I have mis understood but I have very serious doubts on the stregnth of the 3" - 1/8" wall tube for the boom. Don't know how big you are making it, but 1/8" wall is not much more than a tail pipe. The round of the pipe will also make the attachment of the cyl. mount/plate difficult as you will only have one point of contact for welding. You say that you have a bunch of it, maybe you could horsetrade for a pc of sq/rectangle tube with at least a 1/4" wall. (4x4-4x6) Good luck.

Sorry, I should provide some more detail. Yes, I'm building a backhoe. It will be a small one, going on the back of a Craftsman GT 18. And yes, the pipe is little more than tail pipe - maybe something like driveshaft stock. The reasons I am even considering using it are: 1): I really have a lot of it, 2): I can double it if needed and that will give me more weld points, 3): I have 3" channel to use on the ends, etc.

I have had my own misgivings about how this tubing will work. That is why I have opened up the thread with the request for advice. I am looking forward to the same wise counsel I have seen others giving and receiving. Thank you in advance!

 

[mjncad]

I'd use at least 3/16" wall tubing; but 1/4" would be better.

 

[chad22]

Nothing wrong with using rusty metal. I always find uses for old metal.

Heck part of my new backhoe is made from a piece of metal off an exercise machine that I salvaged out of the dumpster.

I said I'd use it one day and I did.

Looking forward to seeing your backhoe in action. Hopefully mine will be in action soon.

I can't wait to start digging with it.

Chad

 

[NormL]

Looking forward to seeing your backhoe in action. Hopefully mine will be in action soon.

I can't wait to start digging with it.

Chad

Ditto, Chad! There are so many places on my yard where a trench, even a temporary one would help drain the mosquito factories. With all the rain we have been getting, we can hear "frog songs" from every corner of the yard. Our pond has been running over all Spring, so I can't pump or drain anything into that.

What is holding me up the most is that the farmer who thought he could sell me his obsolete marker system for it's scrap value has had second thoughts. Can't say I blame him. That attachment cost him $5500 new. Now, with GPS in their tractors, nobody uses them anymore. I'd give him a few hundred for it but he'll probably let it rust waiting for someone to give him a thousand or so. Not gonna happen!! I needed that steel for my mounting platform for the pivot, hydraulic controls and outriggers. I see you're going with manually deployed outriggers. I will likely do the same, except I plan to have cylinders there some time so I'll build them with the mounting settup ready and just use sliders of some sort and pins to hold them in place, either in folded or deployed position. So, now it's on to plan B for the steel, I guess.

 

[NormL]

Pursuing plan B today! Scored some steel that should be stronger than I need. For the boom it is 5"x3"x1/4" and for the dipper 3" square by 1/4". For the platform for the pivot i got some 2" square tubing 1/4" wall. If I can sneak into the shop before the mosquitoes notice me I might get started on the platform. What is most likely to happen, however, is I'll get dragged off to help the wife get the garden in! Our weather has been so foul this Spring!! We are almost four weeks late getting into the garden because of wet conditions; try going in too soon - risk sinking in to your axles. I was finally able to get into the garden with the cultivator to open up the soil so it could breath and dry out a little. I had to do that twice before I could use the rototiller. Now if the rains just stay away for a couple more days.....:thumbsup:

Iplayfarmer, I plan to use a page out of your playbook when I do the bucket. Where I picked up the steel today, I saw some round stuff 1/8" or 3/16" by 14" to 16". I was not close enough to measure it but the guy who owns the yard said I'm welcome to as much of it as I want. I can hardly believe how accommodating this guy is. His idea of short pieces of scrap steel seems to be anything up to ten feet long!:drool: I plan to treat him with the utmost respect and try not to be a pest.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

...Iplayfarmer, I plan to use a page out of your playbook when I do the bucket. Where I picked up the steel today, I saw some round stuff 1/8" or 3/16" by 14" to 16". I was not close enough to measure it but the guy who owns the yard said I'm welcome to as much of it as I want. I can hardly believe how accommodating this guy is. His idea of short pieces of scrap steel seems to be anything up to ten feet long!:drool: I plan to treat him with the utmost respect and try not to be a pest.

I'm flattered. I just wish I could have gotten a little further on my plan for you so that I could give you feedback whether my plan works or not.

Did I tell you that with one circle I plan to make two buckets? I cut the circle in thirds to get the arc I needed. I'm planning a narrow bucket made from one of the thirds. I'm planning to then weld the other two thirds together side by side to make a bucket twice as wide.

 

[NormL]

I'm flattered. I just wish I could have gotten a little further on my plan for you so that I could give you feedback whether my plan works or not.

Did I tell you that with one circle I plan to make two buckets? I cut the circle in thirds to get the arc I needed. I'm planning a narrow bucket made from one of the thirds. I'm planning to then weld the other two thirds together side by side to make a bucket twice as wide.

Yes, I read that post and made sure I made note of it on "the sticky side of my brain" as Woodrow Kroll would say! As I recall, the weight of your bucket is such that you would not want to drop it on something with nerve-endings, such as a toe. I too, will build one to start with. I think someone on your thread recommended going wider rather than narrower to deal more effectively with mud sticking in the bucket. I will heed that advice and go with 10" minimum, probably more..

 

[mjncad]

The nice thing about using a wider bucket is it's easier to walk in the trench while laying conduit and pipe.

 

[rcurrie]

I made my bucket 10" wide out of 3/16 plate and was able to bend it by hand.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Yes, I read that post and made sure I made note of it on "the sticky side of my brain" as Woodrow Kroll would say! As I recall, the weight of your bucket is such that you would not want to drop it on something with nerve-endings, such as a toe. I too, will build one to start with. I think someone on your thread recommended going wider rather than narrower to deal more effectively with mud sticking in the bucket. I will heed that advice and go with 10" minimum, probably more..

Mine is 8". I don't have the sticky clay soil, and the first project I plan to do with mine is extend my sprinkler system. I'll need a narrow trench about 2 feet deep.

Isn't that the beauty of building your own stuff? You can make it whatever you want to fit your specific needs.

 

[NormL]

The nice thing about using a wider bucket is it's easier to walk in the trench while laying conduit and pipe.

That's true. But here where I plan to dig there is another, more critical reason for digging wide. The instability of trench walls is astonishingly dangerous. I'm sure rcurrie is familiar with this, too. I had a contractor doing some trenching for me last year in autumn and the trench he had open was some eight feet deep. Even with sloped walls, he and I both saw danger developing in the trench and shouted to the helper down there to get out, NOW!! He did, and the trench did not collapse, but the danger was real and fortunately no injuries occurred.

 

[NormL]

I made my bucket 10" wide out of 3/16 plate and was able to bend it by hand.

That's my plan B for the bucket if the "round" plan doesn't work for some reason. The sides will be 1/4" because that's where the stress will be.

 

[NormL]

Mine is 8". I don't have the sticky clay soil, and the first project I plan to do with mine is extend my sprinkler system. I'll need a narrow trench about 2 feet deep.

Isn't that the beauty of building your own stuff? You can make it whatever you want to fit your specific needs.

I'd gladly send you some "sprinkle" if I could to save you the trouble installing the system! Some of my grass has been drowning and the rest is growing wild because it's too wet to mow. Can't even get on to spray the weeds! But yes, building to my specs is truly satisfying. And if it breaks, I know who to blame.:laughing::laughing:

 

[Iplayfarmer]

...And if it breaks, I know who to blame.:laughing::laughing:

And how to fix it.

 

[jnjpream]

Iplayfarmer,

I tried to use by backhoe to put in part of my sprinkler system and it was painfully slow (and rough on the bottom). So slow that I abandoned it and rented a trencher to finish it. Not feeling too good about shelling out cash to cover my plan failure, I decided to build a subsoiler with a pipe feeder for the next run of line. All I can say is WOW :thumbsup:.. It buried 125' of silly pipe 18" deep in less time than it did to attach and pin the pipe anchor. Could go deeper if needed, but 18 was enough for me.

Not knocking the backhoe project at all. In fact it's a great project because they are so stinking handy to have around and I wouldn't want to be without my backhoe.

Just saying that in my experience, for burying sprinkler line, the modified subsoiler is awesome.. If you want I'll post the CAD drawing of it along with some pictures in another thread.

 

[NormL]

Iplayfarmer,

I tried to use by backhoe to put in part of my sprinkler system and it was painfully slow (and rough on the bottom). So slow that I abandoned it and rented a trencher to finish it. Not feeling too good about shelling out cash to cover my plan failure, I decided to build a subsoiler with a pipe feeder for the next run of line. All I can say is WOW :thumbsup:.. It buried 125' of silly pipe 18" deep in less time than it did to attach and pin the pipe anchor. Could go deeper if needed, but 18 was enough for me.

Not knocking the backhoe project at all. In fact it's a great project because they are so stinking handy to have around and I wouldn't want to be without my backhoe.

Just saying that in my experience, for burying sprinkler line, the modified subsoiler is awesome.. If you want I'll post the CAD drawing of it along with some pictures in another thread.

Go ahead, post it. I'm sure it will be a valuable addition to the thread. I will be looking to bury some long runs of discharge line from a sump pit and that sub-soiler could well be the ticket.:thumbsup:

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Iplayfarmer,

I tried to use by backhoe to put in part of my sprinkler system and it was painfully slow (and rough on the bottom). So slow that I abandoned it and rented a trencher to finish it. Not feeling too good about shelling out cash to cover my plan failure, I decided to build a subsoiler with a pipe feeder for the next run of line. All I can say is WOW :thumbsup:.. It buried 125' of silly pipe 18" deep in less time than it did to attach and pin the pipe anchor. Could go deeper if needed, but 18 was enough for me.

Not knocking the backhoe project at all. In fact it's a great project because they are so stinking handy to have around and I wouldn't want to be without my backhoe.

Just saying that in my experience, for burying sprinkler line, the modified subsoiler is awesome.. If you want I'll post the CAD drawing of it along with some pictures in another thread.

Ditto what NormL said... Post it.

I have to go accross a driveway. I'm not sure that a ripper type puller would do the trick.