Help ID this grapple!

[avc8130]

Can anyone ID the grapple in the attachment? I am hoping it will work well on my Kubota L39. Lifting capacity on my machine is about 2200lbs.

ac

 

[dstig1]

Looks an awful lot like the Markham/Gator one. Given the apparent age, I would assume it is from the Markham era. I'd give it a 95% likelihood. Lots of details look identical.

It does appear to be at least 60" wide, if not 72" based on the pallet it is sitting on. While 60" should be fine, 72" might be a bit large, but if the price is right, that would be hard to argue with...

Biggest question is if it has the SSQA mount on it, and does your FEL have the same? Can't see anything of the backside of it.

 

[avc8130]

Looks an awful lot like the Markham/Gator one. Given the apparent age, I would assume it is from the Markham era. I'd give it a 95% likelihood. Lots of details look identical.

It does appear to be at least 60" wide, if not 72" based on the pallet it is sitting on. While 60" should be fine, 72" might be a bit large, but if the price is right, that would be hard to argue with...

Biggest question is if it has the SSQA mount on it, and does your FEL have the same? Can't see anything of the backside of it.

It is SSQA and my FEL is same.

It is 66".

Seller says he used it for 1 job and hasn't used it since. He is selling a few skid steer attachments.

Weight is my biggest concern. My loader has good capacity, but I would like to leave as much as possible for lifting stuff and not a bucket.

I currently have a Bobcat brand Demo Grapple Bucket. No clue what it weighs, but it is solid bottom and back and it weighs a good amount.

Might this be lighter? It is tough to tell, because the tines could easily add up to be the same surface area as a solid bucket.

He wants $800 for this grapple and I paid $500 for my grapple bucket in rough shape.

ac

 

[dstig1]

My 48" was about $1100-1200 new, including shipping. Add $200-400 for the bigger size, I guess. Mine weighs in around 425 lbs, but I had them add the extra tines to the bottom of mine. That one does not have them, but has the bigger double upper jaw. I'd say you are under 500 lbs, guessing. That is assuming it is made of 3/8" steel, which is standard.

It's a bit wide, but not crazy large. Price seems good, not a steal. Also probably not too heavy. Is an extra 100 lbs going to really make a huge difference? Some skid steer grapples are pushing 700-900 lbs.

Call Gator in the AM and get some info directly from them. They should be able to tell you weight and cost, new. Then you can be sure.

 

[avc8130]

425 is a good range. I need to see if I can figure out how much my current grapple bucket weighs. If this is going to be significantly lighter, I might jump on it. He said he would take $750. I don't see used grapples very often.
ac

 

[HCJtractor]

I have a very similar one (Markham) but in a 48" heavy duty (1/2" steel) version. Mine has just one upper "claw". I use it on a M 6800 Kubota. Absolutely awesome tool, by far the most useful implement I own. I think that is a good price and it looks to be in good shape. There really is not much that can go wrong with these, except maybe the cylinders. I have bent mine a little but it has no effect on function. I would not hesitate on buying this. My bucket has not been used in three years, whereas I use this grapple every time I get on my tractor.

 

[avc8130]

I have a very similar one (Markham) but in a 48" heavy duty (1/2" steel) version. Mine has just one upper "claw". I use it on a M 6800 Kubota. Absolutely awesome tool, by far the most useful implement I own. I think that is a good price and it looks to be in good shape. There really is not much that can go wrong with these, except maybe the cylinders. I have bent mine a little but it has no effect on function. I would not hesitate on buying this. My bucket has not been used in three years, whereas I use this grapple every time I get on my tractor.

Do you think this grapple (open bottom) would be more useful than the one I currently have (closed bottom)?

What about weight? Might they be similar, or would one be significantly lighter than another?

ac

 

[dstig1]

AC - Call Gator and ask. Then you will know what it weighs. Then call bobcat (or check the website) and ask them what your bucket weighs. Everything else is just random guessing. Nobody knows what it is you have.

You need to know what it is made of - is it 3/8" steel or 1/2". Those are 2 different lines. The heavier 1/2" line will weigh a lot more:
Heavy Duty Root Grapple aka Grapple Rake | Gator Attachments

 

[HCJtractor]

By closed bottom, I assume you are describing a standard bucket with a claw on top?? If so, I think this root grapple is better for most things I use it for, such as collecting and carrying chainsaw debris, uprooting saplings, trees up to 6" diameter, grabbing large rocks, and even grabbing implements (such as a disc or plow) for moving or loading. Last night we were in a hurry and needed to load a disc on a trailer. We simply grabbed it with the grapple and picked it up and placed it on the trailer. My loader has about a 2500 lb. capacity, and I expect the grapple I have and the one you show weighs 600 or 700 lbs. I really never have any problem with exceding this limit unless I try to pick up a rock as big as the house, something I should know better to even try. Debris or logs are never an issue.

What these grapples excel at is clearing land, especially some grown up in small trees and undergrowth. Or for big trees, they make quick work out of hauling off the cut up debris and sectioned logs. I don't see a closed bottom bucket being able to do this as well.

I agree with Island Tractors's philosophy of a narrower one (48") being ideal, but for the price of the one you are looking at, I don't think I would spend another $800 to get a narrower one. The only thing a narrower one would do better (in my opinion) is focused digging or uprooting of a single larger tree.

 

[avc8130]

By closed bottom, I assume you are describing a standard bucket with a claw on top?? If so, I think this root grapple is better for most things I use it for, such as collecting and carrying chainsaw debris, uprooting saplings, trees up to 6" diameter, grabbing large rocks, and even grabbing implements (such as a disc or plow) for moving or loading. Last night we were in a hurry and needed to load a disc on a trailer. We simply grabbed it with the grapple and picked it up and placed it on the trailer. My loader has about a 2500 lb. capacity, and I expect the grapple I have and the one you show weighs 600 or 700 lbs. I really never have any problem with exceding this limit unless I try to pick up a rock as big as the house, something I should know better to even try. Debris or logs are never an issue.

What these grapples excel at is clearing land, especially some grown up in small trees and undergrowth. Or for big trees, they make quick work out of hauling off the cut up debris and sectioned logs. I don't see a closed bottom bucket being able to do this as well.

I agree with Island Tractors's philosophy of a narrower one (48") being ideal, but for the price of the one you are looking at, I don't think I would spend another $800 to get a narrower one. The only thing a narrower one would do better (in my opinion) is focused digging or uprooting of a single larger tree.

The bucket I currently own is similar to this one:
Bobcat 72? INDL 1 Yd Grapple Skid Steer Loader Bucket Dirt Attachment Aux Hyd NR | eBay
Except mine is ~66" wide.

I haven't gotten to use it yet as I just finished my 3rd function install last night.

I plan to use the grapple to move logs and bush mostly. I am trying to determine where the DISADVANTAGE to the open bottom is.

I am pretty sure I could sell the current bucket I have for at least what I paid for it. If I wanted to flip to the open grapple.

ac

 

[HCJtractor]

In my humble opinion, that bucket grapple would be worthless for what I use my grapple for. Buckets are for picking up material, such as mulch, sand, dirt, etc. (like a shovel) A root grapple is like a large pitchfork, as it can be stabbed into brushy debris and limbs and clamp them, but most important, it can be used like a spade, to plunge under a root ball of a tree to uplift and up root it, pick it up, shake off the dirt, and move it anywhere. The wide blade of a bucket isn't good at digging with the limited power of a compact tractor, just like I would not use a snow shovel to dig up a tree, but rather a spade, which is more like a narrow grapple. Putting a upper thumb on a bucket might have limited use to keep whatever you pick up from falling out, but seems compromised. My analogy is if you are trying to shovel up a big pile of limbs, how effective would a snow shovel be as compared to a large pitchfork? Try picking up limbs with a bucket. It just doesn't work well.

As far as limitations of a open grapple, the only one is that it allows dirt to fall through, but to me, that is an advantage, not a limitation. If I want to pick up dirt, I will put on a regular bucket. Why do you need a upper thumb to hold dirt in a bucket? Also a grapple would allow small rocks to fall through. My spacing is about 4", so not much escapes. I can still pick up globs of dirt, if it is not too loose. Trust me. Once you use a grapple, nothing is as effective for cleanup, uprooting trees up to 5 or 6 ", picking up logs, or large rocks. I used to dread cleaning up chain saw cuttings, but now it is fun. My hands never have to touch the stuff.