Can you put together a simple chart showing the differences in materials used for similar sized grapples. I think that would be of help to many. I personally cannot figure out where your breakpoint is for CUT vs utility. Rating grapples by horsepower is misleading. Tractor mass (weight) and loader strength (breakout) are far more relevant to grapple sizing than tractor horsepower. Many modern CUTs are intentionally built lightweight so they can be used as finish mowers and have relatively undersized loaders (perhaps because of lightweight axles). Kubota in particular builds tractors that have high hp to weight ratios and these should probably not be compared to heavier tractors purely on the basis of horsepower at least for grapple sizing. You list your midrange grapples as suitable for CUTs up to 55hp but my 40hp Kioti CUT is almost exactly the same weight and loader strength as the 65hp Kioti. Why would the midrange grapple not be sized according to something more relevant than horsepower??? Seems like your most recent (55" single 75hp limit) is really only needed for utility tractors as the similar midrange model below it would certainly stand up to any CUT sized tractor even if Ted was the operator. I will remind you that my tractor has a 48" Millonzi grapple made of 3/8" mild steel with a very unsophisticated design compared to the recent EA offerings. It has stood up to over 8 years of pretty intense grapple work. An identical grapple has been mounted to a TBN member's
M59 for about the same time and that grapple is also still doing fine. These Millonzi's are comparable to your light duty 50" single lid for compacts up to 35. Surely the larger midrange EA grapple will stand up to ANY compact tractor on the market (and please don't make up BS marketing terms like "MegaCompact"). Unless EA has empirical evidence that a 65hp tractor of the same weight and loader strength as a sub 55hp compact can somehow magically put more stress on a grapple, then don't try to upsell unnecessary steel to CUT owners. Their net lift capacity and wallet weight will drop substantially without improving their grapple experience. It is almost silly to see your catalog proclaiming the virtues of lighter grapples when the 55 weighs almost 300lbs more than the 54 midrange. You say that Ted's
L6060 (presumably a "Megacompact" in your terminology) would need the new 55" grapple but if you look at the specs for the
L6060 compared to my Kioti DK40se, the Kioti has a higher rated loader, higher hydraulic output and essentially the same weight. Extra horsepower is irrelevant in grapple selection. Why would Ted need the 600+lb grapple when my puny 300lb grapple has survived eight years of abuse on a nearly identical sized tractor?
As often discussed, the problem with buying grapples is that virtually nobody (other than Xfaxman) does it more than once. That puts the buyer at a serious disadvantage as they are buying a piece of equipment they have never operated before and are therefore lacking personal experience to help them decide on size and type etc. Given the all American tendency to oversize everything from hamburgers to tractors, most folks with the cash will buy bigger even if they don't really need it or if smaller would be more efficient. I think you do your CUT owner potential customers a disservice by implying that the midrange 54" grapple line is not appropriate for something like Ted's
L6060. If his L has the same weight, lift and size as a 40hp CUT, then it should have the same grapple. HP is for running things off the PTO and is quite simply irrelevant for grapple selection.
Sell the 55 for heavy utility tractors. It's a beautiful grapple but oversized for CUTS. The 54 is more than adequate strength for ANY CUT on the market today.
Oh yea, one more thing, if you want to make improvements on the 54, make the jaw open a few inches wider. My puny Millonzi somehow opens past 40" (?42) so I know you guys can do it without needing to add 300lbs of excess steel.