Pricing pallet forks

[Merck]

Guys, I'm finally grown up enough to buy real pallet forks instead of the bolt-on mess that came with my tractor.

I'm looking for 36" forks, and the cheapest ones I found with a headache rack was at Titan for $660. These.

Is that a good price for pulling the trigger, or should wait until they have a sale? Or is there another vendor I should look at?

Hey, that is a good price but be careful on parts availability.

 

[nyone]

Like others have said, look on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace for good used forks. I found mine for $250 and they were heavy duty overkill for my 55 horse tractor.

I looked for year for a set of 48in pallet forks with SSQA. I couldn't find anything that wasn't either beat to hell or only $100 cheaper than Express Steels set new including shipping.

 

[hummertom]

Bought a set from Titan at 60", great for large light lifts but sometimes a little too long, was reccomended by my neighbor, a former JD dealer, they work great, but remember it's not the capacity of the fork so much as the capacity of the loader frame, my 4300 is rated at about 1500 lbs way less than the forks

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Remind me to dig up photos of a "better brand" blade that got bent to crap - without hitting any stumps.

As promised, photos of a disfigured 7' 3-way blade.

It was fairly obvious that the surface area on the "boom" and the corresponding contact area around the pivot bolt were nowhere near large enough, putting too much force on the bolt.

Unfortunately I have no "after photos" readily available, but basically both surfaces were enlarged by quite a bit. And that same blade has been used as a towable for years since without any problems.

 

[GeneV]

I makey a youtube:

 

[TimberFarm]

As promised, photos of a disfigured 7' 3-way blade.

It was fairly obvious that the surface area on the "boom" and the corresponding contact area around the pivot bolt were nowhere near large enough, putting too much force on the bolt.

Unfortunately I have no "after photos" readily available, but basically both surfaces were enlarged by quite a bit. And that same blade has been used as a towable for years since without any problems.View attachment 818974View attachment 818975

Here is a better photo showing where the pivot pin snapped.

As promised, photos of a disfigured 7' 3-way blade.

It was fairly obvious that the surface area on the "boom" and the corresponding contact area around the pivot bolt were nowhere near large enough, putting too much force on the bolt.

Unfortunately I have no "after photos" readily available, but basically both surfaces were enlarged by quite a bit. And that same blade has been used as a towable for years since without any problems.View attachment 818974View attachment 818975

Here is a better photo showing the pivot pin and where it snapped. Looks like a similar design. I think I will see if I can get it welded so I have a spare for when the new one snaps.

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Here is a better photo showing the pivot pin and where it snapped. Looks like a similar design. I think I will see if I can get it welded so I have a spare for when the new one snaps.

Yup, looks familiar. You might as well add some (stout) material around the bolt while the welder is warm.

 

[Huntshillhaus Farm]

I bought my Titan 42" forks right before the pandemic, have used them hard, and have no complaints. I maxed out the loader trying to lift the concrete steps in the picture... they were 40" wide by an average of 8" thick, and even broken into two step sections (about 7' long) the tractor couldn't do it - but the forks held. I have popped roots with them, and carried this incredibly top-heavy deer blind (5'x6'x 9' tall) across a field, and had no issues. I'm sure there are better forks out there, but I have nothing bad to say about them. Well, the paint might have been a bit higher quality, but for $450 forks with free delivery, I felt like they fit the bill.

 

[Torvy]

I see you are from Illinois. Do you ever travel to northern Wisconsin for fishing? There is a place in Marion, WI that is just outside of Clintonville and they advertise on Craigslist. $599 for the Tomahawk 48" forks. Everything he has is made by Tomahawk just no name on it. Take the Mrs. on a romantic getaway to Door county and bring a trailer and buy some attachments.

I may need to take my boys up for a Packer game. Prices are probably better this year with low expectations. Getting a deal on some attachments would be gravy.

 

[CMR]

I got a real nice p

Guys, I'm finally grown up enough to buy real pallet forks instead of the bolt-on mess that came with my tractor.

I'm looking for 36" forks, and the cheapest ones I found with a headache rack was at Titan for $660. These.

Is that a good price for pulling the trigger, or should wait until they have a sale? Or is there another vendor I should look at?

air of big heavy duty forks at my local steel recycler ( Pacific Steel) in Butte MT.
I’ve been getting all sorts of good stuff there for years. The forks cost me 50 cents a pound. These guys set them aside sometimes but this time I asked the guy running the crane if he had seen any and he said he thought there was a pair under one pile and to come back in a week, and sure enough he had them a week later.

 

[Zork]

I got the HD version with 48" forks. Made in USA and very nice. I avoided the lift gate fee by having it shipped to my local hub for $25. They loaded it on my trailer. My forks are serialized and rated for more weight.

Quick Attach Pallet Forks

Shop our quick attach Pallet Forks for your skid steer. Built for durability and performance. Get the best Standard Pallet Forks online today!

expresssteelinc.com

 

[Hay Dude]

For y’all’s info I just sold my used Kivels with 48” forks for $600.

 

[alpha&omega]

I have purchased a couple items from Express Steel over the years. Having a set of tin snips handy, I was able to offload the pallet forks and quick attach frame by hand. The tractor and loader were not needed.
Since owning them I haven’t needed to pay any Liftgate fee for any other purchased delivered via LTL or those companies using Penske/Ryder box trucks, similar to as @Zork mentioned.
I’ve had my Express Steel forks for over four years now and have beat on them pretty hard over the years. Not one issue. I even added an extra set of removable hay bale spear mounts to the outer frame - that way all of my spears are the same length. It makes for lifting round bales and large cubes (21 count banded square bales) much safer, as compared to having two short stubby spears on the outer edge.

 

[Zork]

I have purchased a couple items from Express Steel over the years. Having a set of tin snips handy, I was able to offload the pallet forks and quick attach frame by hand. The tractor and loader were not needed.
Since owning them I haven’t needed to pay any Liftgate fee for any other purchased delivered via LTL or those companies using Penske/Ryder box trucks, similar to as @Zork mentioned.
I’ve had my Express Steel forks for over four years now and have beat on them pretty hard over the years. Not one issue. I even added an extra set of removable hay bale spear mounts to the outer frame - that way all of my spears are the same length. It makes for lifting round bales and large cubes (21 count banded square bales) much safer, as compared to having two short stubby spears on the outer edge.

Yeah, now that I have the forks I'll have items shipped here. I was concerned about shipping them here because I also had the grapple with it and I didn't have my SSQA fabricated yet.

 

[alpha&omega]

Yeah, now that I have the forks I'll have items shipped here. I was concerned about shipping them here because I also had the grapple with it and I didn't have my SSQA fabricated yet.

I think you made the right choice by having it delivered to the hub. I’m not sure if you could offload that grapple by yourself without rolling it off the back of the TT. Probably not the best option for a brand new purchase. Ha!

Without trying to take away from the OP and since we are still discussing FEL attachments compared between different companies…How do you like that grapple?

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Found the "after photos". It's probably best to do this modification on similar blades before things get bent.

 

[mojoinco]

I bought the Express Steel standard pallet forks in 48" as well. I have a cheaply made combination round bale/fork combination unit. Got tired of converting it back and forth. My feet and back aren't worth it -- I had to grind on a fork when I got it anyhow. If you have a local feed store, etc, that you use they may charge you a minimal fee to offload a pallet. Locally, the final mile LTL company trucks all have a lift gate (I had my old forks in any case). They are much better made -- work as they should out of the box. USA made, about the same price the OP listed. There are areas to go cheap. And there are areas to not go cheap. An advantage of longer forks is being able to put something further away (say on a shelf) or reach further onto a trailer or truck bed. Longer does mean less lift at the tip; I expect most reading this already know that, just mentioning it.

Quick Attach Pallet Forks

Shop our quick attach Pallet Forks for your skid steer. Built for durability and performance. Get the best Standard Pallet Forks online today!

expresssteelinc.com

FWIW, round bale set ups have a single large spear, and maybe a couple of small spears (stabilizers). I added two more long spears (we use 3x3/4x8 bales). Nothing special to do. But -- in hind sight, with the experience of how valuable forks are, I should have bought dedicated units. Oh well, lesson learned, not much extra money was spent. Now if I had side shift and fork adjusters, I'd almost have a full on fork lift....

 

[Zork]

I think you made the right choice by having it delivered to the hub. I’m not sure if you could offload that grapple by yourself without rolling it off the back of the TT. Probably not the best option for a brand new purchase. Ha!

Without trying to take away from the OP and since we are still discussing FEL attachments compared between different companies…How do you like that grapple?

Thanks, I like it. I'll probably start a new thread about it. My SSQA design is poor and pushes the base teeth forward-but it works nice. The hydraulic hoses were torqued/skewed and didnt lay correctly so i adjsted them. Meanwhile here is a link to TBN thread so as not to hijack.

Post in thread 'Branson BL20 Quick Connect Bucket to Skidsteer Adapter' Branson BL20 Quick Connect Bucket to Skidsteer Adapter

 

[flyingace43]

I have a set of forks from Express steel in Indiana. and I got the 42 inch ones and they work fine seem to go on sale often for around $775

 

[Zork]

I have a set of forks from Express steel in Indiana. and I got the 42 inch ones and they work fine seem to go on sale often for around $775

Here's a photo of my ES 48" HD