4xxx Series Grill Guard,, Ideas?

[CADplans]

When I bought the JD 4105, there was a damaged grill guard laying in the dealers shop,,
The guard came off a brand new 85HP JD,, that got banged into something.
I asked what was going to happen to it,, the shop manager said it was going in the scrap bin.

Well I asked if I could have it,, they even offered to deliver it when they delivered the tractor,
the grill guard was laying there when I came home, and found the delivered tractor.
You can see the damage,, the bend in the one support arm.

Today, the weather was beautiful, 75 degrees, I figured I would try to fab a couple brackets.

Next, I did a little;
measuring
cutting
drilling
and
welding

After the cutting, I drilled some 33/64 and 5/8 inch holes.

Then, after that,, a little welding using 7018 1/8" rod,

By this time, it was cooling off,, and threatening to rain.
No time for weld cleanup and painting,,, I had to do a test fit.
I found some bolts (not the right sizes) and slapped the grill guard on,

The guard does stick out a "little",,,

I can open the hood with the guard raised, and still have 5 inches of clearance.


So, now,,, what do I do next?

1) I can move the guard back by simply drilling new holes in the side supports,,,

or

2) I could make a bracket, so I can carry the Stihl 029 chain saw between the hood and guard.

What do you think? Move it, or make a storage bracket.

Heck,, if I think about it a little,,
I would guess there is a LOT of stuff that could be carried there,,,
Cooler, tool box, etc,,,

One big plus,, the guard is SO heavy,, I will need less front end suitcase weights!! :thumbsup:

Now, give me some ideas,,, what do I do next ??

 

[jack707]

I would see how far back I could go before the hood don't open.

 

[CADplans]

I would see how far back I could go before the hood don't open.

The guard has a spring loaded pin,,
you pull the pin, the guard will lay down,, I could have the guard within an inch or two of the hood.

 

[kthompson]

No doubt you know how to release the bumper to raise the hood if in proper location. Air flow for cooling how might it be impacted with installing anything between it currently and the grill area? Asume you do not have FEL for this tractor (see no sign of mount) for not sure it would clear the bumper as is and you have added length that might create clearance issue.

 

[CADplans]

No doubt you know how to release the bumper to raise the hood if in proper location. Air flow for cooling how might it be impacted with installing anything between it currently and the grill area? Asume you do not have FEL for this tractor (see no sign of mount) for not sure it would clear the bumper as is and you have added length that might create clearance issue.

Yea,, no loader,, ever. I guess air might be an issue,,,
A LOT of people discuss overheating,,,

 

[beenthere]

Grill guard modification on my 4300

 

[CADplans]

Grill guard modification on my 4300

I like that,, I guess I have to get some expanded steel,,,
how thick was the steel you used?

 

[AKfish]

Grill guard modification on my 4300

Your grill mod looks exactly like what I did to my JD970 (since sold). After I ran a couple of tree branches thru the mesh grill... It seemed to be a "smarter" way to work!

IMO - whatever you do for your 4105 grill - I'd make it loader compatible. 'Cause I'll bet you'll be lookin' for a 300CX one of these fine days.

 

[oosik]

My grill guard looks very similar to beenthere. Unfortunately, today is one of those days when TBN's answer to my pic upload attempts is - "you don't have permission..."

 

[CADplans]

In 35 years, I have never "poked" a radiator,,, yet,,,
I guess it is because of the age of my forest land.

I do not have any undergrowth big enough to poke the tractor.

I am sure that if I tried hard enough,, I could find some,, but, this is what my trees look like.

I can usually drive a path that involves no saplings,,

As far as the loader,,
as long as my old IH 584 runs,, the John Deere will be a mower/trailer tractor, only.

I may set the grill guard back towards the grill,,
then fab a saw bracket on the front of the grill guard.

One of the reasons I like the guard being out so far is,
that this tractor will be used by my 20something age children.
It will help keep them away from barns, cars, trees, and fences,,, :laughing: