Any ck2510 owners done a diverter & grapple yet

PSEbowhunter · Aug 10, 2015

I'm working on gathering information to try to set up my 2510 with a grapple. I'm in the very preliminary stages (ie. Trying to get it past the finance committee...wife...) But I'd really like to get as much information as possible. I don't have the ssqa on my loader and as nice as it would be i don't want the added cost of a conversion, plus converting out buying a new bucket, and loosing any lift capacity. So I'm really looking at a pin on solution. I contacted everything attachments about their wicked compact grapple because i really liked the weight and design but they can't make it pin on for my loader. They pointed me towards the WR long grapple. Looking at that one, cost and weight comparatively I'm more inclined to see if MIE could build one of their hound dog grapples.
So cost aside, any ideas if the ssqa pushing out past the pins would cost me more in lift capacity than the extra 100lbs of a heavier pin on grapple?

Now hydraulics.... I was an auto tech for a while and am no stranger to nuts, bolts, and 12 volts but hydraulics are new to me. I get the concept of both the diverter and true 3 rd function and i personally feel that a diverter would be sufficient for me. I've looked around at valves, fittings, control knobs and switches and full out kits (like MIE's). I'm just not sure about picking all the correct parts to build my own kit, and there are alot of terms/abbreviations that I'm clueless on with all of it.

Any ideas or recommendations on which way to go here?

My machine has no remotes, i don't intend on a snow blower or plow (got a heated pickup with a 7'6" blade & wings for pushing the white stuff.) And only other loader attachment i may add is a set of forks. But if i do those I'll probably build them myself.

So long story short, any other 2510 owners out there that can share their experience/setup?

ritcheyvs · Aug 11, 2015

Brian (aka MtnViewRanch and FitRiteHydraulics.com) is one of the gurus on designing the hydraulics part of this. He builds and sells this stuff for reasonable (IMO) prices. His main limitation is that he lacks samples of every type of tractor to use for designing his kits. But he will make right if he doesn't get it perfect the first time.

The many types of hydraulic fittings can be bewildering but Surplus Center has a tech support page with links to good reference data on fittings, etc. The cost of additional fittings can really add up so you can save a lot of cost and grief if your hoses come with the right connectors on the ends. You can certainly save a few $$ by designing your own kit and buying the parts if you get it all right the first time. Then again, any re-dos will likely eat up any savings.

I think a diverter (to control the grapple via the loader joy stick) is better than a true third function. The diverter allows you to control the speed and I don't see the need to lift, curl, and grip all at the same time. But others do. Locating the diverter and routing hoses is the hard part of this setup.

My DK came with ssqa and I consider it a real plus, even though I don't change tools that often. But with limited lift, it's a tradeoff only you can make.

mecan · Aug 11, 2015

When I was looking at a 2510 the dealer had qoute me 3500 or so for grapple with diverter. Was wrlong supposed to be a direct pin on. Ended up with a kubota instead so no real helpful input past that. The ssqa does open up alot more options, have it on mine now. Never had the pin on so can't compare what was lost between the 2 setups but love how easy it is to. Change between the bucket and grapple.

PSEbowhunter · Aug 12, 2015

Thanks for all the information so far. So much stuff to take into consideration.

southernAL · Nov 15, 2015

isn't the ct122 bobcat that Everything Attachments has the same as a 2510? do you just not want to weld on the plate for the ssqa to your bucket?

PSEbowhunter · Nov 16, 2015

No it's the added cost of the conversion that i don't want to have to deal with. And after alot of consideration I've decided to go with a bucket grapple when i get the cash to order it. It will be considerably better then no grapple at all and eliminate the need to worry about switching back and forth.