Backhoe Buckets & Attachments

[Smokeydog]

Like the artistic wall.
We have 600’ rock wall that fronts the road. Rock castle and significant rock work on log houses. All built by a little lady I worked for when young and bought the farm from. She would have loved the tractors and grapples we have now.

How would you improve a backhoe grapple over a bucket and thumb?

 

[rScotty]

Dawg, that's almost weird. Here we have the same M59 tractors, and I also used to have a barn built on a stone foundation made by a little lady - she couldn't have been 5 feet tall.

That's a good question about grapple vs bucket&Thumb. Usually a bucket and thumb is fine. The problem with using a bucket and thumb as a makeshift grapple happens mostly when building a rock wall against an embankment or when stacking any double layer wall.
When trying to place the rock in position, the back of the bucket blocks my view of what is going on behind the stack, and just to add insult - the bottom of the bucket also sticks out like a sore butt and hits the embankment before the rock gets fully in position. I usually end up balancing the rock on the stack, letting go of it, and then pushing on it with the bucket teeth to slide it into position. But when doing that, the bucket still blocks most of the view.

For stacking stones, a better design might be to make a crude grapple by taking a bucket and torch-cutting the entire bottom off - leaving just the edge, ears and teeth for the thumb to press a rock against. Then the bucket bottom wouldn't be sticking out in the way; it would be gone. Even with a fit of reinforcement added, I think that it would still end up being more handy than a bucket and with better visibility.
rScotty

 

[Smokeydog]

A grapple independent of curl like the FEL would sometimes be better.
I find the foot valve thumb control great for grubbing and grabbing but less ergonomic for precision rock balancing control. Age and experience factors too.

Thought about a hand handle welded to the foot control shaft. The handle would come up and be near the two levers for the backhoe. Looks like an easy modification that would allow both the foot or hand control. A simple top support panel, 1/4” UHMW flat stock with slot for the handle bolted to the control tower.

 

[hkbirdman]

I thought I read something that Gannon supplied the buckets for Kubota and Woods supplied the backhoe.
I remember my Woods BH750 had a Gannon bucket on it.

I believe Werk-Brau out of Findlay, Ohio makes backhoe buckets for Kubota. My L-47 has the BT1000 backhoe and 24" bucket. I bought it with the K7543 excavator quick connect and it will take any bucket or attachment that fits a Kx040 excavator. I just bought a Werk-Brau 24" ripper tooth and change-over is smooth and it makes pretty quick work of removing 8-10" diameter maple stumps.

 

[Smokeydog]

I believe Werk-Brau out of Findlay, Ohio makes backhoe buckets for Kubota. My L-47 has the BT1000 backhoe and 24" bucket. I bought it with the K7543 excavator quick connect and it will take any bucket or attachment that fits a Kx040 excavator. I just bought a Werk-Brau 24" ripper tooth and change-over is smooth and it makes pretty quick work of removing 8-10" diameter maple stumps.

Was that K7543 something you figured out or dealer recommended? Excavator buckets and ears are easier and cheaper to find. Wonder if that would work on a M59? A picture showing the connecting yoke and bucket ear would be helpful.

From a 2014 OTT post the M59 quick connect is BT4580. The excavator qa that can maybe used is K7820 used on KX121 excavator.

A ripper tooth would help me with similar stump applications. Tried any rock work with it?

 

[rScotty]

That's correct, I just went through our old paperwork and quotes from buying the M59 new. The basic M59 backhoe is either the BT1200/BT1200V. The 1200V has the thumb hydraulics installed at the factory. With the backhoe, you got the basic traditional backhoe & BT29xx series buckets with the pin-on connection. As an option, you could order the backhoe quick connect with the "open ear" type connector which was the BT4580 and cost an extra $648 at the time.
Buckets had to be ordered as either pin-on type or quick coupler type. I have no idea if the quick coupler can simply be added as a "pin-on" attachment to an M59 that came as a pin on type. Seems like it should be. I'd like to know if anyone ever tried it.
The quick coupler buckets for the BT4580 were special. They were called the
BT45xx series Buckets (like having the "open ear" type of quick connection and cost an extra $100/per bucket.

Note that if you go to Messick's and try to find the BT4580 quick connector, they show it as a B86000 quick coupler (option). I've no idea why that is. The parts look to be identical to the BT4580. Anyone know the answer?

For the the M62s being sold now, they have one more optional coupler type as an option. So for the M62 you can have the PIN-ON type, the BT4580 type quick connector for an extra $700, or the K7543 type quick connector for an extra $1000. The K7543 is the same quick coupler used on Kubota CE series Excavators. And of course it uses the buckets with the special ears that only fit the K7543 coupler.

The buckets themselves all seem to be identical except for the ears -which are either pin-on, BT4580 style ears, or K7543 style ears. Note that you can order just the ears and weld them onto whatever you want.

I have no idea whether that K7543 will fit onto the M59 or not. It might. Anyone know?

 

[Smokeydog]

M59 backhoe quick connect.

My BT 1200v has a pin on bucket.

Called Werk Brau I think were the bucket and qa makers. Asked if I could upgrade to excavator type QA? Really have to work thru a dealer. My local large Kubota is not listed as a dealer but could. Said they do lots of business with Messicks.

Called Messicks, Matt in sales.
The K7543 would fit M59, $1000. That part is good.
BT4580 QA is $750.
Thought I had a winner till I asked if the K7543 would fit my current thumb and told him the WG price sheet listed separate thumbs for the two QA options. He checked said it looked liked I would need new thumb option too. Additional $2400 for the thumb that fits K7543.
$2,400 +$1,000 +shipping + $100 ears , cutting off and welding my current bucket.

Asked if either option required a thumb? Maybe no.

Plan “g”...see lots of excavator bucket ears on eBay for about $100. Might be worth to see how much work to make modifications to my current setup would take?

Pin on buckets for the M59 are rare and no ears available. Changing pin on buckets on the Ford 4500 wasn’t too hard 20-25 years ago. Bigger buckets were harder.

 

[JenniferKubotaM62]

I believe Werk-Brau out of Findlay, Ohio makes backhoe buckets for Kubota. My L-47 has the BT1000 backhoe and 24" bucket. I bought it with the K7543 excavator quick connect and it will take any bucket or attachment that fits a Kx040 excavator. I just bought a Werk-Brau 24" ripper tooth and change-over is smooth and it makes pretty quick work of removing 8-10" diameter maple stumps.

Same here, I was told my M62 quick connect uses the same connection as the mini x's. When I bought mine I bought a Werk-Brau ripper and a couple buckets from the Kubota Excavator line (if you click on the picture you can see the Kubota part numbers).

Jen