Backhoe update. I'm making progress (Video included)

[chad22]

Well I got quite a bit done to the backhoe. I totally changed the design. It looks totally different. And looks to be much stronger.

The backhoe should dig down to around 6 feet which should be plenty of depth for my use.

Here's a video of it on youtube. YouTube - Update number 1 of my home made backhoe

I was sick with the flu when I took that video yesterday but I couldn't stay in bed and had to get out into the shop anyway.

I've got the last cylinder mounted now. I went and picked it up today at Orschelns. And yes I was still sick with the flu and running a fever as well. lol

I was gonna take a video again today after I worked on it some more. But as soon as I got done painting it a royal blue it started raining so I decided to come home. I would have stayed but the shop leaks really bad. Which were hoping to fix this summer.

Anyway I'll go to the shop tomorrow and get another video of it with it's blue paint.

Chad

 

[chad22]

I forgot to upload another video I had on my camera card. I finally got it uploaded. Here's the link

YouTube - bucket linkage for backhoe

Chad

 

[David Devuono]

Great project, can't wait for the snow to melt so I can start digging holes. I know why those prairie dogs have so much fun.

 

[chad22]

Thanks. I got down to the shop this evening. I took a video but the lighting was bad and the video turned out pitch black for some reason.

But I did take some pics of it with it's blue color and the last cylinder installed.

I can't wait until it's finished. I'm also ready to dig some holes with it. With the progress I'm making. I expect it to be up and running by May or June.

Then I can upload a digging video of it.

I've attached the pics of it I took this evening.

Chad

 

[evo803]

Why did you make the stick & boom so long ?

Having it that long it is going to put a tremendous amount of force on the mount and tractor and it is going to decrease the available force for digging and lifting.

 

[chad22]

Why did you make the stick & boom so long ?

Having it that long it is going to put a tremendous amount of force on the mount and tractor and it is going to decrease the available force for digging and lifting.

The tubing I bought came in 6 ft lengths. I was gonna cut them down shorter but decided to leave them be seeing as the cylinders wouldn't have enough room to mount.

Well I did cut the stick down about a ft. The part I cut off the stick was used for the linkage on the bucket.

So in other words. If I were to shorten the boom the cylinders that I used wouldn't fit.

The boom is 6ft long and the stick is around 5 ft.

Chad

 

[rjmack]

it's hard to pour cold water on somebody who is obviously determined to build.

at the same time, why didn't you stop by your local tractor dealer and look at the backhoes on some of these sub compact tractors that are out there?

even if there is no dealer nearby, there are plenty of pictures available online.

that way you could get an idea of what is required, in terms of structural strength, to stand up to the hydraulic forces you intend to apply.

please have your camera/video equipment running from the very first time you go to use it.

sometimes it's best to have to ability to watch the structural failure in progress to come to a better understanding of the forces at work.

 

[evo803]

The tubing I bought came in 6 ft lengths. I was gonna cut them down shorter but decided to leave them be seeing as the cylinders wouldn't have enough room to mount.
Chad

There is plenty of room to cut the boom down. You could have easily made a plate that both cylinder ends mounted to or you could have staggered the mounting locations having the cylinders overlap each other.

As far as the stick goes the pictures show you could have cut it down alot more and still have plenty of room to mount the bucket curl cylinder.

I am really concerned that the forces the hydraulics are going to achieve are going to be way too much for your design. Please keep us posted on your progress and be safe.

 

[chad22]

There is plenty of room to cut the boom down. You could have easily made a plate that both cylinder ends mounted to or you could have staggered the mounting locations having the cylinders overlap each other.

As far as the stick goes the pictures show you could have cut it down alot more and still have plenty of room to mount the bucket curl cylinder.

I wish I would have though of the overlapping the cylinders idea. That's a great idea.

But since I got all this welded up and everything. I'll try it like it is and see how good it works. If it turns out I need to shorten the boom and stick. Then I will. But I'm hoping for it to work like it is. We'll find out hopefully by June.

I am really concerned that the forces the hydraulics are going to achieve are going to be way too much for your design. Please keep us posted on your progress and be safe.

I'm a bit concerned myself. Hopefully my design will work out okay. I'll be sure to keep you updated and definitely will get a video when I go to use it for the first time.

I'll try to stay safe.

Chad

 

[bobcat fan]

the metal those cylinders mount to looks mighty thin for the force applied

 

[David Devuono]

I am attaching a picture of an extreme case of cylinder overlap when I converted some cylinders from a FEL project to a backhoe. You can always shorten them later or buy a bigger tractor. Good thing about making your own is fixing it. The only problems I have had are too small of a pump on my 45 year old tractor and my main boom pin dropped out when the cottor pins broken. Took five people to remount the boom. Now I weld a plug with a hole for a drift-punch on the bottom of any verticle pins.

 

[88acres]

I commend you for your interest in building this. I too am a home fabricator and love turning dreams into reality. My shop looks like a small business. Looking at your design I am feeling like you will have a few letdowns. Id love to be wrong. Not being graduated engineering professionals but instead being non trained mechanical engineers we all have our opinions based on our past knowledge accquired in various areas.
I recently bought a Bush Hog 750 backhoe. The specs show that the bucket gets the most force around 3380 lbs with the next being the dipperarm that connects to bucket at around 2244 then last and least is the crane arm closest to the tractor at around 675lbs on my unit. With the bucket rolliing at 3380 lbs I have a feeling the first rock you try to roll out that doesnt move is going to bend your bucked as if it were made of aluminum foil.
Now dont hear me wrong. I think your model is great but in my gut feeling it needs to be greatly tuned. Possibly the length of the arms is going to reduce your power enough that your ability to bend them will diminish. They might flex enough for you to stop before bending. It seems like when working with hydraulics everything always looks like it was built too strong.....well there is a reason for that. There are so many points in the design that will have stress and hopefully its those points that will be beefed up enough to distribute the stress out to wider areas reducing the danger or damage. If you dont want to do any
re-design which Im sure is the case....I would at minimun start welding extra plating onto the sides of most everything you have there. Its the sides that need it not the tops. The tops just basically hold the sides together in place. They dont see much stress. Most of these tractor style backhoes weigh in at 1000 lbs. Interested to see what yours weighs when your done. It might could use some more steel.

:thumbsup: Good luck and I hope it all works great for you and hoping Ive never been so wrong before ..... I would love to come back in here and say... Wow, was I ever off key on this one.

Take care pal, your doing great..... Vic S.

 

[chad22]

:thumbsup: Good luck and I hope it all works great for you and hoping Ive never been so wrong before ..... I would love to come back in here and say... Wow, was I ever off key on this one.

Take care pal, your doing great..... Vic S.

Thanks. I at least finally got to try out some of the hydraulics tonight. :thumbsup: At first I couldn't get no fluid to pump, after trying and trying thinking it was just air. :confused2: I decided to turn the pump around and it worked. :laughing:

All that time it was pumping from the valve side and not the tank. That used pump I bought off ebay for $25.00 really does work. It's got lots of power. I had to basically almost idle it to let the boom down.

I did have one weld break on me though. It was the bottom cylinder mount for the boom. The reason it broke is because I had the come along still attached and I was gonna raise it up a bit to release it. Me not familiar with the controls lowered the boom instead of raising it. Before I could react it snapped it off.

Not to mention, I also forgot I had only tacked welded it in a few places.

I can't hardly get to it with my welder to weld it back in place now so I figure I'll just drill a few holes there and bolt that mount back on.

The only thing I wasn't able to try out yet was the bucket. I still have to get the hoses I need for it.

But I was able to raise and lower the stick, swing it back and forth which worked out great. And of course the boom until the cylinder mount broke.

I also have to grind and re weld the bottom part of the tank. It was dripping hydraulic fluid out a bit due to a flaw in my weld.

I've drained the tank for tonight so I wouldn't lose the fluid. I'll probably go up to the shop tomorrow and fix the tank.

Chad

 

[hizoot]

I also have to grind and re weld the bottom part of the tank. It was dripping hydraulic fluid out a bit due to a flaw in my weld.

great opportunity to test the flash point of the hydraulic fluid...please be careful!!!!!!

 

[evo803]

Whatever you do do not clean up the tank with brake cleaner !!!!! It produces a deadly gas ( PHOSGENE ) that WILL kill you.

 

[chad22]

great opportunity to test the flash point of the hydraulic fluid...please be careful!!!!!!

Thanks, I'll try to be careful.

I tested the flash point last night. I tried welding it up where I thought it was leaking with the oil in the tank, and caught the oil on fire around the edge of the tank.

I got the oil out of the tank now, so once I clean the outside of the tank up it should be fine to grind and re weld.

I'm gonna grind the whole weld off on the bottom where I welded the side panel on "Over a pump mount hole" the tank had a pump mounted inside of it previously. So I just covered the hole up with a piece of sheet metal. All welds holding except around the bottom.

That's the only weld I missed up on.

I was gonna go down to the shop today and fix the tank, but it's raining out and the shop leaks, and I don't want any water finding it's way into the tank.

Chad

 

[chad22]

Whatever you do do not clean up the tank with brake cleaner !!!!! It produces a deadly gas ( PHOSGENE ) that WILL kill you.

Thanks. Did not know that. Will keep that in mind. :thumbsup:

Chad

 

[David Devuono]

I once built a longrange gas tank for a 4x4. I would fill it with water and look for the wet spots. After draining it and welding 2-3 times, I found I could weld it with water still in it. Worked great. Just boil any moisture out of the tank before it rusts or you add hydraulic fluid.

 

[KubotainNH]

I'm looking forward to seeing a video of this doing some work. As others have noted, something will probably break at some point but that's how you learn what works and what doesn't. Looks like you enjoy building the stuff and that's all that matters aside from staying safe.

 

[chad22]

I'm looking forward to seeing a video of this doing some work. As others have noted, something will probably break at some point but that's how you learn what works and what doesn't. Looks like you enjoy building the stuff and that's all that matters aside from staying safe.

:laughing: Somethings did break on it. So the backhoe is out of service until I get a new welder in a few months.

When I fired it up in the shop things were breaking. The bottom boom mount broke off, the boom cylinder mount broke off.

The mount for the stick cylinder broke. I re welded those up the best I could with my welder. "The welder is a piece of sh*t " it's not putting out the amps it has been.

It held up enough for me to drive it home and dig a little bit.

I'm gonna make it work for a bit with the riding mower so I can dig out the "water line that needs replaced badly". until I can get the parts to rebuild it totally separate from the mower.

I'm planning on building it like the backhoe in this link 2007 GO FOR DIGGER TOWABLE BACKHOE | eBay
The go for towable backhoe. I'm gonna use the axle from a trailer I bought for $10.00 the bed is rusted out on it. I'm then gonna add some chain sprockets to the hubs and make the backhoe drivable using some hydraulic motors.

I also got some swivel casters off an old dixon ztr mower frame I found in the dumpster.

Chad