Big bucket leaf moving

[RedDirt]

I built this big bucket for my scut to move raked leaves to a central burn area. The bucket is almost 2cuyd capacity (1.97 struck)...and it works!

The bucket in the photos is a wooden prototype but built strong enough to function to see if it would work and see if any modifications were needed in the design. I'll post the prototype construction in the Build-It Yourself forum.

The bucket is not "self loading". Unless you had an enormous pile I don't think you could "scoop up" a load. I use my small tractor homebuilt rake to load the big bucket. Two or three pushed loads of the rake fills the bucket. Sometimes I need a small bit of pitchfork work to top it off once the bucket is curled. I'll also get photos of the landscape rake to Build-It Yourself. It has served me well the past 7 years and continues to excel in its job.

BTW - The big bucket is designed so that the ends detach, the top folds down against the back and the pair of these fold down onto the bucket bottom. You could add hooks to it and hang it on the wall like a thick table top!


Enter the Dynamic Duo!



The Bucket opening is 6'-8" wide x 3'-10" high



Load two



One modification I'll do is to make the next bucket wider. This is too tight of a fit for my 6'-4" rake.



Curl and Go



Boy this is easier than a pitch fork and a trailer!



Once the pile is burned down a bit I plop on another load.



A nice thing about dumping is that the pile is "loose". I used to push into burn piles with my rake and piles took longer to burn because they were compacted without as much air space.



Ahh. Where's the marshmallows

 

[Volfandt]

Kudo's for figuring out a way to work both tractors and not your back

 

[Adam23]

When you call that a proto-type are you meaning that you plan to build one out of steel? I would just keep using that one - it works and looks like it works great. No reason to have the heavy duty steel and add all that weight to the front. Great job and one **** of an idea

 

[UPRAISER]

Great idea, but I am more interested in your rake. How about a few pictures and details.

How does it work with the small graden tractor?

Curt

 

[lp333]

... Enter the Dynamic Duo! ...

Great work in designing useful attachments.
Wonderful job at photograping achievements for TBN members.
Thanks Red!

 

[RedDirt]

Great idea, but I am more interested in your rake. How about a few pictures and details.

How does it work with the small garden tractor?

Curt

The rake is a huge success. It was built in lieu of the more common landscape rakes with the curved spring teeth due to weight and dollar budgets. I'll get photos in Build-It Yourself as soon as I have the chance.

It seems/appears lightweight but takes much more abuse than it looks. It pulls a heck of a load and pushes even more. The rake teeth are replacement rubber mounted hay equipment teeth available at TSC and elsewhere, < $2.00 ea. The rubber mounts let individual teeth flex over small obstructions like buried but exposed rocks and roots.

The old Wards HST tractor (late '70's I think) has an implement raise/lower cylinder. It was one of the differences between a "lawnmower" and a "garden tractor". I recall the cylinder is only 1 1/2" x 6" x 1/2". Very limited but connects to front or rear via a steel rod connection. Geometry of an "L" link in the mechanism increases the lift to about 10" at the drawbar. The hitch is a one point connection on a flat drawbar.

It seems most of the new lawn tractors have an electric raise/lower attachment (when available). Maybe this would work if you don't have hydraulics. Another option would be a manual lever similar to what used to be on the old Gibson tractors.

Adam23,
You're right the wood box works fine and I'll keep using it until it breaks. Eventually it will (break) but I may get several years out of this one. The next generation would be of light sheet metal over metal stud framing members. Only the bottom and back need to be stout and uneven then the back can be pretty lightweight if reinforced correctly. I would keep the weight down to less than 100 pounds.

 

[larrystrollo]

How about a wooden frame with a metal netting sides (e..g, chicken wire or something....).

I'd be interested in photos of how it's attached to the FEL.

 

[RedDirt]

How about a wooden frame with a metal netting sides (e..g, chicken wire or something....).

I'd be interested in photos of how it's attached to the FEL.

Can't see the advantage of metal netting except maybe some weight. Chicken wire would be pretty flimsy. Expanded wire mesh may work. But it seems like leaves, and especially my pine needles, would get stuck in an open mesh.

Here is a link to building the bucket.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/112403-2cuyd-leaf-bucket-scut-works.html

And a link to building the rake
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/112451-good-landscape-rake-cheap.html

 

[JiminGa]

great idea, I'm thinkin some angle iron and sheet metal and maybe fab a new quick hitch style bucket like that...hmmm now I know what I need to build next

 

[lp333]

... Here is a link to building the bucket... And a link to building the rake...

Thanks for the highly informative documentation.

 

[dfkrug]

REDDIRT:

Ain't having 2 tractors great? Nice work and pix.

When/if you convert to steel, I think you will have difficulty keeping weight
down to 100lb. My big bkt of sheet steel and angle iron was 180lb and smaller
than yours.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/93060-one-cubic-yard-loader-bucket.html

 

[larrystrollo]

RedDirt;

Yea - maybe chicken wire was the wrong suggestion. I was visualizing something like a galvanized wire mesh. This is my first attempt at attaching a picture - let's see if it works.



It was definitely all about the wight, and perhaps some visibility when empty

 

[tsatter164]

Instead of contributing to air pollution, why not just pile the leaves and make compost or use it to mulch the garden?

 

[RedDirt]

dfkrug,
I like your bucket and the strength of your construction.

Yes, you are right. Building with steel will be difficult to keep the weight down below 100 pounds. But my intention is to keep it "lighter duty" than yours. I have not picked the metal materials thus have not calculated anticipated weight. My hope is to build with sheet metal and frame with steel building framing members. Steel studs are strong but light, getting their strength from the shape of the stud. Since I normally overbuild, keeping it light will be a fun challenge. For now the wood prototype works great and my guess is that it weighs in at 75 to 85 pounds.

larrystrollo,
A problem with wire is it has little shear strength. In order to build with wire you'd have to make a stronger frame and this may defeat the weight savings of sheet goods. Your point is well taken about visibility. You sure need to be confident of your paths because much of your vision is obscured. I may cut a "window" in the top of my bucket and cover the opening with wire mesh. Thus I'll increase my visibility (when bucket is empty) but maintain the shear strength of the plywood top.

tsatter104,
We do compost a fair amount, about 25%-30% overall, but mostly the oak leaves. Pine needles do not compost well and add to the acidity of our already high acid soil that we fight to get gardens into the neutral zone. That, and there is just too much volume to deal with. I may be off but I guess each acre produces 8 to 10 cuyd of debris a year. 5 acres x 9cuyd x 3 yr for pine needles to decompose (that's "sort of" decompose!); my whole property would be a compost heap.

Ironically we burn the needles for fire protection. When you live in a National Forest the fact of life is when, not if, a forest fire comes by what shape will you be in? My annual burn is probably not equivalent to 1 second of a bone fide forest fire which, by the way, is a natural occurrence. Earth can handle this. The pollution from my vehicles and tractors (and yours) is a different story.

 

[getindirty]

Nice bucket and rake. I need a bigger scrap pile to build stuff out of.

I really love it when someone talks about air pollution relating it to leaf burning. I bet that they don't care about their car or heated house polluting. PS leaf burning (wood, corn, grass...) is carbon nuetral. Fossil fuel burning is the problem.