Bought a new L3400 TLB, implement question..

[ozman]

Hi everyone,
I'm new to tractor buying and I have been doing a lot of research on the compact tractors within the past few months. This site has been great for me because I was able to check out information on Kubota tractors. My father in-law has a B21 TLB and its like a little tank. Its was the only name that I truly looked into because of the reliability that Kubota has.

My wife and I have around 25 acres in upstate N.Y. I bought a Kubota L3400 with a loader and backhoe to help do some clearing on a small area of the property so we can build a home. I also wanted to use the tractor with my one-ton dump to do some side work over the summer.

I wanted to know what type of grappler should I look at for my loader? I wanted to use it to move brush around and I have heard that some of them can be very heavy. Also, would anyone recommend the type of grappler that attaches to the bucket??

Lastly, What do you use a tooth bar for the bucket? Is it for digging into the soil with the loader bucket?
Thanks for any help!
Mark

 

[amigauser]

I wanted to know what type of grappler should I look at for my loader? I wanted to use it to move brush around and I have heard that some of them can be very heavy. Also, would anyone recommend the type of grappler that attaches to the bucket??

Lastly, What do you use a tooth bar for the bucket? Is it for digging into the soil with the loader bucket?
Thanks for any help!
Mark

Mark,

If you have a skid steer type quick attach on your FEL you can use just about any grapple depending on the weight of it. Some grapples are quite heavy as they are designed for skid steers.

If you search on grapple here on TBN you will find many many links to old threads.

One of the least expensive grapples is the one sold on ebay which is the Millonzi one.
Ebay link
eBay: Skid Steer Attachment - 48" Light Duty Root Grapple (item 140079264502 end time Feb-02-07 09:06:15 PST)
Company link
Millonzi International Homepage

You will find many happy users of it here on TBN. You will also need a valve to control the grapple. One of the better ones is the W R Long kits.
Valve Kits

The FEL tooth bar assists in digging as you thought. There are many different brands and also quite a few sold on eBay. Most people here on TBN seem to prefer the Markham one.
Markham Welding - Tooth Bar

Norm

 

[ozman]

Norm,
Thanks for the information and web sites on the grappler and tooth bar. I'm gonna have to check into them and their prices. I'd like to buy these implements to help clear the land as long as my wallet and my wife will let me. It took me some serious "selling" to get my wife to agree on buying the tractor in the first place!
Mark

 

[amigauser]

Norm,
Thanks for the information and web sites on the grappler and tooth bar. I'm gonna have to check into them and their prices. I'd like to buy these implements to help clear the land as long as my wallet and my wife will let me. It took me some serious "selling" to get my wife to agree on buying the tractor in the first place!
Mark

Mark,

I hear you It was also a very hard sell on my wife to get my B3030. I am still paying her back if you know what I mean.

I have the ATI Tach-All on my FEL which is an aftermarket quick attach unit . If you do not already have a quick attach system on your FEL you may want to lool at the Tach-All. I know the B3030 was offered with a pin type quick attach but I wanted skid steer attachment compatibility so I went with the aftermarket Tach-All system from ATI.
ATI Corporation - Tach-All(tm) Quick Attach

Once you have a quick attach system it opens up a world of attachments to you. Things like grapples, pallet forks, tree booms, tree spades, etc. and you can change among them very quickly.

Norm

 

[ozman]

Norm,
I emailed the rep. for Tach-all the other day and he gave me all the information that I need for my tractor so I can use those quick-attachments. Yeah, I am really going to look at buying the quick-attach set up for it. For the amount of time to take off each implement its worth it. I also emailed Nelson from W.R. Long and he gave me the info. on the valve set up for the loader and the cost for it too. Not a bad price and I passed it along to my Kubota dealer and they are looking into seeing if they can get it shipped to their dealer. I havent gotten the tractor yet, they are still finishing up on putting the backhoe on it. Maybe I'll wait until they put the valves on it before I have them deliver it. That way I dont have to keep bringing it back and forth.
Mark

 

[Bob_Young]

Hey Oz,
Welcome. Where's Averill Park?

Take a look at the Brush Claw from these guys:
the W e s L o r group....Excellence in Metal Processing
Theres a pulldown menu on the second screen that lets you select it. There's even a video.

I've got one on my L4300 (60" bucket-LA682) and it works quite well. Works even better since I put a toothbar on the bucket. It's plenty rugged enough for incidental brush moving on a large residence or small farm. It can be easily removed, but isn't so heavy that you'd need to.

Phelps is on NY Rt. 96 about 35 mi. SW of Rochester.

The claw isn't hard to install on a normal Kubota bucket. Some owners have done it themselves. I had mine installed by the tractor dealer when I bought the tractor. I think it ran around $1600 for the claw, cylinder, valve and all components. The dealer added some quick disconnects so I could remove it easily....but I never have.

Worth a look anyway.
Bob

 

[ozman]

Hey Bob,
Thanks for the information on the Brush Claw. Yeah it looks pretty nice and works off the factory bucket which is a good option. I'll have to give them a call to get some information/prices on it for my loader.

Averill Park is right outside Albany, NY.

Mark