LS Tractor Owner
Super Member
- Joined
- May 1, 2017
- Messages
- 7,330
- Location
- Edgewood, NM
- Tractor
- LS XG3025 TLB, Previously MT125 TLB, Craftsman GTS6500
I finally got a chance to build / install a bucket level indicator on my 125. I had the 2 tubes (the outer is a piece of 1/2" electric conduit, the inner rod is a piece of 3/8 black pipe). After looking at many different ideas posted throughout TBN and google, I just came up with my own. The only thing I had to buy were the 2 mounting clamps, which are electrical conduit "beam" hangers....cost $1.25 each.
I was going to weld some tabs on the outer pipe at the top, but found a 1/2" U-shaped clamp that I just bent around the conduit and used the bolt from the beam clamp to swivel on. For the indicator rod, I tapped the bottom to accept a 5/16-18 bolt. A small 1x1" piece of angle was then bolted on to allow the perpendicular swivel at the bottom, again using the bolt from the beam clamp to swivel.
I haven't decided to paint the top of the indicator or just use the red tape as shown. When the "red" disappears, the bucket is level. Tried it out a couple of times in the driveway, works great!
I was really getting tired of leaning way out to look at the bucket, and even then always seemed to be angled either a lttle too deep or little too shallow.
I was going to weld some tabs on the outer pipe at the top, but found a 1/2" U-shaped clamp that I just bent around the conduit and used the bolt from the beam clamp to swivel on. For the indicator rod, I tapped the bottom to accept a 5/16-18 bolt. A small 1x1" piece of angle was then bolted on to allow the perpendicular swivel at the bottom, again using the bolt from the beam clamp to swivel.
I haven't decided to paint the top of the indicator or just use the red tape as shown. When the "red" disappears, the bucket is level. Tried it out a couple of times in the driveway, works great!
I was really getting tired of leaning way out to look at the bucket, and even then always seemed to be angled either a lttle too deep or little too shallow.
