Bucket on mini excavator blade

[Dan Clarke]

Hi, new guy here hoping i've found the right place.

I intend to fabricate a skidsteer backplate to hinge from the blade on my mini excavator and give the plate a tilt function by using the hydraulic circuit now controlling the track in-out movement. The track movement would be locked stationary.

The blade up and down motion and the bucket tilt motion would be operated by one of the pilot joysticks. The control of the cylinders that the pilot joystick abandoned would be actuated by the blade lift lever and track retract switch, not for productive use but just to be able to move if in the way while grading and moving dirt with the bucket.

The reason I'm here is that i'm somewhat hydraulic illiterate and would like your input as to how to plumb the divereter or whatever else valves I would need. It seems simple to me but I've been bitten by that before.

Thanks,
Dan

 

[LD1]

A diverter is simple. It has 6 ports.

Two ports in.....that are going to the existing function. Those spit off into a PAIR of ports. One set goes to original function, another goes to the added function

 

[Vigo327]

Just out of curiosity.. what size mini ex and how high does the blade lift?

I can see the idea being workable.. but one idea i would add that may or may not just muddy the waters, is have you considered building a piece to essentially turn the blade into a 4n1 bucket? Ive seen people do it to snowplow blades, etc. It would not give you an inherent tilt function so youd have to build it so that when closed, the bucket floor/edge was at a somewhat downward angle so it could dig in just a bit, but it would also give you a workaround for low lift height as the bucket barely needs to be elevated from the ground in order to ‘bottom dump’ by simply opening the lid.

Depending on how far you spaced the upper pivots out from the ‘moldboard’ of the existing blade, you could even get theback edge of the lid to touch the ground while the blade itself does not, allowing you to ‘backdrag’ with the lid. Dont know if that would be a desirable feature or not..

If you cut the bucket ‘sidewalls’ with a bit of a half moon shape you could also use the blade as more of a lifting platform for long piece of log/pipe/culvert that may not be liftable with the boom alone. I recall when i set my 24” concrete culverts with a borrowed mini ex, they were far beyond being lifted with the arm but i was able to find a way to crowd them between the bucket and blade that allowed me to BARELY lift them for travel. It would have been easier if id had a more concave surface than just the blade face to push them against with the bucket.

One downside of this 4n1 idea is that when the lid was fully open, it may become a liability during ‘rotation’ of the top half of the machine.