Backhoe BX24 Backhoe Rock Lifting Capacity

Waterlogged · Feb 20, 2009

I am looking to move some landscape rocks around my property in the coming months and I am trying to decide if I should get a thumb. I can use the front loader but would like to bring in some bigger rocks and want to know if the backhoe has greater lifting capacity than the front loader? Does anyone know, or want to estimate, how heavy of a rock I can lift with a backhoe/thumb combination? Thanks for any help.

Tom_H · Feb 20, 2009

Do a search in this forum with "BX and "thumb" as the terms, with no date restrictions. You will find numerous threads with many pics and weight descriptions. The thumb is a lot cheaper than getting a grapple for your FEL. Your bh bucket and a thumb will likely pick up anything you can get a bite on.

Another possibility, however, is the American Solutions grapple for the BX FEL. It will get a bigger bite than the bh & thumb, but the FEL with grapple has a bite that is bigger than it's capable of lifting.

MacTractor · Feb 20, 2009

I have the thumb and I have moved rocks that you would never think it should be able to lift. The key is to put a large one in the FEL bucket and just lift it as close as you can to the tractor with the BH. One of them I tried not thinking it could do it but it could pick it up, but the front was coming off the ground. I counter weighted it and up it went. For obvious reasons, you only need to pick them up and inch or so to move them.

Cheers,

KeithInSpace · Feb 20, 2009

Tough one. I haven't lifted rocks, but I've lifted some exceptionally heavy stumps. In either case, it's less of a "lift" and more of a "controlled drag".

While a thumb is infinitely helpful, my reason in adding one would not be to pick up bigger rocks with the BH than can be lifted by the FEL. Generally speaking, I think I'd call the FEL far more capable of heavy lifts. Remember, the ~500# rating is way out by the bucket. If you use straps and hang something off SOME OTHER POINT on the FEL, you can get a good bit more lifting capacity.

EXAMPLE:

I needed to move a bag of sand left over from my patio project. This single bag of sand (delivered by flatbed and truck-mount forklift) started as 1,500# and had probably 700# to 800# remaining.

Hooking straps to the top lip of the bucket and running them around the FRONT of be bucket was useless...I couldn't lift it. And even with the BH attached, the rear end was coming off the ground. Very dangerous.

So I ran the straps the other way, hooking them to the front lip of the bucket and running them around the back of the bucket. That one change (effectively moving the weight back ~18" on the FEL arms) allowed me to very, very gingerly drag it along the ground to an out-of-the-way storage space. I could even "oomph" it onto a wooden pallate.

Several ways to skin a cat. Get a thumb to help with a myriad of other things, and maybe it'll help with a troublesome rock. If you purchase to SIMPLY haul around larger rocks, you may be a little disappointed.

denmansoft · Feb 20, 2009

I got my thumb to be able to pick things up, and hang on to them while moving or swinging them into place.
FEL can handle way more weight. You need to have the Boom and dipperstick right in tight to get much weight carrying capacity.

Tom_H · Feb 20, 2009

Keith makes a very good point about other ways to utilize the FEL. Bucket hooks on the FEL as well as on the bh are an inexpensive way to add versatility. They can be weld-on, bolt-on, or drilled holes through which you can attach a carribiner. You may want to do searches in this forum using different combinations of these terms: BX, hook, hooks, bucket hooks, FEL, loader bucket, bh bucket, backhoe bucket.