Zook - I am amazed the little bx can lift that grapple while carrying a load. That grapple looks awesome... and BIG!
cal1 - With your math and spelling, we might be identical twins separated a birth! :laughing: If you want to weld, take a welding class. It sounds like you will not regret it. My only regret is that I waited way to long before doing it.
Aj10523 - Making pallet forks was my first major project...well, major for me.
4shorts - Just wait until I post a picture of my above mentioned pallet forks. :laughing: My surreptitious plan is to shame you into making / posting a new project for us. :confused2: I do have a "man crush" on you... well, your work, anyway! :thumbsup: :laughing:
radioman - The only semi-major design flaw was the use of too light weight angle iron between the arms of the FEL. I used 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 1/4. To keep the middle tine from flexing, it needs to be heavier. (If it becomes a major problem, it is easy enough to reinforce.) Also, if you notice in the picture, I was originally planning on making the grappler wider. But, when I realized how undersized that angle iron was, I decided, temporarily at least, to make it narrower. So far, I have not missed the extra width, and, in fact, I may prefer a more compact width.
The design is a constant trade off to make things fit and work. For instance, it would be better to have more distance between the stationary set of jaws and the movable jaws. But, moving the movable jaws further forward increases the length of the connectors to the curl piston. As a result, as the jaws open it raises the piston and there is a limit to how high it can be raised. (I don't remember what the exact limiting factor was, but it was definitely there.) Now, that could be worked around by lowering the pivot point of the movable jaws, but that, in effect, decreases the total height you can lift the load or clamp into a high pile of brush. :confused2:
If you notice in the picture, I have angled tines on the ends to keep the load from slipping out. If I were to build another, I might use a little greater angle, or just increase the length of the angle tines. But, if you increase the angle too much you increase the possibility of the load not easily falling out of the stationary tines when the FEL is raised
I am not going to estimate how much time I have in the design, but it is far more than I have in actually building it. The last thing I want to do is discourage you. It was a GREAT learning experience and even though it could be better, I am very happy with the end results so far.
koolbotaman - As soon as I get my plasma cnc and metal band saw, I'll be in business... so to speak! Of course, I need a new shop, too :laughing:
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