ck20 will it work a 4n1 bucket?

[IslandTractor]

The WRLong HJ2 60" 4-in-1 weighs only 340#, but it lists for $1734, so
with shipping & tax, plus driving a couple of hundred miles to a distributor,
it looks like about $2500. :-(

The factory will weld on the adapter I need for the KL130.

Ouch. To be honest I'm not sure it is worth it at that price. Just to put this in perspective, I do like my HJ2 60" but it is a true Swiss Army Knife type of tool...good at a lot of different things but not best at any. I'd definitely rank it considerably lower than a grapple for anything that involves moving logs, brush, roots etc. The 4n1 typically has lower capacity than a standard bucket and weighs more so it doesn't compare well there either. I don't personally use the 4th function which I believe is reversing with the bucket open to cut with the back of the movable blade. I've never found a use for that. I do use the bulldozer function and that is my personal favorite. The downside there however is that a 4n1 on a tractor is really not engineered to be a real bulldozer so you have to be judicious about how you use it to avoid damaging both bucket and FEL.

All in all the 4n1 is a handy piece of equipment but not one that I couldn't live without. For me it was a no brainer with a ebay low ball bid of $500 so I was delighted. I probably wouldn't have one otherwise. Knowing what I do now, if I had and extra $2500 I'd consider it but only if I already had a number of other goodies incluidng a grapple, tiller, plow, harrow, chipper, rake, boxblade, forks and perhaps a few other things that perform tasks that cannot be done otherwise.

 

[dfkrug]

I don't personally use the 4th function which I believe is reversing with the bucket open to cut with the back of the movable blade. I've never found a use for that. I do use the bulldozer function and that is my personal favorite.

I like that capability almost as much as being able to lift 500-900 lb rocks.
I find grading backwards with the articulating jaw to be more controllable
than doing the same with a BB on the 3-pt. It is especially valuable to me
in that I clean up my paved pvt road with it. I am in a redwood forest and
the road gets literally buried by tree debris if you don't maintain it. A
gentle touch with a BB has worked for me in the past, but the 4-in-1 is
heaps better, with less risk of damaging the asphalt.

The guy that got my old Kubota that we added the 4-in-1 to modified his
bkt so that it would tilt side-to-side like a TnT BB so he could do more rough
road grading.

Congrats on your excellent price on the HydroJaw. I assume you did not
have to pay another $500 to ship?

 

[IslandTractor]

Regarding the back blading with the 4n1. You might want to check out an alternative to accomplish the same basic effect. I bought a QA 3PT adapter for my FEL. I can now put the rake on the front in either orientation and it is LOTS more controllable than on the back. The only thing you cannot do is alter the angle for crowning a road but for a regular driveway or uncrowned road I'd think it would be fine. Adapter cost a bit more than $340 or so from Wallace in case you are interested.

My 4n1 came from Michigan so it cost about 150 or maybe a little more to ship early last year. An unexpected bonus was that it included a complete WRLong diverter valve set up. I was intending to use the rear remote as I liked doing that on my CK20 but I went ahead and installed the diverter. I like but do not love it. I'd recommend either using the rear remote or going whole hog for the electric over hydraulic set up if I had to do it again.

 

[dfkrug]

Regarding the back blading with the 4n1. You might want to check out an alternative to accomplish the same basic effect. I bought a QA 3PT adapter for my FEL. I can now put the rake on the front in either orientation and it is LOTS more controllable than on the back. The only thing you cannot do is alter the angle for crowning a road but for a regular driveway or uncrowned road I'd think it would be fine. Adapter cost a bit more than $340 or so from Wallace in case you are interested.

My 4n1 came from Michigan so it cost about 150 or maybe a little more to ship early last year. An unexpected bonus was that it included a complete WRLong diverter valve set up. I was intending to use the rear remote as I liked doing that on my CK20 but I went ahead and installed the diverter. I like but do not love it. I'd recommend either using the rear remote or going whole hog for the electric over hydraulic set up if I had to do it again.

That's an excellent idea about using some implements on the FEL with a
3PH adapter. I was going to make an adapter so I could put my concrete
mixer on the FEL and go hydraulic. Maybe I should get a 3-pt angle blade
and try that on the front....

Interesting you got the diverter, too. WRLong charges $500 for that alone.
Does yours ONLY switch between the curl and 4n1 cyls? Or does it have
a setting where the curl and 4n1 can be in parallel?

I plan to use the same solenoid valve I used on my recent hyd thumb. It
will allow the 4n1 to be in parallel or off. No independent control of just the
4n1 jaws.

 

[alchemysa]

All in all the 4n1 is a handy piece of equipment but not one that I couldn't live without. .

So much depends on the type of use you are putting the tractor to. I'm currently playing around on 3 house sized blocks. (Almost finished 1 house and perhaps doing 2 more). But total area is only about an acre. The work is largely construction (or demolition) oriented. Within the space of 2 minutes I'll use almost every function of the 4-in-1. I'd hate to have to keep changing implements for these brief jobs, and I suspect the wide claw type grapple on the 4in1 is actually more useful in a construction/deconstruction situation than a dedicated grapple with 2 or 3 teeth would be. My only other significant implement is some forks that I attach to the 4in1. These have certainly been invaluable.

In a more agricultural setting, with larger areas to manage, dedicated attachments would be very handy. But 'around the house' the 4in1 is a thing of joy.

 

[IslandTractor]

In a more agricultural setting, with larger areas to manage, dedicated attachments would be very handy. But 'around the house' the 4in1 is a thing of joy.

I agree. It is certainly a very handy tool. My comments were focused on comparing it on a dollar to function basis on the assumption it cost $2500 .

 

[IslandTractor]

That's an excellent idea about using some implements on the FEL with a
3PH adapter. I was going to make an adapter so I could put my concrete
mixer on the FEL and go hydraulic. Maybe I should get a 3-pt angle blade
and try that on the front....

Interesting you got the diverter, too. WRLong charges $500 for that alone.
Does yours ONLY switch between the curl and 4n1 cyls? Or does it have
a setting where the curl and 4n1 can be in parallel?

I plan to use the same solenoid valve I used on my recent hyd thumb. It
will allow the 4n1 to be in parallel or off. No independent control of just the
4n1 jaws.

Regarding the diverter valve, the WRLong is a true diverter activated by a button on the FEL joystick. I can either open/close the grapple by activating the diverter and using dump/curl motions with the joystick or, by not activating the diverter button I just have normal dump/curl on the FEL. Unlike the independent electrohydraulic system (also sold by WRLong for more $$$), I cannot open/close the grapple at the same time as dump/curl the FEL.