FEL Bucket Modifications

[texaslandman]

Just bought a new FEL, never had one before. I was at an auction and saw a trailer ball welded on a bucket. Also, saw hooks welded at the corners of another bucket.

Can somebody shed some light on their uses and best location for placement, etc.?? Thanks.

 

[shoppintractors]

Run a search for bucket hooks and you should come up with many threads on this subject.

Don

 

[BigAl]

Don't weld the trailer ball in place ! Drill a 3/4 inch hole thur your cutting edge in the middle so you can attach it when you need it to move something around . That way you can remove it when not in use . Some guy's set up a reciever tube style hitch and have multiple hitches set up for different uses .I use mind alot for moving my 20' equipment trailer into tight areas around my place .
If you have about 3 or 4 chain hooks across the top of your bucket they come in real handy for tie downs or lifting something .
Big Al

 

[JerryG]

Here is how you can attach everything to your bucket. Receiver hooks

 

[Henro]

JerryG,

That looks pretty nice.

My setup is simpler, but I can't tell you how usefull I find it. I don't know how I got along without the bucket hooks. The slip hook in the center and grab hooks on the end are a perfect combination for my needs...

Also can't say how glad I am I took an evening welding class last year! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[JerryG]

Bill,
With the receivers you can have several different hooks or attachments by just pulling a pin.

 

[AndyMA]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Bill,
With the receivers you can have several different hooks or attachments by just pulling a pin. )</font>

I think the receive would be useful for some things, but I would have a hard time towing a trailer with it as it seems way too high to get under most trailer tongues. I have the hole in my bucket and 4 chain hooks welded to the top edge of my bucket.
Just my thoughts.

Andy

 

[herdfan]

Bill;

What kind of welder did you use for those hooks?
I've been contemplating a welding purchase, but don't know which would be good for "farm use."

Thanks
eric

 

[bigpete]

Just to add another opinion...

I would rather "pull" in a forward direction with a trailer or any balanced and trailed load (3PH receiver hitch), and would rather use the full travel range and vertical curl and extension of the FEL for working with chains. Dragging is a low-centered operation that should typically be done at, or below, the drawbar (axle height) and in a forward direction.

If you want a Swiss Army knife-type setup, the receiver hitch attached to a very-reinforced bucket might be the answer. I have seen several good pics of just such a setup on another un-named tractor board. There are a few extra ways to get into safety trouble with such a set-up.

 

[herdfan]

I just built a "pusher" for my FEL to offload mud from some slips on my hillside.
I'm too in debt to get a dump truck or dump trailer, so I'm loading the mud onto my 8X13 equipment hauler, towing it off with my old 1972 Ford 2000 and then pushing/pulling the mud off with my Century's backhoe.
The offloading was taking 30 minutes at best and was really a time waster, so I built a "pusher" for the FEL out of pressure treated lumber. It extends the pushing range of the loader by about 5 feet and is 8 feet wide so it should clean the trailer in 2 swipes.
I just finished it up today, so I'll let yall know how it works tomorrow.
I'll probably post some pics (since I now have a digital camera again /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif) tomorrow as well.

 

[bigpete]

Here are a couple of simple 3/8" bucket "grab" hooks welded to a standard JD bucket. The technician added welded 1/4" steel gussets for reinforcement.

 

[bigpete]

Pic: Welded "gussets" distribute hook load, add bucket top rigidity, and diminish general torsion forces on the bucket.

 

[bigpete]

Herdfan, Make sure you are pushing/pulling a balanced load (on the extended loader width) /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[jdmar]

BiGPete

I like your setup. Simple and professionally done...should last forever and not distort your bucket when you use 'em a little more than you should...we all know we do that sometimes...heck that what a tractor is for!!

Peter (? aka littlePete?)

 

[Henro]

<font color="blue"> What kind of welder did you use for those hooks?
I've been contemplating a welding purchase, but don't know which would be good for "farm use."
</font>

Herdfan,

It was a stick weld. I also welded on a piece of angle across the top, to make the bucket stronger and give me a good place to put the hooks.

The particular welder I have is a tig/stick combo and would not be what you want for "farm use" as it more electronics than transformer. So it will take less abuse in storage than a transformer machine will.

You would probably want to get a transformer welder, ac/dc units cost a little more but DC is nice to have. Now I am a novice but even novice welding skills are wonderful to have!

Bottom line is to get something that will start and hold an arc for you. If you get a very low end welder that is lacking power, you may end up frustrating yourself when all you get is a rod sticking to the metal you are trying to weld [when you are starting out, anyway].

Now some start with a wire feed welder [MIG] too. Can't comment on them as I have never used one. People say that you can get a good looking weld with them that is not strong at all...come refer to these welders when they are in inexperienced hands as "hot glue guns." For a person with experience they do a fine job.

A stick welder it seems to me is a good choice for around the farm as it will weld thicker stuff than an inexpensive wire feed will, will probably be the most durable of all.

By the way...welders as viewed by weldors share a lot of common traits with tractors viewed by tractor owners. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[gray]

Henro,

I second your opinion on welder choices. A good little stick welder will give an occational user many otpions. Thick metal, cast iron work, s steal work and some even do alluminum with them? You do have more post weld cleaning but the penetration is often better than wire feed and less expensive to get many different rod types and diameters to use. DC is important to have for quality and metal type uses.

I got my little miller 250 not knowing how often I would use it. It has gotten much more use than I ever thought and it is always ready- and dirty.

 

[GrayBeard]

I used .5 " weld "D" rings on the corners of my bucket and a 5/8" slip hook in the middle.
The "D" rings are nice because some of my bucket attachments hook with chain via the backside of the bucket.( forks, snow plow)
The rings "flop" either way to hook-up from the front or rear.
GrayBeard

 

[GerardC]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I used .5 " weld "D" rings on the corners of my bucket and a 5/8" slip hook in the middle.
The "D" rings are nice because some of my bucket attachments hook with chain via the backside of the bucket.( forks, snow plow)
The rings "flop" either way to hook-up from the front or rear.
GrayBeard )</font>

This sounds like a good idea also. Can you post some photos?