Finally got the new grapple mounted...

   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #21  
I was trying to remember where I've seen those before....

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Lol, i was thinking the same thing!
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #22  
I have the T-8 QA swapped over, mounted and plumbed in. (Still need to run the PTO hoses up onto the loader arms.) I went to the hydraulics store in Knoxville this morning and stocked up on the needed Faster male hose connections. Based on a great suggestion here, I set the Aux/QA circuit up with two females, which will stay clean because something is always plugged in, and am putting two males on each attachment. Two attachments down, so far, one more with a hydraulic cylinder (snow/dirt blade) yet to go...
..

Grapples rule. I'm interested in why you chose two female connectors for the tractor side hydraulic quick connects. My set up is one of each. I just have a set of QC caps (one male one female) that are connected to each other to stay clean and are attached to the mount so that when I remove the grapple I just plug the right one on each connector. It also means that I can take the grapple side hoses and plug them into each other for protection. Finally, it means I don't need to bother with marking the hoses so I can reconnect them the same way each time. (On the other hand, my backhoe plugs into the two female rear remotes and I mark them simply by having one hose with a ziptie and a ziptie on the matching female rear remote QC).
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #23  
Grapples rule. I'm interested in why you chose two female connectors for the tractor side hydraulic quick connects. My set up is one of each. I just have a set of QC caps (one male one female) that are connected to each other to stay clean and are attached to the mount so that when I remove the grapple I just plug the right one on each connector. It also means that I can take the grapple side hoses and plug them into each other for protection. Finally, it means I don't need to bother with marking the hoses so I can reconnect them the same way each time. (On the other hand, my backhoe plugs into the two female rear remotes and I mark them simply by having one hose with a ziptie and a ziptie on the matching female rear remote QC).

Island. While my setup is male/female and for the reasons you have outlined, I can think of a reason to use two females on the tractor side. If you mount the females with the breakaway mounting (mounted by the sleeve collars of the QD connectors) and you use double acting sleeve QD connectors, then you have two advantages. You have breakaway protection if you should do something stupid like forget to close your SSQA lever/levers and the grapple should come off the hoses will just uncouple without damage.

The second benefit is you have one handed connection connection and disconnection. Whereas you and I must use two hands to make a connection, one to pull back the sleeve connection on the female and the other to push on the male connection, with double acting sleeves and the females mounted to the loader torque tube by these connections you just push on the male with a single hand. Like wise to disconnect you simply pull on them to disconnect them.

So that is the thinking of the dual female double acting sleeve QD's on the torque tube. As for the two male connectors left on the grapple to protect them from dirt/damage, you could carry a female to female QD adaptor to put on these ends to protect them.
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #24  
Island. While my setup is male/female and for the reasons you have outlined, I can think of a reason to use two females on the tractor side. If you mount the females with the breakaway mounting (mounted by the sleeve collars of the QD connectors) and you use double acting sleeve QD connectors, then you have two advantages. You have breakaway protection if you should do something stupid like forget to close your SSQA lever/levers and the grapple should come off the hoses will just uncouple without damage.

The second benefit is you have one handed connection connection and disconnection. Whereas you and I must use two hands to make a connection, one to pull back the sleeve connection on the female and the other to push on the male connection, with double acting sleeves and the females mounted to the loader torque tube by these connections you just push on the male with a single hand. Like wise to disconnect you simply pull on them to disconnect them.

So that is the thinking of the dual female double acting sleeve QD's on the torque tube. As for the two male connectors left on the grapple to protect them from dirt/damage, you could carry a female to female QD adaptor to put on these ends to protect them.

Good point James. I guess I am simply unfamiliar with double acting QD connectors. I always need two hands to connect either male to female or vise versa with my ?single acting typical Pioneer style quick disconnect fittings.
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #25  
Good point James. I guess I am simply unfamiliar with double acting QD connectors. I always need two hands to connect either male to female or vise versa with my ?single acting typical Pioneer style quick disconnect fittings.

Yes, they do cost more, and I don't have them either, and for a long time did not even realize they existed. I got to noticing guys using them, and the stock Kubota rear remotes are double acting QA connectors. Notice how they are mounted in a block and there is no way to manually actuate the sleeves. As you push in on the female connector with the male connector the sleeve remains static and the body moves backward releasing the retention balls until the male connector snaps in and locks and as you release your hand pressure on the male connector the spring pressure recenters the body and sleeve to lock the retention balls in place. The same sequence occurs when you pull on the male connector only in reverse.
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #26  
Yes, they do cost more, and I don't have them either, and for a long time did not even realize they existed. I got to noticing guys using them, and the stock Kubota rear remotes are double acting QA connectors. Notice how they are mounted in a block and there is no way to manually actuate the sleeves. As you push in on the female connector with the male connector the sleeve remains static and the body moves backward releasing the retention balls until the male connector snaps in and locks and as you release your hand pressure on the male connector the spring pressure recenters the body and sleeve to lock the retention balls in place. The same sequence occurs when you pull on the male connector only in reverse.

I doubt that I'll upgrade but I certainly see the benefit of the double acting type and probably would have sprung for them when new. I wonder though, how do you address the issue of releasing pressure that prevents the female nipple from depressing? I can just stick a metal rod into the standard type and give it a tap with a hammer to release fluid. Can you still do that with the double acting type.
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #27  
I doubt that I'll upgrade but I certainly see the benefit of the double acting type and probably would have sprung for them when new. I wonder though, how do you address the issue of releasing pressure that prevents the female nipple from depressing? I can just stick a metal rod into the standard type and give it a tap with a hammer to release fluid. Can you still do that with the double acting type.

While I don't have any (except the air hose version) I don't see why not. By the way when I invested in the air hose version I was astounded by how handy it was and how much less frustrating it was to just be able to push the air hose onto the air tool with ease. There are just some things that are better, and may cost a dollar more, but if we actually knew about them we would throw rocks at the older less handy versions.
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #28  
While I don't have any (except the air hose version) I don't see why not. By the way when I invested in the air hose version I was astounded by how handy it was and how much less frustrating it was to just be able to push the air hose onto the air tool with ease. There are just some things that are better, and may cost a dollar more, but if we actually knew about them we would throw rocks at the older less handy versions.

Maybe the next time I replace hoses....original hoses still fine after ten years though.:laughing:
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted...
  • Thread Starter
#29  
Grapples rule. I'm interested in why you chose two female connectors for the tractor side hydraulic quick connects. My set up is one of each. I just have a set of QC caps (one male one female) that are connected to each other to stay clean and are attached to the mount so that when I remove the grapple I just plug the right one on each connector. It also means that I can take the grapple side hoses and plug them into each other for protection. Finally, it means I don't need to bother with marking the hoses so I can reconnect them the same way each time. (On the other hand, my backhoe plugs into the two female rear remotes and I mark them simply by having one hose with a ziptie and a ziptie on the matching female rear remote QC).

These things are far more like a front-end loader than a tractor. They use a single roll-over bar and a top link to curl the bucket, moved by a LARGE cylider/ram, similar in size (though not stroke) to those on the lift arms. They have a hydraulically actuated triangular (with the tips chopped off each end) self-centering quick attach plate. It has a lip on the top of the attachment's QA plate and a pair of slots in the bottom that is bent out toward the tractor at a 90 degree angle. You put the top of the tractor's QA plate somewhere close to the center of the attachment's QA plate, lift the lift arms gently while maintaining a curl on the QA plate to catch underneath that top lip. This lifts the rear of the attachment slightly, it self-centers onto the tractor's QA plate, then you actuate the Aux/QA valve to lock the two locks/dogs into the slots in the bottom of the QA plate.

To attach a grapple or any attachment with a hydraulic ram/cylinder (I also have a hydraulically angled snow/dirt blade and a 4 ft mini-hoe with a 12" bucket, for example), you must then disconnect the hoses for the QA cylinder, and connect the hoses for the attachment. This leaves two short lengths (4"-6") of hydraulic hose hanging underneath the lift arms, with their quick connects exposed.

The PTs come from the factory with two males on the tractor, and two females on the QA cylinder and on every attachment. The hoses for the QA mechanism are run parallel to the loader arms, and very close (if not on top of them), to keep them away from the rollover/toplink curl mechanism. The short lengths for the QA cylinder are not long enough to connect to each other, and should they be longer and connected, they could easily come in contact with toplink for the curl mechanism, since it travels in the center between the lift arms. I've tried to use dust caps on my old PT-425's quick connects for the QA mechanism, but was constantly tearing them off -- especially when working in brush with the grapple.

By using females on the tractor, either an attachment or the QA cylinder will be connected at all times, keeping those females clean. Cleaning a male hose connector is simple... females are much more difficult to clean. That's why I swapped them the way that I did.

The PT implements that ,motors and use the hydraulic PTO have one male and one female so the hoses can be connected to keep them clean. While that setup would work well to keep the connectors clean on attachments with cylinders, it would require that the tractor AND the QA mechanism have a male and a female also. The female for the QA mechanism would then be exposed to dirt and debris much of the time... I've tried to use dust caps on my old PT-425's quick connects for the QA mechamism, but was constantly tearing them off because they were hanging underneath the lift arms -- especially vulnerable when working in brush with the grapple.

That was my reasoning...
 
   / Finally got the new grapple mounted... #30  
Island. While my setup is male/female and for the reasons you have outlined, I can think of a reason to use two females on the tractor side. If you mount the females with the breakaway mounting (mounted by the sleeve collars of the QD connectors) and you use double acting sleeve QD connectors, then you have two advantages. You have breakaway protection if you should do something stupid like forget to close your SSQA lever/levers and the grapple should come off the hoses will just uncouple without damage.

The second benefit is you have one handed connection connection and disconnection. Whereas you and I must use two hands to make a connection, one to pull back the sleeve connection on the female and the other to push on the male connection, with double acting sleeves and the females mounted to the loader torque tube by these connections you just push on the male with a single hand. Like wise to disconnect you simply pull on them to disconnect them.

So that is the thinking of the dual female double acting sleeve QD's on the torque tube. As for the two male connectors left on the grapple to protect them from dirt/damage, you could carry a female to female QD adaptor to put on these ends to protect them.

LD1 talked me into the double acting sleeve connectors when I had my RR installed. Dang glad I did it too!

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