Homebuilt grader

[panamaguy]

Hi. I don't have one of these myself but saw one many years ago as I was driving a 31 ft motor home pulling a 30 ft enclosed trailer on my Canada to Panama move. Might be of interest to some. Met these guys in a gas station and they had taken a older skid steer, pulled the arms and bucket off, added a frame out front and a axle from a 3 to truck and built a small grader. They built small parking lots so a full size grader was too big. Look at a grader from the side and a slid steer from the side and you will realize the part a person would need to build to have your own small grader it would be a cool project for anyone with good welding experience. The hydraulics are supplied from the arms and bucket. Read articles on here were some have long driveways, this could be the answer and a fun project to build

 

[scootr]

Pictures Please.

 

[panamaguy]

Sorry don't have photos. We were just fueling up at the same gas station. Just picture a grader and you will see the front part of the frame you would need to build. Me being a welder by trade it would be a easy and fun build. I think I would likely build the front main frame out of heavy wall 4x4 or 6x6 square tube 1/4. wall. A salvage front axle. And get a Mol board rolled at a shop and bolt on grader blades. Wish I had taken photos but did not. The owners said it worked fantastic for them

 

[scootr]

Spartan makes this one. At $16k it's too pricy for me.
I would be interested in making one but not permanently modifying my SS to one function only.

 

[panamaguy]

That is interesting but 16.g is a lot. They started with a old wreaked machine. He said it fell over with the bucket high and loaded and twisted the arms so they got it at a good price. I would not want to mod a good machine but finding a wreck up there should be fairly easy. wish I could find one here but have not yet

 

[Fixastuff]

OK I’ve bought a motor home and a skid steer, combining the two into a grader camper per the instructions above.

 

[panamaguy]

Great. Now you can take contracts for those long roads. You are a pretty fart smeller... I mean smart feller. Post photos LOL

 

[BFreaky]

I've built this one for a tractor, you can put something like this on a skidsteer, just reverse the blade and wheels. It has all the functions that big road graders have, check the video on youtube.



Video link:

 

[panamaguy]

Wow you did yourself proud. That is a beautifully done attachment . Yes that is the idea that I saw that company did on a old skidsteer. What was you profession in life

 

[Fixastuff]

I've built this one for a tractor, you can put something like this on a skidsteer, just reverse the blade and wheels. It has all the functions that big road graders have, check the video on youtube.



Video link:

Awesome. Is there a build thread on this one?

 

[workinonit]

You can buy those things for less than 5K on the farm auctions around here. New, probably China. I was at a sale a week ago and I bet they had a dozen of them.

 

[panamaguy]

Should be able to build it for much less than 5g and not Chinese Quality. if you have some good welding skill.

 

[azbinder]

Bobcat has these available. Don't know the prices. Have seen them mounted.

https://www.bobcat.com/na/en/attachments/grader

 

[workinonit]

Should be able to build it for much less than 5g and not Chinese Quality. if you have some good welding skill.

I don't think you will build one like the one in that video for less than 5K.

 

[BFreaky]

Wow you did yourself proud. That is a beautifully done attachment . Yes that is the idea that I saw that company did on a old skidsteer. What was you profession in life

I'm an automation engineer (hydraulics, pneumatics, electronics, machine development...). Got my own one man company and I develop and make custom machines on order.

@Fixastuff, no I did not start a thread on this one

 

[panamaguy]

No doubt that companies are building add-ons. I saw the one I was talking about 16 years ago. The manufacturers are going to make anything they can sell. But this section of TBN is a Build it Yourself section and there comes a sense of pride when you can build it yourself as opposed to opening your wallet. I understand a lot of Doctors, Lawyers and Indian Chiefs can not fab things like this but many tractor owners are hands on people who have much skill and ability, for example Bfreaky and his beautiful home built attachment. Being a certified welder all my life I can appreciate quality home built products

 

[panamaguy]

Oh ok. That shows where the quality of your attachment comes from. I was lucky enough to work for a hydraulic machine shop for 8 yrs before I started my own company that had a brilliant owner. He had me build many specialty machines over the years. And it greatly added to my already knowledge base from yrs of fab and welding before I worked for him. Built firetrucks, asphalt plants, cement plants. Drilling rigs, drill pipe straighteners a plant to make cement railroad ties. A cylinder hone for 30 ft long barrels. Welded thousands of cylinders. Pressure washer to hang out the side of a Bell 206 to wash insolaters on towers and the list goes on. Had a fantastic life as a welder and at 53 pulled the plug, sold my company and retired in Panama only to see a little IHI 15NX mini excavator for sale and had to have it. Now dig foundations for contractors here it gives me a little something to do. And with the only mini hoe in the area it can get busy now that they have figured out how much money it saves them over hand digging (houses here have no basements) thus just footings under every wall. The big backhoe guys JD310 type had never seen a thumb on a hoe here until I put one on my IHI. Not having a thumb on a hoe is like a fish without a bicycle, just should not be LOL

 

[panamaguy]

I don't think you will build one like the one in that video for less than 5K.

No I am talking about the 5g ones someone was saying at a sale where he thought they were Chinese. I have seen some good Chinese quality stuff here in Panama but have seen some real junk also

 

[BFreaky]

Well then you have plenty of experience and this project will be a walk in the park

 

[scootr]

I love the idea, 2 things I don't like about this type of grader blade is;
1 > the wheels roll in the rough terrain which will cause variations in the blades engagement vs rolling in the finished grade like they do behind a landscape rake.
2 > The electronic blade control seems like it could be hard to keep a hand on while operating the tractor or especially in the case of a SS attachment , IDK?