Light weight wood chip bucket or modifications?

[oosik]

OK - now I see what you want to do and - WoW - you DO have a job ahead of you. I can imagine - since you are providing free dumping that there is/will be no shortage of chips. So what you need is a four sided expansion of your OEM bucket. Something like light expanded metal on the top and sides and something tough enough, on the bottom, to allow you to use the tractor to load the bucket.

The tough part will be the - "something tough enough on the bottom to allow you to use the tractor to load the bucket". The sides and top should be fine with a light, thin plywood or similar material.

I will think on this and get back to you. Perhaps somebody can come up with a stroke of brilliance and a great solution. Keep the faith...........

 

[oosik]

Alright - see that extended bucket that stimw made on post #5. You get three or four cheap clamp on the bucket fork extensions - make an expansion like stimw did out of light sheet steel - set it on top of the bucket forks and tack weld to the forks. Make the welds out at the tips of the forks strong because that is where this "thing" will take the brunt of the action when you load it with chips. Unless you can see some reason - like stimw's unit - you should not even need a top.

You might even have to get a strip - 4" by the width of your expansion - tack weld it on the lip of the expansion for added strength. A strip of 10 gage steel - like 4" by 60" or whatever.

Using the cheap clamps on bucket forks - this "expansion" can be taken off or put back on - as needed.

 

[dragoneggs]

I love threads like this... keep it coming!

 

[oosik]

Come on guys - bring it out here. Sling it up against the wall - see if it sticks.

 

[Howling]

My leaf bucket is built of plywood and sits on the pallet forks.


For chips could put a metal cutting edge the base.

For moving chips I would use the standard bucket to load it then swap to forks to move it.

 

[ruffdog]

I had 1800 evergreens cut and chipped on the property (tree every 7 feet). I spread the chips out evenly at a depth of about 6" over the 5 acre area where the trees had been. After one year, I'm thinking that once the chips decay, it won't add much volume to the ground.

 

[oosik]

One year I used the springs chipping on the driveway as gravel. I have a mile long gravel driveway. They worked great - very quiet - kept the dust down - easy to spread - WILL NOT compact - unfortunately with the fall rains & winter snow plowing and spring rains - they all ended up along side the driveway. I think after about two years - they had decayed down to a mere nothing.

 

[KanakaRick]

I am thinking about a bucket that has steel on all sides around the perimeter, and expanded metal in the middle, so I can scrape up the chips from the pile, and then the expanded metal will keep the weight down and I can carry a bigger load. Or perhaps a big poly bucket with a steel bucket edge.... as usual, no one makes anything like that..... so I have to ruminate....

 

[ruffdog]

Some leaf bucket examples:

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/156684-leaf-cleanup-saw-used.html

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/211693-leaf-bucket.html

 

[papachaz]

My leaf bucket is built of plywood and sits on the pallet forks.
View attachment 578899

For chips could put a metal cutting edge the base.

For moving chips I would use the standard bucket to load it then swap to forks to move it.

as light as they are, I'd build two of these and use one on the rear too. Easy enough to make the rear one a dump box.