Looking to see how you have welded on your thumbs, pictures please?

[Toddao]

Looking to see how you have welded on your thumbs, pictures please?
Going to weld the thumb on my backhoe and would like see some others
Thank you

 

[akpilot]

Here is a small on I made a few years ago.

 

[Taylortractornut]

I didnt weld my thumb on my excavator. THe stick was too narrow to put the sized thumb I wanted to build on it. I also wanted it to follow the bucket arc. I made a longer bucket pin I did weld on the stiff arm pin.

 

[Grut]

Here is an mini excavator thumb my dealer welded on for me when I purchased my tractor. I like the two positions and the quick pin set up. It is easy to use and put away while working..

 

[Toddao]

Thanks for the pics
Finally got the welder hooked up. Are the thumb works great.
My welding skills limited but I think not bad for my first project

 

[Grut]

Good job. Same thumb as mine it looks like. What brand is it? You will enjoy using it..
Have fun.

 

[atgreene]

I will say this, do not weld across the arm of the boom, parrellel to the ground. My first excavator had a homemade thumb and the guy welded across the boom. It snapped the boom the second day after I had it, tore the boom in two. My fabricator told me always weld along the edge of the boom stick, not across the flat as it will weaken it.

 

[Corm]

This a write up I did back a few years ago about the thumb I built -

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/64712-another-backhoe-thumb.html

Corm

 

[AGGIE00]

Man am I an idiot. My first though was, that must have hurt like ****!!

 

[Groo]

I've got to weld a bump-stop on the backhoe sooner or later. I just had the cylinder rebuilt after it was backed into a tree, causing the cylinder to hyper-extend. This is the second time it has happened now. Neither with me behind the wheel at least. So this might be a good addition while i am at it.
How do you guys size the thumb? so the bucket hits it and the teeth mesh?
Anyone do a pivot through the stick, or are they all welded to the underside of the stick?

are any positions other than perpendicular to the stick and "out of the way" used enough to bother with?
I'd probably be using it to lift saw logs, so I wouldn't want to get too aggressive with the teeth. If I just stuck with 2 teeth at the end, think that would work OK?

 

[EastBerkshireCustoms]

For your first project, those welds don't look bad at all! It looks like the burning paint may have affected your bead flow out. Grinding the paint and primer back with a flap disc before welding will give you much better results.

 

[Big Hammer]

Just a quick note to agree with the other poster... Don't weld across your stick! Weld the length of it ONLY or you may have problems... Good luck!

Mark

 

[AGGIE00]

Just a quick note to agree with the other poster... Don't weld across your stick! Weld the length of it ONLY or you may have problems... Good luck!

Mark

Your theory and advice makes sense to me, but the larger excavators I have seen are welded across the stick.

 

[Volp]

Groo,
It is not necessary to have teeth on the thumb.
My thumb work ok without and it can easily be folded away when not in use.

 

[Groo]

Groo,
It is not necessary to have teeth on the thumb.
My thumb work ok without and it can easily be folded away when not in use.

looks like you ran into a slight hick-up there, and chopped then re-welded the thumb back further. Mind telling me what was wrong with the initial configuration?

 

[Volp]

Groo,

I am not 100% with you when you talk about chopping and rewelding . Maybe it is because English is not my native tongue.
The thumb is not welded to the boom but swings on the bucket bolt. The clevis for the top link, used to fix the thumb, is welded to a steel plate, which is welded to the boom.
When the thumb is folded back it is fixed with a bolt through the same clevis.

 

[Groo]

it looks like it was initially a straight piece from pivot to tooth, but was cut near the pivot and welded welded to the nub left behind at the pivot.

was it too long? crowding the bucket?

I do like how you reused an existing pivot point to keep from messing with the dipper stick more than necessary.

 

[Volp]

Actually the pivot ends was taken from another machine found at the junkyard. They were welded to the side of the straight pieces of steel also found at the junkyard. This was to get a more open grip.
A well-sorted junkyard is a blessing!

 

[Gary Fowler]

This is how the B 26 hydraulic thumb is attached. Sorry, I dont have a closeup of the top attachment point

 

[orezok]

This is how I did mine! :laughing: