My Wicked Grapple bush grabber attachment

[k0ua]

I don't know about E/A but your mod has inspired me ,
When I can fit it in will try and make an add on version to my open round tined grapple, so it will be a bit different but should be do- able.

Excellent work and another small step for (mankind) in tractor implement mods- adding up to a Giant Leap in usefulness.

:thumbsup: Great Job

I think it is a very worthwhile project and you will be pleased with the increased usefulness for very small investment in money and time.

 

[Ford850]

James, that looks like a great addition. "Tweezer" comes to mind when I see that. I think www.wgtweezer.com address is still available, in case you want to grab it for your new business.

 

[k0ua]

James, that looks like a great addition. "Tweezer" comes to mind when I see that. I think www.wgtweezer.com address is still available, in case you want to grab it for your new business.

Thanks..

 

[Husaberger]

nice!

 

[k0ua]

OK, Revision 2 has been manufactured and placed into operation.

Lessons learned:

1: While the lower jaw with the long 1/2 inch all thread "bolt" seemed like a good idea at the time, and met the criterion of no modifications to the grapple itself, when using the grapple for it original purpose of root grubbing without taking off this attachment, some problems were noted. OK you say, why in heck didn't you just take it off? Heck it unbolts pretty easy. Yes, but I wanted it to work better. What was happening is if you hit a rock while grubbing it would bend the all thread and "booger" the end, making the nut hard to get off. So I decided to modify the lower.

2: The upper had started to bend just a bit on one side from lack of support so I welded in some support. Lets see it bend now!
I went ahead and welded the heads of the bolts to the plate so no second wrench would be needed to tighten them as this would have been difficult after the support was welded in anyway. All in all a win win situation as no bolt to drop on the ground.

3: This new lower should be strong, made out of a piece of structural building steel and it is thicker as well.

4: I decided to use the existing "holes" at the back of the grapple tine to hold a 1/2 inch bolt with its head cut on one side to flatten it so that no wrench would be needed on the bolt head as the grapple tine would hold the bolt head rigid when cut in this manner. Again the goal was no modifications to the original grapple, and side benefit of only one 3/4 wrench needed to attach the unit.

Here is the original lower, jaw showing the retaining piece of all thread that got bent. ( I had already beat it back straight by this time)
View attachment original lower.jpg

Here are the upper jaw supports prepped and ready to weld in to the existing upper jaw assembly.
View attachment upper supports prep.jpg

This is the upper assembly after welding and then cooling while laying on the ground

View attachment upper welded.jpg
View attachment cooling upper.jpg

Upper is now complete.

 

[k0ua]

OK, upper modification is complete, lets move on to fabricating a new lower out of that structural steel angle

Here you can see the lower and upper being "fitted". Note some of the lowers material comes down between the existing grapple tines so this prevents side to side movement of the lower.

View attachment fitting lower.jpg

These are the back support straps center punched and ready for drilling. This will prevent the lower from moving either forward or backward

View attachment center punched rdy for drill.jpg

Straps are now fitted and ready for welding on, and here also is a detail shot of the ground off bolt head that is on the bottom of the grapple so that the head cannot turn, and only one wrench is needed to attach the lower unit.

View attachment rdy to weld.jpg
View attachment bolt head.jpg

This is the lower showing it welded. I did take it off and weld the back side too, but that is not shown. Also not shown is how I had to elongate the holes slightly after welding as the metal stretched after all that heat application.

View attachment welded.jpg
View attachment welded show bolts.jpg

 

[k0ua]

OK, so lets paint it and show how "cleaned up the lower section is now without the piece of all thread hanging down in the dirt

View attachment painted lower.jpg

Cleaner underneath.
View attachment clean underneath.jpg

 

[k0ua]

I think the original design goals have been met and the entire structure has been beefed up a bit and it now has a cleaner profile to grubbing in the dirt if need be. The cost is still just for the bolts and nuts and a few pieces of metal I purchased at some time in the past. The majority of the metal was from the scrap pile on the property when we purchased it. Most of it is structural steel plate and angle. I am not sure what that would cost if you had to buy it, but overall the cost of the project would still be fairly low even if you had to buy everything.

I used it for about an hour this afternoon and all looks well so far. I will keep you guys posted if any more mods are to be made. I may make some weld beads on this new lowers jaw facing, but I didn't feel like doing it today. In any case, that would be no big deal, because I have a welder. :cool2: If you don't have one, you should get one.:thumbsup:

 

[Xfaxman]

Looks good, like home made should. :thumbsup:

I appreciate the full size pictures that I don't have to click on to see.

 

[lostcreekranch]

James, great re-design! The two bolt end threads exposed look like they could be in harms way? Perhaps add a second nut, on each side, for thread protection?