Newbie Building a Toothbar

[Hoopman5000]

Hi everyone, Ive been researching on the site about toothbars and it has helped me greatly, but im not really sure how to find the right adapter for my bucket. Ive got a cub cadet w/ a 475 fel. Im just not sure of any of the measurements i need. If anybody can help me out that would be great. Also, for the flat iron to weld the teeth to, what thickness should that be?

Thanks

 

[firel7]

Hoopman
There are many ways to go about building the toothbar. I have just finished mine and I love the outcome!!! The dimensions you need to consider are as follows: Thickness and width of cutting edge, angle of that edge, inside width of bucket, thickness of bar stock you intend to use. Other considerations are, do you have a weld on or bolt on cutting edge, do you want teeth flush with bottom of bucket or slightly below, how do you want to fasten it etc...
Now all that being said It seems to me most use 1/2" x 3 or 4" flat stock. And most seem to use the adapters that hook over the cutting edge ( I differed there) and it seems most cutting edges are weld on and about 3/8 to 1/2 inches thick.
After having done the project myself I am glad I did because I wanted a completely custom job that I wasnt able to find elsewhere, but it did take a ton of grinding in my case!!! So for the money you may really be happier having purchased one. The members here really seem to like Markham welding for their toothbar needs and prices seem great too!!!

 

[notamustang]

What I did to get my bucket thickness I used two torpedo levels and measured between them. I used torpedo levels becasue I happen to have two of them handy. Then it was a choice on adapters I went with the fab co 16S7-8-23 the opening is just over 1" and since the bucket was RCH over 1/2 and I used 1/2 x 2" flat bar this worked fine. This adapter is not real dependant on angle of cutting edge. which was just one less thing to worry about. I went with 2" because of the weight of the tooth bar. Works just fine.
Things I would have done different when I do it again, 6 teeth insted of 5 and a more narrow tooth. Not a good pic attached but it gives you an idea /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[HomeBrew2]

fire... and nota... :
Did you use plain old hot rolled steel for your bar that you welded the shanks to?
Did you have any trouble drilling and tapping your cutting edge? Did you use standard HSS drills (bits) and taps?
Seeing as how you have a cutting edge already at ground level, in retrospect, do you think it's necessary to grind a bevel on your toothbar?

Thanks in advance.

Cheers!

 

[notamustang]

My cutting edge is welded on so my bar bolts to the side of the bucket and the teeth slip over the cutting edge. 4-3/8 holes and the steel is just HR. Mine is not ground down, I did not really see a need for it, it may help but it was not in my plans. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[firel7]

The reason I ground the bar stock which is plain HR steel is that I wanted more contact for the adapters. It allowed for a full 4 inches of weld. Again I thought that important as my adapters do not have the lip so all forces are on the welds. As far as drilling and tapping the cutting edge. I used HSS bits 115* I believe with split points, a drill press and plenty of oil. Rested the bucket on the press and went at it slowly. Lowest speed and let the bit do the work. I did find that if I hit the lighter gauge bucket material then when it got through to the cutting edge it would not go and dulled the bit quickly. So I just hit the cutting edge and went well. Tapping again took time. 3/8 inchrachet on tap tap until difficult then back out and oil and go back at it. All in all it went well.
I will stress that the common way you will see them is the easier way to go. I am a bit particular though and love the fact that when I was digging today the finish grade was without tooth marks. I was able to just level the bucket push forward and use the dump angle to detemine the depth of the dig and I got a perfectly smooth grade. I can already see that where I used to use the box blade in some instances I will now be using the bucket at a much more efficient pace, with blade smooth results!!!

 

[Hoopman5000]

Thanks for all the responses, now firel7, since im at college right now, I had my brother measure the angle of the cutting edge and he got 8 degrees, does that sound right? Also what do you mean by the width of the cutting edge? Im still just a little fuzzy on how to find the right adapter for my application. Thanks for your help everyone

 

[firel7]

Well where to start? I guess the best thing is to have the tractor in front of you when making these decisions. Another great thing to have would be the catalog from Fabco. Their website has some info but I found the catalog much more useful for dimensions. On their websight (www.fabco-inc.com) there is a place you can request a catalog. They would not sell to me but sent me to a company that handles their products. (Werk brau)
The best I can explain is you want the thickness of barstock plus thickness of your cutting edge to = or slightly < the depth of the opening on the adapter. They range anywhere from .70 to 1.06 inches for the most typical series adapters.
The 8 degrees sounds a bit shallow for the angle and after looking at the most typical style the angles range rom 22* to 29* so really considering the actual contact by the adapter to this point I would not consider it a major factor. What is important is making sure there is significant contact of the adapter to the bar stock wherever it sits best.
If I had to pick any one adapter that seemed to fit most compacts best I would say it would be model 1s7-8-23 and i would use 1/2" x 4" bar stock if the cutting edge is 3/8" or less. If the 4" width of the bar stock went over the weld where the cutting edge is attached to the bucket I would simply grind the underside of the barstock to fit nice and flat.

Again I did not go about it the typical way but really it was probably 3x the effort for little custom things I wanted. I am going to throw one together for a friend and I am using the exact set up I have just explained. I am also quite sure that would be the set up for me if I didnt like to be difficult. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gifI never realized how difficult it is to explain something that really is not that complicated I am just having a hard time putting the info in type!!! I hope I am not creating more confusion than need be. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

If you look aroud here there are a ton of pics and explanations on toothbars. They all seem to be different in a little way if custom made and it really seems to me that you could make most adapters work for you as long as you size your bar stock accordingly or vice versa.

If you are really having problems making the decisions pm me and I will give you contact info and we can discuss but it would be best if you had the tractor right in front of you when we do talk.

Good luck in your project and don't stress it to much I am sure you will make it come out just fine but when you do we want pictures!!! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Hoopman5000]

Thanks, you have helped me so much, I have finals this week and I did order the catalog from fabco but it is at home, so when I get home wends, I will give you some more specifics on everything. Thanks again

 

[notamustang]

firel7, dang it! Now I am thinking about another tooth bar with a flat surface, you and kubotabilly are gonna drive me nuts /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif