Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL?

   / Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL? #1  

Westonium

Silver Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2004
Messages
239
Location
Chehalem Mountain area, OR
Tractor
JD 4310
pro's and cons of using 3 point pallet blades vs. FEL (a la Payne's forks) that are clamped on.

Also - anyone know how much weight I can lift with a JD 4130 / 430 FEL combo? How much could be lifted with 3-point blades?
I ask because it makes sense to have forks rated for more than the weight, but no sense in getting 6000# rated forks if I can only lift 1500#.
 
   / Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL? #2  
3 point forks will move heavier loads with greater stability than bucket forks, but you sacrifice height. My front forks are a separate attachment that mounts in place of the bucket. They are quite useful but I save the really heavy lifting for the 3ph forks. I also have a 3ph forklift with a mast and 36" cylinder for unloading bag shavings pallets off of trucks. The forks are on a rail so I can adjust the distance between them. The cylinder operates off the remote valve. These pallets are tall and heavy and I won't even try unloading them with my front forks. Be wary because 3ph forks tend to be too wide for pallets.
Gabby
 
   / Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL? #3  
First off let me admit my ignorance on the maximum weight capacity of a 430 loader. However, that said, if you are going to use a clamp on fork you need to understand the dynamics of the FEL loader ratings.

Many manufacturers rate their FEL capacity at the pivot point. Some also give a capacity rating at 19.7" forward of the pivot point. The difference between the two is striking. The farther forward you go, the lower the rating. So for example, a FEL rated at 1250 pounds at the pivot point might be rated in the range of 850 pounds at 19.7" forward (which is about the middle of the bucket). Add some clamp on forks that are even farther forward and the capacity is likely to drop even further.

Also consider there is another serious limit, that is the strength of your bucket lip when you are using clamp on type forks.

If it was me, I would use and ATI quick attach system, it allows you to pop the bucket off and install forks with almost no effort. It also preserves as much of the capacity as is practical. But do a little research into your loader's capacity to figure out what you will be able to ACTUALLY lift. You can find the capacity ratings on the JD website. And don't forget, the weight capacity rating is the TOTAL capacity so you will have to figure out how much the pallet forks weigh. If those are 150# and you have an 850# total capacity, that means the actual pallet weight you can lift is about 700#.

Now if you want the greatest capacity definately go with the pallet lifter on the 3pt hitch. Most tractors have 3pt capacity that is 50% to 100% higher (or even more) than their FEL capacities. The obvious downside of the 3pt hitch arrangement is the lack of height so you can't pick things off the rear of a pick up truck or semi truck if you use a 3pt arrangement. The 3pt hitch pallet lifter is great for moving stuff around, but not for loading or unloading trucks.
 
   / Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL?
  • Thread Starter
#4  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( You can find the capacity ratings on the JD website. )</font>

Thank you very much for the sage advice.
WHERE on JD's site can I find the capacities? I really couldn't find them. I tried before I posted this. It may be in my manuals somewhere, but those are over in another building, and I figured it would be easily found online. This satellite broadband isn't nearly as zipping as cable or DSL, so I gave up looking after awhile.

In the meantime I'll be figuring out what an ATI quick attach system is. I get the gist of it, bu am unsure if ATI is a brand or an acronym.
 
   / Pallet blades for 3-point vs. FEL? #5  
ATI is a brand, they make quick attach systems to allow you to replace the front bucket with fork lift arms. Search around on this website, you'll find references to them. Your dealer will probably also know about them and can probably order the parts from them.

As for the JD 430 loader. I went to the website, called up their search engine typed in 430 front end loader and it gave me over 6000 references. However, I fairly easily found the 430 loader specs on a downloadable PDF file.

The 430 loader specs are:
Lift Height 101.4"
Clearance at full height, bucket dumpted 78.3"
Lift Capacity 1045 pounds
Breakout Capacity 3299

As the Breakout Capacity is 3x the Lift Capacity, I suspect the Lift Capacity is being rated at 19.7" in front of the pivot pins. Realistically, you will be able to lift and move a pallet much heavier than 1045 pounds, possibly 1500 pounds or more. However, that makes the wild assumption that you don't need to lift the pallet because it is very unlikely that you'd be able to lift that same 1500# pallet up into the rear of a pick up truck. FEL's seem to have most of their capacity in the first 6 to 12 inches from the ground and they seem to go down in capacity rapidly from that point. So if you are looking at MOVING pallets, you should be able to move at low height things that are heavier than you can lift.

The absolute best solution (in my mind) is the one Gabby has with a 3pt mounted fork lift (man I wish I had one of those!!!) because he gets the high capacity & stability of the 3pt and the lift height of a FEL (at least to the height of his rail mast).
 
 

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