Pallet Fork Length

[3 Horse Ranch]

Kind of interesting that most of the discussion is about being able to see the fork tips rather than about lifting.

The OP has a Kioti 2610, a sub 25 h.p. tractor. I doubt lifting capacity of the forks is even a factor. The cheapest forks I could find will lift over a ton, so capacity wouldn't be a factor until you get over 50 h.p.

 

[RjCorazza]

I have 42" forks that I can't see well. For this plowing season I installed front and rear cameras which will make seeing the forks easy - just haven't tried them with camera yet.

 

[Bronco82]

I have a set of 42" forks as that's what was in stock when I went to purchase a set. I also made a set of extensions, extending them to 6' for moving powersport machines around the yard.

 

[LouNY]

I have 48" forks and am satisfied with them most of the time.
I have considered some slip on extensions for loading trailers when I want the pallet a long ways from the tailgate,
pickups I can get a pallet most of the way forward without extensions.

 

[Kschwennsen]

get 48", then push come to shove, you can always trim them down.

 

[BobInSD]

42".
Initially thought I wanted 48", but after reading some comments here and there, and due to a small cost savings I went with 42". Glad I did. They don't stick through past pallets, and IBC's when I'm stacking next to each other and less chance of me punching through a wall.

I went with 42" for this reason, but kind of wish I had gotten 48". I think they'd be easier to line up, and I wouldn't feel like I have to push all the way against the pallet and slide it to make sure I had a good grip. I've never tried the 48", so it might just be a "grass is greener" situation.

 

[SmallChange]

I bought 48" and would do so again.

I've idly toyed with the idea of buying a second pair in the shortest length and cutting them down, each one differently, for those times I want to pry or dig or lift something that only wants one stubby fork. An example would be lifting a felled tree trunk from the side, which a long fork is more hinderance than help, and likewise two forks. If I saw a pair at a yard sale for cheap I'd do it, but I'm not at the level of ordering.

 

[Joe Batt]

My 36" forks are too short for about 1/25 jobs around my hobby farm (moving junk or big hay bales). That said, I have driven them through the barn wall, so shorter would have been better in that one instance.

 

[PILOON]

Generally fork lifts are used in warehouse situations and as such 42" was the most popular.
As long as the forks are over 50% of the pallet size you are good.
Long forks in narrow warehouse isles are accidents looking for an accident.
Now consider the majority of pallets are usually under 48 x 48 inches the 42's do the trick.

I was, for a time, in that industry and sure visited my share of warehouses and saw many unique situations.

 

[Username Taken]

There are times when you can't get your forks completely under something and have to lift and drag it until you can.

If you're unloading a trailer, a truck, especially a bigger truck, something shoved into a corner in the barn.

As to putting a hole or a dent in the barn, I don't need 48'' forks to do that.

I'm kinda leaning toward the 48''s. Maybe I'm wrong but I haven't read enough bad things about them to change my mind.

 

[droy]

Clamp some boards to your bucket about where the forks would be (laterally), then paint stripes 36", 42", 48" from the SSQA plate to indicate where the fork tips would be. Climb into the operator's seat to get an idea of their visibility. (Note that the spacing of the bars on the fork frame varies from model to model and will have some impact on visibility. It will surely be different than your bucket.) I find it agravating to instinctively stand to get a better view and then kill the engine when I touch the pedal with an unweighted seat.

Wish I’d had this advise when I bought my 48” forks!
Cabbed L4740 & haven’t found a body position that allows me to see the fork ends when trying to grab a pallet off the ground.
Couple of other considerations, I might be better off with 42” that don’t extend so far past the pallets, plus the top “notched adjusting rail” can sometimes be a pain. Neighbor has a set for his J D that has a round rod for the forks to slid on, looks a lot easier to adjust fork spacin.

 

[PILOON]

Wish I’d had this advise when I bought my 48” forks!
Cabbed L4740 & haven’t found a body position that allows me to see the fork ends when trying to grab a pallet off the ground.
Couple of other considerations, I might be better off with 42” that don’t extend so far past the pallets, plus the top “notched adjusting rail” can sometimes be a pain. Neighbor has a set for his J D that has a round rod for the forks to slid on, looks a lot easier to adjust fork spacin.

42" forks were always considered the handiest, after all you only need them to be over the pallet center of gravity.

The round rod system was often a detriment as when swinging in a tight aisle they could catch and become misaligned requiring the driver to dismount and reset them.
The notched were preferred in factories where all pallets were the same size while the sliding ones more popular where many sized pallets were more common.

 

[Sportsman762]

I like 48" for most things. 48" allows for me to set things further back in truck beds, or the center of a trailer. I can lift more logs / pipe / etch with a 48". They allow for me to get further under what I am lifting such as a trailer. In the woods or barn, I just watch what I am doing. I am not in that tight of quarters normally. However I am used to using machines that have 2500lb+ lift capacity.

A friend has 42" forks on his TC31DA and they seem right for the lift capacity. The shorter forks allow him to keep the load closer when working them under a heavy log, or something that you want to wedge under. So my vote go with 48" if you have lift. For OP I would strongly consider 42" due to limited lift on a Kioti CX2510.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I have 48" forks, and for me they work great. I like being able to pick both rows of pallets off of the same side of the flatbed when I'm unloading pallets or IBC totes.

I got the 3000 lb frame and fork set, so there's less chance of me tweaking something if I'm a little rough digging something out of the ground with them.

No nanny-safe seat switches here, so if I need to stand up or sit forward to see, I can do so without a problem.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I have 42" forks that I can't see well. For this plowing season I installed front and rear cameras which will make seeing the forks easy - just haven't tried them with camera yet.
View attachment 731237

Rj,

Not to derail the thread, but who's front blade attachment is that on your loader?

Link if you have one?

 

[RjCorazza]

Rj,

Not to derail the thread, but who's front blade attachment is that on your loader?

Link if you have one?

It’s an HLA (Horst Loader Attachments).
Mine is a 7’ 2000 series.
https://hlasnow.com/blades/2000.php