placement of weld - on grab hooks for loader

[Gordon Gould]

You are getting good advise from all. Especially the need for a mounting plate where the bucket material might bend. Mine is a little different than most. I put mine on the edge of the bucket at the top. There is a lot of strength there on my bucket and for very heavy loads I can run the chain down the side of the bucket so the weight is closer to the lift pins where there is more lift.



or I can do it this way like every one else



gg

 

[the old grind]

My T5C has no lip on the FEL bucket's top edge, and a single curl cylinder for it. That said, it seems as though the stinger has nearly the lift capacity of the FEL.

This is a lift/move into the shop done where either tractor would be a tighter fit, and maneuvering the 3PH boom would have complicated aiming for the door to go in. Mill 'head' is light (<200 lb) and stabilizers weren't needed, or practical.


I don't think support/'backing' plates alone would help much for adding hooks to a T5C's FEL, and IMO a 'wide' support would have to be of angle iron not to twist under load. I pondered adding a 2' pc of 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" x 3/16" angle iron to the center of the (4' wide) bucket, but would bolt vs weld it & the hooks, so it hasn't happened yet. (can you guess why? It's not the drilling part ...) Eyed hooks on shackles are your friend all too often.

I do use grab hooks on the sides of buckets just above the lips, expecting to surpass lift capacity (attempt) before straining/bending either lift arm. Sometimes I sling a 7' chain across both sides and hook to that where most convenient to balance a load at two attachment points or to offset.

btw, Hooks are a great accessory, but rigging skill/experience (above pic notwithstanding :laughing is more important that just having/using them.

 

[richardhorne]

I've just fitted one at this stage though i do plan on putting a couple in line with the arms. I chose to bolt mine on and it has a plate underneath to add some strength

 

[Alan7s]

Many thanks to everyone for sharing the great ideas. With a relatively small machine, I'm not doing heavy loads; Most
of the time it's using some 3/8" chain to tip a tree stump or a 2'+ log into the FEL, but those different mounting locations
and styles (D-Rings) offer interesting possibilities.

 

[dickfoster]

Is there a preferred placement for welding grab hooks on the top of the loader bucket? I have a small Terremite (T5C) and have purchased hooks but don't want to weld them in place if there is a "best location" i.e., closeness to the edge of the bucket and distance front to back of the top surface. I use chain to pick up large logs using chain. Thanks for any ideas.

I have only one but it's center of the bucket. I also have a shackle or clevis mount there for straps and such. Shackles are a lot easier to work with and more versatile than the typical D ring.

 

[gwdixon]

There are LOTS of threads on just this subject. Check the very bottom of this page for links to just some of them.

If you have a standard duty bucket, you might consider welding a heavy 3" angle iron across the top of the bucket with the top of the angle iron parallel with the bucket bottom. Then weld to that.

I have three hooks on top. One in line with each ram and one in the middle. Also, one on the back of the bucket has proven useful for heavy loads (it is closer to the fulcrum). Weld to a piece of heavy plate first.



One last thing, some chain hooks are not meant to be welded. Try to get weldable hooks. They work very well on flat surfaces, like on face on an angle iron.

Weld On Grab Hooks | Truck n Tow.com

 

[Sodo]

I have 5 hooks, three open forward so I can hang chains behind the bucket. There's more lift capacity behind the bucket - sometimes it's the only way to lift a big log.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

I got REALLY tired of chains coming loose, so I switched to using rope,,,
and I learned to tie a bowline knot.
With rope,,, a "D" ring is perfect.

The D ring will work with chain,,, also. You can attach LOTS of chains to one D ring,,,

I have yet to find the limit of lifting with rope,,,

I love those Gravely's I've had several of them. Wish I had one or two now. Amazing little things.

Oh...hook placement...One thing about adding hooks to the ends, the way Arc Weld mentioned (and I'm not disagreeing with him here), is that if you are prone to overloading your loader, you could end up with a warped loader frame, or possibly a blown cylinder if you only use one side. I"ve seen it happen more than once.

I'd recommend connecting them to where the loader arms mount as well and extending a reinforcement bracket from the back of the hook to the mounting quick attach bracket..A shark fin if you want to picture it. A piece of thick flat bar running vertical from the hook to the bracket. I still would lift from the center, and use a chain long enough to reach around both hooks, and meet in the middle and where one hook connects back on the chain, with the balance of the chain hanging down, sort of like a tiw hanging from your neck.

 

[Arc weld]

I mentioned the edges of the bucket as it's less likely to bend there but it does depend on the particular loader and bucket and you have to use common sense. A lot of people forget a farm loader is not as heavy built as an industrial loader and shouldn't be used as one. Having too small a loader on a bigger tractor is a recipe for disaster too.

 

[Shield Arc]

I have three hooks on my bucket. I only pick from the center hook. The hooks on the sides of the bucket I use only for the excess chain, so it doesn't drag on the ground. I skip welded a piece of flat bar under the top of the bucket, and welded the flat bar to the sides of the bucket. My loader will only pick about 1,300-pounds.