Skidsteer Pallet Fork build

[Rgillard]

Hi All,

My brother and I are going to build a set of pallet forks for our Komatsu skid steer. We got the actual forks off an old case digger. They were part of the of 4 in 1 bucket. I have created a design in Pro E and just wanted to see if anyone had any do's and don'ts to add. Any extra features that people have added I would love to hear.

We are hoping to build it this weekend. The frame will be 80mm/3.25" box section. The slider bar is 35mm/1 3/8" hardened steel. The plates for hanging the bar will be 20mm/3/4" in thickness.

I have attached a 3dPDF of the model. When you open it and click on it, it will allow you to rotate the model and hide parts etc.

Thanks,
Ron

 

[jimmysisson]

A few things:
1, the round stock the forks slide on has to be pretty beefy. Mine has one for each fork, 1ｼ" dia. x 22" long between supports, probably mild steel. One is bent a little, probably from catching that fork under a root or something. Yours are 1-3/8, so I'd limit the unsupported length to 20" or so;
2, you may want something to keep the forks from swinging when they are in the "dump" position;
3, you will probably want something to keep the forks from sliding sideways when unloaded (or worse, loaded);
4, you might want some screening above the fork pivot height to prevent stuff falling back onto you or the hood. Mine don't have that but it seems like a good safety feature. Visibility is a problem with my loader/tractor, and I'm happy not to have more stuff in my sight lines.
Cheaper to alter the design than the finished product. Good luck with the project.
Jim

 

[k0ua]

What do you have to have to make that 3D pdf.. that is pretty neat..

James K0UA

 

[Rgillard]

What do you have to have to make that 3D pdf.. that is pretty neat..

James K0UA

It output through Pro/Engineer. It is an option when you go to print the 3D model. It is very helpful to show somebody a design who doesn't have a 3D design package. Its part of Adobe Acrobat Reader.

 

[countrybumpkin]

Another thing also would be to increase the roll back angel between the bottom of the SSQA plate and the fork frame, Most skid steers and some loaders have very little roll back and with out building it into the forks, if you are carrying a load and start down a incline and unable to roll the forks back some your load could fall off the front. Hope this makes sense to you.

 

[Rgillard]

Another thing also would be to increase the roll back angel between the bottom of the SSQA plate and the fork frame, Most skid steers and some loaders have very little roll back and with out building it into the forks, if you are carrying a load and start down a incline and unable to roll the forks back some your load could fall off the front. Hope this makes sense to you.

Thanks Countrybumpkin,

Thats a very good idea. I was checking last night that the pallet fork wouldn't hit the tilting cylinders and noticed that the tilt was not great. I will try change the angle that I attach to the box section frame to add some tilt to the forks

 

[tawilson]

I just went through that with a set of stone forks I welded a quick attach plate on so I can swap between my tractor and skidsteer. I ended up adding a 3" channel iron spacer at the bottom.

 

[SixHoeBob]

The more roll back angle that is built into the forks, the less lift capacity and stability you will have. Moving the heel of the forks outward, moves the load away from the machine reducing the tipping moment. I bought Bobcat brand forks because they have the least roll back/most lift capacity, but the frame will not bend during harsh usage. When I need to increase the roll back angle, I do so by raising the booms.

 

[k0ua]

It output through Pro/Engineer. It is an option when you go to print the 3D model. It is very helpful to show somebody a design who doesn't have a 3D design package. Its part of Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Well the forks are pretty neat, but I am just fascinated by the 3d PDF. I had no idea I could do all of that with Adobe reader on my PC. Thanks for teaching me something new.

James K0UA

 

[Rgillard]

Progress so far.....

Have the frame tacked together. It is a little wide, so we will shorten it by 4" each side. Should get it finished by the end of the week...