Stump Bucket?

[tcarter1]

Need to clear a few acres of small sweet gums and scrub pines. Most 4" diameter or less. Anyone use a stump bucket for digging up these stubborn trees? Tractor is a L2800.

 

[IslandTractor]

Send a PM to Dougster. He has a stump bucket and has been disappointed with it's performance.

 

[MrJimi]

I built mine and I love it, pictures in my gallery link in my signature
Jim

 

[tcarter1]

Mr Jimi,

Have you used it on a CUT?

 

[Chuck K.]

I have the bro-tec ripper tooth only used it once so far but it worked really well. It does not remove much dirt which means less time back filling.

A stump bucket down here in this gumbo mud would most likely clog with mud. I clogged my 16" bucket so bad a shovel would not get it out had to use the pressure washer to blast it out, what a mess...

 

[UpstateSC_Papi]

Need to clear a few acres of small sweet gums and scrub pines. Most 4" diameter or less. Anyone use a stump bucket for digging up these stubborn trees? Tractor is a L2800.

Nice post as I am in the same situation (w/ the same model tractor!). About 2 acres w/ most likely 50% of the trees being sweet gums. WANT THEM GONE!!

Thanks to my tractor and attachment ignorance, I didn't know there was such thing as a stump bucket so looking forward to more replies!

Michael

 

[MrJimi]

Mr Jimi,

Have you used it on a CUT?

No, I don't have a CUT, I have a skidsteer, pictures in my gallery
Jim

 

[darkviper]

Sweetgums huh. Have fun. if your soil is like it is here in South Central Va you are in for a lot of cusing. I have seen 6"-8" sweetgums stop a D5 dead in its tracks. Be ready to go through some chains on the chain saw to. The problem is they have huge and deep tap roots. The best removal tool for a sweetgum around here is a big track hoe with a thumb on it. Be curious to know how it works out for you though

 

[Redbug]

Hi Tcarter,

For what you want to do and the size of trees, a stump bucket should work just fine. My stump bucket is made by Markham Welding, (not too far up the road from where you live). These buckets are also good for transplanting bushes, and I have even used it to dig some footers...just put it down at an angle, and drive forward and push the dirt out of the way.

I have discovered that large pines especially have longggg tap roots. A track hoe is best for those. Broadleaf trees are not so bad since the roots spread out more. You just go around it and cut some lateral roots on one side with the stump bucket, first. Then, dig in a little on that side, pushing forward and using the bucket as a fulcrum. The weight of the tree leaning will help you to bring it out. Fun stuff...never had access to the really fun stuff, dynamite...ohhh well.

I think a stump bucket is a good addition, (and fairly inexpensive), to your arsenal of versatile tractor weapons. If you do get one make sure it has dentures, since they really help it dig.

 

[SPYDERLK]

Need to clear a few acres of small sweet gums and scrub pines. Most 4" diameter or less. Anyone use a stump bucket for digging up these stubborn trees? Tractor is a L2800.

The design/shape of the SB is extremely important. Mine is a Piranna. Not good. The look of the Markham is better. Visuallize driving a wedge into the earth. Avoid a bucket that suggests that effect.
larry

 

[IslandTractor]

The design/shape of the SB is extremely important. Mine is a Piranna. Not good. The look of the Markham is better. Visuallize driving a wedge into the earth. Avoid a bucket that suggests that effect.
larry

I think that was Dougster's complaint about his ?Wildkat/Piranha stump bucket too.

 

[Champy]

Here's some pic's of my stump bucket......using it to remove some thorney Locust trees.

 

[Champy]

And some more pics...... and the design file for how it was built. I am still debating whether to add teeth to the bucket or not.

 

[SPYDERLK]

And some more pics...... and the design file for how it was built. I am still debating whether to add teeth to the bucket or not.

I like the shape. I would be most concerned about those unreinforced top edges. Perhaps you have favorable soil and work conditions that spare the stress I would expect sometimes.

I was looking at your loader in the pics. It looks as tho the curl cyls are as big as the lifters. Is that a fact??
larry

 

[Champy]

I haven't had to worry about the stress on the sides due to how I use the bucket. I always plunge it straight (forward) into the ground to avoid side loading those members and prefer a shallow cutting and slicing action versus the backhoe digging approach. On most of the trees I've ended up using the curl while nugging the tractor forward to lift and cut at the same time. On long tap root trees I end up slicing the root off below grade then lifting - on shallow roots they're pulled up with the whole trunk.

Can't really say if the curl cylinders are exactly the same size as the lifters but they're really close. The JD990 is perfect for me.

 

[AlanB]

Hey Champy, say hi to the family for me.

Just bought a markham bucket, do you think you could transplant the trees you are digging or are you doing too much damage when removing them?

 

[Champy]

Hey AL....still bunny hopping?

I've already transplanted a couple of cedars on my property line. Only difference is for those I made a deeper cuts from 3 sides of the tree prior to taking the lift/plunge approach so that I could also get a decent sized root ball. For straight removal I was only hitting the tree from one side and not worrying about damage to roots or taking a large amount of dirt with it.

And don't forget to dig the receiving hole FIRST! Lesson learned here after I got the first one out and had no place to drop it other than on the ground so I could dig the new hole - dumb huh?


P.S. - If you can believe it, Jake is a 6'2" - 180lb Senior this year! He's already been accepted to Purdue; IU; and University of Kentucky and just earned his Eagle rank in Boy Scouts. Daniel is 5'-8" - 155lb Freshman and is tearing up the place between skateboarding and freestyle bicycle stunts (frequent flyer miles at the local ER). Jamie's still teaching Physics and I just finished getting my MBA! And our new tree farm managed to survive this summer's drought......Whew what a year......

 

[Redbug]

Great pics Champy! Thanks for posting them. We like pics!!!!

I noticed you welded chain hooks to the bucket edges. That's a useful feature. I also welded a chain hook on mine...in the center. It helps at times to use a chain when doing a removal.

Alan, You will like your Markham stump bucket. Well built and beefy. I have not bent mine yet and I have done a fair amount of prying with it.

 

[AlanB]

I was playing with ours last night on the SS, we did not get the technique down, but attribute some of it too how dry it is right now, it is somewhat akin to digging in concrete.

Sounds great on the family, Dean and I have been riding Tues nights with some other Trials guys here in town, it is cool, but my life has been a circle around this new to us house. We are now shifting too working on the old house.

We have not had the ER trips (knocking on some serious wood) but Dean has been practicing juggling on the 5' uni while riding on the gravel........... He also is getting those high speed 4th gear running wheelies down, and paid the price a couple weeks ago when he missed the brake Thought that was going to be an ambulance ride but he shook it off.

Can I invite myself up sometime to learn about your tree farm? It is something we are very timidly toying with, although I guess more then likely we will be a "shrub" farm.

Oh, and added on edit, I can offer you a very special deal on a tree sling for basketed tree's we have been making. Has a hook that goes on the bottom of the basket and a sling around the trunk, they work great, we saw our nursery guy use one, so I made some up, really helps moving the big trees.

 

[sandman2234]

Tcarter1,
Please consider this with a grain of salt, as I don't own a FEL, nor a stump bucket, but doesn't the fine soil you have around that neighborhood contain just a little bit of clay? And doesn't that stuff get extremely hard during the rainstorms you have around there.(or should I say wish you had). From what I have learned about them is it takes a soft soil, or a lot of wt/hp in order to use one and get good results out of it. Plus aren't you basically trying to clear/get rid of them, not transplant them and do several acres of it as opposed to a single tree, or just a few trees? I think that the stump bucket has it's uses, but it doesn't sound like what you need for what your doing. Probably a lot cheaper than what you need, which would be a backhoe, trackhoe or maybe just a good sized dozer. You can probably get a stump bucket and eventually get the job done, provided the new trees don't grow in faster that you can dig them up. My thoughts would be for the two of you guys to get together and rent a dozer or trackhoe and one knock down the trees/dig them up and the other be a support equipment by pushing them out of the way and piling them up across the way, to maximize the use of the rented equipment. Plus using your tractor will "justify" it to SHMBO instead of showing her you really didn't need it after all. The next weekend you do the same thing, at the other guys place. I think both of you would be surprised at just how much two guys can get done with a dozer and a tractor backing it up. Have a race to see who can get the most done on the other guys place.
If you lived here, my Ford 7710 would just eat those trees, and leave you a bunch of chips.
David from jax