The New JD Pallet Forks came in today

[Cidertom]

The other advantage the forks have is they are the lightest FEL implement you can get. Sometimes that can be the difference in lifting the load or not.

see:
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/jd-owning-operating/96382-how-much-does-weigh-400cx.html where the weight of my 4in1 was too much

The next invsetment will be : Pallet racking. I bought some used racking and have really neatened up the place. Stuff that only gets used once a year or seasonally gets a pallet and is stored. Including my 513 "bush hog" and 60" tiller.

If you don't have self leveling just be careful about keeping level if the item you are lifting can dump back on you.

 

[Chris2520]

Hello Chris - would you mind posting a closup of the fork carrier from above. I have a set ordered, but nothing has arrived yet! I would like to weld a reciever to the carrier for a 2" tube steel boom pole and I wonder if the alignment would allow that tube to clear the grill above. How easily can the forks be removed from the carrier if they got on the way of a bit of "crane work"? Thanks.

Yes i will try to get you some close up pics of the carrier. yes the forks come off real easy. though the tines are heavy.....

 

[Chris2520]

Here you go tuolumne.
here is a close up of the pallet forks. i have them in the wide setting. you can see the spring loaded pin i am pointing to you just pull it up and thay slide in or out. if you want to take tines off. slide to dead middle. and lift up.
i took some pics of the rails. these are rail fixed forks. you dont want floaters. or you cant get under stuff very good. i even posted the part number. and there frontier and made in the USA...
i took the bucket off and snag the forks to take this picture. all of 30 seconds.
see the duel carriers. the top pin is for 2000 and 3000. the bittom pin is for 4000 series.
notest my pins are black. i had to paint them. as i modified them. i did not like the slack in the pins , so i welded them bigger and reground the flat edge , for a perfect fit. i dont have that slop in the bucket no more . its a snug fit. but pins still slide out easy. JD could have done this. and made it fit right..... but there not me. I want it right.....

 

[tuolumne]

You have been extremely helpful and done far more than I requested. You've restored my faith in the innate kindness of my fellow man! It looks like my plan won't work or I could never take the forks off. Maybe I can do something behind the carrier. I think I'll hold off fabrication till the machine arrives. Two more weeks

 

[greg4x4]

I bought the floating style and like them very much, we had an ice strom in Jan 07 and they were a lot of help. Also you could put a bolt thru them at the bottom if you don't like them floating so you could have the option to go either way.

 

[LBrown59]

The next invsetment will be : Pallet racking. I bought some used racking and have really neatened up the place.
If you don't have self leveling just be careful about keeping level if the item you are lifting can dump back on you.

What is Pallet racking.
How does it work.

 

[tuolumne]

Think home depot - I have a similar plan in my proposed barn (wood instead of metal) to stack implements vertically and save space. Just drop the rototiller onto a pallet and up it goes.

 

[Cidertom]

What is Pallet racking.
How does it work.

As tuolumne said, the big shelving at HD etc. Mine isn't that tall though, I didn't want to cut a hole in the barn roof. It comes in different weight ratings and lenghts of beams, heights of ends. You install it like an errector set, fill the space between the beams with wood and you have shelves that can hold tons. Tie back the top or bolt really really well for stability.
I got mine at a used material handling dealer for about the price of scrap steel. It is ugly with peeling paint. The wood 2x6 I used cost more than the racks themselves.

I use tie-downs on the pallet if there is any chance the item will shift (ex: tiller). If I could pull alongside the rack I would put my fuel barrel on it as well.

 

[newtothegarden]

I addressed this in another thread, but might as well say it here too. The Frontier Forks that John Deere sells for these compact tractors weigh in at around 400 lbs. which is around a third of the lifting capacity of their compact tractors.

That eats up a tremendous amount of these compact tractors lifting capacity. Although there are not a lot of choices out there for John Deere style hitch, Construction Attachments offers forks that weigh only 200 lbs. and have a lifting capacity of 1800 lbs. which is more than most compact tractors can lift.

They fit the John Deere Hitch, are made in USA, cost a lot less than Frontier, has free shipping, and as long as you are outside North Carolina, you can order them online from these guys and pay no tax as well.

I have the same brand forks for my New Holland (with the quick attach) and have worked them hard for over 4 years now. No complaints so far, and I think that the Extra Lifting Capacity will come in handy on these Compact John Deere tractors.

Just my two cents, but it makes sense too!

 

[bullsram]

I've got a set of the floating forks that I got when I bought my first tractor . It was a 3032e with a 300x loader , then I went to a 5103 with a 553 loader and I kept the forks when I traded the 3032e in on the 5103. They work great for what I do with them and I have dug up some shrubs and such with them too and I dont think you need the fixed for that purpose, but to each his own. Those forks weather fixed or floating will work on a 200x loader all the way up to a 500 series loader like mine... Bull