Tooth bar question

[Kevin Beitz]

How much difference does it really make???
The price you have to pay for one is high... Is it really worth the cost ???
I'm thinking about trying to make my own.
At our local junk-yard I found cast steel sickle-bar teeth that really looks like it would made great teeth for a bucket. I tryed to brake one with a hammer and it never fazed it... Does the bolt in bars wrap around the buckets cutting bar, or just hook over top of the existing bar ??? I have two Kubotas that both could use a bar...

 

[Hootie]

Depends on what you are doing. When cleaning up and trying to minimize the amount of dirt you gather, the tooth bar is awesome. It does help in digging and will rip the heck out of vines and such. For back blading and smoothing, I take mine off.

 

[SnowRidge]

It's like night and day if you need to dig in hard ground. There's a lot of toothbar stories and photos on TBN. Some of them are home made. Use the search tool, and you should get a lot of good ideas.

 

[Scrounger]

Depends on what you are doing. I really love using a landscape type tooth bar. Awesome for sod removal and digging. I like it for grading too. The tractor I use at a Boy Scout facility has one installed and it has to be the best thing going.

 

[asylum575]

Kevin,
Cost really isn't that bad if you go with a Markham. I'm ordering one for my BX and it's under $200. delivered I think the productivity you will get out of one outweighs the cost.

Ed

 

[texasjohn]

For me, the toothbar makes the FEL bucket at least twice as effective in scooping and digging into material. I, too, worried about the cost initially until I actually purchased one and used it. Well worth the money. Not worth trying to cobble one up, either, IMHO.

 

[crbr]

How much difference does it really make???
The price you have to pay for one is high... Is it really worth the cost ???
I'm thinking about trying to make my own.
At our local junk-yard I found cast steel sickle-bar teeth that really looks like it would made great teeth for a bucket. I tryed to brake one with a hammer and it never fazed it... Does the bolt in bars wrap around the buckets cutting bar, or just hook over top of the existing bar ??? I have two Kubotas that both could use a bar...

Best bang for your buck. Lots of threads about this toothbar. It's the cat's meow and very affordable.

Markham Welding - Tooth Bar

 

[3RRL]

Like was said, if you do a lot of digging, especially in harder ground, it makes a big difference. I do a lot of digging with the FEL bucket so for me it was definitely worth it. Making your own is cool too. Lots of guys have done that. You also asked asked about wrapping around the lip and yes, the teeth on the bolt on Markham does that. (Others too)

When I back drag dirt or gravel, I use the rear of my bucket. But when I rake up debris like sticks or rocks, I use the teeth with light pressure.

 

[skippy957]

I went to visit a friend who have a big excavator and he was changing few teeth on is big bucket, so he give me 6 of them and look what i have done with a flat bar and 2 bolts.

 

[Kevin Beitz]

I went to visit a friend who have a big excavator and he was changing few teeth on is big bucket, so he give me 6 of them and look what i have done with a flat bar and 2 bolts.

What keeps the teeth from twisting under when you pry up with the bucket...
What you made looks very weak...

 

[Page2]

I once had a skidsteer with a smooth bucket and a toothed bucket. Makes alot of difference if you need to do some digging. You'll get a lot of use from those teeth on the front.

 

[skippy957]

The tooth have a V shape so the flat bar and the buck fills it. Those are coming from a thicker bucket so by adding a flat bar the tooth does not move at all. Up to now i did not break any. It works great and makes the deference in digging.
You are right Kevin, my set-up his week if i pry down i will loosen teeth or break, but it is for bx bucket.

 

[tcarter1]

While buying one can be very cost-effective, making your own may save a little cash. I picked up a used road grader blade from our county maintenance shop. Ordered the shanks and pin-on teeth from Carver Machinery. Makes for a pretty stout toothbar.

 

[keving]

I agree it depends on what you are trying to do. The nice thing is you can you take it off if the job requires. You will love it if you need to break any tough ground.

 

[skippy957]

For my part the deferent is like days and nignts, incredebly easer to dig with.

 

[Singlecoil]

They are much easier to dig with, but something to consider is their weight. If you aren't doing much digging and are instead trying to move a bunch of material, you are better off without it as the weight of it will reduce how much material you can lift. I have a BX and the toothbar probably reduces how much weight I can lift by 10% or so. You can always remove it, however.

 

[teachdocs]

I always have something attached to the front bucket: a tooth bar or a flat bar. They are easy to swap out and each is designed for specific jobs.

I would say that I get 10 times the use of the flat bar compared to the tooth bar.

Tooth bar is a must for digging in packed conditions. The flat bar is much better for grading, smoothing, general digging in loose materials, and the bucket capacity is greater due to the extra four inches across the front of the bucket.

Although their weight can reduce overall weight capacity of the bucket, I almost never run into this problem. You can fill the bucket full of dirt, even when wet and not have a problem. Mulch is easy. A load of gravel or wet sand cannot be heaping with the flat bar extra capacity. If you are using a tooth bar, the heaping load will tend to fall thru the teeth if not sticky wet and packed.

If you do a lot of digging, get the toothbar....if you do a lot of hauling, grading, or scooping from flat hard surfaces then get a flat bar.

Get both if you like lots of "toys" ....er I mean "tools".

 

[ndnparts]

Melissa Markham was awesome to work with. I had them make me a custom toothbar with extra teeth, and so far it has been a digging fool! Great folks to work with and their prices are very reasonable. I highly recommend them if you need a toothbar. Stan

Best bang for your buck. Lots of threads about this toothbar. It's the cat's meow and very affordable.

Markham Welding - Tooth Bar