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Using FEL to Lift

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bobkro
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 28 Mill Spring, NC
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2008-06-01          154124


I have a BX2350 with FEL. I want to use the FEL to lift heavy objects (putting a rotary tiller on/off a trailer, etc.). The bucket has a single hydraulic cylinder, located in the center of the bucket. I am reluctant to use the cylinder in any way as part of attaching a chain for lifting, for fear of bending it in some way.

I seem to left with wrapping a chain around the exterior of and center on the bucket. I would then attach the free end of the chain, which is dangling over the front edge of the bucket, to the load.

Is this approach safe/OK for the tractor? Any better ideas that are simple/straightfoward would be appreciated.

tks

b




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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-06-01          154125


I'm not familliar with Kubota buckets in particular, but as a general rule for any brand you are very correct in not putting a chain around any part of a hydraulic cylinder, as strong as they may look the shaft is easily sprung doing such things. If you have access to a welder or a weld shop nearby you can buy grab hooks in various sizes that have a flat back designed to be welded to buckets, etc. Choose a point close to the center on the top edge of the bucket to avoid any twisting potential of the bucket by being hooked off center and be sure all things will clear when the bucket curls, etc. Before I had hooks on my Deere bucket I too waraped the chain around the bucket, that is kinda OK, but hooks are better. Frank. ....


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greg_g
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 1816 Western Kentucky
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2008-06-01          154126


I'm not familiar with your loader either, but you might have overlooked some possibilities. My Koyker 160 has two lifting eyes (as opposed to hooks). There's one on either side of the bucket - top rear - in line with the lift arms.

//greg// ....


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DRankin
Join Date: Jan 2000
Posts: 5116 Northern Nevada
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2008-06-01          154129


Check my (just added) pic #13

I used a tow hook designed for the underside of a 4x4 pick up.

It worked just fine. ....

Picture Link


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earthwrks
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 3853 Home Office in Flat Rock, Michigan
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2008-06-01          154132


I'm not familar with your bucket either, that said, unless your bucket is reinforced especially across the top front edge I would not install any type of hook. I have seen many a loader bucket on every size made that has collapsed in the middle from stressing it. You may want to consider an attchment point on the top of the bucket at the front corners. With the bucket fully dumped run a single chain in a v-formation from hook to hook allowing it droop a bit farther than the bottom of the cutting edge. Then hook a second chain to the bottom center of the V. When you tilt the bucket backward you will get additional control of the lifting chain besides just using the loader to make it go up and down. The idea behind this is you have greater control from a sideways swinging load. I had a center- mounted hook on my loader backhoe carrying a chunk of concrete larger than I should have been carrying. I got off camber going over some other broken concrete and the machine tipped just slightly---but enough to get the center of gravity off enough to swing the concrete even more to the side and nearly lay the machine on its side. Quick thinking made me drop the loader arms and the machine righted itself. ....


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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-06-02          154142


EW; Where you been lately, haven't heard much out of you??? This is prety hard for me to admit (you sometimes being right), but you are right about where to position hooks etc. on buckets. I thought about that after I posted, but you took care of it for me. Keep smilein. Frank. ....


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earthwrks
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 3853 Home Office in Flat Rock, Michigan
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2008-06-02          154144


Franky, thanks for asking! I had a pretty rough year last year businesswise. This year has been decent--just working and trying to keep busy. I'm not a rich guy like you :) ....


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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999
Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada
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2008-06-02          154145


One word of caution I would add into all of this info. is that a bucket is designed to hold a well spread out load only.

If you add a very concentrated load like a hook or lifting eye to a small area of the bucket you MUST add a plate or other reinforcement to spread the weight out over a much larger area than just the hook itself.

It is very easy to buckle the relatively thin plate that a bucket is made from by adding too much weight to one small concentrated area.

The only other thing you need to bear in mind is from a safety point of view. First off, don't overload it the FEL, the front axle pivots and if you get the load off too one side it will pull you over.

Also remember that as the FEL goes up, the lifting point is getting closer to the tractor. A very common mistake is to get the FEL right over the load and start lifting, only to find that by the time the load is up it is also much further from the tractor and it comes swinging into the grill once it's free.

Best of luck. ....


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auerbach
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 2168 West of Toronto
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2008-06-02          154152


You do have to be prudent -- pump up the fronts, don't chain to a weak part of the bucket, never attach to a cylinder, go slow, ensure the rears stay on the ground, prepare what to do if something starts to go south (like tipping) so you'll do it instantly, the higher the lift the more the precautions, and so forth. But I doubt that something like a tiller will present any problems. ....


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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-06-03          154159


EW; Glad things are looking up for you, I was at the bottom looking up for a while too, it aint funny, just hang on it will get better. Oh, the rich man thing, you must be thinking of one of the other guys here, I just got a lot of people fooled. Frank ....


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candoarms
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1932 North Dakota
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2008-06-03          154168


Bobkro,

Your biggest problem is going to be the maximum height you can raise your loader.

In order to lift a tiller, your loader will have to be raised at least half-way up before you even begin raising the tiller. This leaves you with very little lift remaining. I doubt that you'd be able to lift the tiller high enough to get it on, or off of a trailer.

Since the tiller is probably the heaviest implement you own, you might be better off backing your tractor onto the trailer with your tiller attached to the 3-point hitch. Use your loader bucket to load and unload the lighter implements -- such as the cultivator, plow, rake, etc. With the tiller mounted on the rear of your tractor, you'll have plenty of rear ballast needed for lifting the other implements.

Joel ....


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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-06-03          154182


I had to load my tiller onto a trailer just a couple days ago. The trailer bed is about 18 inches off the ground. I lifted the tiller about two ft. off the ground with the loader and backed the trailer uinder it, that worked OK. I had kind of a different reason for hauling it to the dealer for repairs. I'd left it sitting along the garden road while the farm tennant was here getting the ground ready to plant corn with a 4440 Deere and a field cultivator. When he wes done he came out the garden road watching something on the other side for clearance and ran over my tiller with the dual wheel of the 4440. He felt real bad about it, but his insurance covers the damage. Frank. ....


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earthwrks
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 3853 Home Office in Flat Rock, Michigan
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2008-06-03          154184


Franky--errrrr?
Am I missing sumthin'?

If all you did was use the FEL to lift it while you backed the trailer under it---wouldn't just a tree branch and a come-a-long worked just as well? I mean the whole point is to use the mobility of the tractor to load it.

I knows you Iowans (or is it Iowanians) do things diff'rnt down thar, so maybe what you said is REALLY what you did do--you used JUST the FEL (no tractor) AH-HA!!--that 'splains it, Lucy! ....


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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-06-03          154191


EW; Yup you're missin somethin, I don't have a tree big enough to mount the FEL on, somebody borrowed my comalong, so I just left the loader on the tractor and lifted it that way. Seriously that seemed lots safer than having a tiller swinging from a chain with the bucket pretty high, just lift eer up and back it under. Take it from the somewhat educated one from Iowa. ....


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