simple root ripper

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jklingel

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Feb 8, 2008
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220
For you guys that live w/ trees that have tap roots, this may be useless, but for our trees is works real well. I can rip out almost any size stump in a few minutes w/ this, and it goes on/off quickly. Once the stump is torn loose, I can usually pick it up w/ the hook and haul it off; some are just so big I'd have to have the forks way too high for safety, but the littler ones are no sweat. Or, if I leave the tree on the stump, you can tear up the roots all the way around and push the tree over quite easily. This is just a big J hook (1 1/4" thick) welded to a box that slips over a fork. There is a stop plate on the back, as the forks always get funky back there, and w/out the stop plate the J-hook was binding; not a lot of fun to pound off, either. The plate on the front is just for that: to take hammer blows if the hook gets too much dirt or a stick jammed in it. Since I added the stop plate, I have not gotten the hook stuck. I found out right away that the fork needs to be secured to the back plate, so I welded four sets of double, 3/4" nuts to the back plate for that. The plates over the fork are approx 2" W x 3/4" Thick. I got tired of carrying a wrench w/ me, so I welded handles onto the 3/4" bolts. It isn't much, but when you have a few hundred trees to take out, it sure makes life simple and fast.
 
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jklingel

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Feb 8, 2008
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jklingel

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OK. Let's try this.
http://s862.photobucket.com/albums/ab184/johnny10k/?action=view¤t=RootripperC.jpg
http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab184/johnny10k/th_RootripperC.jpg
http://s862.photobucket.com/albums/ab184/johnny10k/?action=view¤t=RootripperA.jpg
http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab184/johnny10k/th_RootripperA.jpg
I wish I could tinker w/ this and not post my mistakes. The tutorial is not working; I have a Mac and use Firefox. I'll just bag this soon if I don't figure it out. Sorry for the mess, but it looks from the preview like I figured it out. Hope springs eternal.... Root ripper A Root ripper B
 

TriHonu

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Apr 15, 2007
Messages
486
I wish I could tinker w/ this and not post my mistakes. The tutorial is not working; I have a Mac and use Firefox. I'll just bag this soon if I don't figure it out. Sorry for the mess, but it looks from the preview like I figured it out. Hope springs eternal....
Nice job! I've thought about mounting a ripper shank to a quick-tach plate. How long is the hook? It looks about 2 feet long.
Somewhere I saw something similar to yours except it was serrated so you could rake the larger roots to tear through them.
 
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jklingel

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Feb 8, 2008
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Nice job! I've thought about mounting a ripper shank to a quick-tach plate. How long is the hook? It looks about 2 feet long.
Somewhere I saw something similar to yours except it was serrated so you could rake the larger roots to tear through them.
Thanks. Two feet is about right, but that would be on the outside. I could measure it if you'd like. Notice that I did not show any pics from the front? I completely fell asleep when welding it, and welded too much on one side, so the J leans to that side. Really wee'd me off, but then I've made bigger mistakes and survived. Serrations may help. I wonder how you'd keep them sharp? I guess you'd just have to keep grinding now and then. I should have beveled it a tad more when I cut it out, too, to make it sharper. Grinding is molasses slow.
 

TriHonu

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Apr 15, 2007
Messages
486
Thanks. Two feet is about right, but that would be on the outside. I could measure it if you'd like. Notice that I did not show any pics from the front? I completely fell asleep when welding it, and welded too much on one side, so the J leans to that side. Really wee'd me off, but then I've made bigger mistakes and survived. Serrations may help. I wonder how you'd keep them sharp? I guess you'd just have to keep grinding now and then. I should have beveled it a tad more when I cut it out, too, to make it sharper. Grinding is molasses slow.
The angle won't hurt anything (other than your pride...
emotion-2.gif
). Heat it up and smack it with a sledge hammer.
The brother and I spent a half hour yesterday straightening a Bobcat auger bit. The owner got stuck while augering fence post holes and used the auger to push himself out. He put a nice bend in the shaft tube above the flighting and below the mounting hub. It was bent enough to make it unusable. We chained it to the floor and put the torch to it. The brother ran the torch and I put a bar in the collar and worked out the bend. We had to heat and reposition 4 times to get it straight and dent free. Brother wanted to just cut out the bend and weld in a new piece of pipe, where is the challenge in that?
 
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jklingel

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Joined
Feb 8, 2008
Messages
220
The angle won't hurt anything (other than your pride...). Heat it up and smack it with a sledge hammer.
The brother and I spent a half hour yesterday straightening a Bobcat auger bit. The owner got stuck while augering fence post holes and used the auger to push himself out. He put a nice bend in the shaft tube above the flighting and below the mounting hub. It was bent enough to make it unusable. We chained it to the floor and put the torch to it. The brother ran the torch and I put a bar in the collar and worked out the bend. We had to heat and reposition 4 times to get it straight and dent free. Brother wanted to just cut out the bend and weld in a new piece of pipe, where is the challenge in that?
I tried "heating and beating" but was unsuccessful, probably because I could just not get it hot enough. My rosebud pops and blows out if I get it too hot, and that is always a bit spooky with that acetylene bomb only 15 hose feet back. Maybe I need a new rose bud? Maybe I need someone else there to do the whacking while I handle the torch, too. Either way, I just pretend that I made it that way to cut the roots on an angle, so it's easier on the loader.... BTW: The J part is 20" long, 9" along the box that goes over the fork, and 11" across the hook. I should have that bucket extension all tacked together tomorrow. I can't wait to see how much better it works, IF it works.
 

bobbie-g

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Mar 15, 2004
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577
I tried "heating and beating" but was unsuccessful, probably because I could just not get it hot enough. My rosebud pops and blows out if I get it too hot, and that is always a bit spooky with that acetylene bomb only 15 hose feet back. Maybe I need a new rose bud? Maybe I need someone else there to do the whacking while I handle the torch, too. Either way, I just pretend that I made it that way to cut the roots on an angle, so it's easier on the loader.... BTW: The J part is 20" long, 9" along the box that goes over the fork, and 11" across the hook. I should have that bucket extension all tacked together tomorrow. I can't wait to see how much better it works, IF it works.
re the rosebud tip blowing out: I haven't used mine yet, but I've read that one is not supposed to use more than 1/7th of the acetylene tank capacity per hour. Maybe something about the release of acetylene from the acetone in the tank can't happen any faster than that. Anyhow, maybe that's the cause of the blowout. --- Now, I use a Mac and Firefox too. How'd you do the pix? When I try to leave a post, I can type in the title, but not the msg. I have to click "preview" then click "back to edit mode" before I can type in the message box. And I never have figured out how to do paragraphs. I've changed the forum edit option to "html" but it makes no difference. :) ---RC
 
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jklingel

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Feb 8, 2008
Messages
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re the rosebud tip blowing out: I haven't used mine yet, but I've read that one is not supposed to use more than 1/7th of the acetylene tank capacity per hour. Maybe something about the release of acetylene from the acetone in the tank can't happen any faster than that. Anyhow, maybe that's the cause of the blowout. --- Now, I use a Mac and Firefox too. How'd you do the pix? When I try to leave a post, I can type in the title, but not the msg. I have to click "preview" then click "back to edit mode" before I can type in the message box. And I never have figured out how to do paragraphs. I've changed the forum edit option to "html" but it makes no difference. :) ---RC
Bob: I did not know that about the 1/7th of the tank rule. I'll have to check around and see if I can find flow rates somewhere. The rosebud works fine till it gets hot, though, and I keep it back as far as I can to minimize heating. I THINK I am getting enough gases to flow through it to help cool it, but I really don't know. I'll have to tinker w/ it; I don't use it much, so it is not a huge problem, but it is a PITA when I do use it. As for the pics, they are posted on Photobucket.com. I have not done any photos for quite a while, so let's see if this sequence gets a photo here. Upload the image, selecting "from computer". Navigate to the pic, then upload it. Click on Save and Get Links, then copy the HTML code and paste it here. Photobucket
 
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jklingel

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Feb 8, 2008
Messages
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Bob: I did not know that about the 1/7th of the tank rule. I'll have to check around and see if I can find flow rates somewhere. The rosebud works fine till it gets hot, though, and I keep it back as far as I can to minimize heating. I THINK I am getting enough gases to flow through it to help cool it, but I really don't know. I'll have to tinker w/ it; I don't use it much, so it is not a huge problem, but it is a PITA when I do use it. As for the pics, they are posted on Photobucket.com. I have not done any photos for quite a while, so let's see if this sequence gets a photo here. Upload the image, selecting "from computer". Navigate to the pic, then upload it. Click on Save and Get Links, then copy the HTML code and paste it here.
Looks like it worked. Good luck. I don't know how to do paragraphs either. Maybe it is a keyboard deal; hit Return or something? Return and then Tab did not work, so I did Return and then hit the space bar several times; a manual method. j
 
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