Now that this is 99% done, I am not 100% sure buying one would have been a bad idea, though I have learned a lot on the way, too. The grapple part is only half the battle; right now I am fighting with how to route the hoses for when the bucket tips forward. RC has a nice set up for his Bobcat, but I just don't have room for that on my JD. After 3 days of tinkering, I think I have arrived, however. These grapples are not as easy as I thought, nor as my neighbor implied. There is a lot of geometry that needs to be considered; a few things rotate, so hose needs to extend and contract, or flex/twist. RC's set up avoids a lot of the bucket-tip problem; sure wish I had the room for it. Alignment in a couple of planes is critical, as the grapples have to rotate about one line that is parallel to the back and bottom on the bucket, etc. Just be careful and look at everything twice from three different directions if you make one. Oh; and have a good drill press. Anyway, here the mutha is, all hand build, all designed from a few pics on the Net and looking at one commercial grapple at an auction briefly; there are none available at any dealers, and I don't know anyone who owns one. So, a little wing-and-a-prayer here and there, and her she is. Nothing special, but if I can lift some stuff, then all is cool. Click on View All and you should be taken to the album in PhotoBucket. john <embed width="480" height="360" src="http://static.pbsrc.com/flash/rss_slideshow.swf" flashvars="rssFeed=http%3A%2F%2Ffeed862.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fab184%2Fjohnny10k%2FGrapples%2Ffeed.rss" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" />
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I guess that did not work this time, so you'll have to copy and paste this link into your browser. http://s862.photobucket.com/albums/ab184/johnny10k/Grapples/ I will try to embed the link again. If it appears OK, click on View All. Dang; I did this just a couple of days ago.
<embed width="480" height="360" src="http://static.pbsrc.com/flash/rss_slideshow.swf" flashvars="rssFeed=http%3A%2F%2Ffeed862.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fab184%2Fjohnny10k%2FGrapples%2Ffeed.rss" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" />
It looks good.
What issue do you have with the hoses? I can take pictures of how they are routed on a 4 in 1 bucket to show how they work, and they work pretty well. You want them low and more or less inline with the lower pivot pins, they will not be pulled in this way, they will only twist.
Tazza: Thanks for the compliment, and the offer. bobbie-g sent me a bunch of pics of his Bobcat grapple and 4-1, but I just don't see how I can do that on my JD. The Bobcat lift arms stick way out compared to the JD, and the fitting would be entirely different. I have tried making it work, and thought I had it this morning, but it would have meant raising the hoses 3" off the bucket, right in front of the tire, to have the hoses bend at the pivot point. There is only 7" of clearance there to start with. If I would have held the hoses close to the bucket there, they would have had to move several inches at the bottom of the bucket. I sent pics of my machine to bobbie-g, and he thought it was all to compact, too. All in all, I think what I am now fabricating will work, depending on how much these hoses flex, or don't.... I think.... I think. This deal required purchasing two, $55 swivels, but what the hey; I didn't want to eat for a while anyway. I will add pics on PhotoBucket of what I figured out for mine in a day or two; I am just about to tack some plates in place so I can see how everything will operate. The links to bobbie-g's equipment are listed under the Gen Questions --> Commercial Grapple.... thread. john
