Cutting an edge off

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greggo

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Hello to all:I have a stich welded on edge that is worn on my Bobcat 843.Can I cut it out with a 7"disc grinder or does it have to go to a welding shop? Thanks Greg
 

OldMachinist

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You should be able to grind most of the weld off and then drive a large cold chisel in between the edge and the bucket and break it off the rest of the way. Then go back and dress up the old welds, fit your new edge and weld it on. The new edge should be stick welded on. Mig welding likely will not give you enough penatration to with stand the working forces on the edge.
Bucket cutting edges are made from hardened steel and you will need to use 7018 rod, preheat and post-heat the welding area.
 

Iowa Dave

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Sure it can be cut off. W always use a torch. Nothing special about it. We have done several on buckets where we are using bolt-on teeth. Are bolt rows of holes (where teeth would go) still ok? Assuming you aren't using the holes for teeth, and assuming the holes are fine, why not just buy a bolt-on cutting edge? For sure that's what I would do if at all possible.
 
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greggo

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Sure it can be cut off. W always use a torch. Nothing special about it. We have done several on buckets where we are using bolt-on teeth. Are bolt rows of holes (where teeth would go) still ok? Assuming you aren't using the holes for teeth, and assuming the holes are fine, why not just buy a bolt-on cutting edge? For sure that's what I would do if at all possible.
Hi Iowa Dave:I dont own an oxyci acetylene torch, but I do own a straight acetylene torch,not sure if that would help.There are no bolt holes.The edge I got is not beveled and its a grade 50.Can that be ground down to a bevel? Thanks Greg
 
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greggo

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Thanks old machinist:I dont own a welder I was getting quotes $350 and above to cut off the old edge and weld on a new one.Its only a 60" bucket in decent shape. A friend of mine who works at a steel plant gave me a piece of grade 50 steel for a new edge 6x65x1/2" only thing is its (not beveled).I'll try cutting the old one off with the grinder when I get one. Greg
 
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greggo

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Iowa Dave:If I get the old edge off,can I make the new one a bolt on edge?I have a drill press to drill the edge and a heavy duty right angle drill to drill holes in the bucket. Greg
 

Iowa Dave

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Iowa Dave:If I get the old edge off,can I make the new one a bolt on edge?I have a drill press to drill the edge and a heavy duty right angle drill to drill holes in the bucket. Greg
I think you need to go another way. I'm all for saving money, but I don't see how you will EVER put a beveled edge on the freebie steel. If you have G-O-O-D drill bits you can probably make your bucket work for accepting the bolt-on edge. The edges are reversible and only need one row of holes(teeth need two rows). The edge will be over $200. I can't remember if the countersunk bolts come with, but I doubt it. Seems to me they are another $30-50 or so. Are the sides of the bucket wore back, too? If so, I'd either pay a shop to do it right or find another bucket. If not careful, torching and welding will distort the new edge and the bucket won't sit "flat" when done. I like the bolt-on edges because they save the bucket and reinforce the bottom as well. Also, since I use these machines daily in earning a living, there is no down time. Just go to the store, plop down $250, and back running as soon as you can loosen the bolts and chance out the edge. Bucket stays in near-new condition indefinitely as well. Make the 250 back the same day by having no down time and keeping the machine on the clock.The bolt on edges last a long time. A casual user would NEVER wear one out. If you are in snow country and clean concrete or asphalt, you can buy a poly edge that bolts on to save damage to the surface you are cleaning. They too are pricy but great!
 

Tazza

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I think you need to go another way. I'm all for saving money, but I don't see how you will EVER put a beveled edge on the freebie steel. If you have G-O-O-D drill bits you can probably make your bucket work for accepting the bolt-on edge. The edges are reversible and only need one row of holes(teeth need two rows). The edge will be over $200. I can't remember if the countersunk bolts come with, but I doubt it. Seems to me they are another $30-50 or so. Are the sides of the bucket wore back, too? If so, I'd either pay a shop to do it right or find another bucket. If not careful, torching and welding will distort the new edge and the bucket won't sit "flat" when done. I like the bolt-on edges because they save the bucket and reinforce the bottom as well. Also, since I use these machines daily in earning a living, there is no down time. Just go to the store, plop down $250, and back running as soon as you can loosen the bolts and chance out the edge. Bucket stays in near-new condition indefinitely as well. Make the 250 back the same day by having no down time and keeping the machine on the clock.The bolt on edges last a long time. A casual user would NEVER wear one out. If you are in snow country and clean concrete or asphalt, you can buy a poly edge that bolts on to save damage to the surface you are cleaning. They too are pricy but great!
I was going to say that, for a DIY person, modifying the bucket for a bolt on edge is a waste of time and money. For someone that puts a few hundred hours tops on a machine a year, there is no way you'd wear out a cutting edge. If you use it commercially, sure, go the bot on route.
It may not look like much, but if you weld it on, its a LOT of work. I have done it, its not fun at all. Removing the old one is even worse. It may sound simple to grind the welds off, but its not at all easy. You will never cut through all the welds and have it simply fall off. I spent HOURS grinding mine, then i had 10' length of railroad track with a plate welded on the end to hook on the cutting edge. I then tried to lift a concrete pipe to use it to try and break the welds that were not cut all the way through. It did work, but took time, working from one end and repeating the cuts on parts that weren't deep enough.
Be prepared for a lot of work, but you will get there.
 

sledesigns

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I was going to say that, for a DIY person, modifying the bucket for a bolt on edge is a waste of time and money. For someone that puts a few hundred hours tops on a machine a year, there is no way you'd wear out a cutting edge. If you use it commercially, sure, go the bot on route.
It may not look like much, but if you weld it on, its a LOT of work. I have done it, its not fun at all. Removing the old one is even worse. It may sound simple to grind the welds off, but its not at all easy. You will never cut through all the welds and have it simply fall off. I spent HOURS grinding mine, then i had 10' length of railroad track with a plate welded on the end to hook on the cutting edge. I then tried to lift a concrete pipe to use it to try and break the welds that were not cut all the way through. It did work, but took time, working from one end and repeating the cuts on parts that weren't deep enough.
Be prepared for a lot of work, but you will get there.
I'd go with hiring the edge torch cut. Should be a metal shops minimum one hour rate, $60ish You can easily grind grade 50. I finish ground mine to about 30 degrees after lasering to 45. (You will eat some wheels on the grinder & spend some time) You might think about having the shop that cuts the old edge off do a rough, torch bevel to the new edge. It could be accomplished during the same shop hour. For welding it in, skip around. Lay an inch bead, go a couple feet, lay another inch. Weld for 15 minutes or so skipping around, leave it to cool for 15 then weld again. You don't want the whole edge to get hotter than the rest of the bucket that its attaching to. The temp difference is what causes warping. I fully welded mine on, top & bottom (standard overkill) on a 60" bucket. Straight, sharp & digs easy. Also lasered the double hole pattern for bolt in teeth before assembly. Didn't do countersinks, just put the grade 8 heads on the bottom. The way the current teeth are, they cut a path for the bolt heads through the dirt.
 

Fishfiles

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I'd go with hiring the edge torch cut. Should be a metal shops minimum one hour rate, $60ish You can easily grind grade 50. I finish ground mine to about 30 degrees after lasering to 45. (You will eat some wheels on the grinder & spend some time) You might think about having the shop that cuts the old edge off do a rough, torch bevel to the new edge. It could be accomplished during the same shop hour. For welding it in, skip around. Lay an inch bead, go a couple feet, lay another inch. Weld for 15 minutes or so skipping around, leave it to cool for 15 then weld again. You don't want the whole edge to get hotter than the rest of the bucket that its attaching to. The temp difference is what causes warping. I fully welded mine on, top & bottom (standard overkill) on a 60" bucket. Straight, sharp & digs easy. Also lasered the double hole pattern for bolt in teeth before assembly. Didn't do countersinks, just put the grade 8 heads on the bottom. The way the current teeth are, they cut a path for the bolt heads through the dirt.
I have an ach gouger and it works great for that job , 20 minutes and it's off
 

Tazza

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I have an ach gouger and it works great for that job , 20 minutes and it's off
Fishfiles - what sort of current does your arc cutter chew? I have arc cut rods, but my welder isn't powerful enough to use them.
 

legman

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Iowa Dave apparently hasn't heard that when you drive a skid loader down a long section of concrete that it WILL grind the edge to a fine point! Don't worry about sharpening the edge - remember that when is got all worn out that you wished that wouldn't have happened? Wear out the new one a little bit and it'll be sharp!! .......................... And if your welder can't MIG weld the new one on as strong as the old one you need a new guy holding the stinger - NOT a different type of welder. PS: Don't try to take off the old edge with a plasma cutter!!! A plasma cutter will cut through 2 or 3 pieces of metal at the same time. A torch will only cut one layer at a time - saving your bucket! A torch puts out 6,000 degrees - a plasma cutter puts out 40 THOUSAND degrees!!!!!!!!
 

Iowa Dave

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Iowa Dave apparently hasn't heard that when you drive a skid loader down a long section of concrete that it WILL grind the edge to a fine point! Don't worry about sharpening the edge - remember that when is got all worn out that you wished that wouldn't have happened? Wear out the new one a little bit and it'll be sharp!! .......................... And if your welder can't MIG weld the new one on as strong as the old one you need a new guy holding the stinger - NOT a different type of welder. PS: Don't try to take off the old edge with a plasma cutter!!! A plasma cutter will cut through 2 or 3 pieces of metal at the same time. A torch will only cut one layer at a time - saving your bucket! A torch puts out 6,000 degrees - a plasma cutter puts out 40 THOUSAND degrees!!!!!!!!
I imagine I have heard a bit more than you--been running MY OWN company doing this for over 25 years--but I have only wore out maybe 75 cutting edges, so what do I know? A casual user won't live long enough to "sharpen" a grade 50 blunt edge by using it on concrete. That blunt edge will work really good cutting a tricky grade, too.We try to help each other here without being mean-spirited or smart-*ssed. If guys as "smart" as you are going to get a foothold on this site, I"m out of here! The value of this site stems largely from the quality of people using it, and it seems one of our newest members is trying hard to reduce the value to all of us. No question should be considered "dumb", no answer should be made mainly to ridicule or to prove one's "worth" at the expense of others. I knew sooner or later someone would come along to "strut their stuff" and ruin the site. "Apparently", you are that guy. I hope you aren't and just made a stupid mistake with your arrogant post--in that case, apology accepted.
 

sandhills-elect

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I imagine I have heard a bit more than you--been running MY OWN company doing this for over 25 years--but I have only wore out maybe 75 cutting edges, so what do I know? A casual user won't live long enough to "sharpen" a grade 50 blunt edge by using it on concrete. That blunt edge will work really good cutting a tricky grade, too.We try to help each other here without being mean-spirited or smart-*ssed. If guys as "smart" as you are going to get a foothold on this site, I"m out of here! The value of this site stems largely from the quality of people using it, and it seems one of our newest members is trying hard to reduce the value to all of us. No question should be considered "dumb", no answer should be made mainly to ridicule or to prove one's "worth" at the expense of others. I knew sooner or later someone would come along to "strut their stuff" and ruin the site. "Apparently", you are that guy. I hope you aren't and just made a stupid mistake with your arrogant post--in that case, apology accepted.
I am with you Dave, shows up and joins and is the smartest guy on earth. Well buddy check the attitude at the door!!!!
 

Fishfiles

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I am with you Dave, shows up and joins and is the smartest guy on earth. Well buddy check the attitude at the door!!!!
TAZZA < maybe you can help me out , I just seen you asked me a question , I use to get email notices that someone had posted or replied to a thread that I was involved with but for some reason that quit working a long time ago , it maybe that I changed internet provider and the ending of my email has changed ------------on the arch gauger issue , I do have to crank it up to 150-175 , you need a machine with 250-300 to get your duty cycle in line , there is an air hose hooked up to it that blows the metal away as it is melted , I was lucky to have gotten the gouger at a pawn shop years ago dirt cheap as it was in a box of welding equipment that the guy didn't even know what it was used for and he seperated from the rest of the stuff , the rods are expensive , but it does make short and clean work of cutting off long and multiple pass welds ------------ another good method is to use a gouging tip on your torch instead of a standard cutting tip ------
 

Tazza

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TAZZA < maybe you can help me out , I just seen you asked me a question , I use to get email notices that someone had posted or replied to a thread that I was involved with but for some reason that quit working a long time ago , it maybe that I changed internet provider and the ending of my email has changed ------------on the arch gauger issue , I do have to crank it up to 150-175 , you need a machine with 250-300 to get your duty cycle in line , there is an air hose hooked up to it that blows the metal away as it is melted , I was lucky to have gotten the gouger at a pawn shop years ago dirt cheap as it was in a box of welding equipment that the guy didn't even know what it was used for and he seperated from the rest of the stuff , the rods are expensive , but it does make short and clean work of cutting off long and multiple pass welds ------------ another good method is to use a gouging tip on your torch instead of a standard cutting tip ------
I don't know if its the same for all plasma cutters, but mine will only cut one layer at a time.
Fishfiles - great find, i have never seen one like that before, sounds interesting. I have heard of carbon arc, it sounds close to that, only with air to blow the molten metal away.
 

wright const

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Find a welder on a job site and kick him 50 bucks ,also someone posted grind the weld down and than drive a wedge between bucket and cutting edge that works well to it just takes time .
 
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