Grapple /Fork Bucket

[1ofU]

Here is a bucket that i picked up last year for 200.00 it would of been a good scrap bucket
to have it's a 60 inch bucket so i needed a grapple for the firewood as i cut it up in logs in the timber and bring it home and cut and spilt so i built it to use the forks i have for my backhoe they work good on it so i figured they would work for the grapple bucket
aswell keeping the weight to what the bobcat can lift in it's range , so the forks worked out well and the grapple i did have to purchase a cylinder as the one's i had was all to large
i used a 3.5X8 which is still kinda large as it has 24000.00 lbs of force but i would wrather have more then less on any cylinder .
here some pics of the finished grapple bucket .

 

[1ofU]

here's a couple pics of the mounting of the cyclinder i used all 1 inch for the mounts on the grapple i used 4 inch channel , 3/8 & 1/2 .

 

[antfarmer2]

here's a couple pics of the mounting of the cyclinder i used all 1 inch for the mounts on the grapple i used 4 inch channel , 3/8 & 1/2 .

Looks great .....

 

[Tazza]

Looks great .....

It really does look good.
I like the addition of the fork mounts. Being further out, you don't have as much lifting ability as you would direct to the bobtach, but on a big machine like that, it is less of an issue.
There is no flex with the sides of the bucket being cut down? I know it's needed to hold logs, but it would scrafice some strength too.

 

[1ofU]

It really does look good.
I like the addition of the fork mounts. Being further out, you don't have as much lifting ability as you would direct to the bobtach, but on a big machine like that, it is less of an issue.
There is no flex with the sides of the bucket being cut down? I know it's needed to hold logs, but it would scrafice some strength too.

the sides flex very little , i'm still going to put a 1/4 skin on the side to make it a 1/2 inch
on the bottom the cutting edge is 1/2X6 with two 1/2 X3 runners going back to the bottom of the bobtac mount the forks run on the 3 inch runner out to the rear .
on the top of the bucket i did cut out the original cross beam it was 1/8 thick metal with just a curled edge , i used 2.5 X 3/8 sguare tubing for the grapple mounts .
i post pics to show even a old almost wore out bucket still has alot of usefullness left .
it handles logs , and i can swoop in and get a bucket full of split wood and move it save alot of wear on my back ..
i have other attachments i made for the bobcat aswell as the backhoe i will get around to posting some pics of other builds
Jess

 

[Tazza]

the sides flex very little , i'm still going to put a 1/4 skin on the side to make it a 1/2 inch
on the bottom the cutting edge is 1/2X6 with two 1/2 X3 runners going back to the bottom of the bobtac mount the forks run on the 3 inch runner out to the rear .
on the top of the bucket i did cut out the original cross beam it was 1/8 thick metal with just a curled edge , i used 2.5 X 3/8 sguare tubing for the grapple mounts .
i post pics to show even a old almost wore out bucket still has alot of usefullness left .
it handles logs , and i can swoop in and get a bucket full of split wood and move it save alot of wear on my back ..
i have other attachments i made for the bobcat aswell as the backhoe i will get around to posting some pics of other builds
Jess

I have brought back to life a pretty well stuffed bucket before too. It was a 4 in 1 but so badly neglected, but i got it back to good shape.