Hood Guard for Use With Front End Loader

[npalen]

Needing to build or buy a hood guard for my Kubota B9200. Could use some help on design or guards on the market. I'm thinking of one that comes back about half way over the hood and may or may not include a grille guard.
Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[jfay]

Here is one I built for my L3300. Hope this helps.
J.

 

[npalen]

I'm looking for something like this Deere Xtra Armor hood protector:

 

[Groo]

I built a heavy duty grill guard for Dad's Kubota that sticks above the hood a couple of inches and covers the hood by a couple of inches. It seam to be enough, even when dangling large logs from a chain on the FEL

 

[not2old]

Firewood falling out of the loader is what has caused several dents in my hood. I was shocked at how big a dent from a small piece of wood, but it gives the machine character.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Wouldnt it be much simplier to just build a high back guard on your bucket to keep stuff from rolling out of the bucket and onto your tractor. Looks like armoring up the hood would cause problems with raising the hood for maintenance as it order to make it thick enough to stop a big rock or big log it would have to be fairly heavy which means at some point you have to raise it up by hand.
I would just take some 2" x 1/4" flat bar and weld on a back guard to the FEL bucket similar to dozer blades. You could even put expanded metal in the frame if you wanted to catch really small objects or limbs from coming thru and getting to your radiator. I would make it a bit wider than the hood and about even with the top of the hood with the FEL on the ground. Make a U shaped frame and then a couple of standard in the middle and a cross bar between them should stop about anything large enough to damage the hood and if you wanted, put expanded metal in front of that.

 

[moored4]

Wouldnt it be much simplier to just build a high back guard on your bucket to keep stuff from rolling out of the bucket and onto your tractor. Looks like armoring up the hood would cause problems with raising the hood for maintenance as it order to make it thick enough to stop a big rock or big log it would have to be fairly heavy which means at some point you have to raise it up by hand.
I would just take some 2" x 1/4" flat bar and weld on a back guard to the FEL bucket similar to dozer blades. You could even put expanded metal in the frame if you wanted to catch really small objects or limbs from coming thru and getting to your radiator. I would make it a bit wider than the hood and about even with the top of the hood with the FEL on the ground. Make a U shaped frame and then a couple of standard in the middle and a cross bar between them should stop about anything large enough to damage the hood and if you wanted, put expanded metal in front of that.

X2 I have done the same on ours!

 

[npalen]

I think the bucket guard is a very good idea and also from an operator safety standpoint. My problem is that the previous owner dumped what must have been a large rock(s) on the hood and then tried to repair the damage with less than amateur skill doing more harm than good. The result is an eyesore and my first choice would be to find a used replacement hood but that is turning out to be a very difficult find.
So that is what put me on the trail of the hood guard. At least I wouldn't have to see the damage every time I look at what is otherwise a very solid tractor. True, I would know that the damage is there but out of sight out of mind.

 

[Gary Fowler]

For the money to buy all the material for the armor plate, you could likely repair your hood even if you took it to a professional body shop. If it is metal and not plastic, then if should be easy enough to take off and work the dents out with some body tools and then maybe a skim coat of bondo, wet sand and some JD green paint to match and good as new.

 

[4shorts]

This is what I did.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/customization/130266-bucket-mod.html

 

[Groo]

I think the bucket guard is a very good idea and also from an operator safety standpoint. My problem is that the previous owner dumped what must have been a large rock(s) on the hood and then tried to repair the damage with less than amateur skill doing more harm than good. The result is an eyesore and my first choice would be to find a used replacement hood but that is turning out to be a very difficult find.
So that is what put me on the trail of the hood guard. At least I wouldn't have to see the damage every time I look at what is otherwise a very solid tractor. True, I would know that the damage is there but out of sight out of mind.

if you just want to cover up an ugly spot, add-on armor hardly seams the best way.

make a hood cover out of some aluminum diamond plate. It will look custom.:thumbsup:

 

[moored4]

For the money to buy all the material for the armor plate, you could likely repair your hood even if you took it to a professional body shop. If it is metal and not plastic, then if should be easy enough to take off and work the dents out with some body tools and then maybe a skim coat of bondo, wet sand and some JD green paint to match and good as new.

Why would he want to paint it green when it's a KABOTA! :laughing:

 

[eray1066]

One of our tractors had been a rental in a previous life. With a real powerful loader that is not self leveling, rocks had been dumped on the hood on this tractor too. There is a hood guard attached to the grill guard that pivots forward to allow the hood to be opened. Also there is a piece of light metal on the bucket to decrease spillage back towards the operator. If you are paying attention none of these things are necessary. If they work I have attached photos to explain better.

 

[Reg]

One of our tractors had been a rental in a previous life. With a real powerful loader that is not self leveling, rocks had been dumped on the hood on this tractor too. There is a hood guard attached to the grill guard that pivots forward to allow the hood to be opened. Also there is a piece of light metal on the bucket to decrease spillage back towards the operator. If you are paying attention none of these things are necessary. If they work I have attached photos to explain better.

I agree, "If you are paying attention none of these things are necessary."
Carry as low as possible, PAY ATTENTION when lifting to dump into a truck, or wherever.
I don't much care about the hoods, it is the chance of anything rolling back and hitting me in the lap (OK, in the CROTCH) that I am concerned about - concerned enough to just not DO that (-:

 

[Gary Fowler]

Why would he want to paint it green when it's a KABOTA! :laughing:

Well he said he wanted it like the John Deere armor. Arent John Deere's green?:laughing:

Actually so many photos of everyones fixes, I got confused as to who we were really addressing

Rather than cover up a bit of damage, I would vote to fix the damage, then add an extension plate on the bucket with expanded metal. Much less work other than the repair itself and I would want to do that anyway regardless of the bucket guard. I cant see it taking that long to take a rubber mallet and laying the hood on a flat surface like plywood and beat it back in shape and repaint. At the most maybe a light skim coat of bondo, to fill in any scratches, sand smooth, then prime and paint

 

[High Compression]

Guess I'm missing something. I don't have the problem of materials rolling out of the back of any loader bucket that I'm operating. Guess that just comes from being an equipment operator for 15+ years. :confused2:

 

[Reg]

Guess I'm missing something. I don't have the problem of materials rolling out of the back of any loader bucket that I'm operating. Guess that just comes from being an equipment operator for 15+ years. :confused2:

I think it takes a LOT LESS that 15 years to figure this out (-:

First time on first tractor with a loader should do it at the first lift.

It might be better if someone can actually EXPLAIN that lift also tips the bucket back and that HIGH lift a) tips it back a LOT and b) that lifting high gets the bucket over the tractor.
If self preservation doesn't stop you doing this I can't see that adding guards would - in fact they are more likely to encourage bad habits.
As so often has been said in this forum "common sense" isn't all that common.

I'm generally against such "solutions" on the grounds that they encourage bad practices, just learn how to operate a loader properly - it ain't THAT HARD.

 

[nickel plate]

Here is one I built for my L3300. Hope this helps.
J.

Nice and simple with very clean lines. It looks like you're designing it to fold forward if need be. Good job!

 

[npalen]

Nice work, 4shorts!
Have you added an extra cutting edge under the bucket or is that factory?

 

[4shorts]

Nice work, 4shorts!
Have you added an extra cutting edge under the bucket or is that factory?

Thanks! That's the factory optional edge on that bucket but when I did the mod on my snow bucket I put the cutting edge on that one. Here's the thread for that.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/welding/203865-new-snow-bucket-mods.html

I operated heavy equipment for many years in an open pit iron ore mine and I've seen many times where something fell out off the top of a bucket and came back at the operator. It got to the point that if it was a front end loader it HAD to have a spill guard or it wasn't allowed in on the project.