Bucket Forks

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Looking for advice on loader forks for my B21 (TL421 Loader). I looked at quite a few but not having any experience thought maybe I should ask. My use is lifting Pallets, irregular objects (stumps) and big ole rolls of black berries that I can't seem to get in the bucket.

 

[scruffy]

Twinkle Toes, The following is a cut and paste of a response made by Harv down on the Rural/culvert project initially posted by Harv:
About the bucket forks --

Do you like them?

I love them to pieces. Handiest bang for the buck so far.

Have you tried them to lift and carry brush?

A little, and they worked great. I'll be doing a lot more of that pretty soon.

How long to get on and off?

Less than a minute for both forks. (See attachment)

Where did you get them?

I just told my tractor broker ('Miracle Mike') I wanted them and they arrived with the tractor. They're Gearmore forks, so they should be pretty easy to come by.

How much?

I paid $350 through Miracle Mike. Brand new.

I got the smallest of the four available sizes. They weigh 90 lbs. apiece (one reason for getting the small ones), but the built-in handles make them quite easy to handle. They are 2 x 3 x 32 inches and have a lift capacity of 1,000 pounds (more than my loader).

I did connect with the bucket rake manufacturer, as I mentioned in a previous post, but when neither Miracle Mike nor 2 tractor dealers I talked to had never seen or heard of them, I got cold feet. The $600 price tag didn't help any, either.

Fact is, I really I wish I had the bucket rake for my trail blazing adventure the next couple of days, but I'm gonna just get familiar with what I do have and keep the rake in the back of my mind.

Feel free to get one and let me know what you think.


ONCE AGAIN, that was posted by Harv.

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Thanks Scruffy,(and Harv)
Sounds like Harv is a happy forker. I never looked at Gearmore, I will check them out. I did see the $600 price tag on a lot of brands.

 

[scruffy]

Twinkle Toes, you should probably scroll down and take a look at the string, at least to get the proper context of Harv's post. He appears to like his bucket forks very much.
Can't say I blame him, I can think of a few times (more than a few) that they would have been very handy to have around!

 

[Tinmann]

I bought a set for my 3710 but I am sure they would basically be the same. Mine do not connect to the front loader, instead I disconnect the loader by way of a quick disconnect and can have the forks and all on in about 3-4 minutes. The dealer told me this was a better setup because the weight of the loader is off the tractor thereby being able to lift even more. For my setup it was about $1200 for the total package, disconnect, a set of 42 inch forks along with the rear mounting plate. I couldn't get along without them. They are on an equal with the front loader as far as being used and being handy to lift things. I use them to move trees, stumps and brush to the burn piles. I would buy them again in a second!!! Highly recommended!

 

[TomG]

If you're lifting pallets, then you probably want forks that have adjustable widths. For safety, you also want a backrest, or carriage, that is as tall as the loads worked. It's not good to risk a load falling off the back of the forks during a high lift. Note that with loader type forks, the load is over the tractor when it's raised high. I think these features eliminate many of the simpler bucket add-on type forks. I believe that some bucket replacement units have these features, but they also are a bit pricey.

I ended up with 3ph pallet forks myself. The true vertical lift and carriage tilt is good, and the load is carried on the back wheels (where it belongs). In addition, I always have a steel carriage frame as well as the ROPS bar between the load and me. However, I got 3ph forks mainly because I wanted to use the loader bucket and forks at the same time, and the price of the 3ph forks wasn't much more than a loader type with the features I wanted. The 3ph forks also have a side-shift option, which I didn't get, and I'm not sure loader type forks have such an option.

 

[bsauter]

I just got some forks at my Kubota dealer last week. They are from AgriTek (made in Michigan) and cost me $375. I needed them quickly to help move a huge brush pile that I didn't relish loading on a trailer by hand. Work great. Two seperate units that attach to the bucket with chain binders. Takes about a minute to do. Very secure. Don't know if I really like the binders, I've always considered them a pain but seem to work well.

Brad, Kubota L3010HST, loader, R4 tires
Pictures at http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=179207&a=9183978

 

[TomG]

Yep, I couldn't get along without my 3ph forks either. They end up on the 3ph more often than not. I can plan other projects and know when I need a particular 3ph implement, but I never know when I need to lift something heavy and bulky. Of course, pretty soon I'll never know when it's going to snow, so I guess the blower will be on most times.

A few days ago, I brought the tractor back from our camp. I loaded a 6' scraper into a pickup bed with a cap on it, and a backhoe onto a utility trailer--each implement was setting loosely on pallets. I took the implements home, returned, drove the tractor home and then unloaded the implements.

There's a bunch of lifting problems that have to be solved for such work. I might have been able to figure out how to do it with bucket and chain, but the idea seems pretty iffy. Real pallet forks, whether a 3ph or a bucket replacement type, are great--especially if you've got to work alone. Without the forks, I think I would have had to put the bite on some neighbours to help muscle the stuff around.

 

[TomG]

With binders, I usually run a chain loop secured with grab hooks. If the loop needs tightening, I just grab onto the loop in two places with the binder hooks and close it. Then, there's a slack length of chain between the two binder hooks. I like that better than trying to piece the binder directly in the chain loop. Still sort of a pain though.

I've got old style binders, and I have to tie the handles closed to make sure the binders don't pop open in route. I haven't seen the new style binders, but they're probably less of a pain.

 

[bsauter]

TomG,

Do you have a picture you could post of the chain loop setup you use on your binders? My little brain can't process exactly how you do it. Sounds simple and interesting though. My forks have the old style binders and dealer suggested tying them too.



Brad, Kubota L3010HST, loader, R4 tires
Pictures at http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=179207&a=9183978

 

[glennmac]

My brain is even worse. What are chain binders and loops?

 

[Bird]

Glenn, try the bottom right hand side of this page http://www.tractorsupply.com/catalog/hardware/p341.htm to see what chain binders are; also known as chain booms, binders, forged load binders,E-Z Pro Easy Release Binder, etc. If you attach both ends of a chain around something and then have some slack, you hook the binders to the chain in two places, close it, and the slack you took up between the two binder hooks is the "loop."

Bird

 

[glennmac]

Bird, thanks. I see that this has something to do with the evil, forbidden practice of chain lifting, so I should probably just avert my eyes. Anyway, so you use this thing to "shorten" a chain so it pulls tighter.

 

[Bird]

You've got it, Glenn. Maybe they should have called them chain shorteners or chain tighteners; might have made more sense. But regarding <font color=blue>the evil, forbidden practice of chain lifting</font color=blue>, you'll probably get over that someday and find that you need to engage in that practice, too, very carefully of course./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Bird

 

[TomG]

In fact, I think I used to call them 'chain tighteners,' but 'load binders' seemed to be the more common term. Guess it should be up to me to clarify things if I use obscure terms. So thanks from me too.

So now that 'load binders' is understood, I'll say that binders are very useful, even essential, for anybody who deals with chains and loads.

The problem is that there always is slack in chain secured with grab hooks, because a link has to be turned sideways to insert it into the grab hook slot. If it's important that a load can't shift at all, then binders have to be used.

Yes, and I succumbed to evil a couple days ago-a chain and bucket lift. Well, I'm not sure how else to get a 500# chunk of granite out of a 5' hole that had to be used the next day. My backhoe might have lifted it, but the hoe wasn't on, and it was starting to rain. I slowly lifted until the bottom of the rock was still hung on the edge of the hole and then drove backwards slowly. If the lift was fast, then the bucket could end up over the tractor, and there would be a 500# pendulum swinging towards the tractor when the rock cleared the hole. When I came on the scene, guys had tried splitting the rock with sledges and pulling it up the side of the hole with chain to a 4x4 trailer hitch. These methods aren't exactly safe either.

 

[LazyK]

TWINKLE_TOES... I'm a new guy also. Re: bucket forks...check some postings in other sites. Some really wise ideas and experiences are detailed.
Your posting is drawing some knowledgable people. Good Luck....also,
Welcome! You've joined a forum peopled by straight-forward, helpful members. Also, for a bunch of guys(I haven't come across any ladies) who work on tractor-related machinery, there's no swearing! Pretty classy when you read a posting about a member's clam hitch'in, forter mork'in,
tramis flink'in tractor
experience narrated without one coke sack'in
expletive!
I guess you don't need to call a grudgen pin installation
the, "gdcssobmfah," reason you crushed your thumb with the spanner.
Anyway, this place is fun.
Shoot me a msg some time. I'm over in Gig Harbor, off Hwy 16...Lazy K Stables, Inc....been here about ten years...formerly from southcentral and north slope Alaska.

Lazy K - Chip

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Chip,
"Way Cool" (Bill Nye) signature icon. I agree, this board is laced with sincere really helpfull people, with a collective knowledge measured in milleniums. There is at least one lady on this board, the Queen of the shoppers. She just outfitted her spread with a new Kubota and a complement of attachments that will bring tears to your eyes (uppermich I think was the handle). I'm sure there are more. With handles like Twinkle Toes who knows? I haven't seen a single post about bad spellen or grammmer. More focus on the content.
Gig Harbor, Sandy Loam-Life doesn't get any better than that. Could you fax me over, say 20 yards, for my clay garden? I live just across the sound in south King county. I fish Pt Defiance when ever I get a chance.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Re: Bucket Forks/Tinman!

Hey Tinman (it's been raining a bit here...hope you're not too rusty to answer

I've been considering separate loader forks (not bucket mount) also. I think another benefit may be that you can drive the extended fork/pallet combo further-forward, to position it between other stuff on each side, without being stopped as quickly by the greater-width of your loader bucket. This reduces the hassle/damage of having to "push" the pallet into position w/ the tips of the forks.

Good to hear you're so pleased with your set-up.
(Do they have a "guard" to prevent the load from rolling off toward the operator?)( How much do they weigh?)

Can you tell us the brand/model, and give a dealor so we can pursue more info?

I have no idea how many "makes" there are of this type of forks... so I'm open to any and all comment.

Thanks,

Larry

 

[Roger Mulkey]

I had good luch with a set of Gannon forks. You weld the hooks on the top/back of the loader bucket. They attach is a few seconds. You just drive up to them with the bucket dumped. I think they were about $350.

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Roger,
Thanks for taking the time to post the picture./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
Good looking tractor, a tad bigger than my B21.
I like that setup. I don't plan on lifting much more than brush piles, so I think these will work well on my rig. Thanks again.