for years i've been meaning to do some work to the bucket on my jd770, but i never seem to get around to doing it. last sunday morning i finally took the plunge and got to it. part of the reason i never put any hooks on it was that the bucket does not have a strong enough top edge to make a solid support point, so i needed to strengthen the top edge a little too.
i don't like keeping my trailers in the driveway or on the lawn, so i often park them in the field behind the house when not needed (along with the carcasses from a couple of old project trucks), and in order to keep the grass from dying under them, i have to move them around and mow the tall grass. rather than drive a truck out back, i often just use the tractor, and wrap a chain around the bucket and lift up the tongue of the trailer. this is a rubber-band operation at best with the chain, so i decided to make it so i could put a hitch on the bucket to make it easier. obviously i'm not the first with this idea, since i came across another post a while back where someone had the same idea and already did this. mine was built from necessity and availability though - i just happened to have part of an old receiver hitch i had torched off an old 1-ton dump truck lying around.
here is what i did:
the jd770/model 70 loader bucket is pretty thin - i'd say about 11ga (1/8") steel bent into a j-shape on the top. i had a few lengths of used 1 1/4" galvanized pipe sitting around, so i used a length of that right under the top of the bucket by the front edge. it's not bend resistant, but to be honest, it's light and that tractor doesn't have a ton of lift capacity anyways, so i didn't see the sense in overkill. plus, i had dragged some of it home for free a few years ago, so cost was zero.
i just used an intermittent weld along that edge. i couldn't really get the head of the wire feed in behind it well, not to mention that i couldn't see back there anyways. i could have stuffed the stick back in there and got some strength by feel, but i decided i'd try something else later.
i flipped the bucket over and drilled several holes through the top of the bucket and plug welded it to the pipe i had put in. i might get around to grinding them down and painting over them, but don't hold your breath. i then cut the head off the old hitch and put it on a piece of 1/4" plate.
i really need to get a new vise for that thing.
rather than just put washers and nuts on the backside, i wanted a little more support to keep things from pulling through the top of the bucket, so i dug through the scrap bin and found a length of pre-drilled 1x1/4 flat from a garage door opener bracket. i cut it into two pieces then drilled and tapped the end holes.
i drilled the top of the bucket and bolted it all up.looks like it will work well. also helps that i've ended up with a pair of 6" drop drawbars from buying different used vehicles that i never had a use for until now.
i don't like keeping my trailers in the driveway or on the lawn, so i often park them in the field behind the house when not needed (along with the carcasses from a couple of old project trucks), and in order to keep the grass from dying under them, i have to move them around and mow the tall grass. rather than drive a truck out back, i often just use the tractor, and wrap a chain around the bucket and lift up the tongue of the trailer. this is a rubber-band operation at best with the chain, so i decided to make it so i could put a hitch on the bucket to make it easier. obviously i'm not the first with this idea, since i came across another post a while back where someone had the same idea and already did this. mine was built from necessity and availability though - i just happened to have part of an old receiver hitch i had torched off an old 1-ton dump truck lying around.
here is what i did:
the jd770/model 70 loader bucket is pretty thin - i'd say about 11ga (1/8") steel bent into a j-shape on the top. i had a few lengths of used 1 1/4" galvanized pipe sitting around, so i used a length of that right under the top of the bucket by the front edge. it's not bend resistant, but to be honest, it's light and that tractor doesn't have a ton of lift capacity anyways, so i didn't see the sense in overkill. plus, i had dragged some of it home for free a few years ago, so cost was zero.
i just used an intermittent weld along that edge. i couldn't really get the head of the wire feed in behind it well, not to mention that i couldn't see back there anyways. i could have stuffed the stick back in there and got some strength by feel, but i decided i'd try something else later.
i flipped the bucket over and drilled several holes through the top of the bucket and plug welded it to the pipe i had put in. i might get around to grinding them down and painting over them, but don't hold your breath. i then cut the head off the old hitch and put it on a piece of 1/4" plate.
i really need to get a new vise for that thing.
rather than just put washers and nuts on the backside, i wanted a little more support to keep things from pulling through the top of the bucket, so i dug through the scrap bin and found a length of pre-drilled 1x1/4 flat from a garage door opener bracket. i cut it into two pieces then drilled and tapped the end holes.
i drilled the top of the bucket and bolted it all up.looks like it will work well. also helps that i've ended up with a pair of 6" drop drawbars from buying different used vehicles that i never had a use for until now.
After all that is half the fun of owning a tractor and being somewhat handy.:thumbsup: Sometimes you just can't buy the tool you need and have to make it. That is how many products come into being. TBN seems to be a showcase for people sharing ideas/projects of what 
