Loader Cubic yards of a 6' wide bucket (JD 553 FEL loader)?

[CobyRupert]

Anyone know what, or where to find out, the cubic yard capacity of an (average) 6' wide tractor bucket (or FEL as referred to around here)?

The wife's hayburner (aka: horse) is coming and we want to buy a load of sawdust. We can get it cheap if we buy it by the 10 yard truckload. Problem is a big truck can't dump it where we want to store it and use it. So how many trips with the tractor will it take to relocate the pile?

Rough number estimate: If the bucket was a rectangular box 6' long x 1.25' wide x 1.5' tall= 11.25 cu feet, but its profile is a triangle so divide by two = 5.625 cu ft = (divide by 27)= .208 cubic yard if completely full? Consider that one only scoops/fills a bucket about 80% = .166 cubic yards? So it takes (10 cubic yards divided by .166 =) 60 buckets to fill/move a 10 yard dump truck load? That seems too many? Where am I going wrong?

 

[EverythingAttachments]

You can compare the dimensions of your bucket to the custom buckets that we offer. Find the one that is closest to yours, click on it, and it tells you the cu ft. capacity.
Travis

 

[k0ua]

Anyone know what, or where to find out, the cubic yard capacity of an (average) 6' wide tractor bucket is (or FEL as referred to around here).

The wife's hayburner (aka: horse) is coming and we want to buy a load of sawdust. We can get it cheap if we buy it by the 10 yard truckload. Problem is a big truck can't dump it where we want to store it and use it. So how many trips with the tractor will it take to relocate the pile?

Rough number estimate: If the bucket was a rectangular box 6' long x 1.25' wide x 1.5' tall= 11.25 cu feet, but its profile is a triangle so divide by two = 5.625 cu ft = (divide by 27)= .208 cubic yard if completely full? Consider that one only scoops/fills a bucket about 80% = .166 cubic yards? So it takes (10 cubic yards divided by .166 =) 60 buckets to fill/move a 10 yard dump truck load? That seems too many? Where am I going wrong?

Figure on about 25 trips with you bucket.

 

[CobyRupert]

Thanks Ted. Lots of good info.
Checking math: Looking at your 1354 (72" x 20" x 20") or (6' x 1.66' x 1.66' )= 16.66 cu. ft. (if it was a "rectangular box", 100% full) Your listed capacity is 12.77 cu. ft. (or about 75% of a "box"). Yeah that seems/could be about right, if you have a "heaping" load.
Say I can scoop 12.77 cu ft (.47 cu yard), that's going to equal 21 trips for a 10 yard truck (or 26 trips if scoops are 80% full) . Hmmmm? That does that seems high?
Anybody got any experience filling dump trucks?

 

[CobyRupert]

Ha, Koua, I didn't see your post! 25 or 26. OK!

 

[k0ua]

Ha, Koua, I didn't see your post! 25 or 26. OK!

I didn't do any math, that was my "seat of the pants" calculation from experience.

 

[jenkinsph]

I agree with kOua, 25 trips sounds about right. You might be able to carry more with it heaped but would likely spill more of it too.

 

[Egon]

Fill the bucket with water.:thumbsup:

 

[CobyRupert]

Fill the bucket with water.:thumbsup:

..and then count the number of five gallon pails it takes to empty? (& then divide by 40.3948 for cubic yards?) Know any garden hose flowmeter attachments?

 

[RedNeckRacin]

just do it, saw dust is light and it gives you an excuse to use your tractor. We get it brought in by the tri-axle load for our horses and usually just use the tractor bucket to put it in the stalls. :thumbsup: