DIY: Bucket-mounted T-Post driver

[TXHF]

I know there's a guy who makes these in OK but It looks far too simple to spend $150 on one when I can do it for under $50 myself.

I bought a 16 lb T post driver and had a 5/8" receiver pin handy. Some 2" x 1/4" flat steel and a piece of strut channel was laying around. I had to buy the rod-end bearing, a bolt to fit it and two 1/2" bolts with washers and nuts.

I cut three pieces of the 2" stock and center drilled the 5" piece to receive the bolt for the rod-end. I bolted the rod-end to this steel then notched the other two pieces of steel to fit around the hex head. The thickness was needed to clear the bolt head on top of the post driver. I welded the rod-end to the plate as well. The bolt was to add strength to the rod-end to be sure it didn't collapse. I ground off the powder coating from the post driver and welded this to the top. The rod-end is rated for 10,000 lbs. I took a piece of strut channel and drilled two sets of holes through the sides to put the hitch pin through. I then added two gussets to be sure the strut channel doesn't fold or collapse. The second hole in the strut was for a long carriage bolt where I will attach a length of chain with a steel plate at the other end to mark the T Post depth. I'll have an updated photo of that once the paint dries. The strut will mount to the under-side of the bucket with two drilled 1/2" holes, the driver will suspend from the strut channel using the hitch pin. I'm quite certain this will be more than adequate for driving 300 posts. I will try and get a video if us in action when this does take place.

I know, my welding leaves a lot to be desired... I'm still learning!

 

[Duke460]

Can you show it attached ?

 

[TXHF]

Can you show it attached ?

My tractor isn't in yet. LOL! But, in the first photo, the two bolts you see will be securing this rig to the bottom of the bucket.

 

[BoylermanCT]

I saw the youtube video of the guy in Oklahoma.

Tee post Driver System - YouTube

Any concern in driving the t post in at the side of the bucket - unbalanced force on the front end loader. I would take a blank quick attach plate and rig it up in the middle so you get even load on the loader arms.

 

[Cataclysm]

We just set the bucket on top of the T post and push them in. If tractor isn't heavy enough and the T post won't push in get a load of dirt in the bucket and it will push the T post in or bend it.

 

[TomSeller]

We just set the bucket on top of the T post and push them in. If tractor isn't heavy enough and the T post won't push in get a load of dirt in the bucket and it will push the T post in or bend it.

"or bend it". My soils are too hard except maybe in spring in some areas.

 

[TXHF]

I saw the youtube video of the guy in Oklahoma.

Tee post Driver System - YouTube

Any concern in driving the t post in at the side of the bucket - unbalanced force on the front end loader. I would take a blank quick attach plate and rig it up in the middle so you get even load on the loader arms.

No concern since it is a slow push and a t post will give up and bend before the tractor is stressed. A smaller tractor than the 2538, I might be concerned though.

We thought of pushing bucket only but I wanted something less dangerous. One slip with the bucket can be serious. This allows us to set a post without someone holding it.

That is the guy and the video I watched. Great idea but easy to build your own. Just need to learn more about my welder. Lol! I am confident the ugly welds will hold though. You don't have to be perfect, just good with a grinder, right?

 

[KWentling]

What I have done is take about a 1" long piece of pipe big enough for the t-post to fit in and weld it to the bottom of the bucket. That's enough to keep the post from slipping. Our ground is pretty hard and I have had to get a partial bucket of dirt to help with the push, and this is with a 100hp tractor and 8' bucket. Depending on the size of your tractor and the visibility, you might want to weld that on one side or the other so you can see. The wife and I have done at least a hundred this way, and only bent a few. Our ground is clay and gets terribly hard in the dry summer, so we try to fence in the spring.

 

[Cavjock22]

Great idea in soft farm country. I don't believe this would work in South Texas. I could be wrong but I just don't see it working ..

 

[treefarmerguy]

What I have done is take about a 1" long piece of pipe big enough for the t-post to fit in and weld it to the bottom of the bucket. That's enough to keep the post from slipping. Our ground is pretty hard and I have had to get a partial bucket of dirt to help with the push, and this is with a 100hp tractor and 8' bucket. Depending on the size of your tractor and the visibility, you might want to weld that on one side or the other so you can see. The wife and I have done at least a hundred this way, and only bent a few. Our ground is clay and gets terribly hard in the dry summer, so we try to fence in the spring.

Use caution when using a bucket as a sledge hammer! One of the hired hands at the farm I worked at started dropping the bucket on posts that were held by a helper to set them in the ground. The helper is ok but eventually one of the loader arms cracked almost all the way around. It was able to be fixed by a local welder. My L5030 bucket won't drop like the one at the farm did so I'm not sure if this would work on today's tractors. Good luck!