Electric Front End Loader

[ferrari99]

First of all sorry for being a pest and asking so many questions. So here I am pestering you again. Now I would like honest opinions on 12v actuators for use in a front end loader. Also the front end loader will probably go on the two wheeled tractor I know it sounds ridiculous but anyway. So what do you think about extending the loader arms the same distance the other side of center and have a plate on the end that you step on to loft the loader. Anyway that is all of my ridiculous ideas for now.
PS. I would love a hydraulic front end loader but $ speak louder than words...

 

[ishiboo]

It would taker forever to use. Your lift capacity would be almost nothing. Whatever load you were loading would become something you had to hold up with the handlebars (which would be pushing "up").

If you do something I'd make a simple dump bucket with an electric actuator dump, but no lift function since you can do that with the handlebars. Don't spend a lot on it, it won't get much use. A small hydro garden tractor would make a much better platform, you could build it with actuators and upgrade to hydraulics when you had the money and got sick of waiting.

 

[BHD]

I am not totally following your concept here, but I have considered using a eclectic actuators on some things, but when I look up a reasonable lift capacity unit,
8.03" STROKE 500 LBS 12 VDC LINEAR ACTUATOR PRICE: $184.95
8.03" STROKE 500 LBS 12 VDC LINEAR ACTUATOR

11.34" STROKE 1000 LBS 12 VDC LINEAR ACTUATOR PRICE: $251.95
11.34" STROKE 1000 LBS 12 VDC LINEAR ACTUATOR

now may be you could get by with one unit to lift with depending on design (and I do not know how they would work in tandem if you wanted to do two on the lift arms),

ok on a normal loader one would use two on the lift arms and two on the curl or bucket, but say you only use one to lift and one to bucket, that is still pushing in the $450 range, (my guess is there slow but I have never used them).

but I do have a 12 volt hydraulic power pack on my one tone for the bed dump, and has worked well for 35 years,

if one can find one of the dc power units for a reasonable price, $300 to $400 one could still use hydraulics and the power unit would only run when needed, as mine is a electric switch, My guess is it would not use battery any faster than the actuators,

is it possible to hook up a auto motive power steering pump on the tractor, (may need more tank), but I know some farm equipment that has used them for small hydraulic systems,
worked on a feed truck that used it for running the dump gates, and seems like I have seen them used in similar but other applications, where some hydraulic power was needed,

 

[Baby Grand]

If you really have your mind set on a FEL for the 2 wheeler, then BHD's power steering pump sounds like a great idea. Could be done cheap using used pump & steering or plow cylinder. I'm not a good judge of electrical machinery and I have to wonder if drawing 24 Amps at 12 V for 16 seconds continuous (full cycle time) to get full travel at max load seems like it would be a burden on your battery/charging system if done frequently - that's for the 8" stroke actuator that BHD listed.

 

[BHD]

this thread has got me thinking for my lawn tractor, with a vertical engine, when I use it for "OTHER" not mowing I usually take the deck off of it,

in the past, the thought is where do I hook up a pump on this thing

I could build a plate with a small pump bolted on it, that would mount where the deck mounts and hook up the same belt as the mower uses, (if necessary one could use a horizontal mount of the pump and twist the belt,

or may be it could be mounted in front of the tractor, instead of where the deck sets,

just kicking around ideas,

make a "quick attach loader" that can drop off the tractor with a few bolts or pins, and on it would be the reservoir, (had a loader on a large tractor and the reservoir was in the frame of the loader, mount a small set of open center valves on the loader arm up right and it probably would not be any worse than unmounting the deck or mounting it, depending on how the frame of the loader was made possible to mount the pump to be belt drive and bolted in to a section of the frame if it wrapped around the front of the tractor, a complete self contained unit,

if wanted could put an extra circuit on it and have a remote, for other rear attachment, (I suppose one could even run log splitter off the unit), (may take a power beyond circuit or a few quick connects at the vales to unhook the loader and the splitter up,

 

[J_J]

If that is all you have, you would learn to like it.

It would be slow and not able to lift much, but I don't know how much you want to lift.

You might be better off with a small GPM hyd pump ran off the fan belt and a two spool valve.

You could purchase a pump and valve for the price you quoted, and be able to lift your front end off the ground.

3 GPM at 3000 psi only requires about 6 HP only when using the hyd at full load..

 

[ferrari99]

I know actuators are slow but they are cheap/simple. How would a 12v power pack work (I kind of get the idea but don't know much about hydraulics)? I am sure you could work something out with hydraulics but one problem is the only drive source I have is the pto which only spins at 990rpm, I could just add another little engine. I would like to work something for hydraulics but I dunno... Thanks for your help so far.

 

[ferrari99]

As I understand now (correct me if I am wrong) I would need the following to go hydraulic:

12 VDC HYD POWER PACK W/SA SOLENOID VALVE Pump/tank.

2X12X1.125 DA HYD CYL W200120-S Cylinder double acting but I read you just plug one hole.

SAE 6 PLUG Plug to plug the other hole.

JIC 6M x SAE 6M SWIVEL 90 ELBOW Elbow from hose to cylinder.

1/4" X 36" JIC 6F X JIC 6F 5000 PSI HYD HOSE Hose from pump to cylinder.

So all that comes to between three and four hundred dollars which I don't think is ridiculous for hydraulic.

 

[BHD]

I am guessing this is your tractor you have since this is your posted picture



now how will a loader work on this,

how will one support the load, say you have a bucket on it and scoop up some dirt, say one cubic foot, and that would weigh about 100 pounds, and if that is two feet in front of the wheels it will take 100 extra pounds two feet behind the wheels to keep it balanced,

so to load a wheel barrow that is 5 cubic foot it would take 5 to 6 loads, and if it was a larger than one cubic foot bucket I could not hold the back of it down, unless one extended the handles out there a good number of feet to increases the leverage of the handles to handle the weight,

am I not thinking this through correctly,

how high do you plan on the bucket lifting?

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going back to the electric idea, have you considered a small electric winch, to lift with? and a trip on the bucket to dump.

back before hydraulics there were loaders that lifted with cables and winches, even crawler tractors used cable lift systems, and now there is small electric winches that could be used and there reasonable in cost,
https://www.google.com/search?num=1...j2.2.0....0...1c.1.37.serp..2.0.0.zEosAlpIqg0

I see some for as low as $70 on the page I posted,

page on old cable loaders
http://www.earthmover.com.au/news/2013/may/may-30/the-malcolm-moore-cable-loader-friends

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loader on full sized tractors can become dangerously light on the rear end of the tractor, if one has a heavy load on the front,


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and if you have a pto making a mount to put a pump on it would be the simplest, and cheaper,

simple hydraulic system pump, tank, valve and cylinder, hoses,

you have a tank that holds oil, and a hose runs to the pump tank above pump best, pump moves the oil to the valve, and then a return line to the tank

when no working the oil (open center system), the oil just goes around and around in circles from tank to valve and then back to tank,

OK when you move the valve, oil is sent to a cylinder, and the oil pushes the piston in the cylinder,

If double acting there are two lines and oil is pushed out of the unpressured side back to tank via the valve and when the valve is in the opposite direction the other side of the cylinder is pressured,

on a single acting cylinder one hose and oil pushes the rod and vale holds it in place, reverse the vale it let it dump back to the tank (tank needs enough oil to fill cylinder full with out running out).

 

[BHD]

here is a garden type tractor with a winch lift system. and the bucket trips

http://www.wheelhorseforum.com/topic/22806-rj-58-with-trip-bucket-loader/