Grapple ideas and how are these companies?
- Thread starter smokin joe
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You should also think about which ones want payment in full when placing your order. Can be a lot of time for you to loan your money interest free to them.
TractorTYMe
Veteran Member
One thing that many people miss is the heavier grapple, the less your lifiting capacity will be. So the lightest grapple will always retain the higher lift capacity. I 2nd the Homestead Implement one. have had mine for two years now, absolutely satisfied with it. I have the Root Grapple Pinnacle series in 72''.
screamin400
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I run a dual lid EA. I looked at quite a few and thought they looked the best at the time. I cannot say it is the best as I have not tried anything different. I will tell you my experience with it though. I purchased it for a 38hp Mahindra and it was awesome. I then upgraded my tractor to a 55 hp Mahindra and it could not tear the grapple apart. I then put if on an svl 65. I am the first to tell you this grapple should never get on this machine but I was not going to buy another grapple. My svl could not tear it up. I now have a Case 110c and an svl75 to put it on. Like I said before that grapple should never get onto either of these machines and it was not built for anything like this. I use it often in my business and it has held up to these tractors. Possibly others could have also I do not know. I am not an EA fanboy I just put my money where I think it is best spent.
JohnnyMX
Gold Member
W.R. Long open bottom with 2 clamps which was what my dealer had available. Not too heavy and it has been more than strong enough for me at this point. It is also a longer tine bottom which I like, but have not used the other. It makes it nice when you need to stack things on it.
OP
smokin joe
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Thank you all. Because of the information in this thread I am now leaning toward artillian or virnig though EA is nit out. I have changed from a root rake style to a root/rock or long bottom dual-lid grapple.
Xfaxman
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Another advantage of the long bottom style is that you can open the lids and carry small brush picked up over a large area:
And then grab some big stuff:
how many of these can you demo before buying? Maybe check the rental yard and see if they they have a short and long bottom you can test out. I have a stinger stump bucket with grapple that would be very similar to the frostbite 42. The stinger bucket is, so far, bullet proof even on a SVL95 or Bobcat T650 skid. Their tractor grapple looks interesting but I dont have any first hand knowledge with it.
DeerPark5
New member
I have a Homestead - I love it. An issue with hydraulic hooks matching upon arrival - they handled it quickly and the problem was solved. Get a good one. I bought some lessor implements with fewer moving parts are requirements for technical build than a grapple and have been disappointed. I wouldn't want to deal with any of that with a grapple. BTW the EA is highly rated too.
Jrasband
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Thanks for the heads up I won't either!
ericm979
Super Member
I have an EA dual lid long tine grapple. I use it for moving logs and brush. I think it's a good compromise if you move things other than logs.
With heavy logs I have noticed that the long tines can sometimes make it so the loader can't curl the log up. I can pick up the log but can't curl it. So I carry it with the grapple pointed down.
I think the loader capacity of the L3901 is a bit lower than my Branson. I cut my logs to 8' since I'm turning them into firewood and the shorter log is easier to move in tight spaces. But even with 8' logs I find that a 2' diameter hardwood log is getting close to the tractor's limit. If your logs are much over 2' you might not be able to pick them up.
You'll also want significant ballast on the back. With loaded rear tires and a 550 lb box blade the rear of my Branson still gets light when the loader is nearing capacity. I think L3901s weight a lot less than the Branson and would need more ballast.
I use the grapple a lot, to the point that I only put the pallet forks on when I need to move a firewood tote and only put the bucket on when moving dirt. It wasn't cheap but it's been worth it.
With heavy logs I have noticed that the long tines can sometimes make it so the loader can't curl the log up. I can pick up the log but can't curl it. So I carry it with the grapple pointed down.
I think the loader capacity of the L3901 is a bit lower than my Branson. I cut my logs to 8' since I'm turning them into firewood and the shorter log is easier to move in tight spaces. But even with 8' logs I find that a 2' diameter hardwood log is getting close to the tractor's limit. If your logs are much over 2' you might not be able to pick them up.
You'll also want significant ballast on the back. With loaded rear tires and a 550 lb box blade the rear of my Branson still gets light when the loader is nearing capacity. I think L3901s weight a lot less than the Branson and would need more ballast.
I use the grapple a lot, to the point that I only put the pallet forks on when I need to move a firewood tote and only put the bucket on when moving dirt. It wasn't cheap but it's been worth it.
nch77
Bronze Member
I bought a Construction Attachments Inc grapple for my skid steer, I don't think there is a better made grapple out there. Downside is its expensive with about six week lead time. I bought this one because I wanted something my T870 couldn't tear up. I really like it, very sturdy build, large cylinder, grease points everywhere it can use them.
Attachments
TX0303
New member
Also look at MTL Attachments. I have one of their single lid grapples. Very well built at a competitive price.
One thing to look for in a grapple is whether the pivot points are greaseable. Some of the cheaper ones are not.
One thing to look for in a grapple is whether the pivot points are greaseable. Some of the cheaper ones are not.
hornett22
Veteran Member
I agree, I was getting ready to order a few things when they pulled the forced jab stunt. I already didn't care for his bashing other companies products on every forum he could find but the forced jab thing sealed their fate with me.
Still hammering that MTL grapple he told me was junk and wouldn't last. Haven't had an issue yet.
Too many other great companies out there that aren't clowns.
hornett22
Veteran Member
Agreed, mine has been fantastic. No issues in 3 years of heavy use.
shooterdon
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Your loader does not have much lift capacity. Think about that when looking at options.
Not a problem with brush but logs can get heavy. A 16" 12 foot long oak will weigh about 1000 lbs. Your loader can lift about 1200 lbs.
Not a problem with brush but logs can get heavy. A 16" 12 foot long oak will weigh about 1000 lbs. Your loader can lift about 1200 lbs.
Looks from pic you have a V30 URG54 grapple. How is your B2301 handling the 250 lb grapple and how are you ballasting the back end? I am looking at the same grapple or 60" (300 lb) and appreciate your firsthand experience. Thank you.
I would not expect you tractor to be very usefull with a grapple weighing almost half its lifting capacity at 19in away from the pin. With a 12"x8' piece of pine your only 50lbs under capacity.
Vigo327
Platinum Member
Well, it depends what you're trying to do. If you're trying to load something heavy over the side of a dump trailer it's going to be pathetic. If you are trying to hold something a little above waist height for chainsaw work, or place on an open deck trailer etc, a 1025r could still lift a fairly heavy object to that height even with a 250lb grapple on it. I snipped this from TractorData:
Figure a grapple can hold 'a log' closer to the pins than a bucket can, so you're looking at something between the (at pin) and (at 500mm) numbers. My comfortable chainsaw height is less than 1.5M so you're looking at something between the breakout (ground level) and 1.5m numbers. So to lift a log say 3-4ft off the ground in the grapple, you'd have probably around 1000lbs to play with even considering the grapple weight. My Kubota BF300 loader has a very similar lift to full height spec and i've lifted almost 1200lbs (not counting the bucket!) to unload from a truck bed, for example.
Figure a grapple can hold 'a log' closer to the pins than a bucket can, so you're looking at something between the (at pin) and (at 500mm) numbers. My comfortable chainsaw height is less than 1.5M so you're looking at something between the breakout (ground level) and 1.5m numbers. So to lift a log say 3-4ft off the ground in the grapple, you'd have probably around 1000lbs to play with even considering the grapple weight. My Kubota BF300 loader has a very similar lift to full height spec and i've lifted almost 1200lbs (not counting the bucket!) to unload from a truck bed, for example.
