grapple teeth question

[dirt clod]

Got a markham tooth bar on my L3300. Need tooth bar on my M5700. I have a cutting edge off a grader blade its 3/8" thick and tapers on one side. Thinking I could weld teeth to this. I'm looking at teeth here Dirt Works Industrial Tooth Bar, Bucket Teeth, Assembled or Build Your Own Tooth Bar
The A-175-1 teeth are a little longer, more narrow and cheaper. Would these teeth bend or break under the strain of my LA1002 loader? Should I use the A-162 instead?

 

[dirt clod]

Anyone used the A-175-1 teeth?

 

[paulinkansas]

I'm doing a similar project for my FEL, it has a plain blade bucket.

Those tooth shanks say that they are cast. I'm not a welding expert, but I thought castings can't be welded with a normal MIG or stick type welding process. How would you attach the tooth shanks to the tooth bar? I have a Hobart 187 mig.

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

cast steel can be welded, so can cast iron - it just works better if you preheat and stress relieve after on the cast iron.
On the 175 vs 162 argument - the 162 will be more heavy duty at 1.5" wide rather than 1" wide, and the shorter, thicker mounting bracket will likely be sturdier overall, but I doubt you'll be putting enough stress on them to notice a structural difference.
On the other hand - there's only $5 difference in price, so a 7 tooth bar (6'?) would save you $35 going with the 175 tooth over the other. Is peace of mind worth the $35 or is your budget that tight?

 

[dirt clod]

Price wasn't the issue. I thought the longer more narrow shaft might help with popping up brush. Guess the stronger one would be the safest bet though.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I wouldnt use cast iron or cast steel for a tooth bar. You need forged steel to be strong enough to stand up to the abuse and to weld to a grader blade. The grader blades are normally hardened or armor steel which in itself is hard to weld together and requires lots of preheat to keep the weld from cracking and a 80K tensile rod or better to hold it together. Check ebay, there is usually a dealer selling toothbars for around $200 for a 60" which may be as cheap as you can build it. I found mine on ebal last year for less than $200 including shipping. I think the guy was in the midwest that had the cheapest price.