Grappling fun - A Picture Thread....

[rswyan]

Here's a few of my recently (yesterday) completed home-built root rake/grapple ... I'm sure lovin' it so far:

 

[IslandTractor]

Here's a few of my recently (yesterday) completed home-built root rake/grapple ... I'm sure lovin' it so far:

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Interesting and quite novel clamshell design. I like the fact that the upper arm pivot point is moved forward a foot or so. That will prevent the dreaded "pinch point" problem inherent to clamshells where the first log is clamped but prevents the grapple from closing further so the rest of the load falls out.

Show us more of what it can do. Nice work!!

 

[TomSeller]

Here's a few of my recently (yesterday) completed home-built root rake/grapple ... I'm sure lovin' it so far:

And you should. Pretty dang nice! Good job!

 

[dragoneggs]

And you should. Pretty dang nice! Good job!

You can say that again... too bad we don't have the double post problem anymore :laughing:

 

[rswyan]

Interesting and quite novel clamshell design. I like the fact that the upper arm pivot point is moved forward a foot or so. That will prevent the dreaded "pinch point" problem inherent to clamshells where the first log is clamped but prevents the grapple from closing further so the rest of the load falls out.

That was the idea ...

Show us more of what it can do.

My pleasure.

From yesterday:

From today:

Nice work!!

Thanks ...

 

[rswyan]

And you should. Pretty dang nice! Good job!

Thank you very much.

I spent most of today moving debris - mostly old logs and stumps - to the rear (south) property line. There used to be a large pile of them in the photo below:

There's a shared trail between my neighbor (east) and I, which connects to a gas line right of way on the south end of properties. It's where I took these two photos from.

We've both had some problems with trespassers, so I blocked off access to our properties (via that trail) from the gas line right of way:

Still have many, many loads to go.

Yesterday (and this evening) I worked on clearing out the area below ... we used to have a garden (mid-ground, on the far side of the wood pile) ... in the background the trees have encroached from my neighbor's property, which is what I was clearing:

 

[IslandTractor]

rswyan, can you show us some photos of your grapple without a load to demonstrate the geometry wide open and fully closed? Side view would be best. The pivot point arrangement is unique. I thought initially that the pivot point was forward of the frame but another TBNer pointed out that actually there is a pivot point at the frame it's just higher than on a typical clamshell. It looks to me now like you avoided the pinching problem of a scissor type joint by designing in a void with "C" type upper jaw so there is never contact between the upper jaw and back of the grapple as happens with a typical clamshell. What do you call your design? A cantilevered clamshell????

 

[rswyan]

rswyan, can you show us some photos of your grapple without a load to demonstrate the geometry wide open and fully closed? Side view would be best.

Sure, wide open:

Works pretty good for raking too:

Jaw opening, tip to tip = 55 1/4"

Jaw height from ground when open, with lower jaw/frame oriented vertical = 54"

The one below is of it closed ... BEFORE I cut off some metal on the upper jaw arms (where it was contacting the bottom of the hydraulic cylinders and preventing it from closing further) and lengthened the hydraulic cylinders by 1/2".

It closes a little further now - the tips of the upper jaw are probably within an inch or so of the slots in the root rake:

Sorry ... don't have any current side view pics of closed in it's current config. If I can remember I'll snap some later today ...

The pivot point arrangement is unique. I thought initially that the pivot point was forward of the frame but another TBNer pointed out that actually there is a pivot point at the frame it's just higher than on a typical clamshell. It looks to me now like you avoided the pinching problem of a scissor type joint by designing in a void with "C" type upper jaw so there is never contact between the upper jaw and back of the grapple as happens with a typical clamshell. What do you call your design? A cantilevered clamshell????

Sounds good to me ... :thumbsup:

:laughing: