Grubbing tongs

[Anonymous Poster]

This is directed toward the Synthetic lubricant favoring ,HST addicted maniac who frequents this site. I finally got the tongs today. Look awesome. I probably won't have time to use them this weekend. I bet my little 4310 wont ever bend or damage them. I am going to pick up a pulley and make the device you recommended to save the wear and tear on the cable. At least the cable is fairly easy to replace. Thanks for the info..
Greg H.

 

[gordon]

Those must be some mighty tough tongs if you think that your 4310 wont hurt them!!!
Gordon

 

[MChalkley]

Gordon - I see you knew who Greg was talking about. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Mark

 

[Rowski]

I've been searchimg this site for these tongs. Could find info about them but no picture. Someone said they got a picture sent to them. Anyway it could be posted? thanx.

Rowski

 

[MChalkley]

Rowski - I'll do ya one better than that: I'll walk out to the truck with the camera, and take a picture of the real thing. I was going to do if for Greg anyway, so he could see the modification I put on it.

Mark

 

[MChalkley]

Here's a picture of the grubbing tongs. The thing sticking back toward the cable is a swinging plate designed for stuff smaller than 1 1/2". For size reference, there's a quarter laying on it. Also on the arm by the cable attachment point at the top of the picture, you'll see a spot of weld. That's a modification to keep the plate from contacting the cable attachment point. One time when I was using it, the swing plate somehow rode up on the cable and I had to go get a hammer to slide it back off. To the far right is the enhanced chain attachment shackle, which I'll post a close-up of next.

Mark

 

[MChalkley]

Here's a picture of the shackle I made (actually my friend mostly made) to make the cable last longer and make it easier to hook up. Pure overkill. But it works.

Basically, it's a shackle with pulley centered by two bronze spacers, with a piece of steel welded across the throat to hold the cable in the pulley.

Mark

 

[MChalkley]

Oh yeah, I almost forgot: The little white thing in the pulley is a spider that built his home in a bad place. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Mark

 

[Will]

Alright, I give up. What are you supposed to do with grubbing tongs?

 

[gordon]

Will they are for squishing the Southern walnut grubb worm. Although very rare when pan fried very tasty!!!/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Really Will they are for pulling up small trees they work by friction and from what has been said on this board they work really well. Now that Mark was kind enough to post a picture of them I can make a pair out of some 1/2 plate steel and crimp a cable to the ears.
Gordon

 

[MChalkley]

Gordon - Actually, I think you could make some pretty serviceable ones out of 1/2" plate. I'll have to measure them to be sure, but I think these things I bought are 1" thick plate. You might could break the cable with a dozer or something, but you wouldn't hurt the tongs themselves. I've never seen anything so over-built in my life. Of course, you could make two pairs out of 1/2" plate and weld them together...

I think, for the price, it's cheaper to buy them than make them. I'd rather spend my time making stuff I can't get that cheaply or at all. And I can vouch for them - they really work!

Mark

 

[gordon]

Not to be rude but how much did they cost? If they are 1" plate thats hard to beat. I've got some 1/4" plate steel in stock but would have to buy the 1/2 plate thought I had some left from a patch job last year. I looked today and I be darned if I could find it.
Gordon

 

[Rowski]

Mark,

Thanks. I have seen something like that, but didn't know what it is called. They didn't have a cable just the fingers attached to two links with a grap hook in the center for hooking up a chain. I'll add these to my want list. Or maybe the need list.

Rowski

 

[MChalkley]

Gordon - $100. I'll measure them tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they're at least 1" thick. As I said before, I was very surprised they have an unconditional warranty on breakage - until I took them out of the box - then I understood.

Mark

 

[MChalkley]

Rowski - You seem to be one of my best customers! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

I didn't buy them the first time I saw them because I was afraid I'd break them. Then I forgot where I'd seen them. Then, when someone on this board told me they were in the Cumberland General Store catalog, I saw they have an unconditional warranty on them. So I decided I didn't have too much to lose. And now that I have them, I'm rather rueful of all the time I spent doing it the hard way.

Mark

 

[Rowski]

Mark,

To be a customer I must BUY something /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif. Or maybe I just want my NH to be like your Kubota /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif. I don't think it could or will EVER happen. In my line of work I'm always trying to get better parts and tools, basically fixing peoples car trouble and then dealing with the part manufacturers troubles. So when I see something that works I like to know a lot about it espeically why. If the tongs are 1" thick it would more than 45 hp to break!

Rowski

 

[MChalkley]

Rowski - The Cumberland catalog says "guaranteed not to break or side bend", if I remember correctly. It was bending sideways that I was worried about. Not anymore. I'll never bend these things. And if the cable does ever break, I've got some chain that'll fit on it that'll never break, either.

Mark

 

[Rowski]

Mark,

How much do they weigh? I'm guessing 40ish LBS

Rowski

 

[MChalkley]

Rowski - I think the catalog listing said 27 pounds. At any rate, I'd guess around 30.

Mark

 

[Rowski]

Mark,

Thanks. I was close. Later.

Rowski