kebo
Elite Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2006
- Messages
- 2,928
- Location
- Lexington, SC
- Tractor
- 2001 John Deere 790 4x4, bar tires
My latest custom project to make my tractor a little more "user friendly", since compact tractor manufacturers don't give you anywhere to store anything on compacts. One thing you always need on a tractor is a chain, but where to keep it?? After looking at many of the ideas and pictures of what some other TBN'ers had done, I started looking at my tractor and thinking of the best way to store a chain on it. This is what I came up with.
The Model 70 loader has brackets for the loader masts made of 2" (ID) square tubing that are open ended so I decided to try and use one of these as a mounting point for my chain bucket. I happened to have some mounting brackets left over from an adjustable width frame mounted receiver hitch (for a car/truck) that I had bought off of CL. I used the center piece of it to make a 3pt handy hitch, so I decided to see if I could "recycle" one of the end pieces to become a mounting point for the bucket itself. I wanted the bucket to be easily removable, so this seemed like the best way to go.
First off, these mounting brackets are actually 1 1/2" OD square tubing, so I welded on a 1/4" thick piece of 2" wide flat bar stock to make up most of the difference. I then only needed to take the grinder and round off the corners of the 1/4" bar stock and it fit right into the loader mast mounting bracket. It fits pretty snug, actually. Here is pic of the the modified frame hitch mounting bracket:
Next I needed a small angle bracket to be welded to the loader mast mounting bracket. The only purpose of this little bracket is for a 3/8" hole so a 3/8" pin can go through it to make the assembly removable. Here's a picture of the angle bracket I made up from 1/4" x 1 1/2" wide flat bar stock:
Here's a picture of it after a neighbor welded it to the loader mast mounting bracket for me, and I threw a coat of green paint on it:
I then needed a "bucket" to actually hold the chains inside it. Recently at my hunt club I came across an old, short piece of 4" ID heavy schedule PVC pipe laying in a creek, so I scarfed it up to "recycle" it. I used a 4" threaded end cap, but I ground off the threads, and tapped it into the end of the PVC and then simply screwed it in place. I added a small handle at the top for whenever I removed it from the tractor, it would be an easy way to carry it. Also, I drilled some holes in the end cap for water to drain out. Here's a picture of the bottom end of the bucket before paint:
And here's the finished product, all painted and ready to go with my 20ft chain installed! :thumbsup: I'm going to use it for a while and see how it works out, I may decide to shorten the length of the tube some. Right now it's about 28" long, but it may not really need to be that tall. Believe it or not, it doesn't really get in the way of my foot or leg when mounting the tractor from that side. I think I have some extra room in it for maybe a big hammer, a big adjustable wrench, and a prybar! :thumbsup: Now I just need to come up with a good story for what it is, when people ask me, "what the heck is that thing"? Maybe it's a mortar laucher!!
The Model 70 loader has brackets for the loader masts made of 2" (ID) square tubing that are open ended so I decided to try and use one of these as a mounting point for my chain bucket. I happened to have some mounting brackets left over from an adjustable width frame mounted receiver hitch (for a car/truck) that I had bought off of CL. I used the center piece of it to make a 3pt handy hitch, so I decided to see if I could "recycle" one of the end pieces to become a mounting point for the bucket itself. I wanted the bucket to be easily removable, so this seemed like the best way to go.
First off, these mounting brackets are actually 1 1/2" OD square tubing, so I welded on a 1/4" thick piece of 2" wide flat bar stock to make up most of the difference. I then only needed to take the grinder and round off the corners of the 1/4" bar stock and it fit right into the loader mast mounting bracket. It fits pretty snug, actually. Here is pic of the the modified frame hitch mounting bracket:
Next I needed a small angle bracket to be welded to the loader mast mounting bracket. The only purpose of this little bracket is for a 3/8" hole so a 3/8" pin can go through it to make the assembly removable. Here's a picture of the angle bracket I made up from 1/4" x 1 1/2" wide flat bar stock:
Here's a picture of it after a neighbor welded it to the loader mast mounting bracket for me, and I threw a coat of green paint on it:
I then needed a "bucket" to actually hold the chains inside it. Recently at my hunt club I came across an old, short piece of 4" ID heavy schedule PVC pipe laying in a creek, so I scarfed it up to "recycle" it. I used a 4" threaded end cap, but I ground off the threads, and tapped it into the end of the PVC and then simply screwed it in place. I added a small handle at the top for whenever I removed it from the tractor, it would be an easy way to carry it. Also, I drilled some holes in the end cap for water to drain out. Here's a picture of the bottom end of the bucket before paint:
And here's the finished product, all painted and ready to go with my 20ft chain installed! :thumbsup: I'm going to use it for a while and see how it works out, I may decide to shorten the length of the tube some. Right now it's about 28" long, but it may not really need to be that tall. Believe it or not, it doesn't really get in the way of my foot or leg when mounting the tractor from that side. I think I have some extra room in it for maybe a big hammer, a big adjustable wrench, and a prybar! :thumbsup: Now I just need to come up with a good story for what it is, when people ask me, "what the heck is that thing"? Maybe it's a mortar laucher!!
