Hydraulic thumb for a BX25-D

[4shorts]

After I did the install install on Land Pride grapple and third function valve my little brain got to thinking and I've decided it was time for the mechanical thumb to go on the BX. Yes it worked well but it was a royal pain having to get on and off the machine to set the thumb up.
I decided this week it was time for a mid winter break and spend some "me time" in the shop at the tractors so the hydraulic thumb is something I really wanted to do.
Finding the proper hydraulic cylinder was impossible so the next thing was to " Modify" one and I likey doing that :laughing:

Here's Part #1 of the challenge.

 

[WaxMan]

Very Nice video, well done. I can't wait for part two

 

[4shorts]

Very Nice video, well done. I can't wait for part two

Thanks man. Hey, did you ever have one of those days where you realize you shouldn't have got out of bed
Omg. This was one of those days. I cleared up some work in the shop and got back at the hydraulic thumb project. Well everything went to crap. The lathe popped a start relay. Got it back up and running then hit a snag with the thumb mod

Wait til you see the part 2 video but hey, I'm still on the top side of the sod :laughing:

 

[cschulz]

At-A-Boy Paul!
We all have good and bad days for sure. All will be better tomorrow. As far as the snag you have to try it to find the problems right. Good Luck and thanks for posting




Chris

 

[ericdube]

Looks great Paul! Top notch work as always! Having had both a mechanical thumb (on my B2620) and Hydraulic thumb (on my L4760), I completely agree with you that the mechanical thumb is nice but rather disruptive to operate while you're working.

Can't wait to see the completed project and thanks again for sharing your work!

 

[4shorts]

At-A-Boy Paul!
We all have good and bad days for sure. All will be better tomorrow. As far as the snag you have to try it to find the problems right. Good Luck and thanks for posting

Chris

Ya we all have those days for sure. When I ran into the snag with the thumb mod I went over to the lathe and then that fried a start relay I didn't know if I should cry, quit or both :laughing:
I got the lathe back online then got the issues at hand taken care of and everything just worked out perfectly but the next video will show what can and does go wrong with some of these mods. I should have it all completed some time this weekend and the video up.

Looks great Paul! Top notch work as always! Having had both a mechanical thumb (on my B2620) and Hydraulic thumb (on my L4760), I completely agree with you that the mechanical thumb is nice but rather disruptive to operate while you're working.

Can't wait to see the completed project and thanks again for sharing your work!

Thanks Eric. Your absolutely right about the differences in the thumbs. I'm really pleased with the way this thumb project is going. It really looks OEM.

Hey how's the new machine and blade? I bet your loving it. Get the charging system worked out?
Nice looking unit my friend. :thumbsup:

 

[ericdube]

Thanks Eric. Your absolutely right about the differences in the thumbs. I'm really pleased with the way this thumb project is going. It really looks OEM.

Hey how's the new machine and blade? I bet your loving it. Get the charging system worked out?
Nice looking unit my friend. :thumbsup:

The plow has been working great for me - definitely one of the best snow removal purchases I've done to date. As for the charging system, I've been meaning to start a thread on it to let others know about the issue in more detail but yes, the dealer was finally able to get it fixed. Kubota has actually developed a new alternator upgrade kit (P/N T0350-99550) for the L60 (my L4760 was one of the first 10 to be upgraded based on what they told me.) It consists of a new 90-amp alternator (originally had a 60-amp alternator), longer belt, and a new wiring harness. The new alternator is massive compared to the old one and barely fits in the engine bay!

No question that it's going to look factory once you're finished and the hydraulic cylinder came out great! :thumbsup: Also, instead of having to disconnect the front hydraulics to the grapple when you want to use the thumb, have you considered plumbing the hydraulics like sqidget did on his BX hydraulic thumb installation? Either way will work fine for your needs, but it was just a thought for convenience.

 

[6Burgh]

Awesome part 1 video. Enjoyed it. Was very informative!

 

[varmint]

Hurry up with part 2! Great entertainment, educational, even.

 

[4shorts]

The plow has been working great for me - definitely one of the best snow removal purchases I've done to date. As for the charging system, I've been meaning to start a thread on it to let others know about the issue in more detail but yes, the dealer was finally able to get it fixed. Kubota has actually developed a new alternator upgrade kit (P/N T0350-99550) for the L60 (my L4760 was one of the first 10 to be upgraded based on what they told me.) It consists of a new 90-amp alternator (originally had a 60-amp alternator), longer belt, and a new wiring harness. The new alternator is massive compared to the old one and barely fits in the engine bay!

No question that it's going to look factory once you're finished and the hydraulic cylinder came out great! :thumbsup: Also, instead of having to disconnect the front hydraulics to the grapple when you want to use the thumb, have you considered plumbing the hydraulics like sqidget did on his BX hydraulic thumb installation? Either way will work fine for your needs, but it was just a thought for convenience.

That's great to hear you got it all worked out. Now you can relax bad enjoy that beast. Thanks for filling us in on it.

Awesome part 1 video. Enjoyed it. Was very informative!

Hurry up with part 2! Great entertainment, educational, even.

Thanks guys. Well part 2 is uploading tonight. The bad part is its 39 minutes long BUT there's a lot of info in this one including seeing me get into a few snags with the project and seeing how I solve it. You'll get to see a custom housing being machined to fit the switch that will run the hydraulic thumb and some other stuff as well

Thanks for your interest guys :cool2: