slightly twisted bucket arms.

[rScotty]

I don't like arguing but in this case I need to disagree. Metal does indeed stretch. The statement that there isn't any way to unstretch it is untrue. Any decent body worker does this on a regular basis.

On the heavy equipment when it bent we would bend it back straight and weld up anything that cracked
Do this for many units over the years no problems with any of them

Never mind. Basic metallurgy is well understood. It's not a matter of belief.
rScotty

 

[Mike1955]

Metal workers always have a problem is with the term "bending back". Metal is pretty easy to bend, so it's hard to resist fixing things that way.

But basically there is no way anyone can bend something back to where it was before. Metal yields when it bends, and when it yields it also stretches. There just isn't any way to unstretch it.

What we can do is put another bend next to or on top of the first one. With luck the result will be straighter and only a little bit dogledded. But it can't help being longer.

If we put multiple bends into loader arms to get them to be parallel, we may end up with the bucket edge being level, but now one side becomes farther forward.

Bending is a last resort, as Coastie says. But worth a try.

rScotty

I never seen one fixed.

 

[Dman1981]

My wife says I have a metal allergy because I can t quit buying tools

 

[gravelman]

ok on all this...it is off by just a little bit...might just leave it alone, i could make things worse.

 

[LouNY]

Before you are convinced that it is bent measure how much your lift cylinders are extended. See if one is extended more then the other if so then you can think about trying to twist the loader frame again. If it's not much trying to lift an immovable object with the high side can often easily cure the issue, or as has been mention cutting the torque tube and rewelding it when leveled and squared up isn't a real big deal.

 

[repete]

Measure every point you can. I have a bucket level issue on the little 2550 and I can correct it by shimming under one mount side. What created this is the fact that one rear tire, although the same number size as the other, is considerably taller. This translates into an uneven bucket, low on the corner opposite the taller tire.

Only REAL solution is to replace both rear tires but until then, shimming will have to do.

 

[Dman1981]

 

[Mike1955]

ok on all this...it is off by just a little bit...might just leave it alone, i could make things worse.

Great sir, But be careful. If you have a substantial load and lift it high it’s off more than a little. It could flip you. I level ground and unequally filled tire add to it. And finish by telling the entire story, you brother in law did it!!

 

[etpm]

Never mind. Basic metallurgy is well understood. It's not a matter of belief.
rScotty

You are absolutely correct. Basic metallurgy is well understood. And has been for a long time. I have a couple books about sheet metal work and the aircraft one has a copyright date of 1942. The other sheet metal book has a copyright date of 1944. The aircraft book talks about shrinking and how the metal must be thickened locally where the shrinkage occurs. The same techniques used today to shrink metal after it has been stretched are used today. I wonder how many centuries ago these techniques were discovered. Silver smiths and gold smiths come to mind but what about the first people who worked the first copper alloys and iron?
Eric

 

[CliffordK]

Metal workers always have a problem is with the term "bending back". Metal is pretty easy to bend, so it's hard to resist fixing things that way.

But basically there is no way anyone can bend something back to where it was before. Metal yields when it bends, and when it yields it also stretches. There just isn't any way to unstretch it.

What we can do is put another bend next to or on top of the first one. With luck the result will be straighter and only a little bit dogledded. But it can't help being longer.

If we put multiple bends into loader arms to get them to be parallel, we may end up with the bucket edge being level, but now one side becomes farther forward.

Bending is a last resort, as Coastie says. But worth a try.

rScotty

As far as shrinking or stretching, it is common to do with light sheet metal. However, it may well be different to do with heavy box steel.

If one can predict how metal moves with welding, perhaps one could control stretching/shrinking with heat.

However, I'd probably try to straighten it cold. A car body shop with a frame machine could likely either straighten the bent side, or bend the other side to match (which may avoid the length issue).