What type steel to use in FEL rebuild?

[ballencd]

Hey Folks,

I am having to rebuild my FEL bucket on my Kubota L35. I have purchased a new weld on blade/edge from Kubota but will need to replace the bottom of the bucket and the back up a few inches from the turn where it starts up. I have graded with it for 19 years now and have worn out the back corner of the bucket. I plan to have it cut and bent at the supplier and weld it in at home.

My question is: What type of steel should I use and how thick for a replacement.

Thanks for your help.

ballencd

 

[crashz]

The cutting edges are typically hardened steel, but the bucket structure is mild steel (A36?) I believe. That's what I would use. But I would use a thicker gauge if I could. My bucket is very thin, less that 3/16" probably. I'd also weld in some parallel flat wear bars to help strength and reduce wear to the bucket bottom.

 

[PILOON]

I'd suggest regular steel, nothing special, but perhaps a gauge or so thicker but to add harder grade wear strips to take the brunt of the abuse.
I think T1 is what they call it, if not strips of same material of the cutting edge.

You probably want the underside of your bucket 'decorated' much like excavator buckets are wear protected.
Some folks also weld zig zag patterns with special hard face rods to take the abuse.

 

[BukitCase]

Sounds like your steel supplier may be well equipped; if so, another possible option might be AR plate (stands for Abrasion Resistant) - when I was rebuilding the 2' hoe bucket on my old 580B, I had my supplier pre-cut 3" wide strips of AR400 to replace the worn/missing wear strips on the hoe bucket. The AR material should be welded with low hydrogen rod (back then, 7018 was pretty much the ONLY choice)

These days, it'd cost a BUNCH to weld all those wear pattern beads on the bottom of a bucket - granted, AR plate will cost more than A36, but IIRC it wasn't THAT much more - but you may wanna price hard face rod before you decide. The AR plate might be cheaper (definitely FASTER) - also, 7018 is ONLY "low-hy" IF it's kept hot and dry (moisture is where the hydrogen comes from) -

THESE days, standard MIG wire is ALSO considered lo-hy, 'cause it's SOLID WIRE so there's nothing to be "hygroscopic".

WARNING - unless you have a plasma cutter, I would NOT recommend getting AR plate with the idea of cutting it YOURSELF - when I did those wear strips, the cuts had a TINY bit of dross on the cut edges; I decided to slightly chamfer the edges. Took me about an HOUR of grinding PER 36" strip, using a 9" Hitachi side grinder - did I mention that stuff is ABRASION RESISTANT??!? ... Steve

 

[ballencd]

Thanks guys for your replies. I'm hearing a bit thicker than factory and add some abrasion strips to the bottom. Both good ideas. I do have a new plasma cutter but have not actually cut anything with it, so if I do go with the hardened AR plate I will attempt it myself. I won't be expecting a factory job but I will do my best.

Thanks again.

ballencd

 

[Renze]

When i used to work for the wheel loader manufacturer, we often welded a second cutting edge on the heel of the bucket, sticking out an inch of the back. This not just reduced wear, but also made it easier to knock the tops off a packed gravel lane in both travel directions.

 

[ballencd]

That's a good idea. I had repaired the back of the bucket due to wear already and installed a 1.25x 1.25 x 3/8" thick angle on the outside of the bucket after the bend wore through. It seemed to grade better but I like the idea of something sticking out an inch. Thanks!

 

[TMGT]

If you have any companies that rebuild trash truck or dump trucks nearby you might be able to pick up some AR plate drops for a decent price. If you go AR theres really no need to go thicker then factory.

I help a friend that works on trash trucks and the typical liner material is 3/16, we use Hardox 450.

 

[nyone]

Normal mild steel will be totaly fine for a 35hp tractor. A bit thicker than factory will be nice but not needed. On normal wear areas you should do some weld beads like hard facing although it dosnt have to be hard face rod.

The idea is that dirt will get cought in the hardface and not wear the bucket.

 

[PILOON]

Normal mild steel will be totaly fine for a 35hp tractor. A bit thicker than factory will be nice but not needed. On normal wear areas you should do some weld beads like hard facing although it dosnt have to be hard face rod.

The idea is that dirt will get cought in the hardface and not wear the bucket.

LOL, or just work in muddy clay based soil as the clay will act as a lubricant.