Which grapple?

[ArmyDoc]

Might want to have a look at Faver's grapples. grapple rake | Faver Inc

They use AR400 steel for their tines, one inch thick. AR400 has 180,000psi yield strength and ~ 400BHN hardness which is the highest I've found being used. Prices seem reasonable too.

 

[ArmyDoc]

No problem. The grapples that I have won't be ideal for your tractor. The little Gorilla Grapple that I bought to pick up cut off cedar trees is 44 inches wide, 31 inch opening and weighs 946 pounds:

View attachment 529280

The Monster Grapple That I use for picking up dead tree limbs, weighs 1168 pounds and opens to 51 inches:

View attachment 529281

Can't do this with a clamshell style:

View attachment 529282


You don't need a link, just click the little "View Post" icon after my name in post #36 that I quoted above.

So, if you could only buy one, would you get the narrow one or the wide one? Which one do you use the most?

Also, do you see an advantage to having two lids, or would one center lid on the wide grapple work? (I'm thinking one wide lid would likely twist if clamping a load wider at one end, but a narrow single lid in the center i would think would be ok... or am I not thinking right?)

 

[Xfaxman]

So, if you could only buy one, would you get the narrow one or the wide one? Which one do you use the most?

Wide one. I Use the wide one most because of the 51 inch opening, here it is picking up 30 cedar trees: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...ppling-fun-picture-thread-19.html#post4343409

Picking up some cedars pulled with the tree puller, can't do this with a clamshell style:

Also, do you see an advantage to having two lids, or would one center lid on the wide grapple work? (I'm thinking one wide lid would likely twist if clamping a load wider at one end, but a narrow single lid in the center i would think would be ok... or am I not thinking right?)

For my uses two lids are an advantage, but a narrow single lid will work for most things.

When I move long trees with the either grapple I balance it and leave the lid up.

Here is one on the narrow single lid:

Also, do you see an advantage to having two lids, or would one center lid on the wide grapple work? (I'm thinking one wide lid would likely twist if clamping a load wider at one end, but a narrow single lid in the center i would think would be ok... or am I not thinking right?)

Here is one load a single lid wouldn't secure:

 

[LD1]

Might want to have a look at Faver's grapples. grapple rake | Faver Inc

They use AR400 steel for their tines, one inch thick. AR400 has 180,000psi yield strength and ~ 400BHN hardness which is the highest I've found being used. Prices seem reasonable too.

Dont see any weights on their website.

But dont think I'd want to spend my money on a grapple built out of 1" thick AR400 plate for a mere 50 HP tractor.

What good is a grapple on a 50HP tractor if the grapple itself eats up 50% of your lift capacity?

 

[ArmyDoc]

Lol. Excellent point LD1. I was actually replying to Case 580c's post on page 4. He was asking about a grapple for a large Utility tractor. I should have quoted him to make it clear. The weights are listed on the specs page. For the GX series, they start around 600#. The X series is over 1000#

 

[ArmyDoc]

Wide one. I Use the wide one most because of the 51 inch opening, here it is picking up 30 cedar trees:

Is the width more important, or the opening?

I've been looking at this one: Home
It's got a 46" opening, and is 56 inches wide

Alternative might be: Home
It's wider at 72" but the opening is only 42 inches

Other options are more expensive than I wanted to spend.

 

[John_Mc]

Since my need for a grapple was primarily moving logs, I went with a forestry grapple.
Sundown GR40 Forestry Grapple. While designed for logs, it still seems to work pretty well for grabbing piles of brush. It's not good a picking up things like 16" long firewood or small rocks, but that wasn't what I was looking for.

The Frost Bite Grapple is very similar

 

[IslandTractor]

Lol. Excellent point LD1. I was actually replying to Case 580c's post on page 4. He was asking about a grapple for a large Utility tractor. I should have quoted him to make it clear. The weights are listed on the specs page. For the GX series, they start around 600#. The X series is over 1000#

i think it would be useful to point out that virtually no tractor of less than 150hp would come close to needing a grapple made of AR400 much less 1" tines. That type of grapple is appropriate for LARGE skidsteers. There is no 50hp tractor on earth that really needs more than 3/8" mild steel for a grapple. Think of what the standard bucket for any tractor is made of. No need to go much beyond that type of steel for a grapple. A bucketful of sand will weigh as much or more than any load a grapple will lift. Think also about a tractor style FEL: NOT designed or built for ramming/bulldozing. Tractor FELs are for lifting/loading and are therefore relatively long and thin. Bulldozer arms are short and stubby for a reason.

 

[IslandTractor]

Is the width more important, or the opening?

I've been looking at this one: Home
It's got a 46" opening, and is 56 inches wide

Alternative might be: Home
It's wider at 72" but the opening is only 42 inches

Other options are more expensive than I wanted to spend.

Both width and opening are considerations. I much prefer a wide opening. 40+ inches is best. Width depends on what you are trying to do. Narrow (48-60") works well for almost all typical tractor grappling tasks and makes maneuvering easier as well as giving you a larger net lift capacity and being less expensive. Narrow is much better for digging. Wide is appropriate for some very specific tasks like moving cut firewood or trying to move more than a single bale of hay at a time.

 

[goeduck]

Where I live I have a Kubota B21 with modest lift (926 lbs) I mostly need forks and occasionally would like to move branches, brush etc. I am looking at:

#84 Dbl Cyl Fork Grapple | MS Attachments

Where I would leave the lid on to move branches, brush and lighter fork loads. I hope to build firewood crates at which time I would remove the lid and cylinders during firewood season. I will need to call mid state to see what the forks and brackets weigh without the lid. The B21 is the perfect size for around the house and I hope to be able to manage to lift a decent enough sized firewood crate to replace my current wheelbarrow in the rain method of moving wood.

 

[John_Mc]

Seems like a really heavy grapple for a B21. Rated for about 4 times your lift capacity.

 

[goeduck]

Seems like a really heavy grapple for a B21. Rated for about 4 times your lift capacity.

As far as its lift rating yes but all forks are rated fairly high, as far as its weight I am guessing the forks alone are around 300 lbs and with the lid it is 450 lbs. 300 lbs would still give me a fair amount of lift remaining from the 926 lb rating.

I am not seeing much selection in the market for light weight fork grapples.

 

[IslandTractor]

As far as its lift rating yes but all forks are rated fairly high, as far as its weight I am guessing the forks alone are around 300 lbs and with the lid it is 450 lbs. 300 lbs would still give me a fair amount of lift remaining from the 926 lb rating.

I am not seeing much selection in the market for light weight fork grapples.

How about just adding an upper lid to your standard bucket and then using removable forks on the standard bucket. I wouldn’t do that if you were moving lots of wood but I wouldn’t use a little B tractor to move lots of wood either. A bucket grapple is maybe half as efficient as a full grapple but is way cheaper and is always mounted.

 

[ArmyDoc]

i think it would be useful to point out that virtually no tractor of less than 150hp would come close to needing a grapple made of AR400 much less 1" tines. That type of grapple is appropriate for LARGE skidsteers. There is no 50hp tractor on earth that really needs more than 3/8" mild steel for a grapple. Think of what the standard bucket for any tractor is made of. No need to go much beyond that type of steel for a grapple. A bucketful of sand will weigh as much or more than any load a grapple will lift. Think also about a tractor style FEL: NOT designed or built for ramming/bulldozing. Tractor FELs are for lifting/loading and are therefore relatively long and thin. Bulldozer arms are short and stubby for a reason.

That's absolutely true, but I was asking Xfaxman about his grapples and grapple preferences. He (and I) are using a telehandler. Telehandlers have substantially more lift than most tractors, in the neighborhood of 5500-6000#. I have ~175 acres of pine forest to manage. Every windstorm I loose a dozen trees or so, not to mention trees that die standing, that I'd like to push over. The heavy duty graples using 1/2 A572 Grade 50 steel don't seem to be all that much less (indeed the wicked grapple is a few hundred more) than these using 1-inch AR400. If they are the same price, and my machine will handle the weight (also not more than 1-200# difference), I think buying the heavier duty grapple makes more sense.

 

[goeduck]

How about just adding an upper lid to your standard bucket and then using removable forks on the standard bucket. I wouldn’t do that if you were moving lots of wood but I wouldn’t use a little B tractor to move lots of wood either. A bucket grapple is maybe half as efficient as a full grapple but is way cheaper and is always mounted.

I thought of that but the net weight of the existing bucket + (either or both) upper lid and removeable forks seems to me to be more than the mid state fork grapple setup. Also, the removeable forks stick out from the bottom edge of the bucket, pushing the center of the load out about 3 feet, reducing my effective lift considerably. I have larger tractors up to 60 HP with grapples and forks that would be perfect but not on the parcel I live on, they are an hour away. The B21 stays at the house and I can build the firewood pallets to match whatever the B21 can handle.

 

[Xfaxman]

Is the width more important, or the opening?

--------------------------------------

It depends on you will be using it for.

For me it is the bigger opening.

 

[IslandTractor]

That's absolutely true, but I was asking Xfaxman about his grapples and grapple preferences. He (and I) are using a telehandler. Telehandlers have substantially more lift than most tractors, in the neighborhood of 5500-6000#. I have ~175 acres of pine forest to manage. Every windstorm I loose a dozen trees or so, not to mention trees that die standing, that I'd like to push over. The heavy duty graples using 1/2 A572 Grade 50 steel don't seem to be all that much less (indeed the wicked grapple is a few hundred more) than these using 1-inch AR400. If they are the same price, and my machine will handle the weight (also not more than 1-200# difference), I think buying the heavier duty grapple makes more sense.

Yeah, I wasn’t thinking telehandlers or big skidsteers in my reply. Still, one inch AR400 seems like overkill even for a telehandler with 6000 lbs lift. A telehandler lifts it doesn’t ram and it isn’t really as massive as a big skid steer. And, remember that both net lift capacity and the weight of your wallet drop with heavier grapples.

 

[oosik]

EXACTLY as Xfaxman says. Width & opening will depend upon use. Mine is 50" wide and opens 50". More than sufficient for the largest pine on the property and more than enough for any rock I want to move. I have no brush but do use the grapple to clean up trimmed limbs from large fallen pines.

Actually, because of the WIDE selection to choose from, you should not have to sacrifice either width or opening.

 

[ArmyDoc]

EXACTLY as Xfaxman says. Width & opening will depend upon use. Mine is 50" wide and opens 50". More than sufficient for the largest pine on the property and more than enough for any rock I want to move. I have no brush but do use the grapple to clean up trimmed limbs from large fallen pines.

Actually, because of the WIDE selection to choose from, you should not have to sacrifice either width or opening.

Good to hear, thanks!

Another question regarding tines. I like the long bottom style rather than the clamb-shell style. Most of the long bottom grapples have a tube going across the front, maybe 8-10 inches back from the tine tips. (like Xfaxman's wide grapple) Another type, has thicker tines with gussets, that don't have that front brace (like Xfaxman's narrower grapple). I can see where the front brace would make it hard to penetrate brush or hay. Has anyone had any experience / problems with this?

I saw another post where they describe rolling the grapple over and grabbing from on top, so maybe it's not that big of a deal.

 

[ArmyDoc]

.... And, remember that both net lift capacity and the weight of your wallet drop with heavier grapples.

That's for darn sure! Hardest problem for me is knowing how much is enough. I bought some light duty crap equipment when I first got started and regretted it because after I tore it up I had to buy the more expensive stuff anyhow. Main reason I looked at these was that many of the 6ft grapples for 75hp+ tractors are in the $3k range and these are the same (at least there are some that are the same - their top line stuff is more). Decisions, decisions...