Bucket Forks

admin

These are a set of bucket forks I built for a customers 30 hp Kubota. They are mostly 2"x4" 1/4" tubing. The forks themselves have 1/4" vertical stiffeners inside the tubes. The support brackets/cutting edge saddles are 3/8"x6" bar. I decided to tig most of it after murphy and his law showed up and took any hope of making any kind of money off them. Never thought so much could go wrong on such a small project but as most of my work is on site repair I don't get a lot of seat time behind my tig. Figured I would right off my weld time as some nice tig time and pretty tig welds help lessen the pain. Also I added some pins for some stabilizer bars. I know they will bend if the forks take a hard shot to the side but should help with any light bumps to one side or the other. Tractor only has a lift capacity of 1800lbs so the only way these should fail and kill a bus load of kids is if what ever he is hauling falls off the forks and rolls in front of the bus. I added D rings to hook a chain to for if he is ever close to max lift otherwise they will probable can opener his bucket. I like a regular fork attachment or some other types bucket fork designs but this is what he wanted. Hope you enjoy. Attached Images
Reply:Few weld pics. Attached Images
Reply:few more Attached Images
Reply:last ones Attached Images
Reply:Really...really nice work!Hobart Champion EliteMiller S-32p 12Lincoln sp175tLincoln 225 ac tombstoneHarris oxy/aceteleneMakita grinders/chopsawHypertherm Powermax 45
Reply:Hey thanks man. I'm pretty happy with the end result.Last edited by KD Welding; 03-23-2014 at 09:56 PM.
Reply:Very nice work! Your a real craftsman.
Reply:nice work and pics. how did you keep the stiffener straight along it's length inside the 2"x4" tubing?i.u.o.e. # 15queens, ny and sunny fla
Reply:Thanks. Tough to see in the pics but I cut small slices with a zip disk down the center of the tube than plug welded the bar to the tube and took the flap disk to it to make the plug weld smooth. "On the bottom only" Didn't want to slice the seem plus I figure if it wasn't welded top and bottom it might still give it a little flex. For what this guy is going to use them for the stiffener is probably overkill for sure.
Reply:Originally Posted by Todd496Very nice work! Your a real craftsman.
Reply:Thanks. Tough to see in the pics but I cut small slices with a zip disk down the center of the tube than plug welded the bar to the tube and took the flap disk to it to make the plug weld smooth. "On the bottom only" Didn't want to slice the seem plus I figure if it wasn't welded top and bottom it might still give it a little flex. For what this guy is going to use them for the stiffener is probably overkill for sure. Sorry for the double post not really sure what happened?
Reply:Nice work and nice welds - sure came out better than the redneck scrap ones I made for my Chalmers Dave J.Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~George Bernard Shaw~ Syncro 350Invertec v250-sThermal Arc 161 and 300MM210DialarcTried being normal once, didn't take....I think it was a Tuesday.
Reply:show off lmao! nice work bud
Reply:Looks pretty good!
Reply:What are the pins in the rear of each fork for?  Are there holes in his bucket and they slide in for stability?  Nice TIG work.GeezerPower Mig 255C185 TIGBlue 175 MIGRanger 8 Kohler 20HP1974 5K Lincoln/Wisconsin Powered (Cherry)Victor/Harris O/AK 487 Spool Gun
Reply:Delivered them to customer tonight. He was very happy. Which makes me very happy. Lets face it the money is nice and I can't speak for everyone but when you take a lot of pride in what you do. Seeing someone light when your done with the job is worth more to me. "Its a hallmark moment" Attached Images
Reply:Originally Posted by geezerWhat are the pins in the rear of each fork for?  Are there holes in his bucket and they slide in for stability?  Nice TIG work.
Reply:Thats great work man!
Reply:I hope the job came in considerably below $500.  The price, actually the BID, on some real forks I passed up at an auction over near Chandler, OK last weekend.  REAL forks, the forged, or whatever kind.  The kind that don't bend under a load.  Just wanted the forks, not the John Deere green crap they were attached to.You simply cannot CANNOT make any kind of forks with mild steel (unless the cross section is maybe 12") that will do the job of bonifide forklift forks."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by farmersammI hope the job came in considerably below $500.  The price, actually the BID, on some real forks I passed up at an auction over near Chandler, OK last weekend.  REAL forks, the forged, or whatever kind.  The kind that don't bend under a load.  Just wanted the forks, not the John Deere green crap they were attached to.You simply cannot CANNOT make any kind of forks with mild steel (unless the cross section is maybe 12") that will do the job of bonifide forklift forks.
Reply:I see the bar for the pins, thanks, should have caught that before I replied. On a side note, two buddies of mine have home grown forks on their orange B and BX, small tractors and they work fine for the loads they have.  I built a pair for my red 300 and I think the heaviest I moved was a 500lb wood burner, no problems. Keep the loads close to the frame, I think 500-800 lbs is about lift limit on those little tractors anyway. However, one could get in trouble real easy if they got a little feisty. Appears your customer has about the same requirements and my friends. Nice TIG work.GeezerPower Mig 255C185 TIGBlue 175 MIGRanger 8 Kohler 20HP1974 5K Lincoln/Wisconsin Powered (Cherry)Victor/Harris O/AK 487 Spool Gun
Reply:Originally Posted by geezerI see the bar for the pins, thanks, should have caught that before I replied. On a side note, two buddies of mine have home grown forks on their orange B and BX, small tractors and they work fine for the loads they have.  I built a pair for my red 300 and I think the heaviest I moved was a 500lb wood burner, no problems. Keep the loads close to the frame, I think 500-800 lbs is about lift limit on those little tractors anyway. However, one could get in trouble real easy if they got a little feisty. Appears your customer has about the same requirements and my friends. Nice TIG work.