Can I pick your brains???

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Hey guys. I have a small winter project in mine.  I want to make a tpost driver that will mount to the bucket of my tractor.  My idea is to have a 3' pipe with a rod end bearing welded to the top. Then the rod end bearing attached with a bracket and pin to my bucket.   This will allow the pipe with tpost loaded into it to find its plumb before I push it in. So here's my question.  I need something to create enough friction between the pipe and 10 pound tpost so that it will not come fall out before I engage the ground.    Once the post is pushed to the proper depth I want the pipe to pull off easily. Any ideas?  Thanks
Reply:Maybe a powerful permanent magnet (or two or three...)?  If it stuck to the side of the post, the frictional force would help hold it.Tim
Reply:Forgive me Pumpkinman but your Thread title, "Can I pick your brains???" reminded me of a joke.A guy is in an auto accident and regains conciousness in intensive care.  Surgeon says, "We have no time to waste, your brain is dying and I need to perform a brain transplant ASAP.  While you are still able, it is imperative that you pick a new brain."  Surgeon wheels him into a room, looks like the meat counter at a grocery store - glass cabinet holding three brains with meat skewers stuck in them holding labels.Guy looks at the first one: ENGINEER BRAINS $5,000 A POUNDGuy looks at the second one: FABRICATOR BRAINS $10,000 A POUNDGuy looks at the third one: WELDER BRAINS $50,000 AN OUNCE!Guy says to the surgeon, "$50,000 an ounce!  Why are welder brains so expensive?"Surgeon replies, "Do you know how many welders it takes to get an ounce of brains?"***      ***Last edited by Rick V; 12-15-2011 at 12:13 AM.Reason: felt like itRick V 1 Airco Heliwelder 3A/DDR3 CTC 70/90 amp Stick/Tig Inverters in Parallel1 Lincoln MIG PAK 151 Oxy-Acet
Reply:Originally Posted by timrbMaybe a powerful permanent magnet (or two or three...)?  If it stuck to the side of the post, the frictional force would help hold it.
Reply:IF you have a helper there is a much more simple solution.I made a driver for a farmer a while back.  It was just a 6" long piece of 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" square tube.  I capped it and welded it on the back side of the bucket towards the bottom.To use it the farmer loads all his posts in the bucket.  Helper grabs one post and sticks the top in the tube.  The helper guides the post till it touches the ground then steps back and the farmer lowers the bucket.  I've actually built a couple of them.  When the farmer got a new tractor he wanted the same setup on his new bucket so it must work fine.My name's not Jim....
Reply:would something like this work ?http://www.kjmagnetics.com/proddetail.asp?prod=RZ0Y0X0 253 lbs of pulling force but i figured u could put a sleeve in the center to protect the magnet. kinda pricey though.
Reply:Did we engage the kids filter on that movie channel? Attached ImagesCity of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Originally Posted by BoostinjdmIF you have a helper there is a much more simple solution.I made a driver for a farmer a while back.  It was just a 6" long piece of 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" square tube.  I capped it and welded it on the back side of the bucket towards the bottom.To use it the farmer loads all his posts in the bucket.  Helper grabs one post and sticks the top in the tube.  The helper guides the post till it touches the ground then steps back and the farmer lowers the bucket.  I've actually built a couple of them.  When the farmer got a new tractor he wanted the same setup on his new bucket so it must work fine.
Reply:Thanks for the input guys. A magnet was my first thought.  A studded t post is so oddly shaped that I dont think there will be enough contact for a magnet to hold. That unless I use a really strong and costly magnet.  Still, it is important that the tpost sticks into the tube.  I may find myself without a helper.  That northern tool version is too sloppy and too short.   I want to use a 3' tube to offer more support and prevent bending.  I also want to use an inside diameter that more closely matches the size of the t post.  I have been looking online for some type of spring loaded roller that will retract and pinch down on the post.    This is good brainstorming.  further suggestions are appreciated. thanks. Chris
Reply:the link below would be the easiest to at home. just and a cable release that allows you to pull a string/cable to lift up on the "cam" to release it.http://www.stevenwhitewoodworking.com/uni-jam.htmThere are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Originally Posted by Rick VForgive me Pumpkinman but your Thread title, "Can I pick your brains???" reminded me of a joke.A guy is in an auto accident and regains conciousness in intensive care.  Surgeon says, "We have no time to waste, your brain is dying and I need to perform a brain transplant ASAP.  While you are still able, it is imperative that you pick a new brain."  Surgeon wheels him into a room, looks like the meat counter at a grocery store - glass cabinet holding three brains with meat skewers stuck in them holding labels.Guy looks at the first one: ENGINEER BRAINS $5,000 A POUNDGuy looks at the second one: FABRICATOR BRAINS $10,000 A POUNDGuy looks at the third one: WELDER BRAINS $50,000 AN OUNCE!Guy says to the surgeon, "$50,000 an ounce!  Why are welder brains so expensive?"Surgeon replies, "Do you know how many welders it takes to get an ounce of brains?"***      ***
Reply:Originally Posted by forhireI think the magnet idea is good... I found this one that may be food for thought. http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...6973_200456973It must have a very expensive magnet in it at that price.
Reply:I agree Chuck.    Mounting bracket looks weak and there is no pivot points.   Also the pipe is too short.
Reply:Pumpkin, do you see how you would use that "cam" style lock in this application? It's probably the simplest, and more than likely cheapest solutions you'll find. just a piece of scrap on a pivot point. at the bottom of your tube. as you slide the T bar in it moves out of the way and then prevents it from falling out. once the bar has been placed you pull the line to life the "cam" and lift the bucket up and you're done. I thought maybe it would be good to do a U shape in the cam so that the T could lock into it, but the more I thought about it, the more I thought it would limit the direction the T bar faced. using a tractor you're not always going to be able to get the tractor in the right place to keep the Ts lined up in the same orientation.I would suggest that you make the attachment to the bucket on the side of the bucket, both sides preferably. that way you just set up in the tractor and just pull forward until you get to the end of your line. Less backing up and strange turns tearing up the ground where you're working. If you've got the room I'd put it on the back corner of each side that way it's out of the way if you want to use the bucket for digging and what not.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Sorry Thors. Yes I did see it.  Thanks so much.  It gives me ideas but I'd really like not to have a release cord.   I have the perfect solution.   You have seen spring roller latches used on cabinets?  I'm gonna make a large heavy version. With lots of travel and a die spring behind it.   I will have to make it out of UHMW because I don't have a mill.   Steel would be the best.    I will be able to adjust tension just enough to grip the post but the post will be able to roll out once in the ground.
Reply:It won't matter what way the post is oriented because the whole assembly with swival. :-)
Reply:Here is my stupid idea.  Could you use a wire brush or 2 mounted in the pipe to give you the friction?  They could be mounted so they would be easily replaced when they wear out.  Kinda like a big battery terminal brush.Century Quick Fix  wire welder, Century Infanite Disc Stick welder, Lincoln Pro-Mig 175, Oxy Acetaline torches.
Reply:How about a notch cut in the side of the pipe and a metal spring across the notch?
Reply:I like the wire brush idea, cheap and ez, just make the inside of the Guide tube conform to the shape of the T post.....
Reply:heres what my brain drew from zipzits and birdogs posts......but i think the hinges would get batterd to death from the slamming....hmm Attached Images        thermal arc 252i  -  millermatic 350P -   miller XMT, cp300ts, 30a 22a feeders, buttload of other millers, handfull of lincolns, couple of esabs  -   Hypertherm 1250 G3
Reply:simplified the complex spring idea , then did full circle back to the normal way of doing thangs :/ lol Attached Images        thermal arc 252i  -  millermatic 350P -   miller XMT, cp300ts, 30a 22a feeders, buttload of other millers, handfull of lincolns, couple of esabs  -   Hypertherm 1250 G3
Reply:woi2ld I guess your laborer didn't get out of the way fast enough one time, since he's only got one arm! .No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I've played this game, slamming down the front loader bucket on the post doesn't work too well for me.  It doesn't have the free fall speed.   Pressing slowly lifts the front of the tractor versus driving the post, even in my soft sand. Others have had different results. I did build a keen "nino" >  local slang for a hand held driver that fits over the post and can be slid over the post and then lifted and dropped. Works ok, but resembles work a lot.  Construction is simply a 24-30" piece of 2 7/8" heavy wall pipe, two handles, capped with about 1/2" of steel at the top end. My box blade on the back might work  better. You only need to drive these  T's in about 14-16"  With the additonal weight and strength of the tractor rear, 3 point set up + box blade it might work better. The tool would be a clamp that bolts on the blade and also holds the T post firmly in place; maybe it attaches only 3' or less up the shaft?   Probably would be a pressing motion vs hammering. Let the designs, models, hacking sawing and welding begin  I have engineer Wolowitz on my team Attached ImagesLast edited by PapaLion; 12-17-2011 at 01:58 PM.Lincoln Power MIG 215Lincoln WeldPak 3200HDLincon ProCut 25Lincoln WeldanPower 225 AC/DCIf all else fails... buy more tools
Reply:use a big enough square tube that you can slide a cheap natural bristle brush with short stiff bristles inside of it. Drill a few holes on one side and screw into teh brush to keep it in place. Could also use the nylon floor cleaning brushes or similar. $2 solution .miller syncrowave 250hobart handler 140home made 400 amp engine driven in progress...