[chased]

Hi everyone I just completely erased a full write up on this loader so im just going to get the pictures up and explain later!!!!:banghead3




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Basically this is the tractor that I picked up last saturday for $300 it came with weights chains a plow and a working mower deck.
The guy ended up throwing in 2 2x27 cylinders and a 2x18 cylinder too!



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I chose to weld directly to the frame since I bought this 580 only to build a dedicated loader



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and a picture of the arms just sitting on the uprights

Thats it for now since i spent a good hour on the first post that got deleted by accident!!!:banghead3

 

[thegogetter222]

Wowsa! A+ for effort : ) Inspiring for sure!

 

[jsoluna]

Alright! Keepin my eyes on this one.....

Good deal on the tractor, too? How many hours are on it? Condition?

 

[U.S.A Tractor Joe]

Neat set up! Nice tractor, at a heck of a price too:thThumbsU!

 

[gfann]

Don't know if you're a Larry the cable guy fan, but I think the phrase "Get r done" applies pretty good. I'm impressed, I've dreamed about wanting to some how put a front end loader on my 100 but I think it would be a bit above my abilities, looks good, so far.

 

[chased]

Thanks for the comments!
Larry the cable guy still is my favorite comedian ^
The 580 has just under 900 hours on it and runs awesome!
It does have a strange clunking comming from the clutch pedal i think it may be related to the tension pully but I havent looked into it much yet.
Not sure how much I will be able to get done in the next couple of days since college has been keeping me pretty busy.
anyway heres some pictures of recent progress.




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How I decided to make my pins for the lift arms out of 1" steel stock
Its not prety but I can make it look good after it functions.



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Got the gussets tacked onto the arms. Man im not looking foreward to drilling those 1" holes....



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and last a shot of the bucket that I will be using. Its much smaller than the other buckets ive seen but im hoping it will help give the tractor a better digging ability. We will see!

 

[thegogetter222]

I was looking forward to the next chapter on this one! Looks like you've got a great battle plan. Couple of questions:

- Whats up with the plow?
- what engine/hp is she sporting?
- Is the blue hydraulic the only hydraulic you plan on using for main lift?
- I'm assuming the tractor doesn't currently have hydraulic hookups... hows that going to work?

A local steel shop could easily make those 1" pins/cuts for you. Just bring them your stock and I imagine it could be done fairly reasonable and relatively quick.

Overall, I'm very impressed with the ambition : ) ha! :thThumbsU

 

[chased]

Good questions hah
Yeah the plow was in the way but I just threw it on to push some rocks around in my back yard fast. Im not planning on using it somehow in conjunction with the loader
It has the 16hp brigs twin
I have 2 of those blue 2x27 cylinders they sure are monsters! So i will be using 2 for lift. and one 2x18 (the red one) for dump.
A few days ago I ordered a 2spool valve and a 4-8gpm pump from surplus center. It only came out to around $250 for both. Ill throw up pictures when I get them
The current plan is to run the pump off the electric PTO. I havent figured out how I want to build a tank since I seriously doupt my welding skills.
Anyway it wouldnt be fun if it wasnt a challenge!

 

[slkpk]

Excellent work on it and looking forward to seeing the finished product. slkpk

 

[jsoluna]

Alright, I'm seeing where you're going with it now. I was wondering where the hydro power was coming from too! Good luck with the drilling!

 

[gfann]

I found this pic online is this what you shooting for?

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...need-advice-homemade-front-end-cub-loader.jpg

Don't end up like this guy!

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/FACE/images/05IA022a.jpg

 

[gfann]

That first link didnt work, but it was a picture of a cub similar to your with a loader that also looks alot what your constructing. Hydrolics on the side for lift and one in the front for the bucket the bucket was a bit bigger but it look lik eit could easily do the trick. I just googled homemade loaders and it popped up.

 

[chased]

^ I think I found the picture your talking about. Yeah thats pretty much what im going for.

I work long hours on the weekend so I didnt get much done but I did get far enough to realize that I have some severe geometry problems. :crybaby:

First off with the bucket on the gound it is already 30" in front of the axle.
When the bucket is 2 feet off the ground it is about 47" in front of the axle.
Im pretty concerned about this because ultimatly a farther distance in front of the axle will take more weight off the rear axle, of course requiring more counter ballast. I made the arms at a 120 degree angle but I wish I made them closer to 100 dedrees. Maybe Ill cut them up and modify the angle to get the weight closer to the front axle.

I also found out that the cylinders bind where I intended to mount them (lower mount) so that will need tio be modified somehow too. These cylinders are starting to become a pain since their soo long!
Anyway heres a few pics about what I was talking about.



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[thegogetter222]

**** hoss... tenacity, tenacity, tenacity... or stubbornness : ) Dont give up!!!!

 

[gfann]

I'm no expert at this so take my advice with cation. But the front arm angle doesn't look to bad is there a way to shorten the top horizontal bars? But I do see your problem, it would deffinetly be a concern don't want to flip that sucker over for sure.

 

[chased]

Time for an update!!!

I spent $44 on a Irwin reamer step bit at lowes and finally bored all of my holes to 1" so I could start to pin the cylinders.



Well I got the spool and the pump so I went straight to mocking them up.


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Then I finally got the 3 cylinders mounted.


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And then I picked up a pully and adaptor at tractor supply. Hopefully my $80 pump holds up! It looks really small but its speced at 4-8 gpm at 2k-3k rpm.



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I did some rough math and it looks like the volume of the cylinders is approx 1.12 gallons so im going to try to make a 3 gallon tank.
I also started to purchase some hoses. I think ill go with the 3/8 hose for all the cylinders, the pressure line to the spool, and the return to the tank. Does that sound right?
I still got a long way to go but at least its starting to look like a loader!!!!

 

[lonnyb]

A 3 gal tank may not be large enough to hold the volume of oil after it has warmed up and exspanded.
I run a 5 gal tank on my FEL and if I run more than 3 gal of hydrulic oil it will push out the vent on the filler cap.
You can see the tank on the back in this photo

Your pump looks some what like the one I used when I built my FEL

I did have to build a protection plate so I would not hit the pump, it can be seen here,

Some day I would like to take the time and rebuild the loader, but time and money are hard to come by, when you have to work seven days a week just to keep the bill collectors off your door step.

 

[chased]

Thanks for the pictures!!
Ill have to make a skid for my pump also. Id hate to crush it on something.
That's a good point. I really didn't take into consideration fluid expansion.:dunno: Ill have to see if I have enough material to make a tank in the 5 gallon range. I really don't want to hang the tank off the back for the extra lines cost factor and I would like to be able to use rear attachments like a box blade or possibly make a hoe for it someday.

Does anyone know if there is a standard as to what levers lift the bucket or dumps?
I am going to start running lines today and want to keep it as user friendly as possible if I decide to sell the machine down the road. Ive driven a older ford with a loader before and the lift was on the right closer to the wheel and dump was farther away on the right. Pulling back was raise the arms and pulling back on the other curled the bucket up. I guess it really doesn't matter since I would only have to switch a few lines around to reverse it.

 

[chased]

Update! Should a mod move this to the homemade accesories section?

Recently started my hunt for hoses. And like most people building FEL's I could not believe how much the fittings costed! Im not even adding the reciepts up until its finished. It just seems like every time I go to tractor supply I drop another $100

Im pretty much using all 3/8 hose for all of the cylinders


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Ive seen quite a few FEL builds with pipe like this for the pump inlet. After I started looking at it more I decided to scrap the pipe and use 3/4 hydraulic hose instead. It was more expensive but it was easier to get all the fittings instead of running solid pipe.
The filter here is for a log splitter that they sell at tractor supply but since its rated at 11 GPM I think it would work fine for me.


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And just a shot at the front. Everything is still tacked until I find out how I want the bucket to quick disconnect. Ive thought out a few ways but havent decided completely yet. Yes there will be braces on eihter side of the arms but I only have one tacked for now. I was thinkging about actually using that pipe for the lower pin though in the bucket. I think that it may help serve as a weak point. Id rather replace a pin than the frame of the tractor.
I have no clue how its gonna work but I can always add steel and modify it later on.



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Oh and I mounted the pump but forgot to take a picture. It looks almost exactly like lonnyB's.


All thats really left is to make the tank, and finish welding everything. Im also adding quite a few gussets to the arms that come off the frame and Ill probably make another brace down to the front bumper area.

 

[chased]

ITS FINISHED!!
Against all advice I made a tank 1.5 gallons. :dunno:
I was eager to finish the project and it was all the steel I had left. I can always make a bigger one down the road. So far I have had no problem with a fluid level to high or too low, But I only ran it for about an hour and im sure the fluid did not get to operating temperature.

Heres a link to a fast video. No digging just a fast range of motion test.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKBUy8EfbWI

I really, really need to change the pulley on the pump. Its ran off the PTO right now with a 5" pulley and it is so slow!! :banghead3
Luckily I just picked up a 3" pulley so I will install it when I get home Monday.

I definitely have some serious traction issues since I didn't make the weight box yet or fill the tires.
Once I get weight on that bad boy ill get some videos of it digging!