Anyone recommend a manual bolt-on thumb? I'd rather not weld on my ductile iron dipper (at least not with my welding skills). I've read through the older posts on this subject but hoping someone has current experience. I'll be clearing the leftovers from select cutting in a few weeks. Slings, a grapple hook and a log claw work ok but it would be great to not get in and out of the cab.
What make and model machine?
Def dont weld that ductile iron. Im a pro welder btw.
He has a Case 580M.
Tinkerer, you are top shelf! Just amazing. Now let’s put that memory to the test. Where’s the thread with someone adding a thumb using new pins and new linkages to mount the thumb at the end of the stick? I can look but you will find it faster. The brand started with a C....maybe!
The amulet hoeclamp pins on with no welding.
Thanks Bootheal ! I'm not sure which one it was. I looked at a gazillion of them before I purchased mine (3 ofem). I cut one up for parts. It was bent. It was a weld-on fixed thumb and I converted it to hydraulic. Anyway, Bote; start a rat hole fund for your new one. I found the perfect one for ya. If I had a 580M this is the one I would buy. It can be pined up out of the way. It could be easily converted to a hydraulic operated thumb. http://www.excavatorthumb.com/pin-on-excavator-thumb.php
A rat hole fund is a place your significant other will never in God's world think of looking ! I started mine the day she told me I didn't need to carry cash to work because I had a credit card. YA right !!!
HeavyEquipmentForums Didn’t start with a ‘C’! Amulet.
The one Tinkerer linked is about half the price I paid for the Amulet linked by Bootheal...If that matters. I looked at a front grapple for my backhoe from the same guys Tinkerer linked as well...Decided to go thumb instead, but it did look pretty good. http://www.excavatorthumb.com/mojo/mojo.php?attachment=backhoe+grapple+5&model=g72&gallery=usaa
Thanks for the responses. I’m reading them as I sit in my recliner recovering from my second Covid shot. The USA Attachments looks like a good option. Would the same thumb work with different width buckets? My 580M came with an 18” bucket which works good for clearing the trees from a creek I’m widening. I’d like to get a wider bucket as I plan to dig a pond later this year. Would a 24” bucket cut through roots as easy as the 18”?
For cutting tree roots, a smaller bucket will give more power to break up roots. Use caution with a 24” bucket full of mud. It wants to tip the tractor as you approach 90*, especially if extended. In your search for another bucket, if you run across a 30” ditching bucket reasonably priced, I’d like to check it out. Good luck with your projects. Have fun and stay safe.
Regarding being piled up in the easy chair. I had a similar reaction to the second shot. Miserable for a day. Better the next day, then apparently ok after that. Felt like a good dose of the old fashioned flu here.
What shots did you all get? I just got my second Pfizer and only thing i noticed was that it felt like I got a tetanus shot...arm hurt the next day, then nothing. Have herd of more extreme reactions from moderna.
Mine was moderna. After the fact, I’ve heard blood type may have a bearing on how well you fair. My first shot was similar to yours, hardly anything.
I had both Moderna shots injected in the same arm. A little soreness like a bruise. No other side effects. I am eager to get the booster shot they now have in clinical trials.
Why so eager to be the guinea pig? I am amazed at how many people are getting the so-called vaccine. It has not been proven effective, is not FDA certified and there has been no long term testing. The mumps, rubella, polio all were tested for years before they were launched. To each his own.
I had the second Pfizer yesterday at 3. Starting feeling achey about 6 but feeling pretty good this morning. At my place I can’t go 3 feet without hitting a root. Ive learned that small bites work best. The site for my future pond is wooded but swampy 6 months out of the year. I’m going to hire a bulldozer to clear it before I start excavating. A 24” bucket will probably be ok after that. When I was a kid, we dug farm ponds by breaking up the ground with the backhoe and then scooping out with the loader. Bootheal you’re not too far from me. I live in McCracken county Kentucky and my land adjoins the Clark’s River Waterfowl Refuge in Marshall county. The refuge is a great neighbor haha.
Retired now but in a previous life, we worked western Ky. a lot. The trucks still beat the pavement around there. Like a lot of other folks, you have some pretty country. if you need something I might have, you just need to ask. My SIL, soon to be retired army, and I are going to have a pond cleaned out and expanded slightly (hopefully this summer). Been three years waiting on SCS’s list for funding. They must be as broke as we are! The dirt guy that looked at it, though probably 30K for the dirt work and pipe. Hopefully he doesn’t retire before we get this done! Good to hear from you neighbor.
Bote ; Your 24" bucket will handle tree roots as well as your 18". Splitting the roots are an almost must do thing if they are very big. I found that sharp teeth will split and shred a root no matter how big it is. Try to avoid just pulling on big roots it usually didn't work for me without splitting them them multiple times. If it is a REALLY big root I just expose it further from the trunk. They usually get smaller quickly the further away I got.
Ditto on the sharp teeth for stump removal. Here are the ones I have on my 24" bucket. BUT remember, these machines are made for digging. Start tugging on stuff with too much zeal and you will end up blowing hoses and tearing stuff up. The best advice I was ever given and tend to pass on for stumps is to dig them out. Don't try to pull them. If the roots are large and spread out then dig further away from the stump until they can be broken easily. I twill dig around until it falls over in the hole. Then dig in the root ball to get as much dirt out as possible before I lift or roll it out of the hole. I have tackled plenty that my machine would not pick up even with a thumb.
Man, I want one of those for my 310C. I was under the impression that they had to be welded-on.
The USA Attachment thumb is on my official wishlist. I did find out that Amulet doesn't make a manual thumb for the 580M due to the geometry of the linkage.
I had an Amulet adjustable thumb (I think 3 different positions) welded onto the dipper on my 580 SK ext. hoe. On my machine only the boom is ductile iron. It's been working great for 14 years.