Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 36
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default Building a loader frame quick hitch

    I am part way through designing and building a quick hitch for my old loader..

    It is predominately being made out of 25mm plate which I have here..

    I have drawn up some parts with a program and was considering getting the parts profile cut..

    I have never had anything to do with profile cutting before so I have no idea of costs involved.... I have got one quote and it was well probably a couple of hundred more then I was expecting... I required out of my 25mm sheet cut four of these quick hitch1.jpg

    Then two strips 1200 long (length of the sheet) X 150 or 200 long...

    Then for the company to supply me 2 X 550 X 125 X 50..

    Cost is a bit over $600+GST

    If the steel they are supplying costs $2000 a tonne that is about $120 worth of steel they are suppling and $480 to do the cutting... I have supplied the DWG file..

    Anyone familiar with profile cutting care to have any opinion on the price? I was expecting about $400... I would cut it myself, but my oxy skillz are not the best... And for the 50mm thick pieces, I could use two 25mm thick pieces, back to back...

    quick hitch1.jpg
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  2. # ADS
    Google Adsense Advertisement
    Join Date
    Always
    Location
    Advertising world
    Posts
    Many





     
  3. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lebrina
    Posts
    1,099

    Default

    That's about what I would have expected cost wise. He with the profile cutter names his price I'm afraid.
    How big is your loader? Farm tractor or an industrial loader? That's a pretty chunky frame there.
    Have you got oxy gear? A number 15 tip in the oxy and you would be well on your way. Thicker plate is often easier to cut than thin as your travel speed is slower and you seem to be able to just plod along and follow your line. Instead of 50mm plate, you could consider using 25mm with machined bosses (cut in half where required) and welded into the 25mm plate.
    You could do an awful lot of clean up grinding for $600 if your cuts are a bit wonky.
    One thing to bear on mind, is that for every kilo of quick hitch, you lose a kilo of payload, compounded by the fact that your quick hitch spaces out your attachment a bit too, so try to keep it as light and close as possible.
    Would it be worth modelling your hitch after a Euro quick hitch as used on tractor loaders? That would give you a degree of attachment standardisation.

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    Canberra
    Posts
    3,260

    Default

    For $600 you could do some serious hiring of a plasma cutter.

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lebrina
    Posts
    1,099

    Default

    Quality cut on 25mm plate is going to take a decent 3 phase plasma.

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    It is an old Cat 922 model from 1965... It will lift about 2.5-3 tonnes... I know it is probably overkill, but I am not an engineer and with modern designs using an unknown high strength steel the designer knows what thickness steel to use..

    I have oxy here well oxy-lgp which in my experience is not as tolerant of poor cutting skills then acetylene.. But it is looking like I will be cutting them out myself..
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lebrina
    Posts
    1,099

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by .RC. View Post
    It is an old Cat 922 model from 1965... It will lift about 2.5-3 tonnes... I know it is probably overkill, but I am not an engineer and with modern designs using an unknown high strength steel the designer knows what thickness steel to use..

    I have oxy here well oxy-lgp which in my experience is not as tolerant of poor cutting skills then acetylene.. But it is looking like I will be cutting them out myself..
    An old 922 CAT, good solid machine, back when CAT really built tough gear.
    I would be quite happy to downsize your 50mm plate to 25mm, provided you weld a machined boss in place.
    Our EWP's that hang off Volvo LD120 loaders, (much bigger than your 922), hang off 40mm plate as does the forklift attachment, jib and bucket. I would be surprised if the material was anything too exotic.
    Regular old mild steel is around 28 Tons per square inch tensile strength, so you can see that even 25mm (1") plate is quite tough, even more so if reinforced with machined bosses.
    The tighter you make your hitch, then the stronger it will be. Excess slop really hammers things, (no ride control on that old girl), and will cause premature wear and breakage.
    Oxy LPG should do a really good job of 25mm plate with a number 15 tip. I don't know specifically what your problems are but the generic information for oxy fuel gas cutting, (which you may already know), is as follows. Clean plate - grind off rust scale and crud if required. Clean tip, you want a nice, long, defined cutting jet and all your preheat flames should be burning cleanly with a nice defined shape. Correct tip size and type. Correct pressures. Correct flame setting, don't forget to do your fine tuning with the cutting lever depressed. Correct travel speed. Get comfortable and don't forget to breathe. Clean goggles/ lens - if you can't see, you can't cut. Keep the tip perpendicular to the work for a nice square cut. Don't be afraid to stop and change position. Clearly mark your cut lines, center punching the line has been known to be of assistance if you have difficulty seeing a chalk line. Warm your plate up if it is thick. It doesn't need to be red hot, but it can help to take the chill off the plate's underside. Correct distance above the plate, too low and you will melt the top edge, too high and heat input is too low. Oxy LPG does seem a little more sensitive to height control than Oxy Acetylene. Use guides where possible. A bit of 40X40 SHS makes a good guide for straight cuts as it controls direction of travel as well as height, I prefer them to wheels a lot of the time. With a straight guide and a circle guide, you can do most things to an almost profile cut quality.
    If in doubt, cut a bit oversize and grind back, hopefully you have a good 5" grinder, or better still, a 7 or 9".
    How are you planning to weld the hitch up? A bit of gentle preheat, say 50 degrees, would be a good idea.
    Will your hitch be manual locking or hydraulic?
    Best of luck, you'll have a ball making this up and it will be just so much easier to change attachments on the old girl.

  8. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    Thanks Karl, I will do what you suggest and use 25mm plate with bosses welded in for the connectors... I have plenty of tools to get the job done..9" grinder, milling machines, lathes, etc...

    The four plates will be bored out together so all the holes are in alignment, then welded to the frame with alignment rods installed...

    I have done a bit of fabricating over time so I expect the job to go smoothly but only the cutting was where I knew my skills will let me down.. A long time ago I saw a video on youtube of a straight line cutter made from two pieces of angle iron, threaded rod and a variable speed drill... The angle iron was the guide (one inside the other) and the thread and drill moved it along...
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  9. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    I found the video on youtube of a home made straight edge cutter I tried to describe above

    Cutting a perfectly straight edge with an OA torch - YouTube
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  10. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    Not done any cutting yet, but have had a slight design...

    Using 25mm plate on the front and it has two 12mm plates either side as in the pic...

    The cad program informs me it will weight approx 140kg
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  11. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lebrina
    Posts
    1,099

    Default

    Looks good.

  12. #11
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    Have got as far as welding in a bolt on cutting edge segment that I part traded when I sold my Hercus lathe..... I use a Miller Bluestar 185DX welder for this work... It is a US made DC welder/generator that handles 4mm 7018 rods with ease... It is supposed to put out 180 amps, but during some testing when it was getting repaired (the auto idle was playing up due to a wire earthing out) a clamp amp meter on the cable registered 220 with the dial turned right up...





    20140721_092006.jpg
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  13. #12
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lebrina
    Posts
    1,099

    Default

    That's tidied up that bucket nicely.
    Gotta love Low Hydro's on a good DC welder.

  14. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    You have probably all been wondering what has happened..

    Well not much until this afternoon...

    I cut the first bits out of the 25mm plate... I am certainly a long way from getting good cuts with the oxy, but I got it done.... It was all marked out via a template I made up out of masonite...

    I then ground the slag off and cleaned them up, welded them together, and put them on the mill and used the horizontal spindle with a face mill to clean them up..

    20140904_153056.jpg 20140904_154001.jpg

    All sides were cleaned up, the angle section milled as well witht he vertical head tilted over...

    To do the radii, I put the template next to the part, then by eye I cut a series of notches... Then after that was done it was a simple matter of getting the grinder out and smoothing out the notches to form the radius.

    20140904_180521.jpg

    I have got up the stage of the part is ready to drill and bore the holes for the pins... But it is too dark for decent photo's..
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  15. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    The two holes are bored out.. they are bored 10mm oversize for a bush..

    I forgot to take a pic of the boring going on...

    Just a pick of drill the pilot hole...

    20140905_121122.jpg 20140905_144532.jpg
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

  16. #15
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    near Rockhampton
    Posts
    4,304

    Default

    Quick question....

    I will be welding the 25mm plates together in a T shape with fillet welds... Should I V out both sides for extra weld, or will a few plain fillet welds overlaid be enough... Will be using 4mm 7018 rods
    Light red, the colour of choice for the discerning man.

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. Building Yost Skin-on-Frame Kayak
    By Martin B. in forum KAYAK & CANOE BUILDING
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 27th July 2013, 06:42 PM
  2. Need help building Bed Frame
    By mtmaeger in forum FURNITURE, JOINERY, CABINETMAKING - formerly BIG STUFF
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 28th April 2012, 11:11 PM
  3. Sideboard-Entertainment Centre: Building the frame
    By derekcohen in forum FURNITURE, JOINERY, CABINETMAKING - formerly BIG STUFF
    Replies: 11
    Last Post: 11th July 2010, 03:32 PM
  4. Building 1st bed frame
    By Anything Wood in forum WOODWORK - GENERAL
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 28th April 2006, 08:55 AM
  5. Building a queensize bed-frame
    By Anything Wood in forum WOODWORK - GENERAL
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 6th November 2005, 12:57 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •