Toothbar problems

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

I ordered a W R Long toothbar in addition to my tractor,etc. back in August of '14. I'm now on the 3rd toothbar after over 7 months. First one the dealer made a mistake measuring the bucket resulting in a bar that was too long. Second one was bent and wouldn't slip completely over the lip of the bucket. Another was ordered and came in a couple of weeks ago. Well, guess what? Another crooked bar. This time I noticed a couple of teeth that were welded onto the bar slightly crooked.

I understand a mistake in measuring the bucket, stuff happens. But, the two bars being crooked is totally unacceptable and show WR Long doesn't much quality control

The photos aren't the best, but hopefully you can see the crooks in the bar and how the teeth don't fit all the way onto the lip of the bucket. The bar only fits about 1/3 the way onto the lip.

Anyone out there have similar problems, especially with WR Long bars?

 

[FTG-05]

Can't really help you unfortunately except to say that my one and only BXexpanded Piranha bar fit perfectly.

Good luck!

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Thanks FTG-05. I've got an ATI toothbar on my old tractor that slides on and off with no problems.....bar is straight as an arrow. Really surprising WR Long lets crap like this out of their factory.

 

[Porkman]

Was just looking at the WR Long one but will pass on them as sure don't want to go through what you have. BXexpanded Piranha bar looks to be the way to go.

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Took the bar to a fabrication shop for assessment. He agreed the bar was crooked and also that some of the teeth weren't welded on straight and square. Said he could repair it, but would have to do some cutting, grinding and re-welding. I told him it was new, unacceptable, and thanked him for his time.

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Took the bar back to the dealer and got refunded. They told me that none of the bars come completely straight and that they force the bar onto the bucket and that the bar will eventually conform to the bucket. I'm not a fabrication expert, but seems to me the manufacturer should be able to make a straight bar. Am I expecting too much?

Looking at a regular type tooth bar from Construction Attachments and also the Piranha bar. Most of my use would involve digging into compacted soil, so thinking the regular bar would be the way to go.

 

[85Hokie]

Can't really help you unfortunately except to say that my one and only BXexpanded Piranha bar fit perfectly.

Good luck!

I'll second that !

 

[Daren Todd]

Sounds like they are putting two much heat to it on one side. Or didn't lock it in to a form to keep it straight during the building process


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[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Anyone using the Piranha on an M series tractor? Seems like most of the folks I run into have them on a B series tractor. I've got the M5140 with 72" bucket.

Daren, the dealer mentioned something about the heat causing the bow in the bar. Does seem like they could have locked it in until the metal cooled off. I have an ATI toothbar on an older tractor and it fits perfectly.

 

[BadDog]

Building a fixture to lock it in only helps so far. You put a lot of heat in, it's gonna warp when you release it. Not so bad if it were not restrained, but still warp, and I'll bet that's what this is. Quality fabrication requires that you either put together a plan to keep it within limits (alternating welds, pre-flex fixture, etc), or you correct it (generally with a press) after fabricating. I wouldn't worry about that much warp as long as I could get it on it without too much drama, if it was a permanent addition. But for a tooth bar that is intended to be put on and off, no way. That's just poor quality, and sounds like a refund was the right response.

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Thanks for the explanation Russ. My intention was that the bar would be able to be taken off if need be. Don't know if that's the manufacturer's intention or not. The bar on my older tractor goes on/off with no problem. That was the point I was trying to make with the dealer. If the bar was forced on to install it I couldn't see it being very easy to take it off. Honestly I tend to leave the bars on 90% of the time, but some work I don't want them on.
I'm looking at a bar by Construction Attachments. It's a little heavier (30 lbs).

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Going a little different direction. Pulled the trigger on a Piranha bar today. The only disadvantage I can see is maybe it's not as good as a standard bar at digging. I think I've got enough power and weight for it not to be a problem.
It will be on my M5140. Haven't seen many report on using the bar on a larger tractor. Will report back on how it works.

 

[ShaunBlake]

TKM, I can't imagine that the Piranha bar would be less effective on the heavyweight than on my B6100; I expect you'll be very pleased. The beast is very sharp, and the design increases the cutting edge by factors. I'm delighted with mine, and my Kub and terrain are among the worst environments: lots of roots, and slopes that make getting leverage difficult at best.

I'm looking forward to your updates, and anticipating your reports of delights with the monster.

 

[bearbait]

I just received and installed a Piranha bar yesterday on my L3560. Haven't had a chance to use it but easy to install and looks well built. The worst part was paying UPS for the extra charges for shipping to Canada, last time for those blood suckers.

 

[MadMax31]

Whoever ran that MIG burned all the teeth on in less than 8 minutes. The heat is what distorted it. As far as the teeth not slipping completely over the lip of bucket, my knee jerk reaction is its a Multi-fit bar. It could be fitted to B bucket, or thinner gauge version. Looks to be 1/2" plate, which isnt all that easy to manipulate into shape without teeth welded to it every 6-8". I was looking into the Piranha for my yet-to-be-found new machine, but I think Ill just fab-up my own tooth bar.

 

[skeets]

Cool deal Max and don't forget pictures man pictures,, you know Goose would have liked that

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

MadMax, it is 1/2". Are you saying they welded the teeth on too quickly? The only comparison I have is an older ATI toothbar that is straight as an arrow and slips on and off my L3010 with ease. Look forward to your toothbar photos.

Let us know how your bar works bearbait. Last week I ordered an LED ROPS light kit from Canada. Cost $30 for shipping via USPS. Seemed a little high.

Shaun, getting ansy to get the PTB. I'm a thinkin' the brush around here is gonna take a beating!

 

[clay45]

I've been readying my L2050DT to do some work and wonder if the toothbar will not only improve performance but also preserve the lip of the bucket its attached to? I ask because the lip on mine is distorted a tad and has wear points along its edge not to mention a series of large holes (to mount another edge to?) that serve no purpose that I have encountered yet.

 

[SLIMSHADIE]

Clay I would assume that the bucket had a previous cutting edge of some sort. The Piranha toothbar will preserve the old edge, but I would grind and straighten it out before installation. This is 1 of my pics.



also look at the link for it from Bxpanded

http://bxpanded.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=30

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Ditto what Slimshadie said. You'd be better off straightening out your bucket edge before install of a bar. That way you'll be able to put it on and take it off without a lot of hassle. Even though a bar is on my bucket most of the time, I do take it off on some jobs.

Got the Piranha in Thursday. I ordered on Monday.....now that's fast service! Hope to install it this weekend.