How about a bucket level rod?

[skeets]

Yep old dad has been playing with the FEL and yep I have been tearing stuff up. SO I need to find something low cost and redneck to tell when the bucket cutting edge is level with the surface so Im not riding over or digging in. Lets have the greatest minds on here chime in

 

[JohnDB]

While we're waiting for the greatest minds , can I offer this: what I use is a something (a metal bar, plate, piece of rod, whatever would do) attached to the bucket that's parallel to the bottom of the bucket and visible by the driver. Lowest cost ever. Currently I'm using a couple of aluminum bars about 250 mm long. They do tend to get caught on things occasionally, but I just bend them straight.

Simple, cheap, and your eye is always on the bucket.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

On my BX23S bucket ,there's an 'L' shaped piece of steel welded on the top right corner of the bucket, say 'level' on it...

 

[D2Cat]

I guess that question infers the search function does not work!

 

[Roadworthy]

I watched a video or two on You Tube. Lacking a good junk supply similar to what was used and evaluating how much time I would spend at junk yards around town scrounging parts I just opted to buy one from the local Kubota dealer. I'm getting old enough to realize my time has value and only so much remains.

 

[skeets]

I guess that question infers the search function does not work!

Search function ?

 

[swpflipper]

Search function ?

 

[swpflipper]

I just got a bucket level from my dealer. I put it on Friday.
Should have an idea how it works next week

 

[NCL4701]

My dealer talked me out of getting one when I bought the tractor, clearly over estimating my abilities. Added the Kubota OEM level indicator a few months later. It wasn’t expensive, very low tech, very effective. Took about 15 minutes to install. Unless Kubota doesn’t offer an OEM for your loader or it costs more than about $60 I’d just buy one.

 

[scotup362]

Yep old dad has been playing with the FEL and yep I have been tearing stuff up. SO I need to find something low cost and redneck to tell when the bucket cutting edge is level with the surface so Im not riding over or digging in. Lets have the greatest minds on here chime in

So here is my $.50 cent level...electrical tape. Sitting in the seat looking down at the bucket on a flat surface this is my level starting point. Don't laugh it works!...when I first started to learn how to operate my FEL this helped...now with a bit more experience it still gives me a good reference.

 

[chim]

Check this, Skeets. I made it back in 2012 not long after getting the L3200. It was still working well when I sold the tractor last year. The lower end of the plain rod is held by a damper swivel. Pictures leave a bit to be desired. A couple things worth mentioning:

If I did it again, I'd locate the damper swivel farther from the pin the bucket swings on. Someone mentioned that would make it easier to watch the rod because it would move farther for a given rotation of the bucket. Kinda like the seat on a merry-go-round travels a greater arc distance than 4" away from the hub.

It was suggested that the end of the clear PVC pipe I used should be cut at an angle for better visibility. As time passed and the inside of the clear pipe became scratched up it was hard to watch for the rod. To get around that, I cut the pipe in half lengthwise for a few inches at the top end.

The pipe is held in place with one eye bolt into the plate on the loader frame. The eye bolt was pressed closed to grip the pipe tightly. The pipe could still be tweaked up/down for adjustment.

Damper Control Swivel 1/4-28 X 9/16

Damper Control Swivel 1/4-28 X 9/16

www.clipsandfasteners.com

Bucket Level Indicator

Here's a really simple item that made life easy. I was recently moving lots of dirt to bury a 1,000 gallon propane tank. The lower part of our yard became the donor area because it is bottomless topsoil. There's a large area that I cut down from nothing at one end to maybe 18" at the other...

www.tractorbynet.com

 

[armylifer]

This may be a little too redneck but here is what I did with mine. If you look at the top right side of the bucket you will see a fiberglass rod sticking straight up with a rubber yellow cap on it. The rod came from my ATV flag. I cut it off about 6" and screwed it into a hole I drilled in the bucket level indicator. Here is the picture.

 

[NHSleddog]

I have a brand new one off a B2650 that you can use any parts that fit from it. I found it to rattle and be in the way visually. I removed it.

Honestly, unless I was loading trucks in a pit again, I would not want one. And the pit loader needs auto level and auto dump, not an indicator.

Practice is the best level indicator.

 

[D2Cat]

This may be a little too redneck but here is what I did with mine. If you look at the top right side of the bucket you will see a fiberglass rod sticking straight up with a rubber yellow cap on it. The rod came from my ATV flag. I cut it off about 6" and screwed it into a hole I drilled in the bucket level indicator. Here is the picture.

View attachment 52340

If you think yours in redneck, I'll one up you.

Here a picture of my loader bucket. It has a flat piece of steel all across the top that is parallel to the bottom cutting edge. I just look at that top piece and know where the cutting edge is. Then after a while one gets the "feel" of resistance when cutting too much or not enough.

Once the operator knows what to look for and how it the resistance feels it doesn't take long to feel confident using the bucket.

 

[SidecarFlip]

I find the current OEM flat stock 'level indicator' to be a cheap alternative to a real one. Neither of mine are like that, both have the rod and tube arrangement.

 

[802Driver]

I have the factory rod indicator on my lx, I thought I would use it all the time, its mounted and I find I never use it actually. My bx2380 had just the level sticker on the top and it was a quick guide. Seat time I find works the best. As some others have stated, resistance on the bucket is a good indicator, a quick side tap on the curl function is usually all it takes to correct too much dig.