Oops I did it again...

[maclean]

And the POS Land Shame (Pride) grapple broke again. Although this one was all my fault...my original weld job didn't penetrate. All welded again...more heat...more wire... amazing how your welding improves in a couple of years.

And I fixed my missing tooth...we work this poor thing hard!

 

[D2Cat]

Well, you got it all nailed back together. Looks like your shielding gas needs to be turned up on a couple of those welds.

 

[chim]

What's missing on those bolted connections? Looks like 1/2" bolts in 3/4" holes.

 

[maclean]

Gas blew away in the wind...and the holes were the right size...now they are all reamed out.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

How does one work a grapple that hard with a BX?

 

[bearbait]

How does one work a grapple that hard with a BX?

Exactly, HOLY MOLY!

 

[edritchey]

Looking at it's construction it looks really light duty compared to the grapples we use. One of ours is a Landpride the other is a Titan.

 

[John T]

My $0.02
You should have V'ed out the cracks and stick welded it with 6011 or 7018

I don't see any penetration there at all. And swiss cheese from
mig welding in the wind to boot!

If all you have is a mig welder, get some flux core or dual shield wire....
Or drag it in the barn and weld it.

thats a band aid... No offense.

You will get another chance to weld it soon.

 

[maclean]

Metal is super thin...less than .120... really it's a balancing act between weight and function vs strength.

My father in law suggested gussetting the square tube with 3/8" angle iron. That would up the weight of the grapple and reduce lifting capacity.

I already gusseted both sides with 8" of .120 wall angle iron and 1/2 round stock. And it would have worked if my welds hadn't failed.

As previously posted...Land Shame only welds one side of the hinge. Anyone who buys one of these should redo the welds at a minimum and probably guesset each end before you rip out the hinge and knock all the alignment to heck.

I need to do Paul Short's suggested mod and add grease fittings.

-Mac

 

[Cobraone]

Forward weld is undercut and aft welds are a little cold also you missed a crack under the nut, fully agree with previous post 6010,6011, 7018 stick
Understand your limitations, but this repair will fail again in short order.

my 02 cents

 

[Freeheeler]

Next time you weld it, grind as much of it clean as you can first. No amount of shielding will keep that much contamination from weakening the weld. The more often it breaks, the more you get to play with the welder

 

[maclean]

Excellent suggestions! Thanks...and probably why I keep getting better... slowly...

 

[Yooper]

It looks like the very worn pivot is causing the linkage to cantilever which is stressing the frame. It also looks like a crack is starting on the short side of the bushing in the first picture. Maybe its the picture but the linkage looks like it is twisted also. I would spend some time to get this tightened/straightened up or you will just continue to have this happen again. A 4-1/2" grinder is your best friend when you own a wire welder. I agree with the others that you should vee out the cracks and then weld. You will see a noticeable difference in the quality of the welds. BTW, I think your welds are decent with the exception of the porosity.