Can a tractor with hay forks pick up a log?

[livemusic]

Looking at a John Deere 990 tractor, 40 gross hp, 38.5 net, 35 pto HP, with a Deere Model 430 FEL and Titan hay forks... is it practical to use this to pick up logs and move them?

What about a tractor with pallet forks? Better or no difference?

[DaleK]

Hay tines will work but eventually you'll bend one. Pallet forks work much better.

[btulloh]

Pallet forks are good.  Pallet forks with a thumb is even better. A grapple is better yet. I agree about the hay forks not holding up.

Ideal would be to get a grapple and a set of pallet forks. It's only money!  :D

[woodman52]

What is the lifting capacity of the fel and how big of logs. It should handle most logs bucked for the sawmill but if you want to handle 16' 20"+ hardwood logs you may want something bigger.

[Southside]

Make sure you have a solid backstop on that FEL. More than a few guys have gotten seriously injured or killed when a log rolls back over the forks, down the arms, and lands on the operator. 

[beenthere]

I  use forks on my 430 FEL and within limits pick up and move logs. Have added a thumb which helps a lot.



 

 

 

[chevytaHOE5674]

If the hay forks/spears are good quality (ie not Chinese junk) then they should be rated for way more than that tractor could ever lift.

[livemusic]

I  use forks on my 430 FEL and within limits pick up and move logs. Have added a thumb which helps a lot.



 

 

What model, how big is your tractor? Like your thumb, cool, I was not aware of adding that.

[YellowHammer]

I'd also recommend getting a set of forks rated for more than your lift capacity, with a good backstop.  You'll use it more than any other implement you have.  

Grapples are great, but they take an experienced operator, like Beenthere, to use safely.  Basically, the issue is that the most stable a load is on a tractor, and to keep it on its 4 wheels, is to hold the load as far back on the forks as possible, near the hinge pin, and also at the log's balance point.  Grapples allow a user to hold logs forward on the forks tips, and also allows you to pick it up way off its balance point and which can have a tendency to unbalance the tractor and possibly roll or flip it.

If you just use the forks with no grapple, you can't pick up a log unless it is balanced.  Or just be careful with a grapple.  It's a useful implement but it can get you in trouble fast.

Also, inflate the front tire to full pressure to keep them from tripping with a full load and set all the rims in their widest position.  Never travel with a load more than needed to clear the ground, that way if the tractor starts to roll or come up, the load will hit the ground before you get into trouble.    

[mike_belben]

Wait so youre not supposed to pirouette around on two tires like a figure skater in a skid steer?  

Well thats no fun. 

[woodman52]

What YellowHammer said plus I would recommend having something with significant weight on the 3pt. Preferable with a low center of gravity. Also if you are in hills make sure you are in 4wd before going down. Going up you can stop and put it in 4wd going down once your back wheels start sliding it can get interesting. Weight on the back end will help with this but don't count on it.

[firefighter ontheside]

My fork set also has removable hay spear and spikes.  I Have not used the hay spear, but its very easy to change them from forks to spears.  I think this is the way to go if you have a need for both.  My forks are rated much higher than my loader is rated.  I can pick up logs about 1500 lbs, but prefer to stay around the 1000lb weight or less.  You can really tell the stress put on loader and tractor when approaching the limit.  I have a 42 horse Kubota.

[Ed_K]

 Don't even worry about the back stop  :( . My DUMB a** BiL built a back stop on the 3020 JD loader and promptly rolled a round bale over it and on to his head. He took 1/4 plate and turned it into a pipe.
 Get a grapple to hold the logs in front of you.

[Southside]

Another word of caution, on loading down the 3 pt hitch with ballast weight.  If you need to do that to keep the back tires on the ground then you have too much weight over the front axle and those smaller tractors don't have much of a safety factor built into their load capacity.  Those axle pieces get expensive quick.  

[mike_belben]

Agreed.  Put hitch pins on your fork rack and carry super heavy stuff on the rear instead.  Steer knuckles arent very strong. 

[YellowHammer]

Twice I have looked down and seen my tires roll off into the ditch when the front axle hardware broke.  It's hilarious.  

[Nathan4104]

Sorry not the best of picture, but I added a third fork tine which helps keep 8' logs from falling through as piles are never perfect, and one fork always goes up and one under a log in the pile. 
This single arm grapple works well and is removable.
With the third tine I have it spaced so I can still grab a pallet, but it's off centered so care must be used in heavier ones.  

 

[biggkidd]

I've got the cheap junk Chinese tractor and I wouldn't trade it! lol But in all seriousness I also have Toyota fork lift forks that were taken off. I made my own frame work partly out of a trashed FEL bucket. (I am hard on stuff) Tractor is rated as 35 PTO hp 4x4 and I have had the TPH 7.5 foot reach backhoe on and still ended up with the rear tires 1.5-2 feet off the ground. Backhoe weighs in at 1500 so believe me they can and will tip over if you're not cautious. Or if you're prone to push you tools WAY past their limits like I routinely do. I was digging a basement and rode the front tires on every load that came up that slope in reverse. Yes I did have to replace the tires when we got done the sidewalls were TOAST!!!!!!!!!!!

Forks are a blessing around the homestead and make for a great man bucket platform with the addition of a IBC tote cage and ratchet strap.

[Cruiser_79]

I'm  not really used to tractors and loaders, but aren't you afraid the front axle bearings and hubs will fail with heavy loads? I have no idea what these compact tractors can handle on the front axles. Many dairy farms around have bigger tractors with loader but everyone is afraid to buy these used cause of the front axles. You can add endless counterweights and the hydraulics will lift it probably, if not you can turn up the overpressure valve  ;D 

[Southside]

The bearings and hubs are no big deal, well not compared to when the casting lets go and all the go juice runs out in a puddle. 

Now that's exciting! 

[mike_belben]

Its kingpins, spindles, knuckle castings and planetary parts that fail when you think your tractor is a 950K. 

[kantuckid]

FEL capacity (minus weight of grapples, forks, etc.) vs. ballast weight box and/or tire ballast and tractor gross weight vs. logs you might lift and where you hope to place them? Thats not gonna load or unload a typical log truck nor pick up seriously, really large logs, no matter what the above answers might be?
Hay forks can of course pick up some logs is the simple answer. 
That said, I got by OK for many years with no FEL and using dragging and 3pt hitches, not that I want to go back.  ;D  

[kantuckid]

My neighbor was using a very large, Long brand tractor to load his log truck last summer. He busted the 4x4 front axle casting and now has a dead tractor as the axles NLA. I don't know what or how much ballast he had in place but rearward ballast matters hugely for front tractor gear when lifting much or often. 

[DaleK]

My neighbor was using a very large, Long brand tractor to load his log truck last summer. He busted the 4x4 front axle casting and now has a dead tractor as the axles NLA. I don't know what or how much ballast he had in place but rearward ballast matters hugely for front tractor gear when lifting much or often.

How hard did he try? Most of the Long's used Fiat front axles, same as in a lot of Hesston and some White and Allis Chalmers tractors. I'm sure he can't find one with the Long name but he should be able to find somebody that can cross-reference the axle so that he can at least find one at a wrecker

[kantuckid]

I have no idea. I owned a smaller Long myself once and another FT farmer down the road uses them plus he has several donor tractors too. I saw the casting he paid freight on from CA to KY and didn't fit is all I heard. He's not a close friend at all. It's not his first rodeo equipment wise as his Dad was a FT logger and later the log buyer for a major mill near here. Not that I'd call him a mechanic either but he was using a garage to help him look who had taken apart the tractor. That same owner had rebuilt the engine while still running a dozer for a roadbuilder contractor near here, then he retired hoping to use it as his loader as he went back to logging, which he's still doing I think. Obviously, he knew what engine it had.