Loader-Mounted Magnetic Sweeper

Loader-Mounted Magnetic Sweeper TRACTORS Loaders 33-3-34 Nothing beats DuWayne Bakker's magnetic sweeper that hangs from his tractor's front-end loader. He can clear up an area in no time, picking up 15 to 20 lbs. of metal scrap in each pass. Bakker ordered the 6-ft. long, powerful magnet from a catalog. It mounts inside an aluminum housing. A 14-in. thick, 2-in. wide strip of steel runs the length of the aluminum housing to hold the magnet, attached with aluminum rivets. At either end of the strip, he mounted small wheels sized to keep the housing 1 1/2 in. off the ground. Two lengths of chain are bolted to the steel strap. Their hooked ends slip through brackets Bakker welded to the back of the loader bucket. "It works great," he says. "I rent my yard out to a company that builds and maintains oil drilling rigs. They have had as many as 6 to 8 welders working. When they finish for the season, I come in and pick up the bits of metal and spent welding rod. I've picked up more than 1 1/2 tons of scrap." When picking up a few nails or bits of metal, simply pulling the magnetic bar a few inches from the housing causes the metal to release. That's not the case when heavier amounts of ferrous material are involved. "Nobody told me that by the time you had 20 lbs. on one side of the housing, it would be nearly impossible to pull the magnetic bar away," says Bakker. The solution was simple once Bakker thought about it. He fabricated a short pry bar somewhat like a pickle fork at its end. He simply pries away the magnet and slips a wooden block between it and the housing. Once the metal has been cleared away, he returns the magnet to its position and makes another sweep. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, DuWayne Bakker, 218 Burns Lane, Mesquite, Nevada 89027 (ph 702 346-1525; cell 307 851-0030).

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