2010 - Volume #34, Issue #6, Page #19
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Push Away Grapple
Auxiliary hydraulics are required to hook up the twin hydraulic grapple, which digs into the compacted feed. After reaching the end of the stroke an adjustable hydraulic valve automatically energizes another set of hydraulic cylinders, which pushes the loader away with 12 tons of force, and separates the feed in the bucket from the pile.
"You're letting the hydraulics do the work your wheels used to do," says Ron Fritsch, owner of the company, noting that small skidsteers can't get traction on the plastic and often tear up the ground. His grapple provides the breakaway force to get away.
"Some producers say they load feed in half the time, because they are getting full buckets with the grapple," Fritsch says. "A nice side benefit is that you can use it on packed bedding to remove manure. It's so much faster. The grapple rips through it."
He emphasized that the grapple and bucket need to be washed thoroughly afterwards, but since packs are only cleaned out a couple times a year it's not a big problem.
Fritsch uses hardened, replaceable teeth on his patent-pending grapple. A grapple can be customized to fit on any size bucket, and prices range from $2,200 to $3,100. The company also makes buckets with a built-in grapple and standard grapples (without the push-away hydraulics).
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Ron Fritsch, Fritsch Equipment Corporation, 6229 Hwy. 57, De Pere, Wis. 54115 (ph 920 532-6292; www.fritschequipment.com).
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