bucket repair??

OK guys I am NOT a big welder, or fab guy!
so I have questions,?

I picked up a used bucket for a skid steer an d for what ever reason, its quick attach plate is of an odd size for my skid steer,
my fast hitch set up, is either too narrow, and too sort to hold bucket well, bucket sides side to side about 2 inches and only about a 1/5 inch of top of fast hitch is holding bucket on, almost pulling it off fast hitch on skid side!

I got a great deal on bucket so want to try and fix it

I need to make the width of the plate on it, 2 inches narrower, I was thinking of using some 3/4 inch thick steel and running it against the pre existing side brace to make it have a 1/2 inch of wiggle room
stopping the side to side sliding

and then to cure the too long, between top of bucket attachment area and pin holes, I was thinking of adding some 1/2 thick plate above the pre existing pin hole mounts!
I am thinking adding a 1/2 inch more here will give me more bite on the top!


NOW< my question is, what type of steel should I use here? that will hold up and last!
I went online to some metal shops and they have a LIST of types , so I got confused and not sure what to use, or if it even matters??
I am going to have a local machine shop, cut the metal into shape for me( I made a mock up out of 1/2 inch plastic already so know the shape and contour I need)
might even have them weld it on for me!but don';t know what steel to use??

thanks in advance and hope I am not over thinking this and ANY 1/2 " will work ??

I'd just put another plate on it.

I know they have new plates, but I was thinking my fix would be a lot less work and cheaper to??
prices on steel I found are like 30 bucks in materials, minus having cut and welded on?

so, don;t wish to cut off whole plate now and have to buy new one then have welded on, , I cannot see that being cheaper and they possibly could be off on size as well?
as seems this model skid steer has a slight different set up

measurements on my quick attach on my machine , is only 42-3/4 inches wide, and top to bottom is like 16-1/2 inches
so its a lot smaller than most standard sizes, so a NEW plate wouldn;t be any real help where and the one on this bucket is a HD plate as is

new plates seem to run 45 inches wide inside things and be 17-18 tall from top to bottom on pin holes

I don;t know how to add pic's here, so cannot post to show, or I would!

so, still looking for recommendation son type of steel to use, its just a side project !

A36 also known as mild steel will be just fine for what you are doing.

Regular mild steel a-36 is just what you need easy welding too the machine shop probably has some laying around

OK thanks
one question on it, is there a difference in it, when its in square bar stock as to sheet steel!
I know this sounds dumb maybe,a s again I am NOT a big metal guy!

but when I look at prices of it online, the bar stock of A-36, or even AR-400, when I compare the two in same size pieces there is a 125% cost difference when pricing sheet over bar stock of same material and size piece?
I was pricing 3/4 thick x 3 inch wide by 2 ft long and then 1/2 inch x 3 inch x 2 ft !
I just found it odd that big a difference in price and NO clue what the difference would be to justify things?

• here is a pic of all that this bucket is being held onto by my skid steer
• you can see its just holding on the very tip of things

also can see there is a gap behind things when mounted, unless load is in or bucket is being forced down on the cutting edge, I am worried it will pop off, and with it being wider, it slides side to side over an inch left to right , due to being wider than things

For the little bit you are going to need. Just buy it from the machine shop that is doing the work. Good chance they will have some pieces laying around.
All metals are sold by the pound. The heavier it is the more it costs.

When you weld high strength steel trying to make the most of its strength, it gets more complicated to do it right. You need the knowledge to chose the preheat temp, the ability to heat, and a means to measure temperature. Then you have to be a damned good welder.
Welding more steel to something already strong enough, you don't usually need to add strength. Basic hot rolled will work fine & the welds won't be as risky.

and then to see width on skid side and bucket
so again if I add some 3/4 inch down the sides of the bucket side braces, that will narrow the gap and allow my quick attach to fit closer, less slop side to side, and I THINK adding a 1/2 inch to the pin holes plate on bucket will get the tabs on my quick attach up higher into lip for bucket and also pull things into backing of bucket

seems like a easy enough thing to do, and have it work better than any new plate will, as a new plate will also be out of spec for this machines set up, so to speak due to its more or less odd size?

or this is my plan to fix things, always open to hear others idea's too, if any have any!

I plan to buy from machine shop, or at least get a price from them, as some times there VERY high on price as to what I can buy online, like more than double ! or even higher, and I don't mind paying a little extra, but don't also want to get robbed !

so I like to price before going there to know what I am getting, as far as a fair price for things or not!

and since I know my welding isn;'t the best, I plan to have someone that knows more than me do it LOL

I was just a little worried about the plate over the pin's making sure its strong enough to NOT wallow out, as it being on top, it will soon be carrying the load, as to the originals, as due to where things are on this bucket now, I plan to make the new plate , have holes smaller so not as much room for things to move , so it will be holding more load than the bottom originals will
just want it up to the task, and thought I would ask first, since I know many here know more than me on this stuff!

I think your pictures are a little too close. I think I'm seeing that you need to fill the gap at top. Not real complex, doesn't require a great deal of strength.
At bottom: Maybe a little more critical as the new pin holes take over the load.

It'd be nice to know what the old stuff is. Industrial buckets will be made of a high strength steel, homeowner buckets will be mild steel.

I believe I'd play it safe if you don't know, and preheat to 250F. It'll drive away much of the moisture if nothing else.

Don't get exotic with weld metal. 7018 stick (low hydroge, or ER70S2 MIG will do fine. All hot steel will shrink. The weld wants to shrink, the cold steel doesn't. This builds stress, one component pulling against another. Ductility will give the weld some stretch. A 11018 filler won't stretch. The weld will be strong, but the steel alongside might break.

Willie B said:

I think your pictures are a little too close. I think I'm seeing that you need to fill the gap at top. Not real complex, doesn't require a great deal of strength.
At bottom: Maybe a little more critical as the new pin holes take over the load.

It'd be nice to know what the old stuff is. Industrial buckets will be made of a high strength steel, homeowner buckets will be mild steel.

I believe I'd play it safe if you don't know, and preheat to 250F. It'll drive away much of the moisture if nothing else.

Don't get exotic with weld metal. 7018 stick (low hydroge, or ER70S2 MIG will do fine. All hot steel will shrink. The weld wants to shrink, the cold steel doesn't. This builds stress, one component pulling against another. Ductility will give the weld some stretch. A 11018 filler won't stretch. The weld will be strong, but the steel alongside might break.

Click to expand...

yes it is an issue at the top, as the top is farther away than my machines quick attach overall length is
when bucket is on machine, it has slop, it will slide up and down on things about an inch, meaning, the bottom pin will stick out farther and then less as it slides up and then down,
and there is again also slop side to side, almost 2 inches that way

I was thinking that , by adding a plate like in the shape of the bottom pin holes over the existing plate there, would be the easiest way to correct the up and down, as I do NOT know how to make my machine side fast hitch longer!

adding a 1/2 inch plate the shape of the existing pin holes on bucket, I figure, would in return push things higher into the lip on the top of the bucket, and also, get the fast hitch more flush with the bucket, as there is also a GAP behind the fast hitch to the bucket
I was thinking this again would be the better option to resolve things here, but I am NOT no expert at fixing things, so I am always open to other idea's

doing things MY way I know will then have the machines fast hitch pin,'s resting more on the new plate
thus why I was wondering what to use as for steel there , so it would hold up

but even with the new plate over the old pin holes, my PIN on my fast hitch, will also be sticking down and should be touching the old original plates too, helping share the load?


so, if there is a better way to fix this, please let me know??


the side to side slop, I gather isn;t as big a deal to correct, as I can again, just add some braces down the sides of existing braces, to make it as wide as I want, to stop having so much movement side to side!

the braces there now are sticking off bucket 3 inches at top of bucket and then they taper/angle down to about 1 inch,
I was thinking I could again, just get some 3/4 inch x3 inch bar, and have it welded on to old braces, to make width go from 44-1/2 inches, to 43 inches, leaving an 1/8 inch on both sides of my fast hitch to allow some wiggle room , as my fast hitch is, 42-3/4 inches wide
or would that be cutting things too close??
any thoughts on this??



NOW as for the welding, again, I will NOT be doing it, so, I am hoping the shop that does, would know how to do correctly, or am I taking this for granted
there a long time (60+yrs ) machine shop business , any thing I should say to them before dropping iff? or would they just hopefully know?

as again, I am no expert on welding or the process's or things that can happen after its done to things
I don;t want to ruin the bucket here, trying to make it just fit better

it's rather HD bucket, thus why I am trying to use it here!

if my fast hitch was of a more normal size, I wouldn;t be having this issue at all, but it is what it is,
machine is a 1999 New Holland, LX 865, 1600 hours only on it?

Why is there grease smeared all over the bucket and quick attach? If a universal quick attack plate will work, put that on. It will be a lot less work and likely less money than modifying what you have. Where I'm at shops charge well over $100/hr. and it could easily be 2 hours or more plus material to modify the bucket. A new quick attach plate makes it a simple process. There is no need for 3/4" and 1/2" plate on a 6250lb. skid steer.

Welder Dave said:

Why is there grease smeared all over the bucket and quick attach? If a universal quick attack plate will work, put that on. It will be a lot less work and likely less money than modifying what you have. Where I'm at shops charge well over $100/hr. and it could easily be 2 hours or more plus material to modify the bucket. A new quick attach plate makes it a simple process. There is no need for 3/4" and 1/2" plate on a 6250lb. skid steer.

Click to expand...

I was just thinking the same

Are you considering getting more or renting attachments they are pricey but I never regretted switching my new holland to a bobtach front the day I got it

Welder Dave said:

Why is there grease smeared all over the bucket and quick attach? If a universal quick attack plate will work, put that on. It will be a lot less work and likely less money than modifying what you have. Where I'm at shops charge well over $100/hr. and it could easily be 2 hours or more plus material to modify the bucket. A new quick attach plate makes it a simple process. There is no need for 3/4" and 1/2" plate on a 6250lb. skid steer.

Click to expand...

there is grease all over the quick attach on skid steer side and on the bucket, due to old owner used to coat it all the time, thinking it made for easier attaching and removal of buckets and such?/

I cleaned it all off today

and again, as for replacing with a new universal quick attach plate, it would be the same problem I have now
and this bucket doesn;t have a plate welded on, , the bucket was MADE as is, NO plate on it

it would be a LOT more work to cut everything off to then add a new plat ane THEN modify things on the new plate
its just not worth it IMO

I use this skid steer for plowing snow and some light projects at a hunting camp where I keep the machine!
its not used often and ain;t making me any money!

I have a set of forks for it and they fit much better, not perfect, but they have a lot more grab on all things

I have a stiff arm back hoe, and well that fits like this bucket does, have to watch when using it as it WILL pull off the quick attach tabs on the top, NOT at the pins

and the reason I am using the 1/2 inch and the 3/4 inch isn';t all about strength, its about filling the gap needed to make things fit better!
there is a 1-3/4 inch difference in width of my quick attach and the side braces on the bucket, so I figure if I added some 3/4 inch to the existing side braces, it would split the difference and allow bucket to have less side to side movement and keep things centered and all that would be needed is toi be welded onto existing brace, about a 8-9 inch strip of 3/4 x3 inch (that is how tall the current brace sticks off the bucket!

and by adding a 1/2 inch to the pin hold, that would then allow a better fit for my quick attach to grab more of bucket
and again, just be a simple weld on deal, existing pin hole plate would be still holding on pins,, the 1/2 just is getting quick attach up higher under bucket lip!, more to graba nd less likely to pull off when in use!
the old bucket I had, fit this machine better was was in poor condition, this si why I got this bucket

even if I went and bought a BRAND new bucket, I would eb back to same issues, as the set up on these older NH skid steers are just shorter and narrower than the rest!


as for swapping things over to a bobtac/or is that bobcat set up??
its just again not worth the costs to do so
from what I can see costs are about 1500 bucks or more, plus my health doesn;t allow me to do the work, so be paying to have done and that will I gather ad bunch more $$ to thing, then add in I have to PAY someone to haul it to and back, as I don;t have a trailer for it to haul myself!!

as again, this is a,lightly used machine for small projects and snow removal , and last few yrs it hasn;t even snowed to need it LOL

OK guys bare with me here, as again this is a thought I have and open to suggestions

as I stated, the issue is really the quick attach on MY skid steer its older and apparently has a OD size to things
its only 42-3/4 inches wide and 16 inches tall

so when hooking up to this bucket, the bucket has a lot of side to side movement as well as up and down, to the point the quick attach tabs on machine are barely holding onto bucket!!

MY THOUGHST, and I am NO expert MR Fix it here!
was to make some simple plates to weld on to the pin attachment holes on bucket, to make the distance from top of bucket to them less, giving my machine's quick attach more to hold onto!

and then on the sides of the bucket set up, to add some bar stock to make the gap from them narrower, closet o the 42-3/4 inch width, that my machines quick attach is! thus stopping a LOT of the side to side movement and allowing some wiggle room(1/4 inch on both sides of quick attach tips)

I was thinking 3/4 bar steel, to lower the width then to 43-1/4 inches wide!

I cleaned the bucket up a bunch and made some templates of what I think would work for over the bucket pin holes(I also can now see there is some wear. Damage to this bucket near the pin holes, but gather when being welded, they can fill in with some welds and correct that as well, thoughts on this appreciated)

and again, EVEN if I BUY a new bucket(this one IMO is still very solid) due to MY machine having a odd sized quick attach, I would still have same issue's!

so just fixing this bucket seems a CHEAPER fix, a NEW modern quick attach set up is about 1300 bucks, and not looking to spend that for how little use this thing gets!


so here are pic's of the templates I made out of 1/2 inch plastic!, I'd like to have them welded onto the pin hole tabs, to RAISE them to allow quick attach to ride higher in the top of the bucket lip!
I don't think a machine shop would have that hard a time to make these all the more so with me giving them a template to just copy!, I am thinking 1/2 inch steel, or maybe 3/8""
any thoughts on this??

and will gather at same time, doing the above will put quick attach more flush with back of bucket as there is a gap there now at times, allowing things to side forward and backwards, not just UP and down and side to side, but , there is SLOP in all directions, you can see this has been going on a while , as the pin tabs have some decent wear on them from pin rubbing and removing metal off them!
so these things IMO will solve the movement or a LOT of it?
and not sure on costs, but I don't think a ton here? but could be wrong I guess?

and then for the side to side movement, this is soprt of my idea
I DON"T have any 3/4 inch x3 inch stock, so, just used a 2x4 to show my idea

I was thinking again using some 3/4 thick, by 3 inch, as the side brace NOW is 3 inches at the top, but is angled down to about 2 inches, I doubt it would be a issue if I left things at 3 inches all the way down to where I plan to place thing, should be no clearance issues I can see??

I am sure other metals can be used, from square tub, to angle iron, to ?? I just thought a simple 3/4x3 -7 inches long would be easier and well, ,ore than strong enough!

but I was thinking to again add some 3/4 inch thick, to close the gap between braces on bucket from 44-1/2 to 43-14 inch
again leaving a 1/4 inch wiggle room on both sides of my quick attach , as there 42-3/4 inches wide on my machine


the 3/4 inch bar would just need to be welded into play on the existing brace and bucket some
and I see this as a some what simple deal as well, or am I wrong??