New Products
With Push Away grapple, load twice the feed in half the time
Designed for feeding bagged silage, the Push Away grapple saves time and minimizes ground disturbance when removing feed from the bag.
The patent-pending tool has the power to penetrate tightly-packed haylage and grasses to completely fill the bucket of a skid-steer or other type of front-end loader in less than 10 seconds, says Ron Fritsch, whose company, Fritsch Equipment Corp., DePere, Wis., developed and manufactures the grapple. Available in various sizes, it adjusts to fit just about any loader bucket.
"It allows you to grab the feed," he says. "Then, it automatically pushes away from the pile and you leave with a full bucket."
Conventional grapples, used for handling brush and other bulky material, as well as buckets and hay forks, aren't designed to push into hard-packed haylage, Fritsch notes. When used with bagged haylage, they can only loosen the material. Often, the result is a half-full bucket and feed left on the ground.
The Push Away grapple, on the other hand, reduces wasted time and feed and makes the most of the loader's performance, he says. It features speciallydesigned, hardened and replaceable teeth, plus two sets of hydraulic cylinders.
One set of cylinders raises and lowers the grapple teeth to penetrate the feed and fill the bucket. Due to the strength of the cylinders, the grapple frame must be welded onto the bucket. Otherwise, the cylinders would shear any bolts used to attach them, Fritsch notes. "When those cylinders reach the end of their stroke, an adjustable hydraulic valve automatically energizes the another set. Those two cylinders push the loader away with 12 tons of force, separating the feed in the bucket from the pile."
Because the grapple fills the bucket fully, fewer trips to the bag are required, which can save considerable time. The grapple leaves the rest of the silage in the bag undisturbed, maintaining freshness. Also, it eliminates the mess usually left around the bag when using a conventional grapple to remove feed.
"With the Push Away grapple, you're not pushing into the feed, so there's no wheel spinning or turning sideways when you load the bucket," Fritsch says. "As a result, the area around the bag stays firm without ruts or mud holes. That's a huge advantage. Also, because the plastic bag material stays down nicely, cleaning up the corners is fast and easy."
Built with 4-inch square steel tubing and teeth of hardened steel, the grapple is designed for rugged use. "We've used it on wheel loaders in heavy-duty applications and have yet to break one," Fritsch says. "Each unit is pressure-tested at the factory before it is shipped."
The Push Away grapple can also be used to remove feed from bunker silos by raking it down. In that case, he notes, its reach is limited to no more than about 15 feet high, depending on loader size.
"Some of our customers use the grapple in their heifer barns to clean up bedding packs," Fritsch says. "Others use it to remove bedding from calf hutches." The Push Away grapple is priced at $3,100. The company also makes a grapple without the Push Away feature, which sells for $2,200. In either case, the cost of a bucket and hydraulic hose ends are extra.
"We're looking for dealerships to make it available around the world," Fritsch says.
Permission for use is granted, however, credit must be made to the International Agri-Center and Farm Press when reprinting this item.
Push Away Grapple |
|
| COMPANY: | Fritsch Equipment Corp |
| CONTACT: | Ron Fritsch |
| ADDRESS: | 6229 HWY 57, De Pere, WI 54115 |
| WEBSITE: | www.fritschequipment.com |
| E-MAIL: | ron@fritschequipment.com |
| PHONE: | 920-532-6292 |
| BOOTH SPACE: | SS53 |
Click here for 2011 featured New Products...