Tilt Coupler for Small Backhoe

[downsizingnow48]

I made a hydraulic tilt coupler for my backhoe for landscaping. Tried to keep it compact and the weight down. It works fine. I'm not a very good welder but figured I did not have anything to lose by trying. There is nothing commercial available in this size range. The hinge pin is 1.25" round bar. I used two cylinders working opposed to somewhat equalize the strain on the hinge assembly. It attaches to the backhoe quick coupler and has a quick coupler for the buckets as well. The main parts are 3/8" x 3" angle, welded together to make a channel.

 

[JWeir]

That is very cool. Nice design and execution.

 

[kenmbz]

That looks really well put together. How did you figure the design and what did you use for the cylinders?

 

[downsizingnow48]

The general design is the same as larger tilt couplers made for excavators. The specific design is dictated by the B21 Kubota bucket ear dimensions. The pins are 25mm spaced about 6 1/2", the ears are 3" deep spaced about 4". The tilt pin is 1.25" in 1/4" wall steel tube. So the coupler is 3+3+1.75 = 7.75 inches deep, 5" wide, and about 9 1/2" long. (Length includes 8" for the ears plus a 1 1/2" shelf to carry the lower cylinder mounting block). The cylinders are 1x4 from Surplus Center. I only needed 3" stroke to get 45 degree swing on each side, but I could not find any cheap cylinders in that size. I made several drawings to resolve details such as the upper and lower cylinder mount locations.