Hey Everybody!
Well, it's been a long time coming, but I'm making progress on Loader-Mutt. By a stroke of luck, I've acquired a Johnson Workhorse loader with hydraulic bucket, but it came with a narrow-frame bracket. In keeping with my philosophy of Loader-Mutt, I'll build a new bracket, and add a little beef where beef might be due. Here's pictures of what I did. Note- I've been gone lots, so my shop time limited my picture-taking breaks.
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I started by making a pair of slip-on sockets to reach around the axle castings. I used non-corrugated cardboard, measuring tools, and my drafting kit to make a fitment template, then I checked the fit, made slight adjustments, then transferred the dimensions to steel, and cut these plates. They look a bit narrow right now, but once the locking-plates are on, they'll have plenty of surface which to distribute the loader reactions upon.
Then I cut some square-tube segments to make the frame, and a big piece of heavy channel-iron for the arms to actually 'sit' on.
Finally, I cut some plates to span from the tapered frame area forward to the 'frankenstein bolts'.
This involved making a bend, so I used the 20-ton shop press to make the bend without some obscene bending machine.
Next- make mount plate for steering cylinders, then the forward-brace brackets and forward braces... then off to the hydraulics shop!