Clamp on towing bracket for Takeuchi TB016 mini digger

[thehomeengineer]

Hi All
I decided to build a towing hitch for my mini digger. I recently made an electric trailer mover that works well but unfortunately the house I am renovating is on the side of a mountain and the trailer mover struggles on uneven steep ground. So I don’t get stuck trying to move the trailer while working alone I decided to add a towing attachment to the digger so the twin wheeled plant trailer can be moved easily. I didn’t want a permanent welded hitch receiver.

The project was built from both commercial manufactured and homemade components.

The hitch receiver was fabricated from angle and box section. The tow hitch was a purchased item which was modified to suit the hitch receiver.

The photos below show build.

Clamp pivot pin

Clamp plate and hand screw.

Hitch receiver with hitch fitted.

Purchased hitch.

Trial fitted to digger blade.

Cut to adjust angle of hitch.

Welded up. Hitch receiver painted white as I had run out of black paint.

Completed hitch clamped to blade. Looks better in black.

Thank you for viewing
The Home Engineer

[DIYer]

Thanks thehomeengineer! We've added your Clamp On Towing Bracket to our Trailers and Towing category,
as well as to your builder page: thehomeengineer's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Clamp On Towing Bracket by thehomeengineer

tags: towing

[metric_taper]

Nice looking welds.
You must be your own contractor to own a super duty Takeuchi excavator. My local Rural Electric Cooperative, only uses that brand (here in Iowa, US), they don't break down. Per the foreman, who's my neighbor.
Cat brand stuff is made in the next state east. Could be "right to repair" is a better reason. All these major US construction machinery companies with custom everything (like fuel filters, with special monitors only sold by dealers), but OBD is proprietary, and only dealer can service. And they own the software in the machine, per the sales contract. I wonder is this a universal thing in all manufactures of equipment with environmental computer control for minimal emissions, which gave them license to make a mega money pump?

[thehomeengineer]

[QUOTE=metric_taper;244825]Nice looking welds.
You must be your own contractor to own a super duty Takeuchi excavator. My local Rural Electric Cooperative, only uses that brand (here in Iowa, US), they don't break down.

Thank you for your kind words about the welds. The machine was purchased to help me complete a renovation project and will then be sold once the project is completed. Attachments are expensive so whenever possible I like to make my own. I say the attachments are expensive which is probably a little unfair the cost of materials, specialist cutting equipment, welding, and labour all adds up so they are probably not making as much as I think.

Everything that main dealers do is expensive but generally they are covered with good warranty and genuine parts are used. My machine (so far) has been very reliable but I have serviced and maintained myself to keep costs low and to a minimum, so when the resale occurs I can hopefully recover the money back I have spent (well that’s the idea). QI have made a land rake, riddle bucket and a ripper tooth for the digger.

The tilting grading beam is the next project

The Home Engineer