I bought a new Swisher Dump Bucket and Mount for the Sportsman. I only have about 3" of ground clearance at the front. On the back however Instead of having my trailer reciever hitch used up i drilled a 3/4" hole about 2" from where the reciever goes into the quad. My hitch has a 2" drop so only using one spacer I gained a lot of clearance on the back end and now can pull my trailer and other stuff. The second Modification I made was drilling a hole in the left hand side of the front rack and putting a "eye" bolt on top. I bought a pull start engine handle and attached the rope to trigger the dump to that. The stops the rope and handle from gettin tangled in the wheel and makes it look a little neater. I think. Also makes the rope easier to pull with a little handle on the end too.

 

I'm looking into getting the same dump bucket.
What do you mean by "I only have about 3" of ground clearence"? before your modification? Do you need to stiffen the front?How do you like the bucket.
Does it dump with a load on?
Can you drive into a pile of material and get a full scoop?
Can you post some pictures of your setup?
Thanks
Deerkiller

 

The only modification I made was on the back end to gain clearance there. At the reciever I have about 10 inches of clearance to the mounting frame. From the ground to the mounting frame on the front I have about 3 inches of clearance. So far I like the way it works. Scooping loose material is easy and easy to get a bucket full. With a load on its a little harder to dump but some guys have put pulley assemblies to make it easier to pull the rope and dump. As soon as I can i will get some pics of the setup.

 

I would also like to see some pics. I'm putting one on my wishlist. I would think it would be good to move around gravel, mulch, and topsoil. How about digging into solid ground. Do you think you could dig with it at all? EVen if you went a layer at a time. I wouldnt think it would be good for that but maybe if you had to level out some small spots or something. I'm guessing by your eyebolt setup you don't have a winch or connected to it if you do. A friend of mine was telling me he borrowed his uncles to do the mulch around his new house and he kept breaking the winch cable.

 

It is awesome for moving around loose material. Dirt,gravel,mulch, straw. I havent tried doing any digging with it in solid ground but I would think there is some way you can make it work. I do have my winch hooked to lower and raise it. With the bucket raised all the way up its 24" from the ground. The winch cables do take a lot of abuse rolling in the same spots all the time.

 

Oh, I understand now I didnt see in your post that the handle was for dumping the bucket. That makes a little more sense now. If you get to digging in solid ground let us know how it goes.

 

Ya I plan on testing it a little better this upcoming weekend. Just to see how well it does do and get some pics up sometime this week too

 

What's up guy's

Well I am no expert but I do have a bit of experience with this system, First you will break cables, but the good news is mine only broke after about the first 100 hrs. of use! ( that's allot of up and down time!) specially over the same 16 inches or so of cable, I have both the swsher bucket and plow and I love them both! as far as scooping and spreading go! I can pick up spread and level (by back dragging) 5 yards of topsoil in about 30 minutes. Plowing goes without saying! these tools are probaly the best things you can ever own in your arsenal if you want your quad, to be as productive as possible when managing land! I combined them all with a 4 ft. york rake and while it might take a little more time to manage my property than if I had a tractor the results are perfect! I also use the same tools for landscaping and snow removal, (HEY! gotta pay for the toy's one way or another!) check out my pics you will see all of the tools!

 

Thanks Artic Hunter. on your mount system is the front clearance only about 3" off the ground? I just picked up my bucket on friday of last week and have used it quite a bit already. It amazing how many jobs you think of where you can use the bucket and for work around the farm.

 

I use a wide toe strap on the from winch and have never broken it. It rolls over the fairlead evenly. I found a heavy strap from a tractor trailer and wrapped about 6' onto the winch. No rusting and very smooth.
Thanks A H for the pics. nice toys. I'm East of you, south of Rochester. I have 35 acres in Cohocton.
Deerkiller