Skid Steer Grapple Attachments

Skid steer grapple attachments: which type fits the work

A grapple is a bucket, fork or set of tines with hydraulic arms that close over the load, so the loader can carry irregular material instead of spilling it. All 11 attachments here are Loflin Fabrication units for skid steer loaders, from $954 to $5,323. The difference that matters most is what the lower half looks like — open tines, a solid bucket floor, spaced bars, or a narrow toothed digging bucket — and how much steel is in the tines and arms.

Vertical versus horizontal is the other decision inside the root grapple family. A vertical-style grapple closes its arms down into the pile from above and is easier to stab into standing brush; a wide horizontal-tine grapple carries more volume per pass on cleanup work. The Loflin Skid Steer Vertical Root Grapple is 54 inches wide as standard with 72-, 78- and 84-inch versions also available, and uses 1.5-inch steel tines, 2-by-10-inch hydraulic cylinders and 1.25-inch greasable pins. The Skid Steer Stump Bucket is a different animal entirely: narrower than an average skid steer bucket for deeper ground penetration, longer than average for leverage, with three replaceable teeth on the bottom.

Sizing grapples for skid steer loaders: mount, hydraulics and weight

Mounting. The Loflin attachments in this collection use the universal skid steer quick-attach plate — the same pattern found on most full-size skid steers and compact track loaders, and on many tractor front loaders fitted with a skid-steer-style plate. Mini and stand-on loaders use a smaller plate and are not directly interchangeable.

Hydraulics. Every grapple here is hydraulically actuated, so the machine needs a working front auxiliary circuit and couplers that match your hoses. These attachments open and close cylinders rather than driving a hydraulic motor, so they do not depend on a high-flow machine. Check coupler style before delivery day — flat-face and pioneer-style fittings do not mate.

Weight and capacity. A grapple hangs at the far end of the loader arms, so its weight comes straight out of what the machine can pick up. SAE J818 defines rated operating capacity for skid steer loaders as 50 percent of full tipping load, and both the attachment and the material inside it count against that figure. Two models state machine ratings directly: the Monster Root Grapple is rated for 75 HP or less, and the Standard Duty Root Grapple lists compatibility up to 75 horsepower.

Width. Working widths in this collection run from 54 inches on the Vertical Root Grapple to 84 inches on several models, with custom sizing offered on the Standard Duty Grapple Bucket, Standard Duty Root Grapple and Vertical Root Grapple. Match the grapple to your tire or track width where possible — a grapple narrower than the machine leaves stubs and windrows you have to come back for, while an oversized one reduces what you can safely lift.

Demolition grapple buckets and grapple attachments for cranes

Buyers searching for heavy duty demolition grapple attachments are usually looking at one of two different machines, so it is worth being clear about what this collection is. Everything on this page mounts to a skid steer quick-attach plate. We do not carry crane- or excavator-mounted grapples here — those are a separate class of tool, typically a rotating orange-peel or clamshell head hung from a knuckle-boom truck or an excavator stick, with hydraulic rotation and their own hose routing down the boom.

For skid-steer-scale tear-out and cleanup — framing lumber, fencing, siding, scrap piles and post-storm debris — a heavy grapple bucket is the practical tool. The Xtra Heavy Duty Grapple Bucket uses 1-inch thick independent grapple tines over two oversized 2-by-10-inch cylinders, and independent tines matter on debris because irregular pieces do not present a flat top surface for a single fixed arm to clamp against. What a skid steer grapple will not do is replace a dedicated demolition grapple with rotation and replaceable wear tips on structural concrete work.

Build details that decide service life

Grapples fail at the arms, the pins and the hoses, in that order. A few things to compare across this catalog:

• Grappling force. The Vertical Root Grapple, Standard Duty Grapple Bucket, Xtra Heavy Duty Grapple Bucket and Standard Duty Root Grapple are each listed at 9,500 lbs of grappling force; the Monster Root Grapple is listed at up to 7,500 lbs of clamping force.
• Tine steel. Standard Duty models use 1/2-inch steel tines with 1-inch thick outside tines; the Vertical Root Grapple steps up to 1.5-inch tines; the Xtra Heavy Duty Grapple Bucket uses 1-inch independent grapple tines.
• Pins. Oversized greasable pins — 1.25 inches on the Vertical Root Grapple and 1 1/4 inches on the Standard Duty Grapple Bucket — are what let you keep slop out of the arms instead of living with it.
• Hoses. The Monster Root Grapple and Xtra Heavy Duty Grapple Bucket include Parker brand hose and fittings.
• Floor design. The Monster Root Grapple uses a flat floor design with versatile tine spacing and is built from heavy duty steel, made in the U.S.A.

Safety, operation and upkeep

One useful clarification for buyers coming from a forklift fleet: skid steers are not covered by OSHA 1910.178, the powered industrial truck standard, which excludes vehicles intended primarily for earthmoving. On construction sites, OSHA 29 CFR 1926.602 covers material handling equipment and requires that seat belts be provided on this class of equipment, and OSHA 1926.600 requires that loader buckets and similar attachments be fully lowered or blocked when the equipment is not in use or is being repaired. Follow the machine and attachment manufacturer's operating instructions for load handling and travel position.

Day to day, the maintenance list is short: grease the pins on schedule, watch hose routing where the arms cycle, check tine and cutting-edge wear before the metal gets thin enough to bend, and replace worn teeth rather than digging with rounded ones — the Skid Steer Stump Bucket uses three replaceable teeth for exactly that reason. Travel with the grapple low and closed, and avoid using the arms to pry sideways, which is how most bent tines happen.