Backhoe Farmtrac backhoe attachment feels underpowered. Advice?

[Slacker]

New Farmtrac 360TLB. My first backhoe (4008). BH has less than 10 hrs on it.
I've figured out the "technique" of curling and lifting at the same time.
It just feels to me (and others) that the hoe goes into fluid bypass way too easily. Alot of times even taking a full scoop of packed dirt will make it bypass. It currently runs off the spool valve/remote. The farmtrac specs show digging force of 2850lbs and relief valve setting of 2200lbs with max hydralic flow of 6.5GPM.
It will get a PTO pump soon. Should I expect better digging force from it?
Even my buddy, who runs small backhoes alot, tells me its underpowered.
How do I tell if the relief valve is set wrong?

 

[schmism]

How do I tell if the relief valve is set wrong?

couple of bucks and you can plumb a pressure gauge in which will tell you exactly whats going on.

 

[RonMar]

Yep, add a pressure gauge to the system, best place would be to get a hydraulically rated "T" fitting and put the gauge on the inlet to the Hoe control valve. This should show you the reliefe pressure setting of the control valve and the pressure the hoe is working with. If you are not making your rated pressure, then you will have to determine where the pressure is relieving, either in the Hoe control valve or further upstream in the tractor hydraulics. Running off a CUT's hydraulics, it should still generate full pressure/power, but the lower GPM flow will cause it to operate slower. That will be the biggest change with the PTO pump, all the movements will be a lot faster with more available flow.

 

[barticus73]

I'd love to hear what you find out as I was thinking hard about buying the same unit Farmtrac 360 TLB.

 

[Soundguy]

Make up a pressure gauge on a qd, and pop it into the relief and openit.. see what you get..

Soundguy

New Farmtrac 360TLB. My first backhoe (4008). BH has less than 10 hrs on it.
I've figured out the "technique" of curling and lifting at the same time.
It just feels to me (and others) that the hoe goes into fluid bypass way too easily. Alot of times even taking a full scoop of packed dirt will make it bypass. It currently runs off the spool valve/remote. The farmtrac specs show digging force of 2850lbs and relief valve setting of 2200lbs with max hydralic flow of 6.5GPM.
It will get a PTO pump soon. Should I expect better digging force from it?
Even my buddy, who runs small backhoes alot, tells me its underpowered.
How do I tell if the relief valve is set wrong?

 

[dfkrug]

Slacker:

You need to put a guage on each hoe circuit. Some hoes have
reliefs for the dipper, boom, curl, swing, AND main. If you operate 2 circuits
at once, as you often do, one relief set too low will effect performance
of other circuits. Furthermore, your main tractor relief may be low. A decent
hoe should handle 2500psi. Some manufacturers want you to go no
higher than 2000. Same with tractors....some are set near 2500, others
only 2000, and everything in between. Relief valve springs get "tired"
too.

 

[AndyMA]

The farmtrac specs show digging force of 2850lbs and relief valve setting of 2200lbs with max hydralic flow of 6.5GPM.
It will get a PTO pump soon. Should I expect better digging force from it?

I think the spec tells the story. 2850 lbs of digging force seems like about half of the hoes I have had. I may be wrong but I thinkit is just not a very powerful hoe. Even my tractor hoes with 6500 pounds of digging force seem week compared to my excavator.

Andy

 

[barticus73]

Here is a link to some comparisons. Seems the Farmtrac is rated higher in digging force than the Bradco's and New Hollands.(Look under 'Dare to Compare')

http://www.woodsequipment.com/turf_grounds/commercial/backhoes/BH-X.asp

Here is a link showing the older model Woods 6500 and 7500 hoes that most people seem to give good reviews on here and they are rated a few hundred pounds force less than the Farmtrac.

http://www.woodsequipment.com/turf_...d_steer_attach/backhoes/6500_7500_backhoe.asp

 

[Stimw]

My Jinma Hoe seems kinda weak. It is easy to stall and I have to back out of the movement some to continue. I put a gage in the pressure line to the hoe and I have 2200psi when it stalls. It has to be related to the size of the cylinders and their leverage design.