AutoUnionTypeC said:
Bob, weight can be great advantage when using a front end loader. Weight will allow you use a higher gear and still get excellent bucket penetration where as a lighter machine would have to gear down and work the bucket more to get the same. Recently I was moving some dense gravel over the a pretty fair distance the weight of my CK20 allowed me to get a full and heaping bucket load without shifting into low range or changing gears. The heavy castings over the rear wheels coupled with loaded tyres allowed me the purchase to back away from the pile even after spinning the tyres down a bit. Were I to do the same with any of the bota 7#10 series I think I’d bounce off that pile like a punter trying to run through a lineman and only get a teaspoon or two in the bucket.
So indeed weight can/does matter.
Yes, the raw weight can and does help dig into a pile, especially a pile of compacted material. On the other hand, a non-compactable or non-compacted pile
(such as mulch, gravel, etc) then the advantage vanishes. If a tractor is properly balanced with
ballast, it will provide quite a bit of traction and the real world differences are not going to be significant to the end user.
For example, a NH TC21 probably weighs only 300# less than a CK20, but has a slightly greater lift capacity at the FEL.
I doubt that the slightly lighter weight would have any real world difference in digging into a pile. But the added lift capacity will allow an extra 50# of material to be carried away. Is that a timesaver in real terms?
Now in comparision, a B7800 has lower capacity than many 30hp tractors but it is also phsyically able to fit into far tighter spaces than any bigger tractor so when manuverability is an issue, or when tight space work is an issue, then the only tractor that can do ANY work at all is the smaller one. I use a B2910 (
the deluxe version of the B7800) and cannot even get it into some places I need to work so I also use a TC24D which fits into tighter spots.
hosejockey2002 said:
I've looked at a Kubota B7800 with (I think) a BH75 backhoe and a Kioti L3054 TLB. This particular Kioti looked a little large for the niche type work I do
I'm not advocating any specific tractor. I'm just suggesting that the user must consider all aspects and realize that sometimes added weight, greater capacity, more horsepower, etc offer no actual advantage if the tractor is unable to get to the job that needs to get done. Further, some of the issues are overblown in terms of importance.
AutoUnionTypeC said:
By the way, I dig the old Alfa Laval advert and had no idea they made snow cats.
My little avatar photo is my Snow Trac. Short for snow tractor. It can pretty much go anywhere and I've never managed to "lose traction" on any terrain I've been on. It is best on loose ground but can manage itself on grass or pavement too.