Angle of the Dangle

[Machold]

I've read the threads on floating the FEL. On my B3030, I know it's in float with the joystick pushed all the way forward; if the bucket is up, it will float down when I do this; and when it's down with the wheels off the ground, it will float up. The stick stays locked forward until I disengage. Does the bucket just float up or down, or is it self-levelling?

D I have a self-levelling FEL? No matter what angle I put the bucket into, it does not skim the surface but digs in when going forward. Going backward, it seems to stay on top.

Am I missing something here? I would like to bucket in float position to be self-levelling as it goes over the surface of the ground, and not dig in at any angle. Or am I expecting too much?

 

[TripleR]

I have no experience with the B3030, but I have found the "float" to be good on some tractors going forward and not so much with others. Going forward with my L5030 HSTC and LA583 is pretty useless no matter how I angle the buck, it will lift the front wheels, so I only use float in reverse. My BX2660 works in any direction and my Case CX80 works better than my L5030.

Maybe someone with your model can provide more insight.

 

[RayCo]

I've gotten lots of practice driving forward in float using my loader to clear snow. On my BX, anyway, there is no magic that makes the bucket stay level or anything like that. As the terrain changes, I have to make small bucket tilt adjustments to keep it from digging in or skidding over everything. But, just keeping an eye on the level indicator is usually enough.

Just keep at it. With some more time, you should be able to drive along just skinning the ground without much conscious brain activity between your eyes on your hand adjusting the bucket angle.

 

[nspec]

When you float the bucket, you are generally backblading to smooth something or with a steeper angle, to drag something. I grade everything I do by floating it with the loader bucket (b2630) and I can get it spot on. I do have lot of practice however from bigger machines. I would never consider wasting my money on a box blade. Loader is way quicker and much less hassle. I can work circles around a box blade with a loader and you would not know the difference in the finished product. I know I'll get an argument on this, but I'll stand my ground!

Your 3030 is the same as mine. The float works just like any full size machine. I floats whether you are going forward, or reverse. The only time I float when going ahead is when I'm on an asphalt or concrete surface and want to scrape it clean. If you float going ahead on dirt, the bucket will either dig in or ride up - you'll never go level. Much easier to set it, go real slow, then feather the bucket as you go to maintain your grade.

To answer the rest of your questions, your loader is not self leveling, and the loader floats up and down, whichever way it is "pushed".

Summary: Float at about a 45 degree angle or better to drag material in reverse. Decrease to about a 30 degree angle and you will start to smooth/spread in reverse. As the amount of material behind the bucket starts to wain, just keep rolling back the bucket until just about flat and you will just taper it right down and have a pretty smooth spread. May have to repeat a couple times to get it just right. I never float going ahead on dirt to dig.

 

[RayCo]

I would never consider wasting my money on a box blade. Loader is way quicker and much less hassle. I can work circles around a box blade with a loader and you would not know the difference in the finished product. I know I'll get an argument on this, but I'll stand my ground!

Alright, no sense in arguing then. My guess is that you don't have a gravel driveway to maintain, though.

 

[_RaT_]

When you float the bucket, you are generally backblading to smooth something or with a steeper angle, to drag something. I grade everything I do by floating it with the loader bucket (b2630) and I can get it spot on. I do have lot of practice however from bigger machines. I would never consider wasting my money on a box blade. Loader is way quicker and much less hassle. I can work circles around a box blade with a loader and you would not know the difference in the finished product. I know I'll get an argument on this, but I'll stand my ground!

Your 3030 is the same as mine. The float works just like any full size machine. I floats whether you are going forward, or reverse. The only time I float when going ahead is when I'm on an asphalt or concrete surface and want to scrape it clean. If you float going ahead on dirt, the bucket will either dig in or ride up - you'll never go level. Much easier to set it, go real slow, then feather the bucket as you go to maintain your grade.

To answer the rest of your questions, your loader is not self leveling, and the loader floats up and down, whichever way it is "pushed".

Summary: Float at about a 45 degree angle or better to drag material in reverse. Decrease to about a 30 degree angle and you will start to smooth/spread in reverse. As the amount of material behind the bucket starts to wain, just keep rolling back the bucket until just about flat and you will just taper it right down and have a pretty smooth spread. May have to repeat a couple times to get it just right. I never float going ahead on dirt to dig.

I seriously doubt it. I blade and box blade. I rarely if ever use float to back blade. You are not well versed in a box scraper if you think it is not as or more effective than a front loader used to back blade. I am also assuming a hydraulic TnT for the box scraper.

 

[CurlyDave]

...Am I missing something here? I would like to bucket in float position to be self-levelling as it goes over the surface of the ground, and not dig in at any angle. Or am I expecting too much?

The float is working fine, the problem is that pushing a sharp-edged bucket over even slightly uneven surfaces is inherently unstable, the edge always catches on something and wants to dig in. Pulling the bucket backwards is much more stable and the bucket follows the ground nicely.

You can demonstrate this for yourself. Try pushing a pencil across a table from the back. As soon as it twists to one side or the other you must correct the direction of push, or it will just go off in the wrong direction.

Now pull that same pencil across the table and see how it tracks the fingers doing the pulling.

 

[/pine]

JMHO, but if he learned to use a box blade as good as he can an FEL bucket...he wouldn't ever need the FEL except for loading...!

like just about any tool (especially power) unless we know how to use them properly we remain mostly ignorant of their value...

I can do just about anything mentioned with my FEL but I would not even think about working on a gravel road without a box blade...

BTW...how in the heck can you fix a big pot hole with a FEL? you can't...you can fill it in time after time after time but that's not "fixing" it...!

 

[_RaT_]

JMHO, but if he learned to use a box blade as good as he can an FEL bucket...he wouldn't ever need the FEL except for loading...!

like just about any tool (especially power) unless we know how to use them properly we remain mostly ignorant of their value...

I can do just about anything mentioned with my FEL but I would not even think about working on a gravel road without a box blade...

BTW...how in the heck can you fix a big pot hole with a FEL? you can't...you can fill it in time after time after time but that's not "fixing" it...!

I must admit, I'm a little spoiled with not only TnT but hydraulic rippers on my box blade. The Gannon (now owned by Woods) box blade weighs about 1400lbs and that helps me do things the loader in a back drag setup could never do except very fine finish work and even at that, so can my box blade. I end up ripping my gravel drive with the rippers so I can get back to a homogeneous consistency on the gravel, then I box blade the entire road way. Once you get the correct angle on the top link and set the height, you just drive forward. You always know where your going, you have complete steering control and high and low spots are instantly taken care of. My last pas is often with the top link almost fully extended. This compacts the gravel because only the rear cutter rests on the gravel putting a sizable load on it.

 

[/pine]

I'm a little spoiled with not only TnT but hydraulic rippers on my box blade

It's going to be a few more weeks before I get to install my T&T hardware...I can hardly wait...unfortunately power rippers are just a pipe dream for my little box blade (BushHog CBX60)...

I am considering an additional ripper of some sort that I can use to get burried rocks up with...

my mountain gravel road was originally bedded with river rock and later covered with different grades of crushed gravel...evey now and then I run across an "iceberg" rock where the top is sticking up just enough to push my bb up and the bulk of the rock is burried...I am thinking of some sort of ripper I can lower and dig around both sides of said rock until I can roll it out of the hole...right now I have to use a pick-mattock and dig them by hand...