OK guys today was weight day to determine necessity for rear counterbalance

[Tx Jim]

My M7040 & LA1353 loader with cast rear wheels weighs 7670#s
Same tractor/loader with bale on frt & rear 9630#s
Frt bale weighs 1090#s
rear bale weighs 870#s
Frt axle with bale on frt and bale on the rear 5380#s
Frt axle with bale on frt nothing on the rear 5990#s

I think rear counterbalance removes more weight from frt axles than I thought it would but I forgot to weigh the rear axle like I wanted to because I was getting distracted. I did the hard work Y'all do the MATH. My pawn shop camera malfunctioned and I only got one good photo. PS:I think my 79 year old tractor driver was asleep when I took photo.

 

[case245]

so my tractor weighs 7000 ibs the scale was off by 1300ibs same tractor minus cab

 

[ovrszd]

I'm not positive what you are asking, so I'll go by the title of the thread.

The one weight you forgot to get, the weight of the rear tires with front bale on, rear bale off, is the only weight you needed to answer your question in the title. You shouldn't be concerned at all how much the front axle weight changes with/without bale on rear. You should only be concerned how much weight remains on the rear when unloaded. That's the issue that determines stability of the tractor when carrying a front load.

If in the end you decide you need more rear tire weight, I'd consider fluid. Not sure what size tires you have so can't say for sure how much weight you can gain. I gained 1400lbs in my 18.4x30 radial tires using windshield washer fluid. Cost me $200 and change. With M9540, LA1353, open station, radial tires, cast centers, fluid in rears, I weigh 4850 front, 4840 rear.

 

[Tx Jim]

This thread is in reference to a thread from last week titled:For those of you who think the L3400 has a weak loader!! The thread ended up stated that rear counterbalance relieved a lot of weight(stress) from frt axle when carrying a load on FEL. I stated I'd weigh my tractor and report back. Too bad I didn't word the title of thread so it could be understood. Oh well!!!

 

[k0ua]

So, Jim if I understood you correctly adding the 870lb bale on the rear took 610lbs off of the front axle?

James K0UA

 

[Bluegill2]

So, Jim if I understood you correctly adding the 870lb bale on the rear took 610lbs off of the front axle?

James K0UA

That's what it looks like to me. Fairly significant!

Just imagine 2000lb on the 3 pt... That would be a good weight for that size rig doing loader work.

 

[Tx Jim]

I'm not sure that's exactly correct way to look at it BUT I know it transferred a lot more weight than I thought it would. I'm waiting for the mathematicians to calculate it.

 

[Tx Jim]

That's what it looks like to me. Fairly significant!

Just imagine 2000lb on the 3 pt... That would be a good weight for that size rig doing loader work.

I think adding a lot of weight(2000#s) there would be a point of diminishing returns similar to applying too much fertilizer per acre. After all it requires fuel to tote the extra weight around.

 

[LD1]

Thanks for doing the leg work.

IT appears that adding 870 took off 610, which is about 70%.

Not sure if it is a linear equation or not, but at that percent, a 2000lb rear weight would have removed 1400lbs off the front. And got you down to ~4500lbs over the front axle.

Not sure how it compares. But I bet it is close to the weight over the fronts of the tractor when it has an empty bucket. It would have been nice to know what the splits were with NO bales on. But I guess beggars cannot be choosers.

And again, numbers will be different with every tractor, and every load isnt the same. And even counterweights arent the same. A 2000lb weight like a chunk of concrete that is in close will do less countering than 2000lbs in the form of a big bushhog that hangs way back. So the CG of the counter weight matters too. And again, nothing is the same between tractors. But I think the point we can take away is that counterweight does indeed reduce the front axle load significantly. :thumbsup:

 

[LD1]

I also forgot...

It makes a difference with the FEL load too just like the rear. 1000lbs in the form of a bale that has a CG 3' forward of the cutting edge is a whole lot different than 1000lbs of dirt in a bucket.