Ballast How much counterweight do i need?

[Bull Of The Woods]

I know this has been posted many times before and I have read a lot about it. I would like to find out how much weight I need to keep my rear wheels on the ground and maximize my FEL. I have read on here that it should give me that info in the owner's manuals, I have not been able to find it. I have also read that it should possibly be as much as 75% of my FEL capacity. It seems many of you guys on here are in the 1000-1200 lb range. Just want to pick the brains of some of the more experienced tractor owner/operators out there. I have a LS XR 4140 the lift cap. on the FEL is rated at 2700. Would something in the 1000- 1400 range be enough? I'm thinking it would, probably won't max out the loader very much if ever, but if I ever do need to, it would be nice to have the right amount of counterweight. Thank you in advance for any help !!

 

[kthompson]

My experience on this is very limited but this summer bought a JD with front end loader and they loaded the rear tires as they said to properly ballast it. I think have had the bucket fully loaded with dirt and it was very stable. Nothing on the 3 pth. This is not a compact tractor it weighs over 7,000 pounds with cab giving weight also.

 

[motownbrowne]

How far back from the tractor your ballast is is as important a number as how much it weighs. An 800# bush hog for example will be much more effective than an 800# barrel of concrete between your three point arms. I think you're in the ballpark with your numbers, but I just wanted to point out that weight isn't the only factor. What type of ballast are you considering?

 

[Bull Of The Woods]

I have my rears loaded also. Was thinking I might want to use the FEL to lift some logs off the ground to cut for firewood. Like I said....kinda wanted to do a little brain pickin.

 

[Bull Of The Woods]

Was thinking of filling a barrel with concrete, which from what I have read will give me about 1100 (I think) if I don't go the barrel route I might build a box and pour concrete in it. I saw a very sweet looking one on here that was formed up, wouldn't mind trying to duplicate that one. If I do that I was thinking I would make it shorter and extending it farther back to get the greater effect of the weight and also keep a lower center of gravity. If I use a barrel I might lay it down instead of standing it upright to get the same effect.

 

[motownbrowne]

Was thinking of filling a barrel with concrete, which from what I have read will give me about 1100 (I think) if I don't go the barrel route I might build a box and pour concrete in it. I saw a very sweet looking one on here that was formed up, wouldn't mind trying to duplicate that one. If I do that I was thinking I would make it shorter and extending it farther back to get the greater effect of the weight and also keep a lower center of gravity. If I use a barrel I might lay it down instead of standing it upright to get the same effect.

I've been thinking about filling a barrel with concrete myself actually. Now that I have a second tractor to use for snow removal I can keep my skidding winch on the Kubota all winter, so I'm thinking about making the barrel so that it connects (probably with chains) to the winch and orienting it horizontally. That way I can pick it up or drop it off depending on if I'm skidding logs, or using the FEL to carry crates of firewood. Our tractors are fairly similar in size and lift capacity. If your barrel is being used alone, I'd probably try to get it to be as heavy as possible. In my case it'll be further back and used with my 450# winch, so I wouldn't need it to be quite as heavy.

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

The way I see it, you want the weight to be about as much as your 3pt can lift before it gets the front too light for steering. It's not only about keeping the back tires on the ground but trying to take weight off the front axle. Think of the tractor like a teeter-totter centered over the front axle. If you have enough weight on the FEL that the rear tires come off the ground, the entire weight of the machine is on the front axle and that would include the weight of any too-small of a counterweight. You want LOTS of counter weight to guarantee that the rear tires stay firmly planted.

I'm running 850 lbs barrel mounted fully behind the 3pt mount and I'm only rated to lift 1100 on the FEL and it's none too much for my B3300.

What's the 3pt rating on your 4140?

 

[Underdog57]

I have a R4041H and I believe my 3pt is rated for 2700# also. I built a 1800# box for mine and it works good but I don't think I needed quite so much weight. I think if you stayed in the 1200# - 1500# range you would be in good shape....IMO

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...954d1396107423-my-ballast-box-build-image-jpg

 

[George2615]

Using my bucket for snow I don't use any 3 pt. weight but I do have the rear tires filled. Using the loader for dirt or stone I use a 3 pt. cement filled barrel (about 900 lb) or I can use an old safe I put brackets on for a 3 pt. weight. That weighs over 1200 lb. I'm going to buy a digital hanging crane scale shortly so I'll have a more accurate way to measure heavy weights.

 

[Deere Dude]

Was thinking of filling a barrel with concrete, which from what I have read will give me about 1100 (I think) if I don't go the barrel route I might build a box and pour concrete in it. I saw a very sweet looking one on here that was formed up, wouldn't mind trying to duplicate that one. If I do that I was thinking I would make it shorter and extending it farther back to get the greater effect of the weight and also keep a lower center of gravity. If I use a barrel I might lay it down instead of standing it upright to get the same effect.

I'm not sure I would make it stick out the back farther than needed because it will be a bigger chance of hitting something with it. I have a heavy finish mower but I like a ballast box for doing logs because it is so much easier to get around with, even though the mower would work.