Ballast Kubota L3560 tractor with LA805 Loader, Moving Hurricane Irma Debris

[jeff9366]

11/11/2017

Transporting dry, flammable brush on Payne's aluminum Debris Forks to community burn pit.

Six hundred pound Cultipacker as Three Point Hitch counterbalance to FEL load.

 

[David_Kb7uns]

Those are baby burn piles compared to what we do out here in Oregon after a storm. Use ATI grapples for piling and backhoe for counterweight.

We logged around the house a couple years ago and you could see pitch rings in the Douglas Fir perimeter trees at that time over 8 inches in diameter that were bent over from the Columbus Day storm, people forget about the storms on the West Coast that can be as powerful as some hurricanes.

The US Airforce Station at MT Hebo recorded 170MPH winds and their radome was blown away with damage to the antenna


David

 

[jeff9366]

Those are baby burn piles compared to what we do out here in Oregon after a storm.

Our burn pit is located in the midst of an upscale residential community of seventy homes. I have to consider the potential for burning the community down before I ignite the debris. I try to burn every day.

 

[jeff9366]

Burning tree debris means dirt and ashes accumulate. More dirt from incinerated tree stumps than ashes.

Today I cleaned out the burn pit with my Bush Hog (brand) Rollover Box Blade. Spoil was distributed over the bare-earth burn pit surround of one acre.

Dirty tractor work. I am glad cleaning out the burn pit is only required twice per year. Each cleanout the pit becomes 3" to 4" deeper.

After a few days of rain, followed by a couple days of dry weather, I will mix the spoil and topsoil together with my Monroe Tufline Disc Harrow with 20" diameter pans.

Discing will disrupt spring seed germination in the bare earth surround.


Photo #3 Note HydrauLink (brand) Top Link, which make adjusting Box Blade easy and eliminates Box Blade hobby-horsing.

 

[100 td]

Nice job Jeff, fair bit of ash there!

 

[jeff9366]

Recently plumbed WR Long's $425.00 CR10 "Comfort Ride" nitrogen charged, two-stage accumulators to LA805 Lift Cylinders. Kubota's equivalent is branded "Shockless Ride" but available only on Kubota models heavier than my L3560.

PRODUCT INFORMATION FROM WR LONG:
Two nitrogen charged accumulators are included. One for lighter loads and the other for heavier loads.
Helps dampen the up and down jolting motion of your loader.
Kit includes two Accumulators, Ball Valve, Bracket, Hose, Fittings, and hardward.
By reducing the jolting action, the stress imposed on your tractor from your loader is reduced.
Ball Valve included so that the system can be engaged or disengaged.
CR10 for tractors up to 60 hp. $410
CR20 for tractors from 60 to 125 hp. $475



With CR10 working, bucket does not pound, burdened or unburdened.

With moderate loads of brush on Debris Forks damping actions reduces loose material falling off during transit. I resent retrieving branches which have jumped off the Debris Forks in route to the burn pit.

One hydraulic line had to cross the right loader arm in my installation. WR Long promises model tailored installation fittings in the near future.

Oak section guesstimate 1,200 to 1,400 pounds. FEL (LA805) lift capacity 1,700+ pounds. I cut large diameter Oak loads to fit in the bucket, near to the tractor, rather than on the forks, where leverage works against stability. Three Point Hitch counterbalance 900 pounds. Much less transient load stress on the tractor with Long's "Comfort Ride" installed.

Water Oak section is 1/4. Before cutting, I towed entire section out of woods to level ground using a 20' X 5/16" Grade 70 chain from the Oak trunk to tractor's rear/center drawbar. This was a max pull, practical only because wheels of tractor had grip/traction on asphalt road rather than sand.

Haynes aluminum Debris Forks, no longer in production.

I am still burning debris from Hurricane Irma in September 2017.

Kubota should offer Shockless Ride option on the Grand L series. The proverbial cherry atop whipped cream.


WR LONG LINK: W.R. Long, Inc. | Tarboro, NC

 

[jeff9366]

Payne's Debris Forks finally gave up the ghost. Have replaced aluminum Payne's with steel Construction Attachments (brand) SSQA Pallet Forks, Model 1PF36, 36" fork length, from (Temporarily blocked due to reports of company closure). With 1,750 pound lift capacity of my Loader versus 3,000 pound attachment/9,000 pound tine deform spec, if the Loader will pick up a load I am good.

When lifting logs on the forks the vertical operator guard lets me feel secure. Once, using the Debris Forks, I had a 400 pound log roll over the bucket, hit the hood of the tractor, then slew off, missing me by 24".

LINK: Construction Attachments, XTreme Duty, Skid Steer, Skidsteer, CAL, Standard Frame, Regular Lift, Pallet Forks 1PF, Universal Skid Steer Quick Attach


Photo #4 Once extracted from thick jungle, Dirt Dog (brand) APP/Field Cultivator does a fine job transporting agglomeration of vines and tree branches 1/2 mile to burn pit with hardly any loss. However, Field Cultivator, 275 pounds, lacks sufficient weight to counterbalance heavy FEL lifts. (In the background Forage Oats in one of my deer food plots. Oats grow through Florida "winter".)

In Photo #1 counterbalance is 900 pound ABI TR3 Rake. Load is primarily grape vines dragged from trees. Tines on two pallet forks are thin relative to five thick tines on aluminum debris forks. Pallet Forks carry less dirt with debris, dirt which I later have to remove from the burn pit.

Photo #4 - Pallet forks and Field Cultivator working the same cleanup projects substitute for a grapple reasonably well, with the singular Field Cultivator advantage that vines trail behind the tractor, not in front trying to get under the front tires to pull the load off. I have come to value SSQA connection on the FEL.

I dislike picking up sticks by hand but I do a lot of it grooming woodland paths. Sticks go into the MUTS dumping trailer, Photo #2

Photos #1 - #4 taken yesterday, 9/25/2018.