Ballast Naked Tractoring

[dieselcrawler]

So THAT'S what my tractor looks like without the loader... *grin* mine never comes off, I need the weight out front to counter ballance my 5' brush hog, even to the point of having a 5' piece of railroad track with brackets made to bolt into my bucket for an extra couple pounds of weight out front. But I'm on some really steep hills, have added 9" of rear wheel width with spacers, and a full roll cage with limb risers... lil thing climbs like a mountain goat, and chews up brush just as good!

 

[beenthere]

dieselcrawler
Nicely done, and can believe it is like a mountain goat..

 

[RobS]

I'd have something to protect that grill if brush hogging.. just sayin.
But also like the "naked" feeling when the FEL comes off and ready for putting on the snow plow.. and visa-versa in the spring time. Feels so light and nimble.. but doesn't stay that way for long.

Appears the left/right wheel brakes are locked together.. maybe for some road travel?

Fit and finish of the 790 looks really good. :thumbsup:

Yeah, it's a classic look. On the brakes, I normally leave them locked together for the parking brake function but I did seperate them for turning when mowing yesterday. That little tractor will spin on a dime!

 

[RobS]

So THAT'S what my tractor looks like without the loader... *grin* mine never comes off, I need the weight out front to counter ballance my 5' brush hog, even to the point of having a 5' piece of railroad track with brackets made to bolt into my bucket for an extra couple pounds of weight out front. But I'm on some really steep hills, have added 9" of rear wheel width with spacers, and a full roll cage with limb risers... lil thing climbs like a mountain goat, and chews up brush just as good!

That's quite the monster you have there!

 

[RobS]

Does look cool! :drink: What year JD is it?

I'm lazy. I drop my bucket or forks sometimes but have never removed the FEL.

Thanks, I think it's a '99 or so. My neighbor has one just a year or 2 newer and they had already made some cost cuts. He doesn't have the fender grab handles nor the side float in the 3PH. I'm a fan of both those features!

 

[RobS]

Rob- You may be losing rig balance removing your FEL. I would not see this as a serious problem on level terrain, on hills and slope you may want some weight low and up front to stay upright.

Definitely wouldn't want to run it without the weights up front! It's lighter steering this way versus the FEL but I add the turning brakes when needed and my property is dead flat thanks to those glaciers a few years back.

 

[RobS]

Like the weights mounted on the front weight bracket in the picture?

Aaron Z

 

[Creamer]

I rarely take my FEL off because I use it so much but for mowing - absolutely. It just is so much easier to handle and the weight on the front end does make tracks if the ground is soft.

 

[Thomas]

No front loader also means easier access engine plus give it good wash down.
Front loader can come in hand if mowing wet areas when you might need to push yourself out,also throwing rocks branches etc. in bucket.

 

[Bird]

I used to keep my loader OFF more than ON. Since I spent more time mowing and tilling than I did moving stuff, that worked best for me and it was pretty easy to take it off or put it on when needed.