Ballast I need Front Ballast solutions

[hill]

I've got a Jinma that I can't drive with anything on the hitch. It's OK brushhogging our 4 acre field even though it steers with the brakes or like a battleship at sea but for any use where I need to steer better than that the front wheels are way to light to turn.

I rigged up a mickeymouse addition of about 100 lbs. that did help some but I'm ready to buy something commercially made for the purpose.

Who sells such stuff? I need leads, and if not local then low cost or free shipping would be good, obviously.

 

[sweettractors]

I would make me a weight bracket and then buy some suitcase weights locally to fit. Ken Sweet

 

[beenthere]

Which Jinma is so light in the front? Maybe a good excuse to add a FEL.

 

[hill]

Which Jinma is so light in the front? Maybe a good excuse to add a FEL.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind a loader for it but I don't come around to the idea that spending as much as the tractor cost just for a loader is worth it because I've got a loader on our other little tractor.. I bought the Jinma 254 for $4000. brand new from an equipment surplusing site in Seattle. (How could I pass that up?).

I use it to run a chipper and have cut that field with it but it's really light up front with the brushhog on it's tail. Just enough to not be steerable and makes cutting the lumpy field of ours difficult. There's a ditch through the middle of the field that's all grown with berries now and I'd like to be able to drive nimbly enough to back the cutter into the ditch up and back repeatedly for it's length. The way it is now would take all summer to do that..

I really don't know anything about what weights are available commercially, and worse, I don't know what it would take to hold down the front end with anything weighty on the hitch. It drives around fine with no implements at all but what use is that?

 

[schmism]

any type of hang on chin weights can be added with a simple vertical bar up front to hang them off of.

that or just start welding 4' sections of railroad rail to the front as a bumper.

 

[RoyJackson]

Good thoughts all...good guys on TBN, aren't here? (except sweettractors...he's shifty).
Another thing to look for is cast iron free weights. You see them on Craig's List and normally very cheap. A couple 50 or 100 lbs weights will work fine.

(just joking about "sweettractors" Ken Sweet...he gives great advice)

 

[red4now]

Also saw used counter weights from elevators mounted as front end ballast - they have two holes in them and stack very nicely since they are about an inch thick and rectangular in shape.

 

[sweettractors]

If you could find some old VAC Case front tractor wheel weights, they could be made work inside the front rims. I have also filled front tractor tires with fluid to add ballast. Works really well on bigger 4x4 front tires. Ken Sweet

 

[gwdixon]

The least expensive way would be to fabricate a box for the front and load it with sand. Some 1" plywood subflooring should work as long as there is some metal reinforcement for attaching to the tractor and underneath the box. Just bolting the plywood to the tractor's frame would likely tear out in no time.

Or a load concrete pier blocks in an open box. Like one made (welded) out of heavy re-bar.

A metal box would take some welding and fabrication and should be removable if a FEL is ever under consideration. Maybe a neighbor could do it if you don't have the means.

 

[TGF]

When I don't have an attachment on the rear, I use a 5 gallon bucket filled with sand as a ballast to my FEL. You could probably rig something similar on the front.

 

[Transit]

Do you have the brush hog attached and rigged correctly? If you are supporting the full weight of the hog by the hitch you will need to counter its weight. The hog should be floating, that is, drag arms supporting the hog and the tail wheel on the ground at all times. The top link should be relaxed to allow the hog to follow the contour of the ground. The only time when the full weight of the hog is on the hitch is when the hog is lifted for transportation.

 

[deepNdirt]

if you can get ahold of some old RR-rail iron a small pc of this will be of some weight, then of course you would have to fabricate a way to put in on the bumper, I had a small pc on My Kubota and it weigh 100 + pounds . having it plus the wheel weights was just enough to balance with use of the bush hog cutter,

 

[6011Artist]

I would go with adding water/antifreeze to the front tires, not expensive and easily done. If thats not enough weight and you are wanting to do it cheap, build a box that hangs on the front bracket and fill with concrete. If you have a tire shop buddy, might even get some lead and build smaller hanging boxes and melt lead and pour in them. I've seen the lead trick done on pulling tractors.

 

[RoyJackson]

I would go with adding water/antifreeze to the front tires, not expensive and easily done. If thats not enough weight and you are wanting to do it cheap, build a box that hangs on the front bracket and fill with concrete. If you have a tire shop buddy, might even get some lead and build smaller hanging boxes and melt lead and pour in them. I've seen the lead trick done on pulling tractors.

Just do that melting in a very well ventilated area

 

[Denwa]

Just do that melting in a very well ventilated area

And stay upwind with a fan behind you. Lead fumes are NASTY stuff.

Dennis

 

[PeterK]

Just do that melting in a very well ventilated area

... or gold horns might pop out of your forehead. Sorry Roy, HAD to.

 

[6011Artist]

another idea would be to get some sort of steel tank or old beer keg and have a bracket welded on to fit it to the front of your tractor. Have a fill hole in the top and a drain hole in the bottom. You can fill it according to how much weight you want/need for the task at hand. You can also double it as a sprayer tank in the future if needed. If nothing else use it to wash your hands when out in the field. But when it is time to remove it, drain the water, it's light enough to pick up by hand.

 

[6011Artist]

another idea would be to get some sort of steel tank or old beer keg and have a bracket welded on to fit it to the front of your tractor. Have a fill hole in the top and a drain hole in the bottom. You can fill it according to how much weight you want/need for the task at hand. You can also double it as a sprayer tank in the future if needed. If nothing else use it to wash your hands when out in the field. But when it is time to remove it, drain the water, it's light enough to pick up by hand.

 

[jayste]

... or gold horns might pop out of your forehead. Sorry Roy, HAD to.

:laughing::laughing::thumbsup:

Roy's the MAN! OR! You could mount some gold horns on the front!

Really some good ideas here. I need to do this myself. Hooking on to my gooseneck trailer and moving it to mow under it gets mine into a "wheelie"!

 

[Treemonkey1000]

I have an abundance of plastic 5 gallon buckets from buying our spoiled cats kitty litter. I went to my local hardware store and talked them into selling me the concrete mix in the bags that were torn or starting to get hard for pretty cheap. I mixed that concrete into the bucket with handles. Then I use those for weight in the back of my truck in the winter. You can add as many buckets as you need. Just don't screw up your back lifting them.
You could use something like that if you can mount them to the front of your tractor easily.