Buying Advice Ballast Box vs Wheel Weights vs Filled Tires

[Diavolicchio]

Thanks for all of the great input, guys.

Grandad4, your suggestion for a second garage door at the opposite end of the garage just makes good sense. I think the novelty of having to back the Jeep out of the garage every time I need to use the tractor would wear off pretty quickly, not to mention the extra work of having to clean the whole garage floor if the tractor wheels have mud in the treads.

Philip8N, it was really helpful to see a photo of your ballast box filled with concrete. I'm going to do the exact same thing. Given my space constraints though. I'll keep the ballast box on blocks, just outside the garage.

Texasjohn, I'll likely do most of the things you've suggested. Thanks for being so thorough.

Jonyyuma, adding an extra foot to the garage would be the obvious solution, but I was trying to address the space contraints without having to resort to spending an additional $12,000 to extend the garage (and guest apartment above it) by a foot, all in order to accommodate a $200 ballast box. There are a number of costly changes I'd have to make to the overall design just to add 12" to the structure. I appreciate your suggestions though.

To everyone else, thanks for taking a minute and offering your input. Much appreciated.

The garage (with the second garage door added) will now look like this:

Thanks again,



John

 

[number two]

Are you getting the cab model,B3030HSDC?You said B3030HSTC.If,so be aware that the cab model does not really go under a standard 7' garage door without a little modification and then it's very tight.Good Luck!

 

[Diavolicchio]

Number Two:

You are correct. That was a typo. I meant B3030HSDC. Actually, it should've been B3030HSDCC, with the second C referring to the Cold Weather package.

The garage was designed to have 9' ceilings and doors that measure 12'W x 8'H and 9'W x 8'H respectively.

I appreciate the correction.


John

 

[k3nn3y]

John I see you live in Maine. I e/mailed one of our members (Luremaker) about the ballast box he showed on this site. You should look at it. I think it is a lot better set up then the ones they sell in this part of the USA. He lives in Canada and sent me the model # for it LM8244 My dealer tells me it is Canada Kubota number. It works so simply. You might check it out.

 

[Diavolicchio]

k3nn3y:

That's a cool looking ballast box. I'll check it out. I'm curious how it prices out relative to the standard orange bucket.

Would you mind verifying the model number though? I Googled it and the only thing that came up in the way of a LM8244 Ballast Box was your mention of it. Thanks.


John

 

[PHILIP8N]

Here are some pics after I painted the top Kubota Orange. If I may say so myself, big improvement. This is concrete paint and sealer, and the only way to get this was to custome mix it. Unfortunetely, I did not even use a pint out of this $25 gallon. Philip.

 

[Grateful11]

Here are some pics after I painted the top Kubota Orange. If I may say so myself, big improvement. This is concrete paint and sealer, and the only way to get this was to custome mix it. Unfortunetely, I did not even use a pint out of this $25 gallon. Philip.

I really like the looks of that box but what will yo do if one of the side pins gets broken off?

 

[PHILIP8N]

I really like the looks of that box but what will yo do if one of the side pins gets broken off?

I will deal with that if and when it ever happens. Good motto to live by. The ballast box is not something you are going to bang around. It just hangs there as weight. If it does ever happen, I will post back with some creative welding! Philip.

 

[fdmars]

Just a thought on ballast box, I took the idea from this site and added 3" PVC tubes to my ballast box, easy way to carry rakes, shovels and things...The barn look great, am sure you will enjoy your new "tool"

 

[Reg]

I suggest you
a) don't buy a tractor with a fragile front axle, i.e. just avoid tractors with front axles that NEED load relief when the bucket is loaded to it's full capacity.
{Same with front tires, R4s are load rated higher than R1s}
b) Plan for storing with SOMETHING on the back of it, whether that is a mower, tiller, hoe, whatever.
You will almost certainly MANY TIMES finish the day and want to NOT mess with taking off whatever is on the back.
c) Load the rear tires ANYWAY - add a USEFUL implement on the back if/when you need it, but don't waste money on buying or lugging around dead weight.
This doesn't have to be an "or", or" it can be "and", "and".
The "not" is a tractor with a fragile front axle and light rated front tires.