Pulling a trailer with your tractor

[Whitnel]

Say my GL3240 weights 3,500 pounds + loader + fluid in the rear tires = well over 4,000. Stats say it will lift 2,600 on the 3 point.

How heavy of a trailer would you pull behind it? I can't find the manual on line to say how much can be pulled with the 3 point. And then I have to get it stopped. The heavy loads will be off road and mostly dirt and rock, no people. Would you only pull a dump trailer with the drawbar?

I know the drawbar would be better but want to use the 3 point as it will be hooked and unhooked alot. Hook up to go dump then bring back and unhook to fill it up again. Probably with a pintle hitch.

 

[tym233me]

it would be easyer to ask how much do you want to pull and how far

 

[CTPhil]

I use a 5000 lb. GVW landscape trailer behind my 2WD 32 HP Ford 2600 to pick up hay, sometimes loading close to 2 tons on. It has no trouble at all with that. Hope that helps.

 

[Localmotion]

I'm not very familiar with the 3240, but seem to remember it is rated at about 30-35hp?

Assuming it is, and with the weights you have given you should be able to easily tow a 1 metric tonne (2,200 lb) trailer with no problem. If the terrain is good you could possibly even manage a 2 tonne braked trailer - but don't overload it. (Please forgive my use of Metric - it's a European thing! :laughing

Your tractor will easily pull these weights (and even more), but being quite a small tractor you may find the draw bar etc are not rated for loads much larger than the tractor weight?

I definately would NOT use the 3pt linkage to tow any laden trailer - 3 pt linkages are designed to lift a certain weight, or pull /push implements (which recive some support from the ground) in a relatively straight line. They are not designed to tow trailers, and normally are not enginered to withstand the sideways stresses that a laden trailer causes when turning...

Just my thoughts... :thumbsup:

 

[Whitnel]

it would be easyer to ask how much do you want to pull and how far

Want to cary as much as I can safely about 2500' one way. I have a very long drive to go back and forth on. I don't think one bucket at a time is going to cut it for very long.

 

[oldnslo]

Agree with localmotion on not using the 3PH for pulling trailers. Another problem with 3PH is it will raise via gravity which can cause the trailer to try and lift the rear of the tractor. I.e. There is no force besides gravity holding the arms down.

3PH are also not designed for pushing heavy loads.

A few extra minutes of hooking and unhooking might save you a lot of trouble..

 

[TripleR]

I have pulled a trailer with a 3PH, but it was a four wheeled cotton or grain trailer with no tongue weight and only around the field. I would not recommend pulling any trailer with a 3PH and the only way I would do it now would be to move one a few feet out of my way; just so many things that can go wrong.

 

[PHILIP8N]

I try not to use 3 point as others has mentioned, if tongue weight goes negative, arms come up. But, I do use my 3 point for moving things around when I know I have plenty of tongue weight because it is easy. Here is a drawbar 2" receiver adapter I made for pulling a trailer with passengers. Yes, I know there are no nuts on the bolts, did not have them on yet. Philip.

 

[Whitnel]

I try not to use 3 point as others has mentioned, if tongue weight goes negative, arms come up. But, I do use my 3 point for moving things around when I know I have plenty of tongue weight because it is easy. Here is a drawbar 2" receiver adapter I made for pulling a trailer with passengers. Yes, I know there are no nuts on the bolts, did not have them on yet. Philip.

Ok so no pulling big loads with the three point. I don't want to tear up anything.

Philip,
Did you make the receiver stick out that far to get behind the tires or is that just the way things worked out?

 

[PHILIP8N]

Philip,
Did you make the receiver stick out that far to get behind the tires or is that just the way things worked out?

Just the way it worked out. I got receiver from TSC. I got flat bar from McMaster Carr to weld in receiver. Both pieces bolt to tractor drawbar. By the time this was all put together and 2" ball drawbar was installed, this is where it sits. Philip.

 

[skipmarcy]

Ok so no pulling big loads with the three point. I don't want to tear up anything.

Philip,
Did you make the receiver stick out that far to get behind the tires or is that just the way things worked out?

I don't know about these other guys but my 4110 Mahindra has set many doublewide halves in place on their lots after the 2004 hurricanes in Florida and I used my 3 pt for it. Had to put a load of sand in the bucket to keep the front wheels on the ground to steer but it did fine for a couple dozen 52' trailer halves. I used one of the Cat 1 drawbars with all the holes in it and welded a 2 5/16" ball on it and locked it from turning. I also have a 2" ball mounted on the back of my boxblade that I use all the time to move my trailer around hauling wood, pieces of equipment, log splitter etc. The problem isn't the hauling, it's the stopping - you definitely need it in 4 wheel drive so you have braking on all 4 wheels, especially in your area where it's hilly like it is here. Make sure your trailer is loaded properly with good tongue weight just like you would if hauling on the road and make sure your brakes are good and you're in 4x4 and go to work !!

 

[MHarryE]

I pull a 7,500 pound dump trailer behind my tractor. Tractor, loader & wheel weights total 5,700 pounds. I sometimes haul up to 4 miles - my nephew's gravel pit, to load the trailer and haul back. I have no controlability prolbem with it. The trailer does have electric brakes that are used when I haul it behind my pickup but tractor braking alone feels comfortable and safe. I wouldn't hook it to the 3 pt though even though I do have a drawbar for the 3 pt. Back when I was in my early teens I nearly dumped one of dad's tractors over backwards when I was on dad's farm. I still can visualize the front of the tractor pointing at the sun before I hit the clutch and the front came crashing down and broke the front end clear off (Allis-Chalmers B). Back in those days we hauled loaded hay wagons over 10,000 pounds behind tractors as small as our Farmall Super A and the A-C B - still wonder how my cousin and I survived.

 

[Redneck in training]

I have a ball on the back of my box blade. Pulled quite heavy loads with no issues. Otherwise I use the draw bar for pulling.

 

[Firefighter Kubota]

I use my 3 point to move trailers around my yard all the time. Backing a 28 foot camper up hill, my 10K trailer with my 4K jeep on it. or my 16' enclosed loaded with 2 harleys.

I have a 3 point trail;er hitch mount that works great... and I welded a ball to my rear blade to move the flatbead empty in the winter

This behind my 7510..22 HP... No problem

 

[grsthegreat]

Well over the years ive pulled trailers and manure spreaders with tractors and unless im simply moving it (i use a loader mounted trailer ball) i will always haul with the drawbar. I guess this goes back to the days in my tractor classes in college....they tought us to always haul using the drawbar to keep the towing forces low and centered.

 

[BeezFun]

Would you only pull a dump trailer with the drawbar?

I pull my dump trailer with my 3pt, the first time I raised it to dump, the weight sliding out the backend lifted the tongue and caused the 3pt arms to slam to the top of their travel. Fortunately I had ball properly attached or tongue of trailer would have disconnected from ball. My trailer is 2800# and will raise 12,000# load, I had it filled with dirt so it probably was that heavy.

this was a good thread, I like the drawbar receiver mod. I'm going to make one of those up.

 

[dlopez]

I work at a kubota sales and rental store and we have always used the 3pt hitch for pulling heavy loads and have never had a problem. We use the 8540 power Crawler to pull a gooseneck dump trailer filled with dirt (about 3 tons) and it pulls great so u shouldn't worry about ur setup hope this helped?

 

[Verticaltrx]

According to the manual your L3240 is 'rated' by Kubota to pull a trailer with a load capacity of 3300lbs. No mention of the total weight of the trailer plus contents, but I'd say between 4000-5000lbs total. Also says 1100lbs tongue weight for the draw bar, which is what I would use (not the 3pt).

From the manual:

"Trailer Loading Weight, Max Capacity:"
L3240 3300lbs
L3540 4400lbs
L3940 5500lbs
L4240
thru
L5740 6600lbs

With that said, my little B3200 is also rated to tow a trailer loaded with 3300lbs and it is merely half the tractor that a L3240 is. They must base it on hp or some other nonsensical thing. :confused2:

 

[KennyV]

Dirt Pan Scrapers use the 3pt arms to pull, no problems.
This line has the hitch for the 3pt.. Hoelscher Commercial Products - DB Scraper
KennyV

 

[PHILIP8N]

Dirt Pan Scrapers use the 3pt arms to pull, no problems.
This line has the hitch for the 3pt.. Hoelscher Commercial Products - DB Scraper
KennyV

Look at where the axle is at on these scrappers, at the VERY back. I do not see how you could get negative tongue weight with this scrapper. Philip.