MY2012 5085M ordered today!

[pclausen]

I had the fixed style with my 460 loader and I always found it a pain to adjust them in and out to fit various size pallets, equipment, etc. You had to rock each tine back and fourth a lot to get them to move. Greasing them didn't help much, at least not with the pair I had. I do realize I won't be able to apply down pressure, but I will likely use my grapple for any work that involves moving brush, stumps, trees around.

Just ordered 6 yards of crusher run for delivery on Friday to start putting down a base for the cement. Got a compactor reserved as well for Friday afternoon. Looks like I'm in store for another fun filled weekend with lots of physical activity.

 

[C-Range]

Pclausen,

Too bad, there's a trick to sliding fixed forks. You lift the forks a little above waist height and then "dump" the fork tips down to about a 45 degree angle so that the center of gravity of the fork tine is nearly under the fork's upper clip (hanger). With all of it's weight hanging on that one point, you can usually pull the lock pin and slide the fork with one hand tied behind your back, assuming adequate lubrication on the sliding surface.

Of course, those that you got are nice too if they will suit your needs.

 

[pclausen]

Ah, I bet that would have worked! Never thought to angle them down like that to put all the weight on the hanger. I'll see how these end up working in actual use lifting pallets and picking up other heavy objects. I can see both pros and cons to floating vs. fixed.

 

[pclausen]

Made some good progress on the pole barn this weekend. I had a 8 tons of crusher run delivered on Friday that I compacted real good. Still need another 2 loads or so to bring the crusher run base level with the 12" diameter concrete "necks" I poured around each post, which is 5" below the finished floor level.

Next I installed french drains along the side and back.

I had to dig a trench along the backside of the existing structure, crossing the 400A service. Fortunately the electrical is 34" below the surface according to the guy that came out from the power company to mark the service.

But before digging the trench, I leveled the perforated drain pipes and slipped filter socks on them.

I then mounted the Woods backhoe to the New Holland, it was just as big of a pain as mounting it on the 6405, but I finally got it all setup. The 56 PTO hp vs. 85 on the 6405 is definitely noticeable when operating just a bit above idle.

I then thought it would be a good idea to use my ripper for the trench.

Did not work out (would be good for running a water line or electrical, but not a 4" drain pipe with a slight down slope), so I switched back to the 18" bucket.

Pipe laid in.

All covered back up. Once it settles, I'll run the rake over it to make it pretty.

I still need to add an extension and throw a few largish rocks at the outlet.

 

[Sterff]

The backhoe sure beats a shovel though! Looks like a fun project too.

 

[AKfish]

You do good work, pclausen. Coming together very nicely! Keep rolling like that and everything's gonna be done before the 5085M even shows up!

That Woods has already paid for itself. Might just have to get it painted..

What did you use to get the slope for the French drain?

Thanks for the pics, too. Nice to see those leaves poppin' out!

AKfish

 

[Zebrafive]

Great progress! Seeing the the Woods backhoe makes me want one!

 

[pclausen]

Thanks guys.

As for setting the level/drop for the french drain, I used a 4ft level and measured at 3 places along each 10 feet section of pipe and made sure the bubble was touching the line on the up side. I added gravel as needed below each pipe to achieve the desired result. In all I got about 150 feet of pipe with a drop of about 2 feet from start to finish, so a little more than the 1% rule of thumb drop.

The biggest pain about installing the backhoe are the 5 large bolts that have to be torqued to 450 ft lbs to properly setup the 3pt linkage for each tractor the hoe is attached to. I've been through the process 2 times now and will need to do it a third time for the 5085M. Once customized for a particular tractor, the hookup should not be that bad going forward. I plan to make a stand for it so that I should be able to back up to it and hook up in 10 minutes or so, at least that is my hope.

Also, dealing with those heavy cat 2 implements in general (like the blade and 9ft bush hog), I'm considering the cat 2 I-match system once I validate that most of my implements will work with it. I think that will be a big time save and make me switch to the proper implement when needed instead of trying to make do with whatever it currently hooked up.

 

[NativeSon]

Great looking project & pictures. You're like the Rural Bob Villa. Thanks for all the pics and info.

Charlie

 

[ddivinia]

Looking good. With all the work you are getting done with older used tractors, does it make you question the new M?

I am thinking about a new M myself.

D.