Report on 3038E with 6' bushhog

[DKCDKC]

medic... I'm near Staunton, Va., and would be interested in a trade of a 6 footer for a 5 footer.

vtsnowedin... I know from experience that the more tires are filled the less flexibility they have, and the rougher the ride on the tractor. Tires with air alone are much more flexible and more of the tread comes in contact with the ground... At least that's what I've read and it makes sense. There are some threads on the subject here on TBN. I do like the weight of filled tires on a compact tractor because it is light. Ideally I would not fill the tires at all and add wheel weights. That way I would have the pounds and the flexibility. I'm pretty sure that's how to get maximum traction. I chose 40 percent because that's what John Deere recommends. That way I get some of the weight but keep a lot of air for flexibility. Since I almost always have a box blade or brush cutter on the tractor, it should be enough to a lot of FEL work.

 

[vtsnowedin]

I suppose that if you do a lot of road travel on paved roads the ride matters and if you were loading material from a paved lot having a greater contact patch for the tires will make a difference. I'm usually working on soft ground that flexes around the tire lugs so wouldn't notice that difference. A King Kutter at around 500 lbs certainly makes a very good ballast for your 3038E.
When you have scraped up a blade full with the box blade do you ever pick up the pile with the loader bucket to carry it up to the top of the hill? If you fill the bucket then grab another blade as full as you can drag along you could get twice as much moved per pass.

 

[DKCDKC]

I don't run on pavement at all. But my drive is a mile long and I notice the difference on it running at a moderate speed. Even at slower speeds on really rough areas there is a harshness to the ride I have not encountered with other tractors. Adding more air and less fluid helps. But I will keep the tires partly filled for the weight.

When I am pulling the full box on soft gravel I imagine the soil does conform to the tire pretty good. There the issue is probably more weight. I do scoop up some of the gravel with the bucket, but it's a small tractor and it takes a lot of time to move a lot of gravel.

But I keep working on my technique. And, if I can land a 5 foot BB, I think that would make a difference.

I need to find as simple a way as I can because I intend to live here until the grim reaper comes on his tractor to take me away.

 

[medic0648]

I'd love to trade you box blades, but I'm about 1hr east of Dallas, tx.

 

[DKCDKC]

I'd love to trade you box blades, but I'm about 1hr east of Dallas, tx.

Yeah. Running my truck out and back would probably pay for a new BB. But thanks anyway.

 

[vtsnowedin]

When I am pulling the full box on soft gravel I imagine the soil does conform to the tire pretty good. There the issue is probably more weight. I do scoop up some of the gravel with the bucket, but it's a small tractor and it takes a lot of time to move a lot of gravel.

.

There you have it. Once again it has been shown that all threads eventually lead to the conclusion that the OP needs a bigger tractor.
Now in your case while your shopping for that next bigger tractor, ( It doesn't hurt to look even if you can't afford to buy one) you could look at regrading your drive so it sheds water off to the sides and washes less gravel down the hill.

 

[DKCDKC]

There you have it. Once again it has been shown that all threads eventually lead to the conclusion that the OP needs a bigger tractor.
Now in your case while your shopping for that next bigger tractor, ( It doesn't hurt to look even if you can't afford to buy one) you could look at regrading your drive so it sheds water off to the sides and washes less gravel down the hill.

You probably have a point about a bigger tractor. I goofed a bit in not going to a slightly bigger tractor. The $4,000 to $6,000 difference now seems smaller than it did at the time.

I have experimented with regrading. The problems are manifold. On my long slower grade across a field to get to the woods, the road was laid up a field. It has settled so that the grass/sod is slightly higher than the gravel - hence the water is held in by the shape and creates ditches . Shaping the gravel pushes the ditches out a bit, but getting them out of the drive would require a lot of earthwork to reshape along the drive. Or many tons of gravel to raise the drive surface. The real problem areas are two very steep areas where the drive cuts along the side of a very steep hill, sloping sharply down and curving at the same time. I have shaped the gravel to some extent but much of the water is still directed to the hill side and creates a torrent that eats out everything going down the hill. Yet there are exposed massive rock ledges that make a simple drainage ditch almost impossible... And it would have to be lined with something to avoid washout as well. Sloping it toward the downhill side would risk washouts that could quickly make the drive impassable.

There are probably many fixes, but none I know of that don't cost a bunch. I do plan to test out some crushed asphalt next year. As time passes, if I don't figure out a better way to do it, I'll have to get a contractor. I have debated just paving the steep sections (although I worry about ice on them in the winter) and putting in a few culverts - to the tune of $15,000 or more.

My 5,300 foot drive is the result of an estate settlement and follows a pig-tail of land out to the road. I can't move it much. I do have a faint hope that a neighbor might build some "farmettes" with the land next to me so that I might run a drive 1,500 feet flat to his road... But that could be years away.

Ideas always welcome.

 

[firefighterjrm]

Try crushed concrete it runs about 200.00 for 20 tons around here and makes a good base and tighten up really good if you can get them to tailgate it out even better I always tilt my box in on the right side when box scraping to bring the material back into the driveway also it helps keep the crown up on your driveway hope this helps

 

[vtsnowedin]

You probably have a point about a bigger tractor. I goofed a bit in not going to a slightly bigger tractor. The $4,000 to $6,000 difference now seems smaller than it did at the time.

I have experimented with regrading. The problems are manifold. On my long slower grade across a field to get to the woods, the road was laid up a field. It has settled so that the grass/sod is slightly higher than the gravel - hence the water is held in by the shape and creates ditches . Shaping the gravel pushes the ditches out a bit, but getting them out of the drive would require a lot of earthwork to reshape along the drive. Or many tons of gravel to raise the drive surface. The real problem areas are two very steep areas where the drive cuts along the side of a very steep hill, sloping sharply down and curving at the same time. I have shaped the gravel to some extent but much of the water is still directed to the hill side and creates a torrent that eats out everything going down the hill. Yet there are exposed massive rock ledges that make a simple drainage ditch almost impossible... And it would have to be lined with something to avoid washout as well. Sloping it toward the downhill side would risk washouts that could quickly make the drive impassable.

There are probably many fixes, but none I know of that don't cost a bunch. I do plan to test out some crushed asphalt next year. As time passes, if I don't figure out a better way to do it, I'll have to get a contractor. I have debated just paving the steep sections (although I worry about ice on them in the winter) and putting in a few culverts - to the tune of $15,000 or more.

My 5,300 foot drive is the result of an estate settlement and follows a pig-tail of land out to the road. I can't move it much. I do have a faint hope that a neighbor might build some "farmettes" with the land next to me so that I might run a drive 1,500 feet flat to his road... But that could be years away.

Ideas always welcome.

For the flat areas that are low, cut a notch through the grass to daylight every fifty feet with your loader bucket to let the water out before it accumulates and gains strength in numbers. Or you could place a load of gravel or other base every three hundred feet or so and grade it so it is a gradual roll in the grade that forces the water out once per load. You would have to armour the low point ditch that drains out at the top of each load to keep gullies from forming. Pavement grindings work well for ditch armour.
Your steep area are a problem but you should direct as much of the water there directly off to the low side rather then collect it in a ditch on the hill side. On a driveway speeds are low enough so you don't need to bank turns to hold cars on the road so let the flow of water be your guide. A twelve foot gravel drive should pitch six inches towards the low side and the shoulder should be graded and mowed so that no water runs down the road edge after it gets to the side of the road. A mile driveway is a considerable expense to maintain and you can't expect to get out of it without buying some material every now and then. I'd suggest three or four loads of good quality material every year placed well would let you keep ahead of the erosion and quickly solve your wash out problems.

 

[DKCDKC]

For the flat areas that are low, cut a notch through the grass to daylight every fifty feet with your loader bucket to let the water out before it accumulates and gains strength in numbers. Or you could place a load of gravel or other base every three hundred feet or so and grade it so it is a gradual roll in the grade that forces the water out once per load. You would have to armour the low point ditch that drains out at the top of each load to keep gullies from forming. Pavement grindings work well for ditch armour.
Your steep area are a problem but you should direct as much of the water there directly off to the low side rather then collect it in a ditch on the hill side. On a driveway speeds are low enough so you don't need to bank turns to hold cars on the road so let the flow of water be your guide. A twelve foot gravel drive should pitch six inches towards the low side and the shoulder should be graded and mowed so that no water runs down the road edge after it gets to the side of the road. A mile driveway is a considerable expense to maintain and you can't expect to get out of it without buying some material every now and then. I'd suggest three or four loads of good quality material every year placed well would let you keep ahead of the erosion and quickly solve your wash out problems.

I have tried to cut side notches in the places where the road is lower than the sod, with a little success. I like the idea of adding gravel to essentially make water breaks.

Pitching the road bed to the lower side of the driveway would reduce water issues, but raise issues with ice. My 4WD F-150 loaded with wood and my 4WD SUV have each slid at least 60 to 80 feet down the hill when we get ice or packed snow. The only thing that has saved them from going over the edge has been an inward pitch and some large logs I have placed on the outside of the drive edge and pinned down with stakes. I will note that I have managed water breaks at several places that do really help. But I still have two long downhill sections I just can't do much with. Although I may try your idea there and simply dump extra gravel to make a break, then coat with a few inches of crusher run, or milled asphalt.

Actually, through adroit use of the BB, I have only had to put gravel down every 4 or 5 years, and only a few loads then. So I can't really complain... It's just the nuisance of having to work it following any major rain.