Ballast box receiver to tow logs with chain & grapple?

[sideskraft]

Has anyone tried to use the receiver that's integrated at the bottom of the Titan Ballast Box to skid logs? I plan to pick up my first tractor this Saturday, and I'm researching the various implements and accessories that I'll need to do many of the projects I have in mind.

The Titan Ballast Box has a built-in 2" receiver tube at the bottom. In order to drag some trees that I need to move, I'm thinking about inserting this D-Ring D-Ring Receiver Hitch into the receiver tube, attaching a clevis with a short length of 5/16" chain, and a manual grapple like this Amazon.com : Timber Tuff TMW-14 Lifting/Skidding Tongs, 16" : Garden & Outdoor on the other end of the chain. My question is, will the 3-point hitch raise the ballast box high enough so that the chain and grapple are lifting a good section of the log off the ground for skidding?

If the answer is no, I came across some bolt-on receivers such as this one Polaris RZR 1 Razor Trailer Receiver Hitch 2" Bolt On Mod XP 1-12 3lbs | eBay that could possibly be bolted to the upper half of the back of the ballast box (then insert the D-ring). I'm not sure what the steel thickness is of the ballast box, but an extra 12" x 12" 3/8" steel plate could be bolted between the receiver mount and the ballast box, or the plate could be installed on the inside of the box.

I hope that I can use the existing receiver tube at the bottom of the ballast box to skid the logs, but if the 3-point vertical movement isn't enough, I'll need to go a different route.

 

[nybirdman]

I would think that would work as long as you keep it short.You just need the end of the log up.Some three points are adjustable for height also(check for the top link connection).

 

[mike48130]

I don't know if you will get enough lift to get the log off the ground. That log grapple says it about 19" tall plus the chain, plus the lift height. Look at a 3 Pt boom, you will get the height you need. May have other uses, but if you are doing a lot of logs, it will be much better. You will find the log hits the back of the ballast box unless you put the grapple right on the end. If you want to use the ballast box, I would weld another 2" receiver at the top of the box, then you can adjust the height with the chain.

The grapple height is what gets you. I just wrap a chain around the log, and 3pt trailer hitch and drag them, but I don't care too much about leaving drag marks. I also have hooks on my loader bucket, and often just drive backwards dragging the log.

If you cut them short enough, forks are another good option and you will use them for all sorts of things.

I don't think you said what tractor you are buying. The tractor size and tire size will make a difference.

King Kutter Boom Pole BP-Y : Rural King

 

[sideskraft]

I think you're right about the extra height needed. I looked at booms and they would be perfect, but I haven't yet convinced myself that I need to spend the $160 to have another 3-point attachment. My idea of the bolt-on 2" receiver near the top of the box might work, but I may need to provide some reinforcement (steel backing plate) to spread the load over a wider area to avoid the risk of deforming the back side of the ballast box. I thought about using just the chain without grapple, but I don't want to drag the front of the log and then hit some old stump or roots and tear something up. I plan to get the clamp on forks and may use those to carry logs to the "processing site". Tractor is a 2015 Mahindra 2540, picking it up Saturday.

 

[MossRoad]

Since this is your first tractor, does that mean you've never dragged logs with a tractor before?

I have tongs very similar to the ones you've listed. I'm pretty amazed at how well they'll grasp a log. So that won't be a problem for you. Now if you drag the log with the butt on the ground, it will definitely dig in at some point, or may hit a stump and stop you. You're wanting to lift the butt off the ground so it won't drag, but lifting it high with the 3pt is a good recipe for flipping over backwards. Mounting a 2" receiver higher up on the ballast box increases that chance of flipping over backwards should the log hang up. Pulling logs with a boom pole raises that chance even higher.

Do a search on TBN and find some posts on pulling logs and ask the guys that do it how to do it as safely as you can. I don't have a 3pt hitch anymore. I pull backwards with a hitch on my FEL arms, a chain and those tongs, so I can't help you much more than telling you to research it a bit more before taking the time to modify that ballast box and then finding out it may not be a good thing to do.

Good luck in your project. :thumbsup:

 

[PhysAssist]

Look on C.L., we picked up our boom pole for $75 used but in pretty much new condition, given the lack of moving parts.
In fact, when I looked at the ones sitting outside at TSC, ours actually had less rust on it.

 

[melmark]

I use my carry-all in a similar way. I welded a hook on the upper part of the carry-all frame and use log tongs with a short piece of chain to adjust the height. These are some red oak logs I recently skidded, the biggest was 21" at the butt. That was about all that tractor wanted to handle.

 

[RSKY]

Anything being drug below the level of the rear axle can flip you over backwards. Going uphill would only make the problem worse. The previous poster's use of the forks/carryall on the back would help prevent that. Whatever you do be careful and watch your front wheels continuously. If they start to come up clutch it or let off pedal. Nothing scarier than having a tractor wheelie with you trying to stop it.

RSKY

 

[MossRoad]

Anything being drug below the level of the rear axle can flip you over backwards. Going uphill would only make the problem worse. The previous poster's use of the forks/carryall on the back would help prevent that. Whatever you do be careful and watch your front wheels continuously. If they start to come up clutch it or let off pedal. Nothing scarier than having a tractor wheelie with you trying to stop it.

RSKY

I think its anything being drug ABOVE the level of the rear axle can flip you over backwards. That's why the drawbar (for pulling) is located under the rear axle.

As for those forks/carryall, he's got the load chained to the top of the them. Easier to pull over backwards. And the forks are on a 3pt hitch, which floats up, won't act like wheelie bars. Think about backing a brush hog on a 3pt up to a hill. The brush cutter comes right on up without touching the 3pt lift control. 3pt hitches use gravity for down pressure, not force.

Of course, he does have them all the way up in the photo, so it may help a bit, but his nose will be high in the air before the rear of those forks stops the backwards rotation.

 

[sideskraft]

Since this is your first tractor, does that mean you've never dragged logs with a tractor before?

I have tongs very similar to the ones you've listed. I'm pretty amazed at how well they'll grasp a log. So that won't be a problem for you. Now if you drag the log with the butt on the ground, it will definitely dig in at some point, or may hit a stump and stop you. You're wanting to lift the butt off the ground so it won't drag, but lifting it high with the 3pt is a good recipe for flipping over backwards. Mounting a 2" receiver higher up on the ballast box increases that chance of flipping over backwards should the log hang up. Pulling logs with a boom pole raises that chance even higher.

Do a search on TBN and find some posts on pulling logs and ask the guys that do it how to do it as safely as you can. I don't have a 3pt hitch anymore. I pull backwards with a hitch on my FEL arms, a chain and those tongs, so I can't help you much more than telling you to research it a bit more before taking the time to modify that ballast box and then finding out it may not be a good thing to do.

Good luck in your project. :thumbsup:

Great points Mossroad -- thanks for sharing. My tractor with loader is about 5000lb, so it should handle logs up to 16" diameter pretty well. I plan to only lift the front of the log a few inches, so the vast majority of log weight will be dragging on the ground, I'll be going very slow and won't have far to go (less than 100ft). The loader and bucket weigh about 1800lb, so that should help offset the log weight.