Cheap Ballast & QH

dinoedwards · Mar 13, 2025

Cheap ballast boxes for under $200 and Quick hitches?
For under $200 on Amazon or even WalMart how bad can they be if I'm just going to fill them with cement?
The Quick Hitches seem to all have same load rating of 3k so what to I look for between Titan @ $385 box,QH @$209 Land Pride or Tractor Supply @ $170 vs very cheap Vevor @ 160? Amazon is $140 QH

CalG · Mar 13, 2025

What would one choose if "not cheap" but rather "good" was desired?

KennyG · Mar 13, 2025

I think most of these QH just come out of the same factory in China. Harbor Freight is about the cheapest and I've been using mine for almost 15 years with no complaints.

As far as counterweight, if you are going to fill it with concrete, why bother with the box. Just form up a wood box, insert the necessary pins and/or steel for attachments and pour a big concrete block.

WranglerX · Mar 13, 2025

For ballast I made a 2x2x1 foot box from scrap.... Filled it with concrete... Concrete is about 150 LBS per cuft...So its about 600 LBS....

Don't forget to put some sort of loop on top, if you tip it over you need loop to get it upright again...

Midniteoyl · Mar 13, 2025

I have the 'cheap' versions of both. Both are holding up very well. The QH stays on the tractor..

fc1 · Mar 14, 2025

No complaints about my cheap ballast box. Mine came from India; I filled it with pavers and pea gravel.

jigs_n_fixtures · Mar 14, 2025

pet peeve time: Cheap, was defined as: Shoddy, of poor construction and utility, and thus low cost. Cheap has morphed into a synonym for inexpensive.

Back on topic: The inexpensive ballast boxes work just fine, particularly if you pour them full of concrete.

I bought one of the Vevor quick hitches. Welds are pretty good, general fit and finish is pretty good. Only downside from my perspective, is that it moved the ballast box out five or six-inches, and now the 3-pt on my 23-hp tractor has a bit of a hard time lifting the concrete filled ballast box.

WranglerX · Mar 14, 2025

jigs_n_fixtures said:
pet peeve time: Cheap, was defined as: Shoddy, of poor construction and utility, and thus low cost. Cheap has morphed into a synonym for inexpensive.

Back on topic: The inexpensive ballast boxes work just fine, particularly if you pour them full of concrete.

I bought one of the Vevor quick hitches. Welds are pretty good, general fit and finish is pretty good. Only downside from my perspective, is that it moved the ballast box out five or six-inches, and now the 3-pt on my 23-hp tractor has a bit of a hard time lifting the concrete filled ballast box.

Odd.... My GC1715 (25 hp) does not have any problem with 600lb ballast on QH.... Manual for my 1715 says lift capacity at "ball ends" is 1191 pounds (540Kg) seriously doubt the QH is culprit for causing poor lift of ballast....