ADD LOADER OR REPLACE TRACTOR

[deere5105]

I have a 2WD 5105 John Deere with approximately 250 hrs. Unit has 14.9-28 rear tires loaded with water and two remotes at the rear of the tractor. I use this tractor for basic gardening/farming. I got a really good deal on the tractor and have been contemplating adding a FEL. I have a neighbor that has a 2WD 5205 with 16.9-28 rear tires also loaded with water. I have used this combination multiple times and the only thing I have noticed is that with a bucket full of material you can lose traction. I added a box blade to the rear and it helped significantly. The area I operate in is basically flat with well drained soil. I am trying to decide if it is a good idea to add the loader to the tractor I have or look for a different unit with the loader already on it. I realize the benefits of a 4WD unit, especially with the loader, but my main use for the FEL would be to maintain roads primarily by pushing limbs out of the way when mowing. I am curious if anyone is running a FEL on a comparable 2WD machine with good results or has done what I am considering and wound up swapping machines. Any advice or recommendations?

 

[Creekside Quarters]

Hello,
I have a 2WD JD 5205 with a 512 FEL. When first using the FEL for moving some heavy fill dirt, it did the same thing you were talking about, the back tires would spin and it was a pain to use. I had calcium added to the rear tires, which added alot more weight and made a huge difference while using the loader and even pulling plows, discs, etc. I know it will eventually rust out the wheels in 20-30 years but I can deal with that then.

This tractor is primarily used for bushogging, hay operations, moving bales, discing, plowing, box blading, and occasional FEL work. A 4WD tractor would be nice, but as infrequent as we use our FEL it wouldn't justify the increased price. Don't think i would ever swap out machines, if anything i would just keep the 5205 and save up to buy another tractor, cause it's too good of a tractor to sell or swap, especially if you got a good deal on it.

Would go for the 522 loader instead of the 512 loader, its easier to remove the entire thing from the tractor when neccessary, the 512 is designed to stay on tractor.

 

[RobertN]

I would just off to be prepared for sticker shock when looking at loaders. On my Kubota, I got it without a loader and used it that way for a couple of years. I added an aftermarket loader; $3100 !!! And that is for a smaller tractortor(Kubota B series).

Note also, even with a 4wd tractor, it is nice to have ballast on the back for loader work.

 

[LBrown59]

I would just off to be prepared for sticker shock when looking at loaders. On my Kubota, I got it without a loader and used it that way for a couple of years. I added an aftermarket loader; $3100 !!! And that is for a smaller tractortor(Kubota B series).

Note also, even with a 4wd tractor, it is nice to have ballast on the back for loader work.

2 or 4 wheel drive has nothing to do with maintaining the proper ballast to prevent the loader from causing the tractor to tip.

 

[deere5105]

I am not too concerned about the tipping possiblities as I will primarily be pushing limbs and bushes back that are along the roads. I realize that proper ballasting makes a world of difference. The tires were not loaded when I purchased the tractor and it made using a box blade difficult because it would spin the tires quickly in soft terrain. I have the weight bracket and four weights on the front. I never have any issues with implements causing the tractor to become light in the front end, but also wonder if that is reducing some of my traction due to the weight balance. It sounds like the work Creekside is doing is very comparable to what I do. I prefer to go with the John Deere 522 loader for the ability to easily remove and to keep with the same brand product. I have compared prices to the Bush Hog brand and there did not seem to be much difference in price or performance. Since I do not have mid-mount hydraulics I will have to use the two remotes in back. I would still prefer to use a joy stick though and don't think that will be a problem. Creekside, what size rear tires are you running and is the calcium the only ballasting you use or do you have wheel weights too. I have gotten stuck, but each time I was working in a creek bed moving sand and if I had a loader I would have been able to push myself out.

 

[George2615]

If your 5105 works for you and gets the job done in the majority of your chores then by all means buy a loader for it. It has low hours so this would be much cheaper route to go than buying another tractor.

As with any loader you should have proper rear ballast to offset the weight of what is in the bucket, especially with 2WD. Rear ballast can be loaded tires, an attachment, ballast box, etc. I have a smaller 26HP tractor with 4WD and use an 800LB ballast barrell I made when doing loader work. Without it the rear gets light.

 

[Creekside Quarters]

I am not too concerned about the tipping possiblities as I will primarily be pushing limbs and bushes back that are along the roads. I realize that proper ballasting makes a world of difference. The tires were not loaded when I purchased the tractor and it made using a box blade difficult because it would spin the tires quickly in soft terrain. I have the weight bracket and four weights on the front. I never have any issues with implements causing the tractor to become light in the front end, but also wonder if that is reducing some of my traction due to the weight balance. It sounds like the work Creekside is doing is very comparable to what I do. I prefer to go with the John Deere 522 loader for the ability to easily remove and to keep with the same brand product. I have compared prices to the Bush Hog brand and there did not seem to be much difference in price or performance. Since I do not have mid-mount hydraulics I will have to use the two remotes in back. I would still prefer to use a joy stick though and don't think that will be a problem. Creekside, what size rear tires are you running and is the calcium the only ballasting you use or do you have wheel weights too. I have gotten stuck, but each time I was working in a creek bed moving sand and if I had a loader I would have been able to push myself out.

The rear tires on our 5205 are 14.9-28. That is the only ballasting that i use on it unless the rear blade or bushog just happen to be on. I priced out wheel weights originally from Deere but after i got the price back, and each 110 lb weight costed $147.00 each, not including hardware. So to outfit the tractor with 4 weights (2 each wheel) was almost $600. And even then, putting them on would require another loader or taken to the shop because it may be a little hard to put the weights on.

The calcium was much cheaper, costed around $150.00 and they came out to the farm to do it. And not to mention it added about 600 lbs to each tire. Tires held about 53 gallons of fluid/calcium mix and weighs 11.5 lb per gallon. So it was cheaper than wheel weights and gave more ballast. But on other hand it will damage wheels over time. You may want to check out this stuff called RimGuard, it's another typ of ballast that's not supposed to mess up your wheels. Rim Guard - Liquid Tire Ballast

Noticed a big difference in pulling and ballast support once they were done. Pull a 12' tandem disc with it and before it would spin on top of loose ground, now it digs down and pulls better. Only thing though if ground conditions are wet or soft, the added weight may only lead to you getting stuck faster.

See this link on liquid ballast types: Comparing Types of Liquid Tire Ballast | OrangeTractorTalks

 

[kebo]

Most likely your 5105 has power steering. If it doesn't, then the loader would make it hard to manual steer with a bucket full of material. Just one thing to keep in mind.....

 

[deere5105]

It does have power steering. It is a 2004 model. It had 94 hours when I bought it last year. We also have a mid 70's Ford 4000 and a 50's model Ferguson 40 gas burner. I believe the 5105 will last me a life time. I keep up the maintenance and try not to abuse it. The other tractors have over 5000 hrs and 8000 hrs respectively and are in good working order. I am just trying to make sure I cover everything before investing several thousand dollars into something when I should just save up and buy a different model with a loader on it. To date I am very pleased with the performance of the 5105. Just checking to see if others have added the loader or have the loader with the same set up I have and had any problems or sold to buy another or wished they had.

 

[flusher]

I have a 2WD 5105 John Deere with approximately 250 hrs. Unit has 14.9-28 rear tires loaded with water and two remotes at the rear of the tractor. I use this tractor for basic gardening/farming. I got a really good deal on the tractor and have been contemplating adding a FEL. I have a neighbor that has a 2WD 5205 with 16.9-28 rear tires also loaded with water. I have used this combination multiple times and the only thing I have noticed is that with a bucket full of material you can lose traction. I added a box blade to the rear and it helped significantly. The area I operate in is basically flat with well drained soil. I am trying to decide if it is a good idea to add the loader to the tractor I have or look for a different unit with the loader already on it. I realize the benefits of a 4WD unit, especially with the loader, but my main use for the FEL would be to maintain roads primarily by pushing limbs out of the way when mowing. I am curious if anyone is running a FEL on a comparable 2WD machine with good results or has done what I am considering and wound up swapping machines. Any advice or recommendations?

My 2008 Mahindra 5525 (54 hp engine, 45 hp pto, 2WD, power steering, partial constant mesh tranny, 5370 lb without FEL) has the ML250 FEL (6-ft wide bucket, 10.5-ft lift height, 2980 lb lift capacity at the bucket pins). It's comparable to your 5105, but is about 1000 lb heavier (without the FEL). No problem so far using this rig. I have the skid steer quick attach option on the FEL (which I like and strongly recommend). My rears aren't loaded, but I'll fill them next month in preparation for hayfield plowing.

Koyker makes a model 220 FEL that fits your JD

Koyker Manufacturing - Loaders

Haven't priced that unit, but my guess is $4-5K.