Added toothbar to my GC2300

loulblades · Jun 23, 2005

I wish I had known what a toothbar on my FEL would do for me when I bought my 2300. I guess if I had read this forum more before I bought it last year I would have known.

Anyway my MF dealer ordered a Woods toothbar which I installed last night. I have alot of clay to deal with and what a difference it makes. In the short time I used it I was able to do some real damage. We are doing some landscaping and it works great for rough raking the topsoil.

If I would buy another tractor (I would really like a tach and cruise control like on the 2005 2300) I would definitely get the toothbar right off.

If MF also puts a temperature gauge on the 2300, I might have to buy a new one.

This weekend is going to be even more fun than last. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

MFChief · Jun 23, 2005

I'm glad to hear you are having success with your toothbar, I'm planning to make that my next purchase for my 2310.

In case anyone was wondering, like I was, the tachometer on the new G2300/2310 tractors isn't something that's retrofitable. Well, at least not sanely /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif, it's direct mechanical drive off of the camshaft /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif. I just looked at a new one at my local dealer a couple of days ago.
Terry

loulblades · Jun 24, 2005

Isn't that nice, you have to buy a new tractor to get a tach.

Anyway I just cannot believe the capability increase with this toothbar. I have a 6 foot wide (about 75 ft long) line of brush and small trees that need to be removed and had contacted our tree "guy" to get a quote. Last night I thought I would give it a shot and I think I paid for the bar the second day it was on the tractor.

My fun quotient just made an exponential jump.

Totally, and unbelievably, awesome!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

davesisk · Jun 26, 2005

Dude, you're making me think about getting a tooth bar for my MF1220 FEL...

Dave

Nasty135 · Jun 26, 2005

davesisk, With a toothbar you will think you have a small dozer /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif It will dig quite a bit more aggressively especially w/4WD .. and you can pop roots with an individual tooth also if you don't have bucket hooks you can hang a chain over the teeth to carry or lift something with the FEL that won't fit in the bucket /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

davesisk · Jun 27, 2005

Hmmm...who's a supplier you'd recommend for a lightweight tooth bar? My bucket is exactly 48". Do you prefer bolt-on or weld-on? I weld as a hobby, so no problems welding it on. However, I'm thinking a bolt-on is removable (which could be nice), but I'm not sure if it would be as sturdy? (Of course, I'm wondering how often I'd ever remove it...possibly never, I dunno...)

Dave

loulblades · Jun 27, 2005

As I previously mentioned, my toothbar is from Woods but several others have been posted on this sight. Mine looks pretty heavy duty and I have done some serious damage with it. You provide a width measurement on the inside of your bucket about 8" from the leading edge. For mine I had to drill 2 3/4" holes to mount. I also put anti-sieze on the bolts and plenty of grease on the metal to metal contacts.

Now the bad news.

I was removing brush and small trees yesterday when I ran over a part of a stump left from yanking out a small tree. One of my front tires was no longer able to contain the liquid filling.

I dropped the tire off at my dealer this morning and he said for about $75 they could fill it with foam. It would provide about the same weight as the liquid and I wouldn't have to worry about the tire going flat again. He also said that once they put in, it takes about 24 hours to cure. Anyone here have this done?

Right now my fun is on hold (not to mention mowing the grass). /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Nasty135 · Jun 27, 2005

Dave , I got mine a 60" from markham for about $200 a yr ago. Bolt on is best IMO for obvious reasons ,I just took mine off to do some loader work with gravel /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif...
Also with markham they will deliver to a business for less shipping than to a residence and if they deliverer misses the promised date they refund the shipping which is how I got mine a little cheaper a day later /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

As lou said measure about 8" back inside and thats all they need to make one for you... Good Luck

Lou, I have read here on TBN that the foam filled is definately a good option for a problem area ie: lots of thorns or tire hazards and those who have used it have good results with no complaints.

DougM · Jun 28, 2005

Mine is a bolt on and I am very happy with it as I DO take it off at time's.

I also have the front tires foam fill on my GC 2310 and I like them..........
DougM

echovalley · Jun 28, 2005

have you found any advantage with the foam fronts?

DougM · Jun 29, 2005

(( have you found any advantage with the foam fronts? ))

It adds lbs. to the bottom of the tractor....

Also I am able to run up on sharp things while doing loader work..

DougM

loulblades · Jun 29, 2005

Originally I had a rear mower and the dealer added the liquid to the tires for some ballast. I don't have the rear mower any longer but after seeing a root go through my tire, making it so it won't go flat again seems like a good thing. So I don't really need the extra weight (actually I would prefer having more in the rear), I am of the belief that it adds some stability.

So if I would buy a new tractor there are 2 things I would invest in right off: A toothbar for the FEL and foam in the tires.

BTW: When I stopped at my dealer the other day he had just received 7 new 2300s. One of the other things I noticed they changed is bringing the exhaust out the side. Fixing one of the complaints I have about this thing (getting my FEL all black). I may have to see what he would give me on trade. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

davesisk · Jul 1, 2005

Another satisfied Markham Welding toothbar owner here! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

After you folks advice, I ordered one yesterday and it came today. Just drilled and bolted it on. Took the tractor around to the side of the house where we're going to re-landscape. There's tons of roots that I knew I needed to rip out.

This tooth bar is awesome...that's all I can say. What a huge difference a toothbar makes. I've used light equipment (like my previous Power-trac) without a tooth bar on the bucket, and heavy equipment (like 5800 Bobcat) with a tooth bar. All this time, I thought the difference in digging performance was the weight and hp of the machine... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif I was able to push into the ground a little (just a little...the natural gas line is only about 1' deep!), curl the bucket up, drive forward a little, maybe raise the loader a little. Wow! Took a few iterations, but I've got a very successful first pass done...and in only about 20 minutes. I had tried digging against some roots in the back before this toothbar, and even with it's 50+% weight increase over the Power-trac, it still wouldn't do much damage. I'll say it again...this tooth bar is awesome!

As I was doing this, it hit me...this MF 1220 is a REAL tractor. Not that my Power-trac wasn't, but it sure seems right off that this MF 1220 is in a totally different class. It didn't even grunt during any of this, and I had the rpm's only at about 1800. I see that has more than enough hydraulic power to lift it's own rear end, although I endeavored to keep the pucker factor to an absolutely minimum since I'm new to this machine.

The old Power-trac would dig really well with the front-mount mini-hoe contraption (similar to a skid steer type hoe), but really wouldn't dig very well with the straight edge bucket, although you could work it in by using the steering to dig the edges in (it was an articulating machine), drive forward, and pull up a halfway decent bucket o' dirt. Roots would stop it dead, however. In fact, that's why I built the mini-hoe for it. I'll bet it would have done much better with the large bucket if I had put one of these toothbar's on it.

Very cool. Thanks for the suggestions folks!

Btw, there's a lot of companies (both large, medium, and small) that could learn quite a bit about customer service from the folks at Markham Welding. I would unquestionably buy from them again. Quality product at a fair price, and a customer service level that I've seldom encountered! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Btw, did I mention that this toothbar is awesome? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

I just hope I can find some more roots around here... /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Dave

MFChief · Jul 3, 2005

I'd like to second Dave's comments. I installed a Markham toothbar on my gc2310 this weekend and am more than pleased with it's performance.
In fact, I owe having it to this thread, I mentioned earlier here that I intended to make one my next purchase, and another list member who had a brand new markham bar he wasn't using offered to sell it to me. I took him up on the offer and got it installed yesterday.

The picture shows some of the clay I have that would laugh at the bucket prior to adding the toothbar!
Terry

davesisk · Jul 3, 2005

Hey Terry:

Yeah, what a worthwhile purchase, eh?

I notice that you simply put the two square steel plates they include on the outside of the bucket...kinda like big washers! I'm thinking these are designed to be welded to the bucket to reduce wear where the bolts are. Any idea if this is intended to go on the outside or inside of the bucket when welded on? It almost looks like there's room for mine on the inside of the bucket. I suppose it probably doesn't matter too much...I'd imagine the idea is to prevent the bolt from making the bolt hole in the thinner bucket sidewall wear to a larger size...the forces on the hold would generally be parallel to the bucket sidewall.

Dave

MFChief · Jul 4, 2005

Hi Dave,

My toothbar came with two of the 1/2" thick plates like the one you see in the picture, and also two smaller plates that are about 3/16" thick. I put one of those inside to fill the slight gap between the arm of the toothbar and the bucket. There was not room for both unless I tried to bent the arms, and I just didn't think it was necessary. The idea of welding the plates to the outside was suggested to me by another list member and I believe it's a good way to go and plan to do that when I pull the bar off. I will probably also experiment with the thinner inside spacers to make it equal on each side of the bar, but I just had to get the thing bolted on and give it a try this weekend. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Terry

loulblades · Jul 5, 2005

Look's like we have a heck of thread going in support of toothbars.

I worked most of the weekend tearing out roots, moving topsoil and mulch and grading. What a blast I had. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

I believe that the toothbar also makes it easier to dive into a pile of topsoil or mulch and get a full bucket. Now I have got to put some weight in the rear to keep it on the ground. I kept my rear blade on the whole time (Once I tore up the roots and ran the toothbar through the clay to soften it, I would grade it off with the rear blade) but it still didn't provide enough weight. I looked at buying weights but they seemed a bit pricey. So now I am in the process of gathering up parts, a rod and piece of steel pipe. I will fill the pipe with concrete and have the rod running through it to connect to the 3pt. Or maybe I'll just strap a couple 12" block to the rear blade.

Although I got a bit of sunburn this weekend, was enjoying myself too much to realize it, I had in a great time. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif