Grading B2710 3 pt. and R. Blade

[M. Sullivan]

Wondering if I'm operating my new tractor correctly here. R. blade (Woods RB72, 272#) doesn't seem to want to take a bite from my hard gravel drive or road--a lot of bounce when it gets going.. Barely pulls 1/2" off the top. Adjusted the top link out about 3" for a better bite w/o success.

Also, the 3 pt. lever does not have full range: At '8', it's all the way up, but goes to full down by '6', any placement between '6' and '1' does not seem to have an effect on downward location or performance. Is this normal??. Note: Before adjusting the top link out, the range from top to bottom was from '8' to '4'.

Finally, per the manual the position below '1' (has an icon, vs. '0') is supposed to be float. Doesn't appear to be any different in function than when at the lowest down point; '6' in this case.

Hoping the answer isn't need a heavier blade.......Thanks in advance for your advice.

 

[TomG]

Don't know if by 'full down' you mean the blade is resting on the ground, or the arms are at at the end of their downward travel. It's normal if the blade is resting on the ground. Most 3ph's do not have down pressure. The design and weight of an implement takes it into the ground. The lift lever sets the depth at which you want to work. Depressing the lift lever beyond the point of ground contact allows the implement to float within a range.

Perhaps the blade weight isn't enough for the blade to cut the gravel. I've heard of people putting additional weight on a back blade, but I don't know if it's good for the implement. People also rip hard surfaces with scarifiers before grading.

 

[Bird]

I think Tom has already answered, but I'm not familiar with Woods' model numbers. Are you talking about a straight blade (in which case you have no scarifiers) or is it a box blade? I'm guessing you are talking about a straight blade because adjusting the top link out on a box blade would reduce the bite. About the only way I know of to see if the 3-point travels its full range is to try it with no implement attached and see if you don't have the full range up and down. When I bought my first Kubota, I intended to buy a blade for grading/leveling and several people told me to get a box blade instead. They were right. I've still never used a straight blade, even though I have a neighbor with one he hasn't used in the last 5 years and told me to just take it and use it anytime I want. Adding weight should help some, but it might still not be enough. On hard surfaces, I just have to use the scarifiers.

Bird

 

[PaulB]

M - I do add weight to my rear blade (also a Woods, 5 footer), either 2 tow chains, or a piece of old railroad rail, or all 3 depending on what I need to dig into. Without the weight all the blade does is skip over the surface. This is the nature of the beast, and in no way indicates a problem with your tractor.

 

[W5FL]

Guess we all thought we could grade a hard gravel road like the 40,000-pound road graders with a wheel base about 4x my Tractors. I personally gave up on any blades including box blades as they left the surface really wavy on a long gravel road. Mine is 800 feet.

The only way I did pretty fair was to take the rippers on a box blade (after a rain) and loosen up the driveway. Then I used a 3-point rake, which fills with gravel and lets it spill out much easier than my box blade would do it. It worked pretty well but still hard to prevent the hills and valleys made originally with the box blade. I have seen others drive backwards while moving the box blade up and down to get the proper cut and that works quite well as you are riding on the smoothed out part rather than the up and down part while making the cuts (but puts a crick in your neck). /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

I found a really nice 3-point attachment called a Grademaster that comes in 5 ft, 6 ft, and in heavy-duty versions in 7 ft and up. Seems like it cost about $900 for a 5 ft and $1000 for a 6 ft and $1800 for a 7 ft. As soon as I get the money I am going to buy one. I figure that $50 a year for the next 20 years is pretty cheap maintenance.

The 6 ft version is about 6 ft square and has two angled blades that stick below the bottom of the grader box about 1/2 to 3/4 inch. The material it picks up washes over the blades and can actually grade and crown a gravel driveway. It separates the smaller fines and puts them on the bottom and the larger gravel and puts that on top. I wouldn't attempt to pull it without 4WD as it pulls pretty hard, but really works.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Hey, Mike! Good to hear you've had a chance to play with your new toy. Some good advise from the posts so far.

We did not take the blade off when I delivered the package so you never really got to see the full range of motion of the 3 point. Without the blade installed, the arms should go all the way down to just off the ground.

The only way to get a really big bite on a hard surface like your driveway and road is to add weights to the blade, or purchase a top-n-tilt kit. This will give you actual down pressure. In the meantime, try to angle the blade off to one direction. This will help to slice off the surface instead of chop at it. You may notice road graders operate at an angle rather than straight on.

Kelvin really enjoyed playing with Mac and he talked about it all weekend, and he wants me to remind you to try to quit smoking.

- Tim

 

[MChalkley]

I've got an 8' Landpride Series 35 with hydraulic trailing rear guage wheel that works very well, especially when it's weighted. I don't have any trouble with it hopping, as long as I don't try to go real fast.

Wen, do you have any more info on the Grademaster? Manufacturer? Web site? Phone number? Address? Rumored sightings? Anything? It sounds very interesting. Also sounds like the Roadboss, but much less expensive.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

M.S. - yup - its the old, need-more-weight-on-it deal! Like the other guys mentioned, a box scraper would be a lot more useful in your situation. They generally weigh more and have the cutting ability that back blades don't have,
especially on gravel/stone driveways and roads. I'd trade it in and go for a five foot box scraper -

 

[W5FL]

Mark, I posted the information on the GradeMaster in the Accessories Section in case someone else ever wanted to refer to the data. The HD versions of the 6 ft have both Cat II and Cat III pins, so it is a serious piece of road maintenance equipment.

 

[MChalkley]

Wen, I saw it and have called them. They're sending me info on it. Thanks again,

Mark