MadDog
Platinum Member
Well, after about 6 wks waiting, my B7800 was delivered yesterday morning. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
My dealer must have started from Pittsford, Vt. by about 5:00a.m., because he showed up in front of my house a bit after 8:00. There it was, on a very large flatbed w/ a Santa's bag of implements: Here's the summary of what I bought:
1. B7800 w/ R4s, heavy duty alternator, block heater, beet juice loaded tires and Halogen worklights mounted on ROPS (clamped, not drilled, w/apologies to Bill /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )
2. LA402 FEL w/ 54" bucket and bolt-on toothbar and 3 hooks welded on top of bucket.
3. RCK60-27B MMM
4. Woods 7500 BH w/ subframe mount and separate PTO-driven hydraulic pump.
5. Woods 60" boxblade.
6. Woods 60" rearblade.
7. Integration Engineering TopnTilt after-market hydraulics on 3pt.
After goin' through the obligatory paperwork (how couild I turn down 0 % for 2 years and all that "float" on my money?? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif ), my dealer spent about another 3 1/2 hours with me going over the tractor and the operation of each of the implements.
It was delivered with the BH attached, so we removed it and the subframe first. I think that it will take a few of these operations to get the feel for operating the BH hydraulics to get everything lined up correctly, but should be pretty simple once mastered. Disconnection of the hydraulic fluid pump is simple.
Next, we attached and then removed again the mower. That looks pretty straightforward, except for getting at a couple of the pins. The rear link and lift link can be tucked up under the tractor when the mower is off, and held up with short lengths of light chain and snaplinks.
Next, we mounted the 3pt, including the TopnTilt Hydraulics. This took a bit of doing, since the ball joint at the tractor end of the toplink cylinder was a bit long for the tractor's toplink receiving brackets and I had to shorten both ends with my bench grinder. The console is clamped to the lower right upright of the ROPS and that is a good location since, when adjusting the side-to-side and front-to-back tilt of implements you are going to be turned halfway around in the tractor's seat in order to see the implement. I think that I'll mount tilt meters on the boxblade... There is ample travel in both cylinders. We mounted the adjustable lift arm on the left so as to be able to adjust the arms for level at the mid-point of cylinder travel. I then used the 3pt to hitch up the boxblade and rear blade and take them to the OPE shed, where they will live until I have built my pole barn for the tractor, implements and trailer. The hydraulic toplink, especially, makes implement connection MUCH easier and quicker than it would otherwise be. I haven't actually used the TCC with ground-engaging implement yet, and will post on this at a later time.
Last, we removed the 3pt and re-attached the backhoe. By this time, it was almost noon and my dealer headed back to Vermont. He had spent about half a day with me, and I am well satisfied with his helpfulness and the care with which he explained and demonstrated the various configuration changes to me. I am sure that I will have forgotten some of what he showed me, but the directions in the various owners manuals should help to bring it back when needed.
NOW FOR THE BEST PART: I spent Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday cleaning up brush, saplings and a tangle of thornbushes in the woods behind our home. I dug out around some of the larger saplings with the backhoe (mainly just go get the feel of it /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif ) but mostly with the FEL. Even running at pretty low RPM (break-in period) I am impressed by the power and smoothness of the 7800. It has ample poweer even at 11-1300rpm and is bound to have even more muscle when I can safely run it at 1800-2600.
I used the FEL and toothbar to knock over/uproot large numbers of saplings up to 2" Learned that if you place the bucket about 5'-6' above ground, it will knock over just about anything small and you can then get under it with the toothbar and complete the process of uprooting. A large bundle of saplings/brush can be carried easily and safely by fastening them to the bucket with heavy chain from one hook, under a tooth and back up to another. ...glad I had the hooks put on. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
I also used the chain and hooks to drag several large (8" diam, 20-25'long) trees that I had previously felled, out of the woods, to a point where they could be loaded crosswise on the bucket teeth and thence carried to the area where I cut up firewood. ....saved a pile of heavy lifting, as well as time.
Bottom line, ....so glad I have the 7800. Looks like the right combination of reasonable size w/plenty of power and versatility. ....not as heavy, nor as much oomph as a 3130, I am sure, but still plenty for my purposes, and anything larger would have been too heavy to trailer to the Berkshires behind my Suburban.
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I am one happy [Kubota] camper /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
My dealer must have started from Pittsford, Vt. by about 5:00a.m., because he showed up in front of my house a bit after 8:00. There it was, on a very large flatbed w/ a Santa's bag of implements: Here's the summary of what I bought:
1. B7800 w/ R4s, heavy duty alternator, block heater, beet juice loaded tires and Halogen worklights mounted on ROPS (clamped, not drilled, w/apologies to Bill /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )
2. LA402 FEL w/ 54" bucket and bolt-on toothbar and 3 hooks welded on top of bucket.
3. RCK60-27B MMM
4. Woods 7500 BH w/ subframe mount and separate PTO-driven hydraulic pump.
5. Woods 60" boxblade.
6. Woods 60" rearblade.
7. Integration Engineering TopnTilt after-market hydraulics on 3pt.
After goin' through the obligatory paperwork (how couild I turn down 0 % for 2 years and all that "float" on my money?? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif ), my dealer spent about another 3 1/2 hours with me going over the tractor and the operation of each of the implements.
It was delivered with the BH attached, so we removed it and the subframe first. I think that it will take a few of these operations to get the feel for operating the BH hydraulics to get everything lined up correctly, but should be pretty simple once mastered. Disconnection of the hydraulic fluid pump is simple.
Next, we attached and then removed again the mower. That looks pretty straightforward, except for getting at a couple of the pins. The rear link and lift link can be tucked up under the tractor when the mower is off, and held up with short lengths of light chain and snaplinks.
Next, we mounted the 3pt, including the TopnTilt Hydraulics. This took a bit of doing, since the ball joint at the tractor end of the toplink cylinder was a bit long for the tractor's toplink receiving brackets and I had to shorten both ends with my bench grinder. The console is clamped to the lower right upright of the ROPS and that is a good location since, when adjusting the side-to-side and front-to-back tilt of implements you are going to be turned halfway around in the tractor's seat in order to see the implement. I think that I'll mount tilt meters on the boxblade... There is ample travel in both cylinders. We mounted the adjustable lift arm on the left so as to be able to adjust the arms for level at the mid-point of cylinder travel. I then used the 3pt to hitch up the boxblade and rear blade and take them to the OPE shed, where they will live until I have built my pole barn for the tractor, implements and trailer. The hydraulic toplink, especially, makes implement connection MUCH easier and quicker than it would otherwise be. I haven't actually used the TCC with ground-engaging implement yet, and will post on this at a later time.
Last, we removed the 3pt and re-attached the backhoe. By this time, it was almost noon and my dealer headed back to Vermont. He had spent about half a day with me, and I am well satisfied with his helpfulness and the care with which he explained and demonstrated the various configuration changes to me. I am sure that I will have forgotten some of what he showed me, but the directions in the various owners manuals should help to bring it back when needed.
NOW FOR THE BEST PART: I spent Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday cleaning up brush, saplings and a tangle of thornbushes in the woods behind our home. I dug out around some of the larger saplings with the backhoe (mainly just go get the feel of it /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif ) but mostly with the FEL. Even running at pretty low RPM (break-in period) I am impressed by the power and smoothness of the 7800. It has ample poweer even at 11-1300rpm and is bound to have even more muscle when I can safely run it at 1800-2600.
I used the FEL and toothbar to knock over/uproot large numbers of saplings up to 2" Learned that if you place the bucket about 5'-6' above ground, it will knock over just about anything small and you can then get under it with the toothbar and complete the process of uprooting. A large bundle of saplings/brush can be carried easily and safely by fastening them to the bucket with heavy chain from one hook, under a tooth and back up to another. ...glad I had the hooks put on. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
I also used the chain and hooks to drag several large (8" diam, 20-25'long) trees that I had previously felled, out of the woods, to a point where they could be loaded crosswise on the bucket teeth and thence carried to the area where I cut up firewood. ....saved a pile of heavy lifting, as well as time.
Bottom line, ....so glad I have the 7800. Looks like the right combination of reasonable size w/plenty of power and versatility. ....not as heavy, nor as much oomph as a 3130, I am sure, but still plenty for my purposes, and anything larger would have been too heavy to trailer to the Berkshires behind my Suburban.
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I am one happy [Kubota] camper /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
