Backhoe loading advice

[EddieWalker]

Hey Bailey,

My 555E weighs 14,000 pounds and I'd have thought the Case would be pretty close to that. You might want to check on your weight and make sure the trailer is rated for you backhoe.

I've never hauled my backhoe, so this might not be relevant, but I always back my lawnmower into my truck bed when I haul it someplace. The part of driving it back downt the ramps backwards bothers me, so I back in and drive off the ramps going forward.

One thing that really helped was to build a dirt mound the height of your trailer. I did this with for my pickup bed. When I lower my tailgate, it's level with my dirt mound. Now I can back into to my bed without any ramps at all!!

Welcome to TBN,
Eddie

 

[sweettractors]

Well I guess backing on the trailer is the way to go. Like Mosby says, "At least the back end won't get light".

I'll get the transmission fixed and try it again. Man, i dread it though. I sure was hoping to hear from several people about ways to load with a winch.

Hey Ken, when you back onto the trailer do you feel uneasy? Like you're going to roll over forward? How high would you say the deck of your trailer is? Mine is right at 3 foot high.

I have a tilt trailer that is about 8 ft wide and I always have the uneasy feeling when loading the Backhoe. When Loading my Cat D3B dozer on its drop deck trailer, it still gives me the creeps every time I load and unload. Just go slow and be careful. I always find a perfectly level place to load and unload either machine. The more you do it the more comfortable you will probably get with it.--Ken Sweet

 

[bailey_trey]

All,

Thanks so much for all the comments. You guys have confirmed that TBN is for me. I've order the rebuild kit for the tranny. Once that comes in I'm thinking of starting a thread about the project.

I'm also going to check on the weight of the 580C. I recall reading the weight, 9500 lbs, from the user's manual, but I perhaps it is just the weight of just the tractor (without FEL or BH).

I'm also going to get some pictures of the for you all to see this evening. I'll be traveling to my house where the BH and trailer are located. Once there I'll snap some shots and post tonight. I'm going to show the trailer because I'm almost certain it is rated to carry the weight. I bought it second hand without any sort of a manual. It is a heavily built gooseneck trailer.

Eddie,

I don't know why I hadn't thought about creating a mound. I'm such a idiot! I have been trying to find a mound; when the whole time I've been riding around on the backhoe that could be used to create one. Sheesse. I promise I'll be using that advice.

TBN Fan,
Trey

 

[rexcramer]

The mound idea is fine for at home, but wherever you unload there will not be a mound.

Also my 580C is right at 13000# with an extendahoe quick disconnect FEL.
9500 must be the tractor only.

Cranking a 13000# hoe on a trailer does NOT sound like fun

 

[Syncro]

Hi all,

The backhoe's transmission slips. Meaning, when I pull/push the shuttle lever the backhoe takes a second or two before moving.

You're sure its a mechanical problem? Are you using the lowest gear? A little extra throttle (not too much) and using the brakes to control the speed may also help. Keeping the loader bucket low in touchy situations, as well as keeping the stabilizers part ways down can also save your a.. from a possible roll over, sometimes. I can't say how many times a partially lowered stabilizer, temporarily held just above the ground, and a low bucket prevented me going all the way over when I had to operate a machine in uneven ground.

 

[Nat]

Trey, I loaded a TLB many times and it is always a little hairy the first couple of times. I have always loaded by driving on because it is hard to get the right amount of weight on the truck when backing on. One piece of advice is to keep the front bucket as low as possible and I normally let the backhoe bucket drag as I load, that will keep you going straight on the trailer and will stop the front end getting light. Another thing is to try to always load with the truck downhill with the trailer up hill, so that when you drive on you are going downhill. I have loaded my old 555 onto a trailer without ramps, by sitting the loader bucket down on the trailer floor and using the hoe to set it up. I don't advise doing it this way, but with snow on the ramps and on the trailer floor I didn't feel good about driving it up. Practice, practice, practice.HTH, later, Nat

 

[dirtworksequip]

If you want to live a long life, you need to leaRn to wear your seat belt on all equipment or tractors. One split second of carelessness can get you killed or seriously injured. I'm sure you want to finish that lake and enjoy it when its finished. SEATBELTS SAVE LIVES!!!

 

[bailey_trey]

I just wanted to thank all of you for the time you've taken to give me some really sound advice. Here's a couple of pics of the backhoe.

The damage picture shows where the tire rim got bent so much that it rubs the frame. You can also see where the stabilizer bent the fender.

All in all, I am truely luckly. The only damage from the fall off the trailer is a bend tire rim. While I'm replacing that I'm also going to put new rubber on the back wheels.

 

[bailey_trey]

Nat mentioned something in his post before that really caught my attention. He said, "I have always loaded by driving on because it is hard to get the right amount of weight on the truck when backing on." How do you know the right amount of weight? Should I go to a set of scales weight the truck before and after hitching up?

Here is a picture of my trailer. When I bought it the guy said he had installed the up-right 'stops' through the deck. He said he hauled a dozer and used the 'stops' to mark his 'balanced' position.

Could I get a couple of comments on load balancing? How much weight should be on a truck?

Thanks,
Trey

 

[puter]

...I jumped off...I’m thinking the safest thing for me to do in the future is...

Wear your seatbelt and don't jump off the tractor. Do a Google search for "FACE report backhoe jumped" and read them. You'll find that the decision many of these folks made to jump off their roll bar/cage equipped machines, was the last decision they made.

- Mark