BH75 with UAT100 Thumb

[bigballer]

Great responses to the topic and of course all this brings up another point - weight. The L3400 weighs roughly 3200lbs with the loader. Would it be beneficial to add fluid to the tires as well to get another ~700lbs of weight? The last thing I want is my tractor bebopping around when I am digging. I figure the heavier the better, no? BTW, I don't mow my lawn with this so having a bit of extra weight for traction/stablization to me is better than worrying about dents in the lawn when I do drive across it.

Thanks!

 

[dfkrug]

Great responses to the topic and of course all this brings up another point - weight. The L3400 weighs roughly 3200lbs with the loader. Would it be beneficial to add fluid to the tires as well to get another ~700lbs of weight? The last thing I want is my tractor bebopping around when I am digging. I figure the heavier the better, no?QUOTE]

Heavier is better, some of the time. Adding fluid to your tires adds
weight, but that is not a panacea. Lots of posts on TBN about this
topic. Think carefully before you add fluid as it is hard to fully remove.
If you make your tractor 500 lb heavier, that could be an issue if you
transport it on a trailer or if you drive at more than a crawl on roads with
any significant grade. At least you don't have a lawn to worry about and
I assume you do not have AG tires.

 

[bigballer]

I have the R4's. ok, I have read some back threads where folks say that you don't want extra weight because it adds pressure to the downriggers while others say it's no problem. Are the rear wheels supposed to be off the ground when using the hoe? If I don't have the extra weight should I expect alot of bebopping? I have many (close to 100) 8"-16" stumps to dig out and 100's of feet of trenching/ditching to do as well as slope prep for retaining wall, steps, landscaping, etc..

 

[dfkrug]

I have the R4's. ok, I have read some back threads where folks say that you don't want extra weight because it adds pressure to the downriggers while others say it's no problem. Are the rear wheels supposed to be off the ground when using the hoe? If I don't have the extra weight should I expect alot of bebopping? I have many (close to 100) 8"-16" stumps to dig out and 100's of feet of trenching/ditching to do as well as slope prep for retaining wall, steps, landscaping, etc..

I don't see a prob with lifting the extra weight, but I do not think that
bh attachments on a CUT should be used like a commercial TLB with all
the wheels off the ground. Even with a subframe. I can see some
significant flex in the subframes you get with some of these bh
attachments (e.g. the BH75 on the L3400). IMO, you need to keep
tires on the ground while digging so the stress is not too concentrated.
The subframe on my B21 is bigger than any (incl my custom-made ones)
I have seen on this size of tractor. The outriggers use 3" OD cyls. I don't
know what the owners manual recommends for this TLB. I am sure others
on TBN have no problem with lifting wheels in the air.

Digging stumps is hard on a tractor (roots have high tensile strength),
so be careful. Your tractor WILL be tossed around by the hoe, unless you
run at very slow speed.

 

[TalonDancer]

...If you make your tractor 500 lb heavier, that could be an issue if you transport it on a trailer or if you drive at more than a crawl on roads with any significant grade....

I did a quick serach but didn't find anything specific about the issue of tire ballast (e.g. water) and steep grades. Could you summarize or point me to more info please?

I'm taking delivery of an L3240 in a few days. The dealer said he would put the water w/ antifreeze in the tires for free so I said OK. But there isn't flat spot anywhere on our property. Even the construction drive way has section with a 30% grade. So now I'm not sure whether I want the water...

Thanks in Advance,
Talon Dancer

 

[dfkrug]

I did a quick serach but didn't find anything specific about the issue of tire ballast (e.g. water) and steep grades. Could you summarize or point me to more info please?

I'm taking delivery of an L3240 in a few days. The dealer said he would put the water w/ antifreeze in the tires for free so I said OK. But there isn't flat spot anywhere on our property. Even the construction drive way has section with a 30% grade. So now I'm not sure whether I want the water...

The subject of fluid ballast is well-covered. The issue I mentioned of
slopes is simply one of power vs. weight. 30+ hp is not a lot of power
if you want to do anything fast. With my CK30, I can drive my 5000
lbs of TLB over to my neighbor's place up a 15% road and I can barely
use midrange on my HST. If I had another 500 lb or so, it would be
a lowrange trip (slow). If you take your tractor on a public road and hope to
go 10mph (H range), adding weight may be an issue with even a slight
grade. Last year I bought a CK20 for a friend and I can not even use
midrange with any incline with heavy implements attached. And neither
CUT uses wheel ballast.

BTW, I DID add fluid to my first tractor (L2550DT, 29.5hp)) and I lived
with that, then removed it. I am now removing the fluid from my B21
project tractor. Most of it anyway, since the last 30% is hard to
remove, requiring wheel removal and bead-breaking. I sure hope it isn't
corroded in there as they are tubeless.

 

[canoetrpr]

I've got a L3400 and the backend gets pretty light with any serious loader use - even with a ballast box. I mean light enough to be dangerous. When you are lifting a bucket of sand or gravel, you need the weight in the back IMHO.

I wasn't quite convinced about this until a couple days ago when I took on the first real project with my loader - digging up a spot to lay a concrete slab, moving dirt out and moving gravel in.

Decided to get the tires loaded the first time the rear wheels lifted off the ground.

Tires were loaded today.... a sane dealer might have recommended / done it to begin with but mine didn't even recommend a ballast box! I had to buy that separately.

If I were you I would get the tires loaded. There is enough HP on the machine IMHO so that weight is not going to be an issue. The more weight will help get the HP to the ground.

 

[DiezNutz]

Yes you are supposed to lift the wheels off the ground. I have never heard anyone say otherwise except dfkrug, just now. Not only is the rig not as stable with the weight on the wheels, the backhoe would have far more leverage (torque) against the wheels, which are farther away (moment arm) than the stabilizers. Subframes and stabilizers are made to handle the load. You do NOT want that stress on the rear axles and your HST case.

Kubota maintains that you should not fill your tires if you're using a BH. I would not/did not. You have quite a bit more weight in the raw tractor than I do, I think you'd be just fine without the filled tires.

 

[TalonDancer]

The subject of fluid ballast is well-covered. The issue I mentioned of slopes is simply one of power vs. weight. 30+ hp is not a lot of powerif you want to do anything fast. ...

Thanks.

BTW I agree there is a lot already on the subject of fluid ballast. I just couldn't find anything specific about fluid ballast AND steep grades.

Talon Dancer

 

[dfkrug]

Yes you are supposed to lift the wheels off the ground. I have never heard anyone say otherwise except dfkrug, just now. Not only is the rig not as stable with the weight on the wheels, the backhoe would have far more leverage (torque) against the wheels, which are farther away (moment arm) than the stabilizers. Subframes and stabilizers are made to handle the load. You do NOT want that stress on the rear axles and your HST case.

What is your source for that statement? Can you cite any owner's manual
for a CUT bh attachment with subframe that tells you to lift some or
all wheels off the ground?

This topic has been discussed on TBN, though it is not easily searchable.
There are thousands of posts on backhoes.