GC2600 How Use Box Blade w/o Lift Height Control?

[joshuabardwell]

1) I'm using a Massey Ferguson GC2600 SCUT. 25hp, with a three-point hitch with a single-lever hydraulic lift system (so I can lift it and lower it, but don't have a draft control or any sort of fine control over how high or low the attachment rides - its all by eyeball).

Even without draft control, you should still have enough fine control over the height to raise the implement an inch or two at a time. When the position lever is all the way down and the implement is resting on the ground, there should be some "slack" in the lever. That is, the lift arms would like to be in a lower position, but the implement is holding them up. As you raise the lever, you will come to a point where the lift piston is pressing the arms up against the implement and the implement is about to leave the ground. The lever may change feel slightly and have more resistance to being raised. At this point, as you continue to raise the lever, the implement will go up proportional to how far the lever is moved. On my tractor, the hydraulics lag behind the lever a bit, but if the implement is off the ground and I bump the lever slightly up, the implement will move slightly higher. It sounds like what you are describing is that your hydraulics are all-or-nothing up-or-down. If that's the case, I think something is wrong with them, but I don't know enough about hydraulics to suggest what that might be. Could it maybe be that the box you've got on the tractor is too heavy for the lift arms? That "horrible grinding noise" you described is probably not the intended operation of the tractor. Does the noise, and the "all or nothing" behavior of the arms happen when there is no implement on the tractor at all?

 

[bakerg]

There is a speed adjustment knob for the 3ph just under the seat by your right leg. Slowing down the speed should help you get your height right.:thumbsup:
The noise you here when you slightly move your lever is oil moving through the valve because you are only creating a small openning in the valve to let the oil pass.

 

[joshuabardwell]

There is a speed adjustment knob for the 3ph just under the seat by your right leg. Slowing down the speed should help you get your height right.:thumbsup:
The noise you here when you slightly move your lever is oil moving through the valve because you are only creating a small openning in the valve to let the oil pass.

If I understand correctly, that valve is only intended to restrict the implement's drop rate, not its raise rate. If you lock that valve down all the way, it will prevent the implement from dropping entirely; this can be used when transporting the implement, for example on the road, where you don't want it to drop under any circumstances. However, if you lock that valve down too far and then try to raise the implement, the hydraulic pump will be working against the valve and the valve or the motor can be damaged. My owner's manual says to never raise the 3-pt position lever with the drop valve totally closed. According to my owner's manual, the valve should ideally be adjusted so that the implement takes about 2 seconds to drop from full height to the ground. This will vary depending on the weight of the implement.

 

[bakerg]

I will double check mine again but I think it adjust flow in both directions on the GC2400 I have.

 

[nybirdman]

Just got done with about four hours of box blade work.New ground being lowered six inches to erect a pole barn.There is a learning curve for sure with a BB but once you figure it out it is a great tool.They work best in loose soil,not sod.What you can do is shorten the top link,lower the rippers(keep the cutting edge high for now;just the rippers).Reverse the rippers lengthen the top link and scrape off the sod.I used my front bucket to move the piles of sod.Once the sod is gone lower the rippers shorten the top link to the point you are ripping and picking up the dirt.

 

[DMW]

Removing sod with a box blade is a pain. I tried and found the FEL to be far better at it. If your plans intend to till the soil and replant, why not just rent the tiller now? The scarifiers on the box blade don't go much deeper than a tiller can. Till the entire area, mix in your peat (could even spread it prior to tilling, save some time), grade, then seed. All the sod your removing with the box blade now will not grade well.

 

[mrbeanley]

I had another go at things with the box blade this afternoon, and it is working quite a bit better, now that it is adjusted more properly. By tilting it way back (to rest on the outter blade), and dropping the scarifiers/shanks/teeth down to their lowest settings, I was able to break the ground up reasonably well.

One thing I have going "for" me in this yard is that the sod is miserably thin - so ripping and moving that wasn't really too bad. The thing that is working AGAINST me is the bumper crop of ROCKS I keep hitting! I think one of them knocked a filling loose when it brought the tractor to a somewhat abrupt stop! :ashamed: I think I may have lost my last marble with that one, as well. Along with one of the lynch pins - which makes me .

Now, as for the lift and drop rate on the GC2600 - my understanding from reading the manual and operating the tractor (lo this 20 hours now!) is that the valve by the operator's right foot controls only the rate of DROP. The only way to change the rate of RISE is to cut engine RPMs. Which I'm pretty sure isn't a good idea!

While I am getting the hang of the box blade now, I am convinced that trying to lift the box a small amount with GC2600 is dang near impossible to do. One doesn't need to move the lever much at all to get the 3-pt to come all the way up with a BANG!. If you do manage to get it to come up just a tick, by moving the lever teeny bits at a time, it makes a nasty noise. Earlier in this thread, someone said that was the hydro fluid squeezing through a partially opened valve. I'm not sure if that will damage the machine, but it really sounds horrible. Finally, since the '2600 is an "auto-return" 3-pt lift, you have to push the lever back to the center after the adjustment. If not, it will continue to lift until it reaches the top.

So far, this is the only gripe I have about my 2600. I wish there were an aftermarket add on or something that would permit me to slow the rate of lift. Does anyone know of an adapter or something that can be plumbed in between the pump and the pistons that would do that?

 

[jmainel1]

I purchased a 54" from Cammond Industries. They make real nice stuff. They were one of the only one's who made a 54". I figured the 5' was too big and 4' was too small. It works great. You have to adjust the top link to tip the box blade in and out for better bite. Also, I have 4 scarifiers, sometimes I'll only use the 2 in the middle, this allows you dig a little better and loosen soil that is stubborn. I have a 2006 GC2400TLB with a knob that regulates the rate of drop for the 3 point hitch. I also use this to lock the mower arms in the up position, I'm not sure if controls the rise though. I'm almost a neighbor, from Brunswick, I run with Brunswick Fire Co. No. 1.

 

[wrangler6831]

Something that helps alot is to adjust the right hand lever in between your legs, at the floorboard level. It adjust how fast your implement drops. So instead of dropping quickly you slow it down to where it drops real slow. It gives you better control over the sudden drop and hang up your getting now. I do think that 5' is a little big. When I bought mine I ask for a 5' and the dealer said she didnt recommend itfor the very reason your describing. I wnet with a 4' and it still hangs it up occasionally but not to bad.

 

[maxa]

I ran into the same issue (missing lift speed control) with my GC2400 and got a bit frustrated when trying to scrape off some sod and spread it somewhere else. Instead of a nice flat surface I quickly created dips and hills and the more I tried to smooth them out the worse it got. Then a neighbor happened to drop by, watched for me a while and asked if he could give it a try. He smoothed it out and ended up making the area look just like I wanted. So... it can be done
Things I observed: He did a lot of passes and only moved small amounts of dirt each time whereas I was trying to do it all at once. Also, he used the drop speed control to adjust how much the box blade followed the grade. He set the box to a non-agressive angle and he had the drop lever all the way down in the float position most of the time. The fact that he earns a living doing tractor work probably helps, too.
Well, this helped me get over my frustration -- hopefully it makes some sense to you, too.
FWIW, I'm running a 5ft MF 550 box blade on the GC2400 and haven't had any size/weight/horsepower issues with it so far.