3-Point Hitch How much attachment weight can my 2320 handle

[dgleason]

Just bought my first tractor, a used John Deere 2320 with 137 hours on it. Came with a rotary mower, box scraper, auger and front end loader. Have some manure I want to disc into the soil of a future pasture. I've seen disk harrows weigh from 400 pounds on up. Seems most 2320 attachments are in the 400-450 pound range. Found a good deal on a disc that weighs in at 550 pounds. There's no PTO power involved. I don't see a spec that explicitly states how much I can hang off the iMatch. Would my 2320 handle it okay? Pasture area is pretty flat. Want to stay within the limitations of the tractor. Your comments appreciated.

Thanks. Dave
Colorado Springs

 

[yooper1]

Found at Tractor Data DOT com:

2320:
3-Point Hitch:
Rear Type: 1
Rear lift (at ends): 1,433 lbs [650 kg]
Rear lift (at 24"/610mm): 1,150 lbs [521 kg]

TractorData.com John Deere 2320 tractor information

 

[North Country]

And if you want it straight from the horse's mouth, you can always go here for all data about your 2320.

Product Specification for 2320 Compact Utility Tractor

 

[dgleason]

Thanks for the info, sounds like a 550 pound attachment is well within the capabilities of the 2320.

Since I'm new to this and still have a lot to learn, I'm probably being over cautious.

Dave

 

[dmay]

Just bought my first tractor, a used John Deere 2320 with 137 hours on it. Came with a rotary mower, box scraper, auger and front end loader. Have some manure I want to disc into the soil of a future pasture. I've seen disk harrows weigh from 400 pounds on up. Seems most 2320 attachments are in the 400-450 pound range. Found a good deal on a disc that weighs in at 550 pounds. There's no PTO power involved. I don't see a spec that explicitly states how much I can hang off the iMatch. Would my 2320 handle it okay? Pasture area is pretty flat. Want to stay within the limitations of the tractor. Your comments appreciated.

Thanks. Dave
Colorado Springs

Congrats on your tractor purchase.

Actually you may find a 550 pound disc is not heavy enough. If your soil is hard pack and established grass pasture you may find it does not offer enough weight to sink in and turn the soil effectively. Then again your 2320 does not have enough weight to pull a big heavy disc rig. A PTO powered tiller might be a better solution. All depends on your soil conditions.

 

[dgleason]

Good point on the weight. I had not thought of that. My soil is somewhat sandy, which is the reason I need to mix in the some manure. The 550 lb disc should do the job.

 

[lost in wisconsin]

Good point on the weight. I had not thought of that. My soil is somewhat sandy, which is the reason I need to mix in the some manure. The 550 lb disc should do the job.

Dave,

First off...congrats on the 2320. We have one also (short-timer as we are upgrading to a 2520) and it has done everything I have asked of her and done it well.

I am curious to hear who that disc works out for you. We were thinking about acquiring something similar. I assume you will be utilizing the MFWD and curious as to whether you need to add to your front for ballast.


Thanks,
Doug

 

[dgleason]

Would be glad to let you know. The local Big R stores are closing out on the Tarter discs. Have one left after I pick this one up. I was also looking pretty hard at the King Kutter. I haven't actually picked it up yet or spread the manure pile yet. Don't have any weight on the front end except for the loader. Is it acceptable to putting some material in the bucket when some weight is needed on the front end? Would keep the bucket high enough for ground clearance.

I'm really excited about the 2320. Was also looking at a used 2520 at the time I bought the 2320, but it got away. I have a lot of things on my to do list that will be so much easier with the 2320.

I see in signature that you have a FM snow blower - assume the FM is front mount. I am planning on a SB1154 rear mount unit. How do the FM and SB1154 compare in performance, ease of use and cost? Cost has steered me toward the rear mount units.

PS: where are you lost in wisc? I've been in the Colorado Springs area for over 20 years now, but born and raised in Merrill, north of Wausau then later lived in Milwaukee (and Calif and Utah).

 

[North Country]

re: FM vs RM snowblowers.

I've used both and as far as ease of use, it's not even close. The FM are much easier to use. Performance is largely based on HP and somewhat on manufacturer's design, and the RM is the cost & maintenance winner.

It takes me about 2 full hours to blow after a big storm. You could not, under any conditions, talk me into driving backwards looking over my shoulder for 2 hours. If I had a smaller area, I'd consider a RM.

 

[dgleason]

I was looking at the rear mount, but am convinced I should get the 54" front mount. The local JD dealer told me the front mount is about $1200 more, including snow blower installation. A couple questions:

How much drveway do you have to clean? I've got a 700' driveway with a couple loops/spurs. I started doing it with a 10hp walk behind blower, took 3-5 hours depending on the amount of snow. Lately I've been doing it with an atv with a 60" blade. It's quicker than the walk behind, but can still take me a couple hours or so. I'm thinking I'll keep the atv for the small 3-6" snows and use the tractor snow blower on the bigger snows.

How long does it take you to switch beteen the bucket and snow blower?

Any traction problems? I've got a box scarper on the 3 pt, might leave it on for the weight in the rear.

Thanks.

 

[North Country]

Sorry for the late reply. I've been outta the country for a bit - even farther north than where I am now. Saw plenty of snow even in mid July.

Total distance that my neighbor and I have to clear together is about 3000'. Who does what depends on who's around when it snows - often we split it, but sometimes one or the other of us does the whole thing. The whole thing is closer to 3.5 hrs than 2. Basically, it's a long shared road with two spurs off the end. This year I have more HP per ft so I'm hoping to get it done a little quicker.

I don't plan on siwtching between the FEL & blower often. It takes about 10 minutes if I haven't hidden any of the snowblower parts.

Traction isn't an issue for me. I have a 10% max gravel drive and chugged up & down it even when using my chained RWD JD 318 with no diff lock. It's usually cold enough up here that we avoid icing problems common to some a little farther south. My rear weight is a cone spreader/sander. It's very light when empty, which it usually is. I only have to sand about 2-3x a year.

 

[lost in wisconsin]

Dave,

So sorry for this late reply.

I cannot believe you were clearing 700 ft of drive with a walk behind...wow! Not sure if you have made your decision yet b/n a FM or RM snowblower. If you can swing it $$ wise, I would go with the front mount. That is an awful lot of looking back. I have nothing bad to say about our 47" except the fact that it isnt wide enough for our 2520 (I will have to figure something out b4 the snow flies).

Is your driveway gravel or cement/asphalt? Our's is a combo of cement (by the garage and turn around) and then approx 400 ft of asphalt to the road and we have some pitch (5-9 degrees) on the driveway. I have R4's and really haven't run into any issues except if there was ice...then only chains would have assisted.

If you do go with the FM, I might suggest something "smaller" for rear ballast. I at first used our box scraper as well but went with the HeavyHitch as it narrower and stay closer to the tractor. It worked out well for me on the drive (pic #1). I also blow a path behind my house to get to the barn. This is done on grass and then I add our BB (610 lbs) (pic #3).

Like NC stated, I don't switch out in winter b/n front mounted implements but I would figure 5-10 mins to remove the snowblower/quick hitch and another 5 to mount the FEL.

And finally...I am about 30 mins north of Milwaukee near the Port Washington area.

 

[dgleason]

Appreciate you getting back to me. I've decided to go with the 54" front mount. Have no idea what a BB cost instead of using my box scraper for weight. I know what you mean when there's something hanging off the back, it does restrict maneurability.

My driveway is all gravel/road base except for the garage apron and concrete basketball/parking area. Some 5-10% grades. I have the same tires on 2320 and they have a lot of tread left. May need to look at some chains. In colorado, we get a lot of sun during the day (melting) and it cools off at night (freezing). Driveway can get pretty slick over night. I have a lot of trees which makes it a little worse, blocking the sun part of the day.

The walk behind has been a workout. I've also used an atv with a blade the last couple years and it does a good job if the snow isn't too deep. In fact, I'll probably continue to use it for the 6" or less snows.

Lovin the tractor. Used the post hole digger for the first time the other night. Couldn't believe how fast I dug them holes. And I didn't even work up a sweat.

I know where Port Washington is. I use to work on Broown Deer Road.

Appreciate all the experience from this group.

Dave

 

[lost in wisconsin]

Good call on the 54" FM. I am confident you are going to love it. Just keep you eyes open on Craigslist or auctions for a BB. Mine is a JD model but it works for me. My father saw it on an auction and picked it up for $30. I filled it with crushed limestone and good to go.

One item worth mentioning regarding chains (and I am thinking you will need them if you have ice) is to be sure you have your rear tires in the wide position. Your rims our concave on one side and convex on the other. You can switch the rear tires and gain about an inch on each side. This is important for chain clearance. Generally, valve stems on the outside indicate the tires are in the narrow position.

And I cannot agree with you more, as we now have the PHD also. Love it as well. At first, when trying to decide on what we should get for our 2nd attachment, I wasn't sure the PHD made the most sense. But now that it is here, I am glad we made that choice. It seemed in the past when it came to digging holes for posts, we never had enough to justify the rental of a PHD. Now with our own, its as simple as dropping the iMatch and grabbing the PHD.

 

[dgleason]

A couple updates and a question.

"lost in Wisconsin" - I did use the disc and like it. I was hoping to get at it when it was raining in Colo and the ground was softer, but still worked for me. Took a few more passes. Need to keep them level to get the same penetration from both rows of discs. Now I need to come up with some kind of drag to smooth it out. Overall, I'm pleased with the tarter medium duty/size disc.

Had the FM 54" blower installed a couple weeks ago. Let it snow , let it snow, let...

My question is for those that have this snowblower and a FEL. The snow blower comes off in 3 pieces. How many pieces do I need to remove to put on and use the FEL? This would only be during the winter when I go back and forth between the two units. In the summer I'll remove the complete snow blower.

Thanks.

 

[lost in wisconsin]

Dave,

I believe the 3 pieces you are speaking of are those in the first pic.

Front attaching support kit (part circled in blue)
Drive and upstop kit (part under the front attaching support kit and circled in red)
Hydraulic Lift (part on the left of the picture)

All items except the front attaching support kit (pic #2) need to be removed when you decide to put your FEL on. In fact, I leave my front attaching support kit on year round.

I hope this helps

 

[aczlan]

Can you post a side picture of the hydraulic lift kit? The blower side appears to be identical to the one on out Cub Cadet GT3200 and I am curious to see how they attached the cylinder.

Thanks

Aaron Z

 

[dgleason]

Thanks for the info on swapping the FEL and snow blower. It shouldn't take more tha 10-15 minutes.

Here's a link for some pretty good pictures of the snowblower:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...204-review-2520-54-quickhitch-snowblower.html

Let me know if there's another view you need and I'll take a picture this weekend.

Dave