Is it unwise to buy a BB narrower than your tractor??

[Spiveyman]

I know there are several BB threads out there, I've posted in a couple of them, but they are old and may not draw the traffic. I'm planning to buy a BB Monday, so I'm hoping to get some thoughts before then.

Here's the deal, I have a Ford 6610, wheels are out wide, 8'. My farm has gently rolling hills so I want them out there to help me keep from field testing my ROPS. Assume narrowing my tractor is not an option.

I started out looking at a TSC 6' BB (~$469), but have been wisely steered towards a more heafty unit. Problem is, more heafty = more $$$. I found a very well made BB, made by a guy in TN. I can get a 72" for around $775, which is a better price than the comparable Bush Hog or Woods version, but that's already an extra ~$300

My question, is it a big mistake to get the 72" BB to pull behind a 84" wide tractor? To get one made wide enough to cover my tracks will cost >$1.000. Is anyone running a BB narrower than their tractor? Does is cause real problems that would warrant ANOTHER $300?

 

[TedLaRue]

Yes, I think it's unwise to buy a back blade narrower than your tractor.

Some back blades can be shifted to one side on their 3 point hitch mount (unbolt and rebolt the blade). So if you shifted your 6' blade to one side or the other, you might cover one of your tracks.

But a 6' blade is really too short for a tractor with wheels set 8' wide. If you use the blade at a 22.5 degree angle, you will be cutting only a 5'-6" swath, and if you use it at 45 degrees, you'll be cutting only a 4'-3" swath.

I have my wheels set just over 5' wide, and I use a 7' blade. I think you should be able to find a used heavy-duty 7' blade for less than $1000. I see used blades for sale pretty often in the local "want ads" bulletin board paper and also our local "Market Bulletin" put out by the state Dept. of Agriculture.

My blade is a John Deere brand which is pretty heavy duty, but over the years the blade has developed a slight curve. If you're only doing light work, a light duty (like the TSC model) might work for you. But I'd recommend checking around for a used heavy duty blade. You might get a heavy duty used blade for the price of a new light duty blade.

 

[Spiveyman]

Thanks for your thoughts. Just to clarify, I'm looking at a box blade, although I suspect the sentiments would be the same for either. I do have a very sturdy Land Pride rear blade but am looking to get a heavy duty box blade for a couple of impending projects. I had thought about the possibility of shifting the box blade off center, but I don't think the one I'm looking at is set up to do that.

I can get a great 7' box blade in my budget, just not sure if another foot is worth the extra $300+.

 

[TedLaRue]

Oops... BB is ambiguous. Sorry. For a box blade, a narrower width is pretty much normal, isn't it?

 

[JoeinTX]

Well, an 8n can carry a 6' straight blade but only a 5' box blade and use them effectively. A Kubota B2710 can drag a 6' box blade with no sweat and make a 5' BB due some obscene things.


To me a BB should cover your rear tire width and modern tractors tend to pull bigger implements than you might at first expect.


You can get one narrower than your tractor, but expect to routinely overwork it and require repetitive passes while working to accomplish the same job.

 

[Spiveyman]

Oops... BB is ambiguous. Sorry. For a box blade, a narrower width is pretty much normal, isn't it?

No prob. I thought BB was widely used for box blade. There are so many short cut names it's hard to keep up.

 

[Spiveyman]

Well, an 8n can carry a 6' straight blade but only a 5' box blade and use them effectively. A Kubota B2710 can drag a 6' box blade with no sweat and make a 5' BB due some obscene things.


To me a BB should cover your rear tire width and modern tractors tend to pull bigger implements than you might at first expect.


You can get one narrower than your tractor, but expect to routinely overwork it and require repetitive passes while working to accomplish the same job.

I'm not as worried about capacity. I'm sure my tractor could carry it and pull it. I'm not as worried about having to do multiple passes, though that is obviously a pain. What I want to try to avoid is getting in a situation where there's something that I can't do, a type of project, road work or something because I have a 7' BB and an 8' tractor. I just don't have the experience to see that far ahead. I've never used one before.

Thanks.

 

[jbrumberg]

Spiveyman:

What do you want to do with the box blade? If you want to do road work or move any material with a 7' box blade on an 8' wide tractor you will always have tire rut/box blade edges that you could smooth out with a rear/back blade or backdrag with your FEL. I can only speak for myself, but I would suggest that you spend the extra $ and go with a box blade that will cover your tracks. It will save you a lot of aggravation and time in the long run. I have lost count of the number of times in the past that I saved myself a few bucks initially and was really unhappy with my "savings" in the long run. Jay

 

[greg_g]

I also subscribe to the philosophy that a boxblade should be at least wide enough to cover the tire tracks. I'm wondering if you're not being slightly over-cautious with that 8 foot rear track. Personally, I feel the most stable width for the type terrain you describe (sounds like mine) is when the front and rear tracks are identical. My KM454 for example; 66.5" overall width, both front and rear. Means a 6 foot box blade or 7 foot indexed rake (or scraper blade) won't leave any tire marks behind. Means also that a 6 foot rotary cutter will let me cut up close to buildings and fence lines.

Point being, setting your rears in to match the front width might let you get that 7 footer AND cover the tire tracks.

//greg//

 

[Bird]

It seems we all agree. The only reason for a box blade narrower that the outside tread of your rear wheels is if you can't afford a bigger one, and that can certainly be understandable. But if you get a narrower one, you'll always wish you had the wider one.

 

[SFish]

Spivey:

From my experience the biggest problem with a narrow box blade is that when working against a steep hill (e.g. when making a road) you can't get to the edge because the tire hits or rides up. If you are just running around smoothing large areas up it doesn't matter much. My tendency is to always spend the money to get the best tool, so I would buy the wide one.

Steve

 

[npaden]

I was also thinking about the limitations when cutting a road or even knocking the crest off a high spot. With the tires up high on both sides the blade won't be able to dig in. I.E. with a 7' blade and a 6' tractor you can make a level 7' cut into a hill. With a 7' blade on a 8' tractor you are going to have to move back and forth and are going to have problems keeping the blade level because one tire would be up on the edge.

 

[Grrrr]

I know I was probably the one who brought this dilemma up of whether it needs to cover your wheels but I am in a similar situation to you and I have a BB that is too small for my tractor

The other thing to remember with a bigger tractor with a bigger wheelbase than CUTS is that as you turn your front wheels will leave ruts that a narrow BB will not cover over. Granted, you can smooth them off later but it is a PITA.

I mainly use my BB to level off our tracks going through the woods and I cannot ever get them very good because I am unable to get rid of the ridge at the side of the track where I cannot get at as the tractor would fall off the edge of the track. This means it is difficult to get the water off the track. If the BB covered the wheels by a bit it would not be a problem.

It is also difficult to create a camber of lean on a track or road as the tractor cannot fit in the channel made by the BB.

You will not regret getting the bigger one

 

[Spiveyman]

I know I was probably the one who brought this dilemma up of whether it needs to cover your wheels but I am in a similar situation to you and I have a BB that is too small for my tractor

Ha! Yep, Grrrr, your comment sparked this thought, and I thank you for that. Otherwise I might have wandered into this blindly and regret the deal later.

The other thing to remember with a bigger tractor with a bigger wheelbase than CUTS is that as you turn your front wheels will leave ruts that a narrow BB will not cover over.

Yep, I've noticed that. I made a quick turn in 3rd gear (high) and left a pretty good rut in the barn lot the other day.


Several of you have mentioned the intended use of this thing. My farm is not too hilly, and for the most part doesn't really have many "roads" so to speak. There are paths I tend to take across the farm to compact the soil so it's not so bad when it's wet. We've put down some gravel in places but not much. I won't ever be cutting a road out of a hillside and only need to maintain things like this:


I don't think I'll have too much maintenance there. The only bad spots are at a couple of gates and a couple of places where we put in a culvert to cross a ditch/creek. When it's wet it can get pretty bad, but I used my rear blade last week and cleaned up one of those fairly well.

What I figure on using my box blade for is general maintenance on paths as needed, but mostly for a couple of projects. There's an old road bed down the side of my farm with embankments, so the land is pretty well useless as it is. I want to knock off those embankments and fill in the road so that it is generally level, replace the fence and have a extra 30 feet or so of usefull land. It's also a pain to keep up because I can't mow it the way it is, so it's more of an eye sore than anything. The other project is flattening out a paddock beside my partner's barn so we can build a cattle handling system. We'll have to take out maybe 3 feet of soil the length of the barn and wide enough for several holding pens and the corral system. I don't know if that makes a difference.

 

[Spiveyman]

I also subscribe to the philosophy that a boxblade should be at least wide enough to cover the tire tracks. I'm wondering if you're not being slightly over-cautious with that 8 foot rear track. Personally, I feel the most stable width for the type terrain you describe (sounds like mine) is when the front and rear tracks are identical. My KM454 for example; 66.5" overall width, both front and rear. Means a 6 foot box blade or 7 foot indexed rake (or scraper blade) won't leave any tire marks behind. Means also that a 6 foot rotary cutter will let me cut up close to buildings and fence lines.

Point being, setting your rears in to match the front width might let you get that 7 footer AND cover the tire tracks.

OK, so I'm waffling a tad on the EXACT dimensions of my rears. I've never measured them personally. I bought the tractor in July and they guy said it was 8' wide. It's at the dealer right now getting the FEL mounted and fixing a couple of small things like the hydraulic fountain that was spewing from the right remote when he demo'd the FEL otherwise I'd go measure the dang thing.

Here's a shot from the front:



Seems like they match the front fairly well?? And, here's shot from the back with a carry all on it. I cut those boards exactly 6' long:



So maybe I'm closer to 7' wide than I thought. I'd hate to have to spend another $300 for a few inches!!!

Thanks again for your all's thoughts. If I can get an 8' BB reasonably soon, I'll probably hold out. The problem is, the guy would have to make it, there's not one on the lot, and we need to get moving on the corral system really soon.

 

[Grrrr]

Ha! Yep, Grrrr, your comment sparked this thought, and I thank you for that. Otherwise I might have wandered into this blindly and regret the deal later.

I think that if all you wanted to do was level off the roads you would probably be OK with a narrower one but you say you want to do other projects where you would be levelling off a larger area. This is where you would want the wider one.

 

[Spiveyman]

I think that if all you wanted to do was level off the roads you would probably be OK with a narrower one but you say you want to do other projects where you would be levelling off a larger area. This is where you would want the wider one.

Thanks man, I was afraid you'd say that! I was really hoping I'd get all of these responses telling me that it wouldn't make that much of a difference, but, I also want the truth. So thanks for your thoughts there. I've also been reading Eddie's "building a lake" thread and 3RRL's "build a homestead" thread. I have plans for a pond/lake as well and want to do some of the work myself. Not nearly the amount Eddie has done, but clear some trees & move some dirt while a professional goes to town with a dozer. I'm sure for a bigger project like that the wider blade will make a huge difference.

 

[Grrrr]

Thanks man, I was afraid you'd say that! I was really hoping I'd get all of these responses telling me that it wouldn't make that much of a difference, but, I also want the truth. So thanks for your thoughts there. I've also been reading Eddie's "building a lake" thread and 3RRL's "build a homestead" thread. I have plans for a pond/lake as well and want to do some of the work myself. Not nearly the amount Eddie has done, but clear some trees & move some dirt while a professional goes to town with a dozer. I'm sure for a bigger project like that the wider blade will make a huge difference.

I think that that is the right decision

 

[john_bud]

Spiveyman,

Looking at your roads (trails?), I think you can get by with your current back blade. Just use the FEL to dump dirt in the low spots and drag them out smoothish. Save up some money and around the January time frame see about getting the wider box, or try and find one used. They are hard to find used (and still usable), but it can be done. If you are handy, you can make some side wings for the back blade so it will pull dirt better. Not a box, but still better than a straight blade.

With a tractor as powerful as yours, its way easy to pretzel up a light box. Snag a root or rock and it's gonna be toast. Buy a good one, you won't be sorry!
jb

 

[Spiveyman]

...If you are handy, you can make some side wings...

HA! My wife would be cracking up at even the thought of me being called "handy." I do not know how to weld, but after spending some time on TBN that's on my list of stuff to learn. For now though, I'm not going to be able to do any metal work.

As for the BB width issue... problem solved. I talked to the guy I've been working with at the dealership. He confirmed that my rears are at 8', and commented that was pretty wide. He know's my farm and convinced me that I'd be fine moving them in to 7'. Saves me about $300 and I won't have to wait for him to order an 8' BB. They are still waiting on a part to fix one of the gages on the tractor, so I can't get it until tomorrow, but I'll post some pics as I think you will appreciate the design of this thing. Very stout!