Backhoe Kubota B20...Does it lift....

MurderRZR · Jan 31, 2018

Sorry for the crazy question. I am not a farmer. I am not even a tractor owner...yet. I am trying to buy around 35 acres here in TX. I want to build a cabin in the woods with some riding trails so I was looking at a Kubota B20 four wheel drive backhoe to do some trenching and digging to put things in for the cabin and cut up some trails. As a secondary job it will be a RZR/4wheeler recovery vehicle if it can be used. My goal was to put some good tires on it for mud and doing its job when used as a shovel and when its not digging or pushing dirt, I can use it to recover toys that get stuck in-between things and or cant be recovered simply by pulling. For example I had my RZR stuck just recently between a stump and a wall of dirt that it couldn't climb over because the trans broke leaving it with just two wheel drive. We had to lift it with the front end loader of a tractor to get it out from behind the stump without damaging it and then just pulled it out. It was very difficult to say the least and precarious at times. Do you guys think the backhoe part of the B20 is strong enough to lift the back of a RZR 1000 up and slide it to the side to do this same task? I think if it will lift the back end up and can swing it even a little bit at a time in either direction it would be a great recovery tool.

Just as a reference the entire RZR weighs in at 1400 lb. I would think the back where the engine and trans are located would be the heaviest.

Am I crazy or could this work? :confused2:

jeff9366 · Jan 31, 2018

No.

You are more likely to use the FEL bucket to get under a RZR. Either with the bucket in direct contact with RZR tires or with a shock absorbing nylon vehicle recovery strap or the two in combination. You want to lift the vehicle. A Loader is designed to lift.

To lift 1,400 pounds SAFELY on flat ground you will need a tractor-loader with bare weight of 4,000 pounds and around 1,000 pounds of counterbalance mounted on the Three Point Hitch. A Backhoe will probably suffice as counterbalance as it can be extended, increasing its effectiveness as counterbalance.

Many new to tractors ultimately decide $7,000 of heavier tractor chassis weight is money better spent relative to a $7,000 Backhoe option on a lighter chassis tractor.

A new 4-WD tractor-loader of 4,000 pounds bare weight will cost $25,000 to $30,000 including the loader; NO Backhoe. Sales tax additional.

Also consider a stand alone $600 gas engine powered winch for vehicle recovery.