l4600 three point capicaty question

   / l4600 three point capicaty question #1  

bad69bird

New member
Joined
Jun 14, 2012
Messages
23
Location
new london pa
Tractor
Kubota L4600
The owners manual states that the draw bar has a 6k lb towing capacity. I can not find a spec for pulling capacity using the 3pt. only lift capacity, wondering how much I can safely load my dump trailer and move it around using a 2in receiver mounted on the 3pt
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #2  
Just think about how much pulling force is on lift arms when pulling an implement such as a plow. I know it may not be the right thing to do but if my tractor would pull it safely with out raising front wheels off I would pull it.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #3  
Just my opinion, but towing a trailer around using a 3 point mounted hitch should not by itself put a great amount of stress on the 3 point arms unless you need to pull it through a mud pit or something. The greater issues are:
1) keeping a poorly balanced load from raising the 3 point arms since with most tractors there is no down-force on the lift arms from the hydraulics to prevent it from lifting. Something to think about when emptying a dump trailer also.
2) keeping the trailer + payload weight in line with the size of the tractor, particularly if any hills or slopes are involved. To state the obvious, you don't want to be towing 10,000 lbs of trailer down a steep gravel road with a 3,000 lb tractor.
3) keeping to a safe travel speed. Many tractor towing accidents seem to result from roading at too high a speed, probably from complacency and being in a hurry.
If you've got those matters covered, starting, stopping and travelling shouldn't be a hard task for your tractor, even using one of those 3pt setups. I have one and it is handy and safe if used with proper care.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #4  
Thats a very open ended question. This all depends on how long is the trailer? How much does the trailer empty weight? How far are you really needing to transport your material? Over level ground or up/down a slope?

I understand what your wanting to do here, as i know many people move trailers and things around using the 3pt instead of drawbar, its so much easier, i get it. Your 3pt is rated i think around 2300lbs @ 24" beyond where the lift cam/shaft is. I think this is the spec you are going to be limited by, i wouldnt worry so much as to the weight you can tow vs if you are able to raise your 3pt. Or not. If it raises, it should pull it, if it dont raise then adjust what your carrying. Im still interested in answers to my questions though.

And iut of curiosity, If I said you can tow 6,000 pounds safely with your tractor how do you know when your loaded to 6000lbs ?
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question
  • Thread Starter
#5  
Thats a very open ended question. This all depends on how long is the trailer? How much does the trailer empty weight? How far are you really needing to transport your material? Over level ground or up/down a slope?

I understand what your wanting to do here, as i know many people move trailers and things around using the 3pt instead of drawbar, its so much easier, i get it. Your 3pt is rated i think around 2300lbs @ 24" beyond where the lift cam/shaft is. I think this is the spec you are going to be limited by, i wouldnt worry so much as to the weight you can tow vs if you are able to raise your 3pt. Or not. If it raises, it should pull it, if it dont raise then adjust what your carrying. Im still interested in answers to my questions though.

And iut of curiosity, If I said you can tow 6,000 pounds safely with your tractor how do you know when your loaded to 6000lbs ?

empty 2050lbs, 10ft trailer. looking to transport it around my yard and about 1 1/2 miles down a flat road. I am not opposed to using the draw bar however i dont see a very good way to get a 2 5/16 ball on it and then be able to hook up the trailer and still be able to turn it. obvisouly I cant load the trailer and say yep thats 6k but i have crossed the scales enough time at the land fill to get a pretty good idea of load weight and can play it conservative from there thanks for the replies, I guess the other option is to buy a trailer ment for the draw bar but I need other stuff higher on the priortiy list first
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #6  
I have pulled my 1600# 7x16 trailer with a couple thousand pounds of logs on it with my L3200 using a 3-pt A-frame hitch, and no issues. And a boat/trailer worth about 3000#. Before that I towed a lot of similar stuff with my smaller B2920. I don't think pulling capacity is an issue since trailers roll pretty easily under proper operating conditions and ground-engaging implements surely have a lot more resistance.

Braking would be my concern. Start off going slow and easy, and in 4WD if on slopes.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #7  
s219 is right, braking is the main issue. Inertia can be a bear to deal with if you arent ready for it. I was talking with a tech-guy from Rhino about thier pull-type rotary cutters, he said PTO-horsepower is certainly an issue when looking at a cutter, but also the weight of the tractor towing vs the cutter behind you.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #8  
The draw bar is located below the axle centre line and thus any pulling loads on the draw bar will not lift the front axle unless of course your tongue weight is anywhere near the tractor weight forward of the Axle. Drawbar trailer weight doesn't typically reflect the capacity of a tractor to pull as much as to stop a load. Lots of videos of 5,000 lb tractors pulling 30,000 lb trucks.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #9  
I meant to add, that when using the 3PTH to tow adds the risk of moving the towing point above the Axle and creating a wheelie situation. I do my logging with a box blade. Like to keep much of the log raises as to not pick up much dirt but sometimes have to drop the box blade when the front axle looses steering or lifts.
 
   / l4600 three point capicaty question #10  
I pull my dump trailer with my L5740 attached to an A-frame hitch. Mine is a smaller trailer that holds about 1.5 yards. One reason is the drawbar hole is 25mm and 2 5/16 balls come with 1 inch studs but it is convenient to pull the trailer, unhook, load it, hook back up all without needing to crank on the jack. But when I dump I know the hitch will raise up so I always raise the 3 point to its limit. Towing I keep the hitch rather low so under braking the weight of the trailer won't raise the hitch (receiver below the lower arm front pivot points).
 
 
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