New B2601

[RalphVa]

Got the box blade. They just plopped it into the bed of the guy's F-150 with a fork lift. He had to remove his tail gate to get close enough and then put a strap around the middle of it to lift with the FEL of the B.

My pics are a tad blurry. The old cell phone isn't heavy enough to steady it well.

Also shown is my tool box from HF. It has almost exactly the same foot print as the small one provided but is almost 3 times deeper. Also has a tray for smaller stuff like pins and little containers in the lid for even smaller stuff. Only $7.

 

[oldballs]

Ralph,

that box blade looks a little too big for that tractor to pull. What do you think? They say that "heavy" is good on Box Blades....as long as the tractor can pull it.

Cheers,
Mike

 

[RalphVa]

Yeah, specs on it says 514 #. The guy on youtube's Cluttered Garage with a B2601 put a 5 ft box blade on his. Can always raise it a tad.

I was shooting for maybe a 400 # one. The dealer had this one. Said he thought it better than a Landpride.

 

[prichard]

I pull an old 5' Woods bb with mine. Occasionally lose traction but never power.

 

[trueg50]

Off to a good start!

Are those hydraulic lines on the right of the loader your 3rd function lines? They look a bit exposed, my dealer routed mine between the hood and loader and it is much less likely to snag branches.

Are you mounting a mid-mount mower? If not you can install a step to make getting up/down easier, and you can also go with wheel spacers. My B2601 is far more stable and feels much safer with 2" spacers.

You'll find the lights to be mostly useless too, I got a kit from ropslights.com (triple LED) and it has been fantastic for woods work and snow plowing. I did find out the hard way that they don't.. uhh .. "interface gently" with the rear QH if I put the ROPS fully down. Fortunately it just bent some metal on one light/bracket but the light still works. I now put in the right ROPs pin in the lower setting and pop out the left one when going in the barn and it clears fine (both barn and work light).

About the FEL being jerky, what RPM are you running at? You don't need much most of the time and ~2k RPM is fine for most work. Higher RPM means higher cycle speed and the lighter tractor.

 

[RalphVa]

Too bad they couldn't have included the 3rd function disconnects with another couple spots on the loader disconnect. Not likely I'll ever use any of the disconnects as I've never ever removed a loader on any of the 3 tractors so far since 2004.

Seldom if ever use the lights. If it ain't done by 4 pm, it's not going to get done that day. It's shower and supper time.

I don't find the need for a step. Never have used a mid mount mower. Never used the mid PTO. Considered getting the LX..SU with no mid PTO: sticky treadle pedals and loud HST and too big.

This thing is better than any of the 3 JDs I've had with (in addition to some noted above):

1. Guards to the valve stems.
2. Metal covering over the driveshaft (JDs only have plastic) (I gotta crawl underneath there and see what they have for Ujoints, maybe none, e.g. other kind?)
3. 3ph raises a tad higher
4. The fuel cap actually screws on and off easier. Recently would not take 2 gallons with 2.6 hours on it. Good sign.
5. The radiator overflow container is right in front and easy to get to. Needed a screwdriver to take the top off the one on the 2025R and a funnel with long snout to refill it. Then top was hard to put back on.
6. More room to get the end snorkel off the air cleaner.
7. The brake pedal lock snaps off by tapping the pedals. Hard to get off at times on the JDs.
8. Top link is really easy to turn, e.g. that grease point maybe. Actually smaller, too. Hoping the tilt one will be equally easy. Tilt was always hard to turn on all 3 JDs.
9. Three position steering wheel.
10. Of course, 3 range HST control. Only 2 on the JDs.

A couple negatives in addition to maybe a couple noted above):

1. Absolutely NOTHING on the FEL bucket to attach anything to. JDs at least had a couple detents on top to attach tension cords.
2. Cruise control seems almost impossible to use but seldom need it.
3. No settable/but bypassable on the 3ph control. There's a stop, but you cannot bypass it. I likely won't use it. Just will note where it has to be for the bush hog. Not even sure this one's adjustable stop is even there.

One negative that I haven't contended with is the 2 drain points on the crankcase. Will experiment with which one is emptied using my oil extractor. Maybe there's a connect between them at front or back that allows both to be sucked dry. Tried this on the JD 4010. Opened the drain plug and NOTHING came out.

 

[Milo]

Yeah one think I like on my Deere is that the position control stop can be bypassed while leaving it still set. A number of other things as well, all these tractors have their plusses and minuses.
IMO Kubota notching the engine sump to route the front driveshaft higher up is well worth having a second drain plug.