3-Point Hitch pto cement mixer

[/pine]

FWIW...
Some bagged concrete mixes do include air entraining agents...check the packaging...

It is paramount to use air entrained concrete where exposure to freeze/thaw cycles exist...

 

[Baby Grand]

Thanks for the mix advice Richard, Larry, Bill & Lakeside. Very interesting details that I need to go off & study before I go & do. I thought this was just a mix and pour proposition, but I see a lot of thought goes into it based on what the finished product should be and the conditions it gets poured & cures under. The discussion about mixer height, weight and pour weight shift is also very useful. A friend gave me his old mixer and I am thinking of converting it to 3pt - I have many projects coming up that would go easier if I can get the mix to the job quickly.

-Jim

PS: #500!

 

[apease]

Great information, Larry! These are the sorts of tricks it seems are hard to find in books. Those of us who try to learn skills like concrete finishing without the benefit of a period apprenticing to a skilled tradesman don't get this information. Are there other things you can think of?
I've seen guys strap 2'x2' foam blocks to their knees and trowel the middle of a big slab when the concrete is still just a bit workable. What would your process be to finish a big slab? I want to try some concrete stairs but am not sure when to pull off the forms and trowel the sides. Do you have guidelines or tests that tell you when its safe to remove forms of different sizes but still wet enough to allow you to trowel a smooth finish?

 

[dfkrug]

Does your mixer have the series of holes for the lift arm pins to go in for different lift heights?

Yes, my MIXER80 has 4 pin positions for the 3-pt lift arms, and 3 holes
for the hydraulic toplink.

With thick concrete, I was dumping all the way to the ground with the
pins in the lowest holes, on a Kubota L2550. When I acquired my
1st JD955, I discovered that its lack of height was a dumping problem.
I am now using the 2nd to bottom hole on my Kioti, but I now use the
mixer on my loader's 3-pt. The BX is shorter than the JD 955, too.

The first problem I had with the mixer was the lousy single-acting cylinder.
You really need a double-acting cyl, so I converted mine. Now I no
longer use the cyl at all.

 

[Motractr]

I am curious about the Panama part. How are things there? Economy, security, and environment? What are you farming there?

 

[dfkrug]

I doubt many people here would have a test cone or know how to use one.

I do not have one either. Experience has helped me accurately estimate
the slump by looking at the mud as the readimix truck starts the off-loading.
Regardless of whether one has a slump cone, you need to tell the driver
what you want. In CA, drivers usually deliver concrete with very low slump
in order to minimize the spillage as they go up steep hills. The customer
tells the driver to add water to the slump they want, and that may depend
on what the pumper wants.

When I place 0-slump concrete, I tamp it in place and use a screen tamper
to separate at least a little "cream" at the top for finishing. Some call that
tool a "jitterbug".

A concrete vibrator is also a good tool to alleviate voids that often show
up right next to the formwork.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Great information, Larry! These are the sorts of tricks it seems are hard to find in books. Those of us who try to learn skills like concrete finishing without the benefit of a period apprenticing to a skilled tradesman don't get this information. Are there other things you can think of?
I've seen guys strap 2'x2' foam blocks to their knees and trowel the middle of a big slab when the concrete is still just a bit workable. What would your process be to finish a big slab? I want to try some concrete stairs but am not sure when to pull off the forms and trowel the sides. Do you have guidelines or tests that tell you when its safe to remove forms of different sizes but still wet enough to allow you to trowel a smooth finish?

My process to finish a big slab would be to hire a concrete contractor. You can do a sidewalk by yourself, but it takes at least two guys to screed a slab. I have done two man mix and pour operations, but you have to have cool weather and keep the slab fairly small.

To make maximum use of a 1/3 yard PTO mixer, you would need to build a mini batch plant with a hopper that would discharge a measured 1/3 yard of aggregate into the mixer, a simple way of dumping 1-2/3 or 2 90 lb. bags of cement into the mixer (5 or 6 sack mix) and the ability to add a measured amount of water. That's more than one wheelbarrow load, and darned few job sites are going to let you back the tractor up and discharge right where you want it.

I have a 1/5 cubic yard mixer on a trailer that I bought for $50. It's old and ugly, but it works. Anything over about 4 or 5 cubic yards, I will call for help and have it delivered.

If you end up finishing a large slab, hire at least one experienced concrete finisher, which is not hard in this economy, and rent a power trowel.

 

[jim_wilson]

Yes, my MIXER80 has 4 pin positions for the 3-pt lift arms, and 3 holes
for the hydraulic toplink.

With thick concrete, I was dumping all the way to the ground with the
pins in the lowest holes, on a Kubota L2550. When I acquired my
1st JD955, I discovered that its lack of height was a dumping problem.
I am now using the 2nd to bottom hole on my Kioti, but I now use the
mixer on my loader's 3-pt. The BX is shorter than the JD 955, too.

The first problem I had with the mixer was the lousy single-acting cylinder.
You really need a double-acting cyl, so I converted mine. Now I no
longer use the cyl at all.

Sorry for re-opening an old thread - but I'm curious how you power the mixer. Do you run it on the back of the tractor and then move it to the front to dump? I think I see hydraulic hoses going to the bottom part of the mixer - are you powering the mixer thru hydraulics ? If so I'm really interested to hear how you did that - because I'm thinking of doing the same thing. Thanks!

 

[dfkrug]

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/hydraulics/152388-converting-3-pt-concrete-mixer.html

 

[crazyal]

dfkrug, have you thought about making the mixer attach using a standard SSQA?