Grading Rear weight box/tool box for PT-425

[SnowRidge]

Brought this thread back to see if KentT's weight box has worked out. Also to see if anyone else has come up with any good ideas for adding ballast. I came up with a little idea today while moving pallets of firewood that were making the PT a little tipsy. I raised the engine hood which transferred the weight of the hood to the rear. It actually made a noticeable difference. I really don't think I would need all that much weight back there to balance the tractor to the loader.

I have a 1-1/4" hitch receiver/adapter for the pin hitch. Some folks simply weld a 2" receiver right onto the machine. If you have something like that, why not weld up a weight tray with a blank ball adapter sticking out the front. Plug it into the receiver when you need some weight hanging of the back end. That ought to work.

 

[KentT]

Works good -- only negative is that it occasionally will hit the ground if you're climbing out of a ditch or coming down off a bank or something. I placed it as high as I could and still open the hood, but it still rubs the ground occasionally.

I don't use it often, since my tires are already loaded, but I do keep it handy with two 35lb wheel weights in it, just in case. It certainly will let you pick up more weight without puckering, since the weight hangs so far behind, the fulcrum of the front wheels is quite a distance away.

 

[KentT]

. I really don't think I would need all that much weight back there to balance the tractor to the loader.

Reg, as I stated in the other post. I can put an additional 70 lb (two 35 lb wheel weights) in my weight box, and it's plenty to prevent puckering. You don't need to add much back behind the tractor to counterbalance weight in the bucket, due to the distance from the fulcrum (the front wheels)...

 

[joshlee]

Nice. Its awesome.

Since the hydraulics on my PT-425 are stronger than the weight of the machine (lifting the rear of the tractor), I had a friend fab me up a rear weight box that doubles as a toolbox, chain box, etc. Because it pins tight against the rear of the PT, it will readily handle 175-200 pounds of weight. Though I haven't used it a lot because of working in the trees, I've found it quite useful when doing loader work...