Tooth bar suggestions?

[Dale1995]

I have a 200cx loader on my JD 2320. I have some soil removal this summer and am thinking that a tooth bar might help to loosen up the hard packed soil. Will a tooth bar make a big difference, or am I just wasting my money? What type / style tooth bar do you recommend? Who has the best one for the best price. I hate to reinvent the wheel, since so many of you out there are seasoned professionals. Any help would be appreciated

 

[TORQUIN]

A tooth bar will help a bit. It's different with a toothbar on a CUT, in my opinion. Perhaps I was biting off more than I could chew, but it seemed like with the tooth bar on the bucket it just dug in so much more aggressively that I didn't have enough powerand weight to really dig in.
I actually have not even used it in a couple of years now, mainly because I have to drag a lot of smooth surfaces and use the front edge of the bucket to do it.
I got mine from this place:
Markham Welding - Tooth Bar

Chris

 

[crbr]

What Torquin said.

Well worth the investment.

 

[PILOON]

What Torquin said.

Well worth the investment.

I agree!
Without a bar a 4 inch stone will deflect the bucket resulting in slim pickings.

With a tooth bar you get full buckets every time.

My CUT is only 20 HP and it loads like a skid steer and I can move and place a 10 wheel truckload of mixed fill (like lots of stones in the load) in about an hour.
Also can actually excavate vergin stony soil just like a backhoe.

Best, handiest accessory purchase I've made to date.

Downside is that you'll have a hard time backblading to a smoothe finish, but there is a good excuse to get a backblade!
Note that tooth bars are easily remouvable, just 2 bolts.

 

[texasjohn]

This is a topic covered numerous times in numerous threads here on TBN.... try a search and check out the volume of info already available re toothbar usefulness.

Fundamentally I'd venture that 85% of toothbar owners swear by them. Occasionally a tractor driver simply actually had almost no need for a toothbar. They not only are used to dig into material, but have about another 20 documented uses... a worthy investment.

 

[EdC]

Dale

Wow Caribou Maine. Spent a bit of time at Loring AFB back in the 70s. It was our support and R&R base when I was stationed in northern Canada back in the 70s.

I have an ATI toothbar on my 200cx and in the high clay soil I have it is worth its weight in, well maybe not gold but certainly close. In the summers here, the soil got so hard I could only scuff the top. Now with the toothbar, I can dig down and actually get something accomplished. My ATI is probably overkill, it is really for a skid steer and is much heavier duty then our small tractors will ever need. But definitely get a toothbar: it helps a lot.

 

[sal64]

i have a toothbar on my 430 loader, it makes a big differance we have had packed soil with rockes i can dig a few inches i bought mine from my jd dealer the teath on mine are replaceable and are steel forgings.

 

[stumpfield]

Really like the Markham tooth bar and want to order one. Will it work better to add 1 or 2 extra teeth to the standard tooth bar? They seem to space too far apart comparing to what I saw on a skid steer. What's your experience/opinion on adding more teeth to the bar? Thanks.

 

[Usta]

I just moved about 100 CY of dirt in my back yard. Moving large hills and filling in deep valleys. I could not have done it without the toothbar especially when I got into some hardpan. Opinions vary but I would have nothing but the flat bottom (W.R. Long) toothbar for any type of landscape work.

 

[Sackett2]

Opinions vary but I would have nothing but the flat bottom (W.R. Long) toothbar for any type of landscape work.

I "oops'ed" and got the W.R. Long toothbar but did not get the flatbottom one like I wanted; so be aware there is a difference.

I just got the middle buster, and would suggest it as a option for moving dirt. use it to break it up then bucket it over to the new area.

 

[EdC]

Stumpfield

I have a 53 in bucket and ordered my toothbar with 7 teeth. It comes standard with 5. I think more teeth helps but since I have never used a stock one could not tell you for sure. My toothbar has a slot cut in it that the front edge of the bucket slides into. That helps stiffen the bucket when I move the occasional (really, really, really numerous) rock I find at my place.

 

[TORQUIN]

Really like the Markham tooth bar and want to order one. Will it work better to add 1 or 2 extra teeth to the standard tooth bar? They seem to space too far apart comparing to what I saw on a skid steer. What's your experience/opinion on adding more teeth to the bar? Thanks.

Depends on the power of your tractor. Remember, more teeth will spread out the pressure of the tractor's force. Fewer teeth will exert more force on whatever you are trying to do, all other factors being the same. Now, that said, if you only have 3 teeth, for instance, you might not be able to get as much done because the 3 teeth dig in and that's about the time your bucket edge hits the hard dirt, or whatever, and you find that your tooth bar is not, or is moderately, effective.
Hate to confuse you, but I'll say that I did not add more teeth to my bar when I ordered it. I figured these guys knew what worked, and since I did not have a special application where I knew better, I'd just leave it alone.

Chris

 

[stumpfield]

Depends on the power of your tractor. Remember, more teeth will spread out the pressure of the tractor's force. Fewer teeth will exert more force on whatever you are trying to do, all other factors being the same. Now, that said, if you only have 3 teeth, for instance, you might not be able to get as much done because the 3 teeth dig in and that's about the time your bucket edge hits the hard dirt, or whatever, and you find that your tooth bar is not, or is moderately, effective.
Hate to confuse you, but I'll say that I did not add more teeth to my bar when I ordered it. I figured these guys knew what worked, and since I did not have a special application where I knew better, I'd just leave it alone.

Chris

So, is more teeth better or worse? I got a 72 in bucket and the tractor has 33 hp. Thanks.

 

[ninefinger]

Just remember to drill the mounting holes to the front of the slot, that way if you ever need to you can loosen them and fold the toothbar back into the bucket and not have to remove it. BTW, love my Markham.

 

[ronjackson]

I ordered and installed the Markham tooth-bar on my L3130, and don't know how I ever got by without it ! I had Markham install an extra tooth on each end of the bar, spaced 8 inches inside the outermost tooth. Now, I can easily insert either end of the bar underneath small stumps, etc. and just rotate the bucket upwards, to "grub" the stump out of the ground. It hasn't been a problem with "back dragging", because I normally tilt the bucket up and use the rounded portion of the back of the bucket for that purpose. Also, if the tooth-bar becomes a hinderance to back-dragging, just loosen the mounting bolts and swing the bar upwards into the bucket (hope that makes sense).

 

[mikescruggs]

I have an ATI on my Kubota L4240. I took the toothed bar off for the winter. I just started using it last week to move a dirt pile and level an area for seed. It worked great. The teeth dug in just enough during back dragging to get small roots and sticks and then left furrow of dirt that made for easy raking while removing the stone by hand. My previous tractors did not have a toothed bar. There is a clear advantage to having the teeth for digging.

Mike

 

[3RRL]

In my use a toothbar was clearly better for digging than a standard cutting edge.
Again, it depends on the power and weight of your tractor. You can't expect to dig like a commercial industrial tractor or loader. But the answer is a toothbar will let you dig better than a standard cutting edge.
More teeth are not necessarily the answer. They need to act like rippers and bust up the hard soil before the bucket lip gets to the soil. Torquin explained that nicely. I did not get any extra teeth on my Markham toothbar. It works great just the way it is. In some cases the ground is so hard that I have to rip it with the scarifiers on my boxblade first. There are limitations to everything. Just need to use your head a little.
For backdragging I use the back of the bucket and not the bucket lip. I think it's safer on the hydraulic rods to do it that way anyway. My toothbar has never been off since I installed it 4 years ago.

 

[Doug in NNY]

I have a BX2350 with a 48" FEL. I ordered it with grab hooks welded to the upper corners of the bucket but I've yet to use them. Three months after I bought the BX last summer I ordered a Markham tooth bar with the standard five teeth. It is extraordinarily well built and it has been the best add-on investment I've made thus far. Every time I use the loader I'm thankful for the tooth bar. I had given thought to six or seven teeth. Melissa Markham suggested that too many teeth on a smaller bucket works against you. Six would have been okay but five does everything for me that I need doing.

Doug

------------------

BX2350, FEL w/Markham tooth bar, BushHog 48" tiller, Kodiak 5' landscape rake, used Loftness 48" 3ph snow thrower, plus other stuff.

 

[Conservation]

how much do they cost?

 

[Knight]

In my use a toothbar was clearly better for digging than a standard cutting edge.
Just need to use your head a little.

I went outside and banged my head against the ground, It did really work and now I have a headache. People here give some bad advice!