TRACTOR WEIGHTS

[DanD78]

I know someone will squak about this but I filled the front tires of my JD 3320 with Rim Guard. I keep them blown up to the max pressure and have no issues while using the loader. I started doing this back in my antique tractor pulling days when you could only have one set of wheel weights and noting else bolted to the tractor. The John Deere A's and B's were very lite on the front end and needed all the help up front they could get.

 

[Soundguy]

i added rv antifreeze and water ballast to my front's on that 4600. every little bit helps.

front end coming up ain't fun when driving up the ramps to a tall deck over gooseneck..

soundguy

 

[Agrantina]

Sguy,
How much weight do you think one can pick on filling the fronts??
I have L3240 with R1- front 7.2-16R1??

AndyG

 

[Soundguy]

according to my ballast chart, a 7.5-16 holds 9g per tire when filled to 75%.. which is 75# of WATER weight, not including the modifier for whatever ballast you use.

i did not have a listing for a 7.2.. but you can extrapolate from there.

various rim configurations will effect fill rate.. i have seen 70-90% fill based on tube / tire / rim design.

remember.. that is per tire. so at a minimum with 75% water fill.. you gain 150# of rolling weight that really doesn't impact things like wheel bearings and such..

hope that helps.

soundguy

 

[Agrantina]

yep that does... I have no FEL and at times the 3pt hitch will pick up way more than the front will let it.. I ride around on 2 tires when I move or hook up to heavy implets. The 3240 handles them fine pulling, but going up a incline or onto the trailer makes for FUN!.. I might look into it.. the extra 150lbs might be the ticket. Funny how the one extra weight was noticeable just not quite enough...

AndyG

 

[clemsonfor]

I think the correct way to add weights to a tractor is simply add a piece of railroad track to the front, in whatever lenght you can find or purchase (don't steal them, it makes too big a mess when the train finds the missing section). For larger tractors, stacking tracks a couple high seems to work, or putting them in front of each other. I prefer the bottom to bottom bolted together method.
David from jax

I thought about this, but could not find any RR track at the right point and a buddy at a paper mill said they had the round stock steel so i got it. I now have about a 6 ft piece of RR track but could not find an easy way to cut it. Some said torch others said that wont work, i thought about a gas cutoff saw but id have to rent one for like $40, or pay someone. I wanted cheap so never went the RR track route. That 6 ft piece i have must weight around 300lbs. It may be 5.5 feet?

 

[Soundguy]

i used a big piece of heavy angle to base my bumper on.. would have loved to find rr track..

soundguy

 

[TripleR]

I have about 20 feet of RR track my son is going to cut with his plasma cutter for weights on out tractors and implements. My father in law and I got them when they decommissioned a RR that ran through our property and left them lying in the weeds. I had forgotten all about them as we had put them someplace we would remember.:laughing:

 

[Soundguy]

sweet.. free metal and all...

 

[TripleR]

sweet.. free metal and all...

We also got the road bed gravel which we shared with a couple of guys to help dig and haul it out. We used it on our roads and a few other places.:thumbsup:

There was also a bridge with some really nice basketball size rocks on each side, several truck loads, that my father in law paid someone to come in and bury. I tried to talk him out of it, but he was determined. He kicked himself later, but it was too late.

We are now buying big rocks to control erosion.

 

[Soundguy]

hard to beat free material...

 

[hawkeye08]

It took some patience, but I found my (5) Kubota weights on craigslist for $25 each. I just saved a link for "suitcase weights" and checked it everytime I remembered.

 

[sandman2234]

I prefer to buy tractors with weights already installed, so I don't have to worry about it. So far 3 out of 5 have had them, and plenty of them at that...Money I didn't have to spend to get OEM ones.
David from jax

 

[clemsonfor]

I prefer to buy tractors with weights already installed, so I don't have to worry about it. So far 3 out of 5 have had them, and plenty of them at that...Money I didn't have to spend to get OEM ones.
David from jax

Thats smart but on a small tractor i dont think i would not buy one just cause it did not have $200 worth of retail weights on it. If i does all the better.

 

[Soundguy]

sme here.. when i go buy a tractor.. if it has weights great.. if not.. and it's a good deal.. I still take it.

soundguy

 

[eastexan]

i cast some concrete weights and hung them on the front of my ford 4600 I mow with as I have to trailer up a steep incline and with a hd 6' mower on the back it was getting a lil soft in the front.



soundguy

Soundguy, you're always coming up with good ideas. :thumbsup:

What did you use for the skeletal makeup (reinforcement) of those concrete weights?
And is the bolt head through a piece of angle?

And yes, if anyone don't like the looks of concrete, they could be cast in the shape of suitcase weights and painted black. They would look like they belonged on the tractor.

 

[Soundguy]

i have a web of fence wire in the middle of the crete, plus a bent to shape piece of #10 brace wire. bolt head is a carriage style and slid thriu a 2" or so washer... wire encircles the bolt a couple turns as well..

i painted mine black and at 5' you can't tell they are not cast iron..

soundguy

 

[eastexan]

Thanks, Soundguy.

My old heavy Servis mower like yours, made my front end light, too. I had thought about using concrete blocks, but hadn't thought about casting my own up that would bolt on. :confused2:
I ended up getting some iron at a local scrap yard and made up some weights with my AC crackerbox welder.

If there comes a time that I need more weight though, I'm going to borrow your idea.

 

[clemsonfor]

You can even build a box in whatever shape u want and put the wire and rebar in it and bolts in whatever pattern you need and pour it up.

 

[Soundguy]

Thanks, Soundguy.

My old heavy Servis mower like yours, made my front end light, too. I had thought about using concrete blocks, but hadn't thought about casting my own up that would bolt on. :confused2:
I ended up getting some iron at a local scrap yard and made up some weights with my AC crackerbox welder.

If there comes a time that I need more weight though, I'm going to borrow your idea.

the bolts and wire all came from my used / scrap bin.. the only cost I had was the bags of concrete.. and they were leftovers from a fence project.. so it was more or less a 'raid the scraps' free project for me..

can't beat free.

and yup.. them servis mowers sure are heavy... mine was free and all clapped out.. but mows fine.. and i don't care about hitting burried treasure with it..


soundguy