Weightlifting plates welded on a box blade?

[browns40]

I have a question for you all... has anyone ever taken, shall we say"dusty" weight plates and welded them to the ends of their boxblade for additional weight?

I wonder, because on my recent purchase I got a Frontier BB2072 sight unseen, but at 6 feet it weighs in at 534#... this seems a bit anemic for a 6 footer now that I've done some looking around.

It's a rugged enough box, so I'm not too concerned about the mass affecting it's integrity...

My tractor's a JD3320, so I know once I load the tires, pulling more will be easy too...

Anyone tried?
/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Farwell]

Don't know if I would weld the weights on, but if you mounted the weights in a way that they could be removed if you needed to sounds like a great idea.
Farwell

 

[JerryG]

What I would suggest doing is to weld or bolt bolts or some type of bracket on the top of the box. That way you can remove them if you ever need to. I would not want to widen the side plates any more than they already are. The wider the side plates are the more accurate you have to have the adjustment of the box, because it would slide on the widened slide plates like they were skids.

 

[BigDogues]

That's actually a pretty good idea. You could weld a bracket with a 1" (or whatever size fits best) rod to the top of your box blade in the middle pointing towards the sky. Then add or remove plates as required.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

I agree with JerryG and BigDouges. Don't mess with the side plates, but go to the top and do something in the center. Someone here on TBN actually did what BigDogues suggested, simply welded a 1" rod vertically over the center of the box blade, if I recall correctly it appeared to be about a foot tall, the weights just slid right down on the rod, gravity held them in place, and there were still available for use as weightlifting weights if the need/desire ever occured.

 

[browns40]

Thanks Guys!

That's why I've kept coming back to this site... lots of sound technical minds/advice that can think "outside the box"! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I need to get some hook welded on the bucket, so will have it set up like the old squat racks on top of the box.

Thanks again for the advice... I'll post the results (& tractor with attachments), soon as I can figure out how to...

Happy Tractorin'! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[have_blue]

It seems to me that 500# is heavy enough as long as the unit is strong. If it's not cutting good, it may not be a weight problem. Maybe the blade is dull. Grading gravel is real bad about dulling them out.

 

[Taylortractornut]

Im not sure how the new deere weights are but we have the older Yanmar/Deere suitcase weights for our Yanmar and 3 Deere. They have a slot on them that set down over the end of the weightbat on the front of the tractors. Its a 5/16ths plate and so is the side plats of our boxblade. When we need to use the blade on heavy cuts we take the suicase weights and set them on the side of the boxblade. It makes it take a **** of a bite. they add an extra width for the top of the blade but if thats a concern you can set them with the weights inside the side plates of the blade.

 

[cisco]

There's lots of weightlifting plates lying around (more 25 lb ones than 50s), as with many pieces of exercise equipment as months pass from a New Years resolution, the son going off to colleague, etc. The vertical bar centered over the mid portion of a box blade, disc, plow or whatever has been described by others, and seems to work well - inexpensive and adjustable.

 

[browns40]

Haven't been able to line up any welding yet, but I wonder...

If I'm clearing land--removing rocks, stumps... hogging alders & brush... IS the box blade the implement for taking what's left down to seedable, mowable grade?

From what I've seen (read) it is, BUT...

The only way I seem to accomplish anything is by ripping the **** out of it with the scarifiers--repeatedly--to take out thatch & turf to get to my rocky mix that I'll call "soil".

Only then can I seem to pick anything up with the box, and even then, one patch of turf, root, or missed rock empties the box.

Am I using a hammer on a screw here?

I'm thinking now I should have tried the scarifiers down & short to encourage entry to the box... am I thinking straight? Do I want box parallel, front down, or back down?

Anyone? If you've taken alders-->lawn, I'd be much obliged... My boy's got a good place to slide this winter now, but I'd like for him to have a spot to play ball or run with the dog... and my "results" don't look like lawn material at this point...

Thanks for all the help... I'm thinking the extra weight will be a help to begin...