Ballast What are tractor weights made of?

RobS · Nov 11, 2003

Danny, I recently got some front weights for my JD and they are retained by a rod with hairclip pins at each end. Keeps them from bouncing out but they are free to swing a bit. Weights are cast iron and I cannot imagine them being damaged by this little bit of bumping around. Putting them on and taking them off couldn't be easier /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Soundguy · Nov 11, 2003

Heck.. if they rattly a little.. fish a bungie cord through the top handle hole ( if available.. and then attatch each side to something solid... should act like a shock absorber... but I agree with the sturdiness of these weights...

I have some NH suitcase weights on my disc.... chained on... that disc moves like a rollerderby.. I spare it no insults... and the weights are about 4 years old now... no signs of distress yet...

Soundguy

dieselsmoke1 · Nov 11, 2003

( Weights are cast iron and I cannot imagine them being damaged by this little bit of bumping around. )

Neither could I till the rear hanging tab broke off on one of my cast iron MF front bumper weights.

Soundguy · Nov 12, 2003

( one of my cast iron MF front bumper weights )

Ahh.. well there is your problem.. a MF weight.. not beefy like those ford weights /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Soundguy

Taylortractornut · Nov 12, 2003

I had to drill some for a friends old ford. He wanted them like dads yanmars is set up so we went to town drilling. The thing I like about cast parts is all the bastard metals in them. Watever was in the center of the last one we drilled when they were melting the iron must have been tool steel or a good set of valves be cause it stopped a highspeed steel bit. I went to y sacred tools drawer and got out Mister Carbide tipped drill. It was slow going but we drilled past the hard part.

dieselsmoke1 · Nov 12, 2003

( ( one of my cast iron MF front bumper weights )

Ahh.. well there is your problem.. a MF weight.. not beefy like those ford weights /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Soundguy )

Maybe you're right, or maybe the the blue paint just can't shake em as hard /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

paulBurns · Nov 13, 2003

I would have to agree with Diesel Smoke 1 .I can show you a pile of front weights that the tab is broken off. They are old weights from MF, International and others. They must take a beating.
ON my Yanmar I have two of the factory weights with just open slots. I then took a large 90 lb lead weight and wedged it between them and secured it with a couple of the rubber bungie cords. It looks sorta crude but works good.

Soundguy · Nov 13, 2003

As a fair wager... I'd put a NH 1920 up against any other modern tractor of its hp... I've not universalyy impressed with blue ( or red and grey )..but they did have some good products, and the 1920 and the 2120 were IMHO the better ones..... besides.. the weights are mounted on my disc... which sees lots and lots of bumps and vibrations.. etc. Also.. these NH weights are 50# and 50$ each.. perhaps made better/heavier in the area that the MF ones break...

Soundguy

dieselsmoke1 · Nov 13, 2003

Paint War ?? Oh Goody!!!

Relax Soundguy, I've got no axe to gring on Blue....fine equipment, just like many others.

I guess my point is that cast iron is inherintly brittle. Put a LITTLE stress or impact on it that has not been designed in and bad things will happen sometimes.

Got my first real life OH MY GOD lesson in this with a PTO powered irrigation pump gearbox many years ago. The broken front weight was just a reminder.

rambler · Nov 24, 2003

I won't say they still do, but i'd guess things haven't cchanged much. Tractor weights were generally made from the iron that didn't melt down well into good reusable ingots. It's really crude cast iron, with lots of impurities. after all, it's just weight, doesn't need any structure or holding properties. Like taylortractornut when he drilled it & hit all kinds of different properties. Back in the '80s when scrap iron was worth something, they still didn't take old wire. we had miles of old woven sitting in balls in the grove. they finally took it for free, said a place had figured out a way to swish old wire down & melt it into weights. We were happy to get rid of it.

--->Paul