Grading B7500 ballast box or rear blade

[texblonigan]

I ordered the new Kubota rear ballast box when I ordered my B7500. Now I am wondering if a rear blade (not a box blade, don't need one) would work well for ballast when using the front loader. Plus, I could reverse the back blade and clear out some small brush near my house. Additionally, I could use it to move light snow cover in the winter. Any thoughts-- is the rear blade heavy enough for ballast with a LA302 loader? Is it too wide and clumsy to use for ballast?

 

[rmcess]

Tex,
I can't answer all of your questions but I really like my rear blade but not when doing loader work, I have a lot of trees and it is just too wide. The blade I have is pretty light duty and is not really enough weight anyway, I have a 4' box blade and it is heavy enough and narrow enough to use. All that said I started building a ballast box last night, mainly for better ground clearance.
Rich...

 

[texblonigan]

Thanks Rich. You might want to check out the new Kubota ballast box rather than making one yourself-- I think it lists for $160, and you can probably negotiate a better deal from your dealer.

 

[rmcess]

Your right, but what can I say, I have a new welder./w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif
Rich...

 

[Moon]

...i was hoping one of you would post a pic of a ballast box. I don't know what the heck it is.

 

[rmcess]

Moon,
Sorry, no pictures yet, I have not seen a factory one. I am just building a steel box aprox 2'x2'x2' with an open top that that will hook to my home made quick attach 3 point hitch. I am then planning on pouring a concrete block with a loop of steel out the top that I can set in the box or take it out if I want to use it for something else, like hauling a 5 gallon bucket or some tools.

 

[texblonigan]

When I went to order by B7500, I had heard that Kubota came out with their own ballast box. The dealer told me that he had ordered one for the showroom/lot but it had not arrived yet. He showed me the black and white photo in the sales catalog. It is the same one for both the BX and the B7500; however, it looks large for the BX in my opinion. The list price was $160. We worked it into my package deal. As soon as I get it, I will post photos.

 

[Von]

Moon,Here is a counter weight that I made out of an old water tank. It is about 20" in diameter and has about 550 lbs. of lead in it. Works great and you don't have to worry about hitting anything with it when backing up! I know its not a "box" but does the same thing.

 

[Moon]

Thanks Guys, I look forward to seeing the pics of the factory one and the homemade version.
Von, yours looks pury cool. How in the world did ya make that one?
Moon

 

[MarkV]

Tex, It is not to hard to make an effective counter weight from a variety of things. The system I like is a plastic container (small garbage can) that you can insert a drawbar through (the type draw bar that goes between your lift arms) and a simple bracket for your top link. Fill it full of concrete, insert the top bracket in the wet concrete, let it set up for a day or two and you have an cheap counter weight.

MarkV