Ballast BX2200 Ballast

[Anonymous Poster]

Hello All,
I just took delivery of a BX2200 last Wednesday with loader grill guard and 60"MMM. I didn't think much about ballast until I started to read the owners manual. I went back to the dealer
Saturday with the intention of getting a rear blade. My dealers
impliment guy walked all over the lot with me showing me different rear blades he suggested a Landpride 0548 which does'nt provide much ballast, so I asked to see a ballast box. They had one that woud fit the BX .It measures 20x20x20.
Anyway to make a long story short here is the math for a ballast box filled with dry sand. A cubic inch of dry sand weighs .05787 lbs. X 8000 ( 20x20x20 )cu/in = 462 lbs that works out pretty nice to the capacity of a full loader. One last thing my lot is all hillside some of it steep so I went for safety over utilty.

 

[RoyJackson]

Are your tires loaded, dwb?

 

[Anonymous Poster]

My tires are not loaded. I figured I would be doing 80 percent mowing and 20 percent loader work and didnt want all that weight on all the time. I mowed with a JD GT225 prior to this it had wheel weights and AG tires, that thing would go just about anywhere. By the way I tried to register but never recieved a response with password.

 

[TresCrows]

When mowing on your "steep" hills be sure to remove the weight box and the FEL, the BX will be much more stable without them.
J

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Thats my plan. Thanks!

 

[texblonigan]

Just curious, would some weight in the tires be helpful or harmfull for mowing? Just pondering whether or not to fill my tires on my new B7500 and then scrap the ballast box that is on order.

 

[wdn]

Some tire loading chemicals (for example calcium choride) will corrode the rims so be careful what you put in there. My dealer said don't do it because it will eat the rims over time. And if you get a flat or a slow leak it is everywhere. The weight itself may not be much of a problem if you have just the one set of wheels. I have two sets of rims: turf & bar tires that I swap over to turf tires in the spring. Those rear tires are pretty heavy & unwieldy just full of air. If they were filled with ballast, not sure I could handle it. Of course if you have just the one set of rims that would not be a consideration.

 

[TresCrows]

Neither tractor has loaded wheels. I was told by the dealer the calcium chloride would ruin my wheels. I suppose water and antifreeze would be OK.
Yes, I am told weighted wheels adds to stability but it would also compact my ground and add to wear and tear on the grass. I suppose it depends on your situation, if you need the extra safety factor of weighted wheels then it may be worthwhile, of course it adds to traction also.
J

 

[texblonigan]

That is the drawback--it will ruin your rims. I think most of the tire service dealers here in Minnesota put tubes into the tubeless tires and then fill the tubes with calcium chloride. Of course, if you puncture the tire, the tube is going to leak. There is always that risk. I'm torn.

 

[wichiwichi]

I have the R4's filled and can not tell much difference in harming the grass. I can tell a big difference in traction.

 

[texblonigan]

Just curious, are they filled with calcium chloride, and did they put tubes in the tires to keep the rims from rusting?

 

[theboman]

Loaded tires don't spin as easy as unloaded tires. That's something else to weigh. I found I like my newly loaded tires for mowing. With uunloaded tires I have 2-3 slopes around the yard that I had to shift the tractor into 4 wheel drive to keep the tires from spinning while mowing upthem. Now with loaded tires the B7500 just climbs up them like they aren't there. I mowed from June thru October and my tires were not loaded, but I thought they were.
After the dealer found out he didn't load them he took care of the problem immediately. One of those things that slipped by, since all the tractors they sell with FELs they load the tires but they put the FEL on my tractor and the filling the tires was assumed.
The dealer also replace or tightened all the hydro lines on my tractor (one or more was leaking) and degreased it too.

 

[dwb]

I finally got registered! Just wanted to thank everyone as I used this site extensivley before making my purchase.

 

[the_g]

dwb,
I loaded my tires with Windshield Washer Fluid. !0 gallons in each tire, That adds about 180-200 lbs to the rear and makes a huge difference when using the FEL, both for balance and traction. You can buy a special valve at any NAPA auto store for around $6.00 and if you have one of those little transfer pumps that hooks to an electric drill you can do it yourself in no time. I used a 5 gallon pail, filled it with the fluid, then transferred it right into the wheel. A word of caution though. When you jack up the rear of the tractor, make sure the jack heavily favors the side of the tractor that has the tire your filling. I ballanced mine right in the center the first time and about half way thru the filling the whole tractor suddenly listed in my direction due to the added weight I was putting in the tire! DUH!

 

[dwb]

the g

I think I'm going to stick with the ballast box for now. I was thinking along the lines of wdn's post above. Leaks etc. But thanks for the filling tips.

 

[Old_Wanker]

You also might want to consider weights for the front. I was out putting in over 100 post holes yesterday. When that digger gets stuck and you try to lift it out with the three point the BX will pull a wheelie in 2 seconds flat. One tough little tractor but sometimes its power to weight ratio is on the high side.