Charging the dirt pile

[Turfman]

I just finished a grading job on a landscape project for another landscaper. The site was wooded and difficult to turn in, so they had me do it with my small Kubota. They couldn’t get the delivery trucks into the wooded area so they dropped it about 50-60 yards away. There were 15 dump loads that were 12-14 yards each.

As I hurried to move and level the dirt (it took 15 hours, split over two days and in record 107 degree heat) I noted that I kept “charging the pile”. I’d pull into the dirt, shift into low, pull forward as far as it would go and curl the bucket. Then I’d try to lift it and I’d push down on the hydro to push into or charge the pile. I knew the bucket was full, but against all reason, I’d try to push into the pile deeper. Do we all do this? Or is it just one of my quirks?

 

[ronjhall]

Turfman
I do not push forward while curling the bucket. But raise FEL and pop the curl back and forth until dirt has settled into bucket. I can’t see what’s in bucket but I still do it.

 

[ScottAR]

The best way I've found to load is to pull up into the dirt in 2nd or 3rd gear low and when I get a little slippage, curl the bucket and raise. The JD (1050) doesn't have the lifting power If I keep pushing... I still get a full load. I understand the rush feeling tho. Yesterday I helped set the garage header for my cousin's new house. I had to move some fill sand to have a level place for the tractor while they secured the beam. I was a little rushed while doing this as *I* was holding up the works. I managed to spin a little while loading but I got it done. So relax while loading and it works better.

 

[Bird]

<font color=blue>Do we all do this?</font color=blue>

Probably; hard habit to break, ain't it?/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[Harv]

Hmmm... /w3tcompact/icons/hmm.gif

I push into the pile with an approximately level-to-the-ground bucket. Then, as I feel the tractor starting to bog down, I start to curl just enough to keep my forward motion going. When fully curled, I stop all forward motion and lift.

If it's a well-defined pile, this seems to give me a full bucket every time. If the pile is piddly, or I'm just getting near the end of one, I just do the best I can, which unfortunately winds up with me driving all the way the destination delivery point only to dump about a cupful of payload. /w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif They should make buckets out of that transparent aluminim I saw in that Star Trek movie with the whales.

Ron brings up an issue I've wondered about. After I scoop up a load of material, I generally want to "settle" the load, too. It's usually stacked up at the front edge of the bucket, just waiting for me to hit that first bump so it can bounce right back out. I try a little dump/curl action, but if that fails, I raise the loader a bit and then drop it part way sort of quickly. The sudden stop at the end does a good job of settling the load, but I'm guessing it puts quite a strain on the loader arms, sub-frame, front axles, etc.

Am I killing my tractor?

 

[ddl]

One way to load your bucket is to raise the bucket to the top of the pile or has high as it will go, tip the bucket 90 degrees down and lower the edge of the bucket into the pile, back up and lower the bucket as you go. Then load the bucket with the niw loose dirt you just duslogded. A little practise and you can load the bucket without ramming the pile.

Dan L

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

<font color=blue>"driving all the way the destination delivery point only to dump about a cupful of payload"</font color=blue>

I thought I had the market cornered on that manuever. /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif One of these days I'm going to find a big piece of polished stainless I can mount out front of my work area so I can see what is or isn't inside my loader bucket.

 

[Steelfan]

Well, Being new to the FEL thing, I can tell you, that more than once I arrived at the dumping spot with less then a full bucketful. The idea of using the backdrag method works pretty well to a point, but when the groundpile is small, its hard to pile it higher. I guess patience is the keyword here. Rome wasn't built in a day. Kent

 

[ronjhall]

<font color=blue> Am I killing my tractor?</font color=blue>

Harv
I hope not. /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif Because we will both have dead tractors before long if we continue with our bouncing of the FEL. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[Harv]

<font color=blue>Rome wasn't built in a day</font color=blue>

Might've been, if they'd had a few CUT's around. /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

 

[frank_f15]

yep! we probably all do that at one time or another. i sometimes dig in and curl then ty and lift, only to find i am trying to lift the whole pile /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif and then as have says, i sometimes get a cupful and dump. hey HARV that aint such a bad idea about transparent bucket/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[WVBill]

My major problem seems to be that on my B6100 there is only the slightest bit of curl up from level position when the bucket is on the ground - maybe 3 - 4 inches.

The technique I would like to use is to drive into the pile with the bucket low and level then curl and as soon as the curl is complete start to lift. Trouble is my FEL controls have two levers - one for curl/dump and one for lift, and the curl/dump has priority. That is if I pull back on them both, when the curl hits max the pressure relief valve opens rather than having the hydraulic flow pass on over to the lift circuit. So I have to drive into the pile, pull back on curl, sense when it hits max and then pull back on lift all the while making sure I don't lose forward motion.

If I'm successful, I'll have a full bucket but It will only stay full while I drive If like others, I raise it well above the hood of the tractor and "bump" the curl back and forth to settle the load into the back of the bucket. I never drive with the bucket raised above the level of the hood - too much chance of a tip over with the CG that high.

 

[ScottAR]

Doesn't seem to hurt anything. That's a fairly common thing for me. I usually bounce it once or twice when dumping sticky clay to jar it all out of the bucket. If my hydraulics were faster I could just rock the bucket control a little.

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

I don't mind not getting a full load every now and then but I hate it when someone is watching me and doesn't say anything until I either move away from the pile or comment when I go to dump it..... If I can I usually try to kind of fluff up the pile before I scoop up a load. The Toothbar really made a difference for me..... We were helping remove Sod at the local legion Post last Saturday and I removed the toothbar while scooping just the sod. Once I got under the sod I just moved ahead in low. The BX pealed the sod right up and into the bucket. Then put it back on when the sod was gone and dropped the bucket straight down and back dragged several times to lossen the top soil and then some folks raked it around for level before adding the cloth and field rock. The little BX2200 was a real champ the other day.

When I pulled up that morning one guy laughed and said it was an overkill. I looked at him with his shovel and wheel barrow and said his was an under kill. But he quit laughing when he realized how much work it saved him and others (92 degrees out Saturday) and was asking all kinds of questions when we got done....

 

[Steelfan]

<font color=blue>Might've been, if they'd had a few CUT's around. </font color=blue>
No doubt about that Harv. Imagine where we would be now? /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif