Kubota B2920 and BH65 Backhoe

probolpher · Mar 4, 2011

Hey folks. I am a new poster but have been reading posts here for a long time. I have a question that I hope you can help with.

I just traded my BX 2350 in for a B 2920. One of the main reasons for purchasing the slightly bigger tractor was to get a more stable tractor for the backhoe. While it is still winter in Vermont and I won't be able to use the thing for a while, I was reading the manual and it said that you should not use the backhoe with loaded rear tires. I told the dealer to load my tires in the rear because I have them loaded on my BX and thought it was more stable on the many hills I am driving on. Do any of you have loaded rear tires with the BH65 and is this a problem?

Thanks!

probolpher.

cal2620 · Mar 4, 2011

probolpher. I am a new member to this form to but have been a reader for a long. I have the b2620 this the bh65 and I had my rear tire foam filled and I have no problems with it.It makes big differnt in the way it rides andputs the weight at the lowest point on the tractorfor better traction.plus I not get flats. cal2620

Ductape · Mar 4, 2011

Though I'm not going to offer a warranty............ this has been discussed plenty here in the past and the general consensus is that you will be fine with loaded tires and a backhoe.

ericdube · Mar 4, 2011

I saw that mentioned in the manual as well.

Although, I just bought a B2620 with BH65 a couple weeks ago, and the dealer actually recommended that I load the rear tires with RimGuard since I'm also going to be using the tractor in the winter for snow blowing (and I won't have the backhoe on then.) In their opinion, the loaded tires were completely fine even with backhoe on.

probolpher · Mar 4, 2011

Thanks. I thought it was probably ok but was not sure. I used the backhoe for the first time in the iced over snowbanks just to get an idea and it seemed very responsive. The hydraulics seem to be much more powerful and quick to respond than my BX. I picked both ends of the tractor off the ground quickly when using both the loader and the backhoe. Hope spring comes soon. I have a lot of digging to do.

fredhargis · Mar 5, 2011

I saw that in my manual and guessed (maybe incorrectly) it had to do with lifting the extra weight when you extended the stabilizers. I usually pick my rear tires off the ground slightly. If true, I can't imagine the foam filling would be a problem, but the liquid adds several hundred lbs.

ericdube · Mar 5, 2011

fredhargis said:
I saw that in my manual and guessed (maybe incorrectly) it had to do with lifting the extra weight when you extended the stabilizers. I usually pick my rear tires off the ground slightly. If true, I can't imagine the foam filling would be a problem, but the liquid adds several hundred lbs.

That makes a lot of sense to me regarding the additional weight placed on the stabilizers during lift, so I'm sure you're right about this.

Based on the published Rimguard liquid tire ballast specifications (~10.7-11.0 lbs. / gal), it appears that for the R4 tires (12 x 16.5) used on the R2X20 it adds an additional 160lbs per tire or 320lbs total.

And for the numbers I've seen for high density foam-filled tires (and I admit this number seems to be somewhat "variable" based on the density of the foam used to fill them and the brand used), it's suppose to be heavier than Rimguard liquid ballast. From what I can tell based on that tire size it adds almost 225lbs per tire or ~450lbs total.

Hopefully, someone else could chime in on this and shed more light as I'll be the first to admit that I'm no expert on foam filled tires or even know what the approximate weight of foam is per gallon.

cal2620 · Mar 5, 2011

I have my R4 rear tires on my b2620 bh65 foam filled and the tires weight is 200lbs each.

ericdube · Mar 5, 2011

cal2620 said:
I have my R4 rear tires on my b2620 bh65 foam filled and the tires weight is 200lbs each.

Thanks for shedding some light on this. It looks like my numbers were a bit off.

So based on that it looks like the foam filled tires are probably very close to what you get with liquid filled ballast (although, the advantage is that you don't have to worry about flats though!

Either way, I'm not too concerned about the added weight with the backhoe. I know my dealer will stand behind it if I ever have problems down the road with it since they recommended it and not to mention, sold it to me this way.

goldenwings · Mar 23, 2011

I saw on another post somewhere on here that ROPS were mentioned as the limiting factor... possibly. This would make more sense to me in the event of a roll with the additional weight of the BH and ballasted tires at the same time. Momentum and leverage are funny things like that.

I would be less concerned about the additional weight on the stabilizers, as they see thousands of pounds on them already, when you couple the breakout forces of the bucket with the fact that they extended out quite a distance beyond the stabilizer arms (making for a very large lever).

FWIW I have a JD2520 and am strongly considering filling my rears but am concenred that I may not be able to pick the back tires off the ground with the BH and swing the rear of the machine over a little as I can now. ( I realize this may not be the safest choice vs repositioning)

My other small concern is that I use my machine for a lot of finish mowing w/ a MMM and would prefer to not have large R4 bar marks everywhere.