Making a counterbalance for my mx5200...give me your opinions...please

[fried1765]

I was using my BB as a counterweight but wanted a more compact setup so I did not have to constantly keep an eye behind so as not to whack things with the BB in tight conditions.
I built this unit from scrap steel and leftover concrete for next to nothing. Weighs around 400 lbs
Along with the loaded tires, I can lift a full bucket of wet sand with no tipping and it is much more maneuverableView attachment 614085View attachment 614086

Yup!
Using a rear blade for weight is a real maneuvering nuisance.

 

[oosik]

I guess it has a lot to do with your property and the need for a heavy 3-point implement. My 80 acres is either - stands of huge ancient Ponderosa pines or bunch grass. Nothing to get a rear blade tangled in. No problems navigating thru or around. And I need the heavy rear blade to maintain my driveway.

 

[MechanicalGuy]

This is a low profile cb. A box blade sticks way out. I have work to do perpendicular to the roads in tight spaces, a low profile cb is the ticket. An mx5200 with a bush hog or box blade sticking out the back isn't nearly as short as a 55 gallon drum tucked in the 3 pt.

 

[oosik]

Then it's a counterballance for you. What jeff9366 said - start with sand and then add water as needed. Concrete is permanent and may not be what you want.

 

[MechanicalGuy]

Thanks for all the answers that's exactly why I started this thread for stuff that I might not have been thinking correctly about.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

So I have a new mx5200 with filled tires and 100lb wheel weights on each rear wheel. I will be using the weight for a small profile counterbalance for mainly gravel and clay dirt fel counterbalance. My initial idea was to put as much scrap metal in the 55 gallon drum as I could fit, and then pour concrete over it to attain 1500lbs. It would be much less expensive and much less hassle to simply fill it will concrete and just get about 800-1000lbs counterbalance.

Knowing what I have and what I plan on doing, will a simple concrete counterbalance work? Or should I go the extra mile and increase the weight with scrap metal at 20 cents a pound?

Here is the beginning;

View attachment 614058

View attachment 614057

I have a MX 5100 that I put 200lbs of wheel weights on each rear wheel, and they are loaded tires as well. I still feel the need for more rear end weight. My Box blade seems to do the trick most of the time... According to the manual, we can put up to 300 lbs on each wheel. I'm thinking about it, as the MX's are awfully light in the butt.

 

[MechanicalGuy]

I have a MX 5100 that I put 200lbs of wheel weights on each rear wheel, and they are loaded tires as well. I still feel the need for more rear end weight. My Box blade seems to do the trick most of the time... According to the manual, we can put up to 300 lbs on each wheel. I'm thinking about it, as the MX's are awfully light in the butt.

Them wheel weights are high dollar though.

 

[WranglerX]

Concrete weighs in at about 150 lbs per cubic foot... Find capacity of barrel in cubic feet and multiply by 150....

How to Calculate the Volume of a Cylinder (with Examples)

A common 55 gallon steel drum (cylinder) has a volume of 7.35 cu-ft.... 7.35 cu-ft X 150 lbs =1102.5 pounds (approx)

It will take approximately 18, 60 pound bags of "Saccrete" to fill 55 gallon drum at about $3.40 a bag... About $65 for concrete...

Dale

 

[Underdog57]

So I have a new mx5200 with filled tires and 100lb wheel weights on each rear wheel. I will be using the weight for a small profile counterbalance for mainly gravel and clay dirt fel counterbalance. My initial idea was to put as much scrap metal in the 55 gallon drum as I could fit, and then pour concrete over it to attain 1500lbs. It would be much less expensive and much less hassle to simply fill it will concrete and just get about 800-1000lbs counterbalance.

Knowing what I have and what I plan on doing, will a simple concrete counterbalance work? Or should I go the extra mile and increase the weight with scrap metal at 20 cents a pound?

Here is the beginning;

View attachment 614058

View attachment 614057

I would suggest putting bigger bolts in the top-link bracket and bolt a piece of steel between the bolts on the inside to keep the bolts from possibly pulling out of the concrete.

 

[TerryR]

I would suggest putting bigger bolts in the top-link bracket and bolt a piece of steel between the bolts on the inside to keep the bolts from possibly pulling out of the concrete.

Bigger bolts? Those look like at least 5/16" bolts to me, maybe bigger. If they are 5/16 and they are only grade 2 they have a clamp load rating of 2175 lb each. That's enough for either to support the whole 1500 lb weight if they were actually holding it up, but they aren't. They just keep it from rolling as the machine moves, maybe help keep it upright depending on how high it's filled. The weight is pretty well balanced on the crossbar, so there's no real weight on the top link.