Rear Lift Capacity

[lazerguy]

Hi,

I'm still new to farm tractors and not quite sure which size is right for me.
I want to use the tractor to collect firewood in the forest.
I used to winch the trees up to the trails (with a dozer) then cut them into 16'' logs. Then I would hook a trailer to the dozer and pick up the logs...very time-consuming, and the dozer used a lot of fuel.

To make the operation more efficient, I would like to go directly to the trees with a tractor, and load the 16'' logs into a 3PH-mounted box.
No more winching, no more trailer. Just go in, pick up the wood and go.

I'm trying to figure how much wood (and how big a box) can be carried safely on a 3PH.
For a Massey-Ferguson 135, the rated Rear Lift Capacity of the Type I hitch is 2850 lbs.
Does this mean that I could lift and carry (safely) a box that weighs 2850 lbs?

I noticed that larger tractors have a Type II 3ph with slightly larger Rear Lift Capacities, i.e. 3400lbs for an MF 175.

I'm not sure which size of tractor is more appropriate for what I intend to do.
Any comments are welcome!

 

[EE_Bota]

Hi,

I'm still new to farm tractors and not quite sure which size is right for me.
I want to use the tractor to collect firewood in the forest.
I used to winch the trees up to the trails (with a dozer) then cut them into 16'' logs. Then I would hook a trailer to the dozer and pick up the logs...very time-consuming, and the dozer used a lot of fuel.

To make the operation more efficient, I would like to go directly to the trees with a tractor, and load the 16'' logs into a 3PH-mounted box.
No more winching, no more trailer. Just go in, pick up the wood and go.

I'm trying to figure how much wood (and how big a box) can be carried safely on a 3PH.
For a Massey-Ferguson 135, the rated Rear Lift Capacity of the Type I hitch is 2850 lbs.
Does this mean that I could lift and carry (safely) a box that weighs 2850 lbs?

I noticed that larger tractors have a Type II 3ph with slightly larger Rear Lift Capacities, i.e. 3400lbs for an MF 175.

I'm not sure which size of tractor is more appropriate for what I intend to do.
Any comments are welcome!

I have used both of those tractors before. Either would be fine for hooking up a carry all and hauling wood out. But right much depends on your access for the tractor to get to where the wood is located. You don't want to do things like smack your exhaust stack off with limbs, etc.

Recently, we moved wet split red oak we had placed on pallets. That MF 175 had a front end loader on, so even though there was a pretty good load on the pallet, the FEL balanced it out well. Lifting the pallet was not an issue, but I am not sure how well it would do without the FEL. A MF175 is pretty heavy, but a pallet sticking out the back will fool you too.

I don't think you would be disappointed with either doing what you like. I personally have a BX2200, and though I am not suggesting it to you, even it can manage a descent amount of wood on the back in my carryall, and it is rated well less than the ones you are talking about.

One thing you don't want happening though, is that the rear is overloaded, and you either slip on the clutch pedal, or are going us a hill, and the front end rears up in the air, dumping your wood out the back.

On the pallets we were moving, we had them stacked quite high, so we had available that plastic construction fencing, and we could wrap that around the pallet, and bungee it in place for movement. We didn't actually DO that, but were prepared to if needed, such as rough ground, etc.

Welcome to TractorByNet!

 

[belah]

The rated weight is supposed to be what the lift will safely pick up but you have to keep in mind that a lot of weight on the rear translates to very little weight on the front. So, becareful going up hills and on uneven ground. Don't come out on the clutch quickly or you will dump your wood and maybe turn the tractor over backwards.
The tractor/lift will handle the weight and probably a lot more but consider front weights and/or ballast in the front tires to give weight to the front end. I've carried a lot of wood, dirt etc in my 6ft FEL bucket and even with ballast in the 'rear tires' if I don't have an implement hooked to the tractor, the rear wheels will sometimes spin and the tractor feels light on the rear. You would be suprised how weight hanging in the air on the front or rear can affect the balance of the tractor. Good Luck !!!! Belah

 

[Army grunt]

You'll know when the front of tr. comes off the ground. Build a platform off front soas to off set the back. Load it , an you'll be all set.Iload my frunt bucket an load the stone bucket on the 3 pt hitch. works great!
Army Grunt

 

[Baby Grand]

I have a Walco 495 dump box (18x48x48) that works pretty well for the purpose you describe:

Walco Equipment | Agriculture, Lawn & Garden, Minnesota & Wisconsin, Walco - Dump Box - Utility

Between the FEL bucket & the box I can move a lot of cut wood and have a well balanced tractor as I do it.

-Jim

 

[North Country]

Why leave the trailer behind? There isn't a tractor out there than can't pull more than it can lift. FEL bucket, carryall *and* trailer means a lot fewer trips.

 

[lazerguy]

Thanks for all the good advice! Seeing how fast you responded, this is a very active forum!

A smaller box on the front looks like the perfect way to balance the rear. Also a convenient place to store the chainsaw.
The Walco 495 looks exactly like what I had in mind.
At 30 cubic feet cap, that's 2/3 of a cord, so with maybe 1/3 cord in the front, I'd be carrying a full cord in total. Excellent!

The reason for leaving the trailer behind is that it's very unpractical to back it any distance in the woods. With only tractor-mounted boxes, I could manoeuver a lot easier, making my way around trees and boulders.

I have cleared trails spaced 200-300ft apart. To reach any tree in particular, I use the trails, then I go the last 150ft through the woods.

 

[North Country]

errr...30 cu ft is about 1/4 cord. You need a VERY big tractor to carry a cord (4'x'4'8' = 128 cu ft, more than 4 cu yards) unless you have a trailer. There are plenty of tractors that can lift the weight of a cord but can't find a place to put it all. Compared to gravel & soil, it's just not very dense.

 

[lazerguy]

errr...30 cu ft is about 1/4 cord. You need a VERY big tractor to carry a cord (4'x'4'8' = 128 cu ft, more than 4 cu yards) unless you have a trailer. There are plenty of tractors that can lift the weight of a cord but can't find a place to put it all. Compared to gravel & soil, it's just not very dense.

Ooops! Sorry, I meant ''face cord'', around here we always call it a ''cord'' to make it short. You're right, a real cord is 128 cu.ft.

 

[Chilly807]

My opinion is that you'd be better off to winch out to the roads you already have. Threading a tractor through woods, unless they're very open, isn't all that easy. 150 feet of cable and a skidding cone will give you access to all your trees from any of your roads.

Sean