Traction Tractor on the Beach??

[caps]

I have been using my TC26DA on a sandy beach to clear debris after storm. This is along the Potomac River in Virginia. I have only done so a couple times and so far have not gotten stuck. I am wondering if there is any special techniques that work well. This last storm put lots of sand in the parking lot but it was an easy removal as all I had to do was scoop it up and move it 100 foot or so to the beach and dump it. I used my rake to gather up the debris at the high water line and hauled it away. The beach varies from small gravel near the water at one end and fine sand at the other and further up the beach. I haven't gotten too close to the wet sand yet as I am a bit afraid that I'll get stuck or that one of the front wheels will sink in and tip me. The tractor is 48 inches wide at the rear wheels and has R4 tires. The FEL bucket is 54 inches wide - I think the standard is 48 inches but that is what came with it from the previous owner. It seem awfully tippy to me and I suspect I will have to make a ballast box for the rear. The rake only weighs about 250 pounds and I noticed that when I pick up a bucket of sand the rear is really bouncy. Also I am thinking of swapping the wheels to the other side (dish out?) to widen the stance of the tractor by a few inches. Would appreciate hearing from anyone with experience on the beach with their small tractor. Our neighborhood maintenance guy wont take his big heavy Kubota out on the beach at all as the last two times he sank in and had to be pulled out. (by my jeep - Ha!)

John
KC3LX

 

[k0ua]

I don't know anything about beaches, as I live about 1500 miles from one, but I will offer a couple of points, Yes you need ballast on the 3pt to balance out the tractor when you scoop up a load of sand. As you have already noticed you are "tippy" proper ballast on the rear will make it much more stable. and relieve stress on the front axle by levering the weight off of the front axle, which is the weaker axle. Also if you can widen the rear track, do so. It will make the tractor much more stable in all situations. Also I believe the 54 inch bucket is correct for your tractor, but your rears need to be set out wider.

James K0UA

 

[k0ua]

Woops I might be wrong on that bucket width.. I looked up the tractor, I was thinking it was just a newer model of a TC25, which is a larger framed tractor, but your tractor may have only come with a 4 foot bucket .. I cannot get a definitive on the tractordata site, but the weight of your bare tractor is only 1600 lbs.. so I am thinking now the 4 foot may have been standard.. sorry.

James K0UA

 

[shaley]

Are your rear tires loaded with fluid. This would be the easiest way to add ballast.

 

[cartod]

Are your rear tires loaded with fluid. This would be the easiest way to add ballast.

loaded tires are not ballast. Ballast is weight behind the back axle.

 

[dave1949]

Well, you wouldn't want to get stuck below the high tide line! That would be another thread :laughing:

My thought is you don't want to add unnecessary weight such as loading the tires for working in soft sand/beach gravel. The more it "floats" on the surface the better, is my guess.

Maybe if you could locate some traction mats of some sort to keep handy just in case you get stuck, or a winch/come-along if you can cable up to something stout.

All I really know about sand, is once a tire starts digging down into it, stop, it's only going to get worse.

You might practice using your FEL bucket to push backwards. Put the bucket in the pretty much straight down dumped position, lower it into the sand enough to start lifting weight off the front axle, then drive the tractor in reverse while bringing the bucket back to level.

 

[tungularafishcamp]

Pay attention when running around the beach, a place you just went over 10 minutes ago can stick you as the tide comes in and changes the consistency. You definitely want some more weight on the rear as folks are telling you. My little kubota spends half its time on the beach. I put duals on front and rear to keep from getting stuck and caught by the tide and a much appreciated side effect is it is incredibly stable.

 

[Down South]

I worked a project on the beach a few years ago with a new Cat backhoe, 418 i think.

The beach was a problem till i stretched out the backhoe itself, 150 foot turning radius LOL
Well it stuck out 20 foot farther but it was a breeze to go anywhere and even lift a fair bit in the loader.

Like a motorcycle in sand, keep the weight off the front wheels.

The more counter weight ( behind the rear axle ) you can add the better.

Ds

 

[dave1949]

Pay attention when running around the beach, a place you just went over 10 minutes ago can stick you as the tide comes in and changes the consistency. You definitely want some more weight on the rear as folks are telling you. My little kubota spends half its time on the beach. I put duals on front and rear to keep from getting stuck and caught by the tide and a much appreciated side effect is it is incredibly stable.

Duals front and rear, that would really reduce your per square inch ground pressure a lot, 50% I guess. That sounds like the ticket for sand.

 

[caps]

Wow, duals on the front and rear! That sounds like a great idea. Didn't know you could put them on the front. I don't spend a lot of time on the community beach, usually once a month or after a big storm to clean up stuff. Not enought to justify the expense of the dual wheels to my wife. They don't pay me to clean up the beach or remove the sand from the parking lot - I just do it to help keep the common area clean. It is really not that big of a beach area. Maybe 300 feet of shoreline and a 75 by 150 parking area.