B2601 lift capacity

[Dgas47]

Yet another post.

I filled the previously seen bin to the top to see what would happen. I was hoping to get it a little higher but it is high enough to move. Rear end is a little light even with 1,000 pounds on the rear. Again, this is green beech wood and according to the measurements it is 31.50 cubic feet or .23 of a cord. I think I will stack the wood to the 4th horizontal support instead of the top and that should be the happy place for this machine. But again, I am definitely above the listed specs for loader lift capacity.

31.50 cubic feet of green beech wood should weigh 1,701 pounds. Add in the 330 pound forks and the 100 pound cage and we're at 2,101 pounds. According to Geotech we are right at the absolute maximum lift capacity a few inches off the ground so I believe my numbers are spot on.

The combination of a lightweight and maneuverable machine with this amount of power is an absolute slam dunk in my opinion. I would recommend a B2601 to anyone who will listen.

 

[PaulL]

I would recommend a B2601 to anyone who will listen.

It's nice to hear the enthusiasm. I've been looking at a B2601 for some time, and having difficulty making the final decision. I have a BX2350 at the moment, it's a good machine and now I've demonstrated I have need for a tractor (by using it all the time) I'm working up to buying a new machine that doesn't have every panel broken or bent, and every mechanical part a bit worn (my BX was very cheap).

I'm waiting on the new manifold connector on the FEL (the BX style one that's coming this model year) before I decide, but my big decision points on a new BX v's a B2601 are:

• I mostly mow, does the B2601 chew up the lawn more? It's a bit bigger and a bit heavier, but my maths says much bigger tyres, so probably less ground pressure and therefore less chewing up of lawn
• stability. My property is small and mostly flat, but I do mow a hillside up the road occasionally. How much less stable is the B2601? I wouldn't load the tyres given I'm mainly on the lawn, I would however take the loader off to mow
• size/feel. The B2601 always looks a bit tall and narrow to me - a bit funny looking I guess would be the way to describe it. Maybe I'm just used to the look of the BX. But when I look at videos on youtube they don't look that way....I wonder if it's because the ones in the shop mostly have Ag tyres, whereas those on youtube mostly have industrial or turfs - are the Ags narrower tyres?

Really I'm looking for validation that I need a B2601 and it's a great decision, even though really I only have use for a BX. I'm figuring buy once, buy right.....but given I have less than an acre, it's possible that buying right is the BX and not the B.

 

[Talenel]

I can't really tell you that you need it. I bought my b2601 because it WAS a bit bigger than I needed. But not such a big footprint that I couldn't mow the lawn. But big enough to lift a hay bale if needed, and barrel of oil.

I've been bitten by the 'I wont need that big of _____' (insert something here) before, so I buy one size up now.

 

[PA452]

On the lawn, I'll just say it depends on how particular you are about your lawn. I mow with a BX23 (with FEL and BH removed), but I also mow a lot of grass with an old John Deere 1050 with 6' mower and ag tires. That's a significantly bigger, heavier tractor than the B2601, and I don't consider it to be too hard on the lawn. Not super picky though. Also depends on if you have wet areas that you mow in your yard. Of course, this year with the record rainfall, there are places that are wet and soft that I've never even seen before.

 

[PaulL]

Also depends on if you have wet areas that you mow in your yard.

We're on volcanic soils - generally we can have a week of rain, then 1 day of dry and I can drive on the lawn again. With the BX my main issue is that I need to adjust the HST pedal - the spring isn't tight enough so it creeps forward, you have to kick it a bit in reverse to stop. Then it jerks to a stop and tears the grass out if the ground is soft. If I put it in 4wd it doesn't do that so much, but then it tears on the sharp corners a bit. Tradeoffs I guess.

On paper the B2601 is about 15% heavier, but looks to me to have about 30% more footprint on the ground - the tyres are a lot larger. So it should chew up the lawn less. But I feel like larger tyres maybe scuff more. But I'm not mowing a golf course, so either way is probably adequate anyway.

 

[Dgas47]

[*]I mostly mow, does the B2601 chew up the lawn more? It's a bit bigger and a bit heavier, but my maths says much bigger tyres, so probably less ground pressure and therefore less chewing up of lawn
[*]stability. My property is small and mostly flat, but I do mow a hillside up the road occasionally. How much less stable is the B2601? I wouldn't load the tyres given I'm mainly on the lawn, I would however take the loader off to mow
[*]size/feel. The B2601 always looks a bit tall and narrow to me - a bit funny looking I guess would be the way to describe it. Maybe I'm just used to the look of the BX. But when I look at videos on youtube they don't look that way....I wonder if it's because the ones in the shop mostly have Ag tyres, whereas those on youtube mostly have industrial or turfs - are the Ags narrower tyres?
[/LIST]

Really I'm looking for validation that I need a B2601 and it's a great decision, even though really I only have use for a BX. I'm figuring buy once, buy right.....but given I have less than an acre, it's possible that buying right is the BX and not the B.

I must admit that my experience with driving in the lawn has been limited. We have had record high rain fall this year. When it was dry out the B2601 (R4 industrial tires) never so much as made an indentation on the yard in 2 wheel drive. You will get some tearing in 4 wheel drive as with any machine. I tried to take it in the lawn after it was wet and it left a nice set of tracks in the soil. But again, we've had record rainfall and you couldn't even walk in the yard without it squishing down an inch. Even my 750 pound zero turn left tracks that day.

My initial feeling on the B2601 was that it did feel a bit high but I've since gotten used to it. I came from a background of operating heavy machinery as my father owns an excavation company. The majority of the machines I was on were skid steers and the seat height in them is much lower. Combine that with my zero turn's low seat and that's what I was used to. I was also operating a large wheel loader where the seat was 8 feet off the ground; now that's high. But like the wheel loader, the B2601's height matches it's width and it really is a stable machine. I have several hills and odd angles and have yet to have a problem.

I don't use the B2601 to mow as I have a steering wheel zero turn for that so I won't be in the lawn much. It will mostly be for landscaping, carrying heavy loads, and bringing firewood in while it's dry and/or frozen. I figured it it gets to the point where I need to go through the lawn when it's wet then I will build a path out of gravel because, well, I have a tractor

 

[Grindstone]

**I know the ROPS is not all the way up**

Okay so this stack of wood is a little smaller than the first stack I lifted. But it measured 44" wide x 38" deep x 28" high. The whole stack is beech wood that I split in October of this year (2018). Green weight is 54 pounds per cubic foot and seasoned weight is 45 pounds per cubic foot (numbers obtained through various wood sites). As you can see it's stacked on there pretty tight and the measurements taken were extremely conservative (I measured from the lowest point, most narrow point, etc). I tried to stack the "heavy" wood closest to the front of the machine.

Weight of the wood alone is 1,462.86 pounds (green) or 1,219.05 (seasoned). The IBC cage weighs 100 pounds and my forks weigh 330 pounds. So, in total, we have either 1,892.86 pounds or 1,649.05 pounds of weight on the front of the loader.

I forgot to measure how high it got but it is clearly high enough to move and I was actually able to go higher so I could stack one cage on top of the other. Judging by the picture it looks to be about headlight level and I was able to go higher than that. Say 4 feet to be safe.

I wanted to see if the 434 could lift it and it definitely can. Now I should be able to fill the cage to the top and the machine should be able to lift and move it without a problem. Stacking it is probably out of the question at that point. This is a 270 gallon IBC cage FYI. I was able to find pallet tarps on Amazon that fit IBC cages like a glove ($16 each) so all my firewood will be going in them instead of the woodshed. I'll have the top covered until it seasons then the full tarp will be dropped down to keep it dry.

Hey Dgas47, I am looking to start using IBC cages for my firewood and was wondering what forks you were using to haul those around with.