Ballest Barrel for a L4701

[Rickklem]

I am waiting for the delivery of my L4701 with FEL next week.

The dealer is going to fill the rear tires. I will be using a grapple as well.

Do I still need to use a ballest barrel or will the filled tires be enough?

If I do need the additional ballest I was going to build it like others here have using a 55 gallon metal or plastic drum and a draw bar.
1. How far from the ground should I place the draw bar for the just arms?
2. Should I use the full height of the barrel or should I shorten it a bit by cutting some off the top?
3. How many bags of concrete should I use. Keep in mind it's a 4701 with filled tires already.
4. I know the three mounts need to be off center toward the from of the drum so that the three mounting points clear the drum. But how many inches should the 2 lower points be from the 3rd upper mount point? I guess I could measure some of my other implements to get an idea.

Thanks for any comments.
Rick

 

[Roadworthy]

The filled tires will give you traction. They will not counterbalance the load on the front. I decided to compensate for the extra load on the front axle. I didn't need another project so I just ordered one from palletforks.com. Their prices are good and they don't charge for shipping.

 

[Ltk]

I am waiting for the delivery of my L4701 with FEL next week.

The dealer is going to fill the rear tires. I will be using a grapple as well.

Do I still need to use a ballest barrel or will the filled tires be enough?

If I do need the additional ballest I was going to build it like others here have using a 55 gallon metal or plastic drum and a draw bar.
1. How far from the ground should I place the draw bar for the just arms?
2. Should I use the full height of the barrel or should I shorten it a bit by cutting some off the top?
3. How many bags of concrete should I use. Keep in mind it's a 4701 with filled tires already.
4. I know the three mounts need to be off center toward the from of the drum so that the three mounting points clear the drum. But how many inches should the 2 lower points be from the 3rd upper mount point? I guess I could measure some of my other implements to get an idea.

Thanks for any comments.
Rick

At first I thought I would need one, but with the quick hitch and box blade (and about 200 pounds i added to the box blade) I didn't need any extra ballast. You might be okay without it if you plan on keeping an implement attached!

 

[Dave_eng]

The L4701 3 pt hitch can lift 2,320# located 24" behind the lower arm pins.

A ballast of 900# will serve you well.

Barrels are not the best as they end up with the weight too high off the ground to aid roll over stability.

A simple rectangular form 3' x 2' by one foot in thickness will need 6 cubic feet of concrete which, at 150# per cubic foot, yields 900#.

The dimensions can be played with as the above is just to give you something to start with.

Steel at 490# per cubic foot can make a heavy compact ballast. Two cubic feet instead of 6 with concrete.

Dave

 

[BigG]

Dave ,

How do you figure the weight for box weight? I am not saying you are wrong, I want to learn how you figured it.

 

[Rickklem]

The L4701 3 pt hitch can lift 2,320# located 24" behind the lower arm pins.

A ballast of 900# will serve you well.

Barrels are not the best as they end up with the weight too high off the ground to aid roll over stability.

A simple rectangular form 3' x 2' by one foot in thickness will need 6 cubic feet of concrete which, at 150# per cubic foot, yields 900#.

The dimensions can be played with as the above is just to give you something to start with.

Steel at 490# per cubic foot can make a heavy compact ballast. Two cubic feet instead of 6 with concrete.

Dave

Dave,
So you are suggesting a box 2 foot wide, between the lift arms, 3 foot from front to back and 1 foot tall? Or is it 3 foot tall and 1 foot from front to rear?

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Instead of a barrel, consider a 'carryall' with forks. that way you can easily grab and go a 'skid of weight', drop off when not needed. A cubic foot of concrete weighs about 150#, a 24x30 patio stone weighs 100#. If you use a 'skid of patio stones', you can 'dial in' the weight you need as too heavy costs you fuel and wear/tear on your tractor. I've use cast iron 'barbell' weights for years, keep finding them at local scrapyard for free.

 

[Dave_eng]

Dave,
So you are suggesting a box 2 foot wide, between the lift arms, 3 foot from front to back and 1 foot tall? Or is it 3 foot tall and 1 foot from front to rear?

I am trying to make the building of the form simple. If you put a sheet of plastic down on either grass, pavement or gravel, then you do not need a bottom for the form. Further, the plastic will provide a very smooth surface for the block once it cures.

Using the dimensions of the drawbar I picture you using, it is 26" wide before the 3 pt pins. Let your concrete box be the width of the bar.

I am suggesting 1 foot in thickness as to go thicker can start to require a strong form to resist the concrete pressures until it solidifies..

I picture the draw bar being placed on top of the concrete box so as not to weaken it by casting it into the concrete. Four 3/4" diamter bolts 8" long inserted into the wet concrete (head down) to attach the draw bar to the concrete. Then nuts can be put on the protruding bolts to secure the drawbar. Place a sheet of plastic with the four bolts protruding through it on top off the wet concrete and get the bolts through the drawbar holes before the concrete hardens. The plastic will prevent the concrete from sticking to the drawbar and slow down the moisture evaportion thus improving the concrete strength. Setting the bolts through the drawbar before the concerte hardens avoids any alignment issues with the bolts and the bar holes.

You will have to use some judgement in where on the block to locate the drawbar in a front to rear direction so it is not hitting the lower arms as you lift it.

You need to make provision to attach the top link to the block otherwise it will be swinging back and forth.

This drawbar photo is to give you an idea of what you need to provide a location for a top link. The part painted red.

After placing the concrete in your form, you need to be certain to consolidate it around the perimeter of the form. A number of hammer blows on the outside of the form as a final step should ensure block sides without visual dfects


Dave

 

[Rickklem]

The L4701 3 pt hitch can lift 2,320# located 24" behind the lower arm pins.

A ballast of 900# will serve you well.

Barrels are not the best as they end up with the weight too high off the ground to aid roll over stability.

A simple rectangular form 3' x 2' by one foot in thickness will need 6 cubic feet of concrete which, at 150# per cubic foot, yields 900#.

The dimensions can be played with as the above is just to give you something to start with.

Steel at 490# per cubic foot can make a heavy compact ballast. Two cubic feet instead of 6 with concrete.

Dave

With the lift capacity of the LA765 being 1686# at the pin, will 900 be enough or too much? I just want to make sure I have the right balance. And I know I will NOT be loading it at full capacity and at full height all the time.
Thanks
Rick

 

[Dave_eng]

With the lift capacity of the LA765 being 1686# at the pin, will 900 be enough or too much? I just want to make sure I have the right balance. And I know I will NOT be loading it at full capacity and at full height all the time.
Thanks
Rick

Keep in mind there is also over 3,000# of tractor involved in this question of balance.

I believe the 900# 3 pt ballast will serve you well coupled with the fact that it is low to the ground. You will be operating in a far safer condition than most owners who use much lighter ballasts

Further, if you build it as I suggest, you can later build a heavier or lighter one as the only stuff you loose is 6 cubic feet of concrete and 4 3/4" x 6" bolts. The rest of the drawbar etc just lifts free of the concrete by removing the 4 nuts.

This next section is a further addition to this post.

In the installation instructions for a LA534 loader I came across the ballasting instructions which, at first glance, seem a little confusing.

The amount of ballast needs to not only consider the actual weight but the distance the weight is from the rear of the tractor.

The box blade at 496# is envisioned to have its weight furthest from the rear of the tractor where the ballast box at 880# has its weight closest to the rear of the tractor.

You will find having the ballast close to the rear of the tractor will make maneuvering much easier.

Dave

 

[NHSleddog]

If you have some lead kicking around, you can make a nice compact unit.

I have about 800# in this little box.

 

[NCL4701]

With the lift capacity of the LA765 being 1686# at the pin, will 900 be enough or too much? I just want to make sure I have the right balance. And I know I will NOT be loading it at full capacity and at full height all the time.
Thanks
Rick

Short answer: 900lb a bit over a foot behind the pins works well but I wouldn’t want any less.

I have a L4701 with the LA765 loader. R4 tires, loaded rears. About half the hours on it are loader and grapple work. Most of the time the counterweight on the 3 point is a Landpride boxscrape with rated weight 847lb plus 50’ of 3/8” log chain that is always back there putting total actual weight a bit over 900lb. Under most circumstances that’s sufficient to keep all four wheels on the ground with the loader maxed out at transport height, BUT at max capacity you won’t have much weight on the rears (as in if it isn’t in 4wd you may not be able to back up). Nose downhill trying to back up with max capacity load, it could use more weight. With a full bucket of gravel it’s perfectly stable with the box scrape, but even that requires more ballast than just loaded tires. Personally, I would not put myself in a situation where I was pushing the capacity of the loader with anything less than loaded tires and the 900lb counterweight a foot or so behind the pins. The full height capacity isn’t the problem for my use because I’m not dumping stuff over the side of a dump truck. The problem is the vast majority of what I do only requires getting it off the ground and leaving it as low as possible to maximize stability. It will lift more to transport height than it will to full height. That and I don’t know how they rate the loaders but they seem to be pretty conservative with the numbers on the ratings.

If I was setting up a counterweight closer to the pins I would want at least a couple hundred more pounds on it. That’s not based on any engineering, just a swag knowing I’d want enough weight to make up for moving the counterweight closer to the pins and I’ve had a few times another couple hundred pounds would have been nice to have even with the 900lb set back from the pins. As previously mentioned in the thread, you aren’t pushing the capacity of the three point at all if you have 900 to 1200lb on it.