What did you do to or on your Kubota today?

[In Utopia]

Drove the tractor around my brome field searching for prickly pear cactus. Found some & relocated it to an old chicken coop that I plan to burn soon. I filled the inside with wood & will add an accelerant. Do you think this will get the job done? View attachment 122661
View attachment 122662

That looks like it should be spectacular, pics when you light it off.

 

[gator tx]

Put KSR system on it

 

[Siesta Sundance]

Kubota honoring the Founding Father George Washington.

 

[Lil Foot]

Replaced glow plugs.

 

[fried1765]

Replaced glow plugs.
View attachment 122711

You didn't replace the other two?

 

[Lil Foot]

Changing the fuel filter was always a pita, because the engine side cover was in the way, blocking the fuel bowl & filter from dropping down & out.
While working on the glow plugs, I pulled the side cover off and used a 2 5/16" chassis punch to cut some clearance, so that the fuel bowl & filter will drop out the bottom without disturbing the cover.

 

[Lil Foot]

You didn't replace the other two?

What other two?

 

[fried1765]

What other two?

Just pulling your chain!
As in..... real diesels....... should have at least 4 cylinders.

 

[mdhughes]

Changing the fuel filter was always a pita, because the engine side cover was in the way, blocking the fuel bowl & filter from dropping down & out.
While working on the glow plugs, I pulled the side cover off and used a 2 5/16" chassis punch to cut some clearance, so that the fuel bowl & filter will drop out the bottom without disturbing the cover.

Looks factory. You would have thought they would have made it easier to get to then that.

 

[Russell King]

Drove the tractor around my brome field searching for prickly pear cactus. Found some & relocated it to an old chicken coop that I plan to burn soon. I filled the inside with wood & will add an accelerant. Do you think this will get the job done? View attachment 122661
View attachment 122662

From my experience with a similar amount of cactus to get rid of the answer is NO.

The cactus is loaded with moisture and won’t really burn well. It will start growing in size as the moisture vaporizes and then the ears will pop. The popping is strong enough to dislodge and throw coals a foot or two so be careful with that.

You might get it burnt partially with that amount of wood but you will need to add more to that (larger pieces) to keep the heat up for a longer time.

My process was in a 55 gallon “burn barrel“ and first attempt was to fill barrel about half full of wood and get it burning. Then I added the cactus but that was a slow process since too much cactus would start to extinguish the fire so you had to add the cactus at a judicious pace. So we then switched to fire in barrel and adding some cactus to fire and using an expanded metal “grill” on top of the barrel and placing cactus on the grill. Adding the cactus directly to the barrel still limited the fire and heat so we started with just the fire in barrel, cactus on grill until it popped and was charred then dropped that into the fire. That seemed to speed things up somewhat so we used that method until we were done with the cactus we collected.

I do think you will do some damage to the cactus but I think you will have some remnants that will still be able to grow. Now if you intend to load more wood or have more fires in this same spot you may be able to get it all burned.

I am still finding cactus plants and digging them out by the roots but believe I am winning the cactus eradication ”war” on my five acres since I have to work to find a cactus plant most of the time. I find a large cactus just out in places where I know that I walked by ever once in a while and just don’t know how it got that large without being seen.

 

[mcmxi]

Changing the fuel filter was always a pita, because the engine side cover was in the way, blocking the fuel bowl & filter from dropping down & out.
While working on the glow plugs, I pulled the side cover off and used a 2 5/16" chassis punch to cut some clearance, so that the fuel bowl & filter will drop out the bottom without disturbing the cover.
View attachment 122712 View attachment 122713 View attachment 122714

Very nice job! That chassis punch is cool.

 

[Trapper Bob]

From my experience with a similar amount of cactus to get rid of the answer is NO.

The cactus is loaded with moisture and won’t really burn well. It will start growing in size as the moisture vaporizes and then the ears will pop. The popping is strong enough to dislodge and throw coals a foot or two so be careful with that.

You might get it burnt partially with that amount of wood but you will need to add more to that (larger pieces) to keep the heat up for a longer time.

My process was in a 55 gallon “burn barrel“ and first attempt was to fill barrel about half full of wood and get it burning. Then I added the cactus but that was a slow process since too much cactus would start to extinguish the fire so you had to add the cactus at a judicious pace. So we then switched to fire in barrel and adding some cactus to fire and using an expanded metal “grill” on top of the barrel and placing cactus on the grill. Adding the cactus directly to the barrel still limited the fire and heat so we started with just the fire in barrel, cactus on grill until it popped and was charred then dropped that into the fire. That seemed to speed things up somewhat so we used that method until we were done with the cactus we collected.

I do think you will do some damage to the cactus but I think you will have some remnants that will still be able to grow. Now if you intend to load more wood or have more fires in this same spot you may be able to get it all burned.

I am still finding cactus plants and digging them out by the roots but believe I am winning the cactus eradication ”war” on my five acres since I have to work to find a cactus plant most of the time. I find a large cactus just out in places where I know that I walked by ever once in a while and just don’t know how it got that large without being seen.

Thank you for the info, I never thought of “grilling before killing” them. (Sorry, couldn’t help myself) The cactus was not in the best of shape when I dug them up. We went thru a period of sub-zero temps which hurt (not killed) them. They were kind of purple on the side exposed & green next to the ground. It is amazing what the cactus can endure & still survive.
I also believe I am winning my war on prickly pear on my 242 acres. I’ll watch the fire & add wood as needed. I don’t want any to get away.
Do you use herbicides on the cactus? I’ve read Remedy & diesel fuel works pretty good.

 

[Lil Foot]

Very nice job! That chassis punch is cool.

Thanks!
I have a couple sets of them, plus a couple loose ones, including this somewhat unusual rectangular punch, cuts a hole .856 x 1.014.

 

[fried1765]

Thanks!
I have a couple sets of them, plus a couple loose ones, including this somewhat unusual rectangular punch, cuts a hole .856 x 1.014.
View attachment 122744 View attachment 122745

I have the Greenlee "Slugbuster" set to... 2-1/2".
Damn: Had no idea that set now goes for $637.
I bought mine 25 years ago,....don't remember price.

 

[Kennyd4110]

Damn: Had no idea that set now goes for $637.
I bought mine 25 years ago,....don't remember price.

a LOT less than $637

 

[Outnumbered]

Worked on regrading the slope down to one of the small ponds. Years of cattle heading down to get water made ruts and bumps 2' to 3' deep. A real pain to cut the trim with a brush cutter as you could not get much stable footing. Well I took several buckets out and used that to fill old stump holes that had settled in the field. Carefully backed down with the tiller and then took my old troy built tiller to the edge to loosen things up where I could backdrag with the bucket. I then raked it by hand and put some seed down then worked it over with an old 8' double cultipacker. Should be in good shape come spring/early summer.

 

[Siesta Sundance]

Worked on regrading the slope down to one of the small ponds. Years of cattle heading down to get water made ruts and bumps 2' to 3' deep. A real pain to cut the trim with a brush cutter as you could not get much stable footing. Well I took several buckets out and used that to fill old stump holes that had settled in the field. Carefully backed down with the tiller and then took my old troy built tiller to the edge to loosen things up where I could backdrag with the bucket. I then raked it by hand and put some seed down then worked it over with an old 8' double cultipacker. Should be in good shape come spring/early summer. View attachment 122760 View attachment 122761

Very nice, what seed did you plant?

 

[fried1765]

Worked on regrading the slope down to one of the small ponds. Years of cattle heading down to get water made ruts and bumps 2' to 3' deep. A real pain to cut the trim with a brush cutter as you could not get much stable footing. Well I took several buckets out and used that to fill old stump holes that had settled in the field. Carefully backed down with the tiller and then took my old troy built tiller to the edge to loosen things up where I could backdrag with the bucket. I then raked it by hand and put some seed down then worked it over with an old 8' double cultipacker. Should be in good shape come spring/early summer. View attachment 122760 View attachment 122761

I wish you luck.
I have never had good results with seeding grass in the Spring.
The grass will come up, but the weeds will flourish.

 

[Outnumbered]

Very nice, what seed did you plant?

Thanks, I put some K31 fescue and some annual rye to come up quick before it washes out.

 

[Outnumbered]

I wish you luck.
I have never had good results with seeding grass in the Spring.
The grass will come up. but the weeds will flourish.

I prefer to seed in the fall, but the ground was just soft enough to do it now. Once it gets hot that ground gets hard as a brick. I plan to reseed it in the fall as well as the rye will have run its course and then it should be good!