Lazy WP Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 12 minutes ago, sandhiller said: You hit on one of the reasons I haven't put fluid in these tires, low wet meadows. It is a small part of the hours I put on this tractor but is a real concern. Not sure I have room to add suitcase weights to the bale fork. Maybe I could stack some railroad rail in the frame somehow. 🤔 I would put fluid in the tires and find a set of clamp on duals for summer. You would love how much more solid it feels when you turn with the rake. Grints in Sargent have clamp on 34 inch wheels. Any way they had them 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DT Fan Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 If you put calcium in them, change the valve cores every three years. No. one cause of rotted rims is leaky valve cores! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 1 minute ago, Lazy WP said: I would put fluid in the tires and find a set of clamp on duals for summer. You would love how much more solid it feels when you turn with the rake. Grints in Sargent have clamp on 34 inch wheels. Any way they had them I love duals but wonder about turning ability and clearance with the rake??? It is a thought to ponder! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
12_Guy Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Jeff, I know you probably love that grapple bucket but it is heavy. A spear or lightweight forks could probably save you several hundred pounds on the front. Could you make room on the front of the rear fork for 4-6 hundred pound weights? Possibly turned 90 degrees to be flat in front of the bale? On my compact tractor I have a weight bracket that carries 6-100's. It is easy to remove in one piece and very effective. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 15 minutes ago, 12_Guy said: Jeff, I know you probably love that grapple bucket but it is heavy. A spear or lightweight forks could probably save you several hundred pounds on the front. Could you make room on the front of the rear fork for 4-6 hundred pound weights? Possibly turned 90 degrees to be flat in front of the bale? On my compact tractor I have a weight bracket that carries 6-100's. It is easy to remove in one piece and very effective. I've never owned a spear but I bet it would save weight. There are times I handle bales from the side as well as the end. Plus i use the bucket for stuff besides hay. There may be room inside the frame of the bale fork for weights flat to the bale like you say, not sure how many but think that is a direction to pursue. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
db1486 Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 If you can get away with a spear instead of the bucket and grapple that will make a huge difference. You wouldn't believe how much easier you will get around with the bale 2 feet closer and with a spear that weighs next to nothing compared to the bucket and grapple. Fluid and tire chains are kinda the norm on 2wd chore tractors around here. Although most are running bi-di's or fwa Your other option is put a loader on the 1486. If it's like ours there is not much that will stop that unit lol. We never ran chains on the 14 at all and kept the duals on most winters and it would go about anywhere here. 766 with fluid but on 34's would spin all the time and not go through near as much snow Ice is definitely no fun to deal with and work on. I'm glad we get to deal with snow more than ice around here 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearclash Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 55 minutes ago, sandhiller said: There are times I handle bales from the side as well as the end. Done right it is possible to pick up bales from the side with spears. But spears vs grapple is a person choice. Depends on your needs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 20 minutes ago, db1486 said: If you can get away with a spear instead of the bucket and grapple that will make a huge difference. You wouldn't believe how much easier you will get around with the bale 2 feet closer and with a spear that weighs next to nothing compared to the bucket and grapple. Fluid and tire chains are kinda the norm on 2wd chore tractors around here. Although most are running bi-di's or fwa Your other option is put a loader on the 1486. If it's like ours there is not much that will stop that unit lol. We never ran chains on the 14 at all and kept the duals on most winters and it would go about anywhere here. 766 with fluid but on 34's would spin all the time and not go through near as much snow Ice is definitely no fun to deal with and work on. I'm glad we get to deal with snow more than ice around here I have a Dual 3100 that came with the 14 when I bought it but never put it on. It would be pretty hard getting in and around the corrals like I need to do. The 656 or SM work really well size wise. The 14 is also pulling the processor every day. I am slipping around with it too. It really needs chains too but not sure I have enough room between tire and fender and steps. Steps might be bent back towards the tires and need to see if I can move the away some. George said the tires were loaded and from this pic I am guessing this is the line. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearclash Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Yah no guessing there -- that tire is loaded and to that level! I bought a tractor once that had about 1/4 of a rear tire filled with plain water. Hadn’t a clue until I used it after the first good freeze. Lurch hop lurch hop . . . hmmmm. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 3 hours ago, acem said: How would these wheels do? Amish chains???? Mike 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve C. Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 My 766 had 2400 lbs. of calcium in it's 18.4 - 34s. That would have taken an awful lot of iron. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Englander Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Having seen enough rotted rims I'd use Rim Guard: https://www.rimguardsolutions.com/ I unloaded a set of new take-offs that I bought for my backhoe since I didn't need any weight and gave it to my neighbor. Any spill just washes away and is totally safe for animals and doesn't kill the grass for a couple of years like CC. I ran over the remains of a Tee post and had a dead spot for years. Yeah, if you're lucky and never have any leaks CC works but for a few bucks more no worries. Your tires will take 100 gallons or 1070lb each of Rim Guard. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazy WP Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 1 hour ago, New Englander said: Having seen enough rotted rims I'd use Rim Guard: https://www.rimguardsolutions.com/ I unloaded a set of new take-offs that I bought for my backhoe since I didn't need any weight and gave it to my neighbor. Any spill just washes away and is totally safe for animals and doesn't kill the grass for a couple of years like CC. I ran over the remains of a Tee post and had a dead spot for years. Yeah, if you're lucky and never have any leaks CC works but for a few bucks more no worries. Your tires will take 100 gallons or 1070lb each of Rim Guard. How many years would it take to rot out a rim? If you don’t think beat juice would rot out a rim, do a quick tour of Scottsbluff Nebraska. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazy WP Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Bucket and grapple forks are a regional thing. I never knew you could feed without them. Of course we had a dirt bunker of silage and that changed the whole situation. Now I do have 2 grapple forks for my Farmhand and 1 for my Leon loader. After building the spears I seriously doubt that I will ever use the grapple on the Leon. The spears are so much lighter and faster. Of course if I have to move snow, then the bucket has to go on and then I need the grapple. Sure is nice to have 2 loaders for 7 bovines and 4 equines. My vote is go to Bridgeport and get a second set of wheels. Fill 1 set with your favorite liquid and leave the other empty. Change them out in the summer. Lots of fun. Glad I don’t have to fight the weather like you. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 The thing I need to throw into the equation is although we get snow. It has been awhile since we have had a winter where it hung around this long. It usually melts most or all the way down before the next one comes in. I will look into the spear idea as taking weight off the front end makes sense. and with the quick tach would be easy to change between it and bucket and grapple. Fluid and or iron on the rear will get done also. Thanks for the ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acem Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Spear/forks/grapple is definitely a regional thing. Nobody uses a grapple for hay round here. Some use a grapple for cleaning brush but thats unusual too. 90% of the hay is fed with a spear on the front end loader and 3pt here. A spear can be cheaper and lighter than any other hay moving tool. Be sure to use the Grey German spears not the black Chinese. The difference is substantial. I use bale forks. They allow you to pick up the hay from any angle and you can move pallets. You'd be surprised how handy a set of forks are. With the spear and forks your bale is closer to the loader. I would like a grapple on a bucket for occasional use but they don't exist round here! Thx-Ace 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1256pickett Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 I will reiterate what ace and wp said, grapple is regional. I don’t think I’ve seen more than one or two around here, I can’t even remember where except off farms, logging and construction. It would be handy not to have to switch between forks and bucket all the time(I don’t have quick attach) but the forks are very handy. Forks do cost a little more than a spear but I will never go back to a spear. Forks are great for moving pallets or a pile of lumber and sometimes I run into a bale that is too dense to spear, just go under it. I have even moved wrapped balage without breaking the plastic (not often but sometimes it can be done) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iowaboy1965 Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 13 hours ago, acem said: How would these wheels do? Closest Neighbor told me a story once about his dad borrowing steel wheels for one of their tractors one particularly wet muddy fall..worked good. Then it froze one night. Said his dad was out there chopping and a cussing, chopping and a cussing till they got the wheels chopped out of the frozen mud. Never tried it again. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearclash Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 @sandhiller I went back and looked at the picture in your first post -- looking at where the bale is in relation to the loader arms etc -- you will gain very little by switching to a spear. The bale will not be any closer to the front axle of the tractor. The only gains will be a lighter attachment on the loader by some x? hundred lbs. We used to rely on a 2wd loader tractor pretty much exclusively to run the feeding side of a 125 cow dairy; a set of chains, a pair of iron wheel weights, and a 1900 lb weight on the 3 point got us by. It was an 85 hp tractor so not a lot bigger than yours. Then we went to a wheel loader, put R-4 tires on it, and never looked back. But it was nearly 3 times heavier than the loader tractor, and twice the hp. The tractor was open station and much nicer to jump on and off of compared to the wheel loader. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
int 504 Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 A follow up on the studded chains. They are off road only....will be hard on concrete and will do a number on pavement. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 8 minutes ago, 1256pickett said: I will reiterate what ace and wp said, grapple is regional. I don’t think I’ve seen more than one or two around here, I can’t even remember where except off farms, logging and construction. It would be handy not to have to switch between forks and bucket all the time(I don’t have quick attach) but the forks are very handy. Forks do cost a little more than a spear but I will never go back to a spear. Forks are great for moving pallets or a pile of lumber and sometimes I run into a bale that is too dense to spear, just go under it. I have even moved wrapped balage without breaking the plastic (not often but sometimes it can be done) I would not put pallet forks on the 656 because I regularly handle a ton of feed on a pallet. I have and old F20 reversed with a forklift mast that works well And when I get the Willmar Wrangler fixed, that works awesome with pallet forks because it is 4wd and has better reach than a regular forklift. Think it is rated around 2750# of lift Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandhiller Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 1 minute ago, int 504 said: A follow up on the studded chains. They are off road only....will be hard on concrete and will do a number on pavement. No concrete or pavement, just sand and maybe a bit of gravel road Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1256pickett Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Just now, sandhiller said: I would not put pallet forks on the 656 because I regularly handle a ton of feed on a pallet. I have and old F20 reversed with a forklift mast that works well And when I get the Willmar Wrangler fixed, that works awesome with pallet forks because it is 4wd and has better reach than a regular forklift. Maybe I should clarify. I have bale forks. They won’t handle a lot of weight (full pallet) but very handy. My father has pallet forks for his tractor and those do not work well for bales but he doesn’t have cows. There is a big difference between the two. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazy WP Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 This is light enough that I can move it around by hand. Just the bucket for my Leon is too heavy to move by hand. I don’t have $600 in it and I had all the metal cut and drilled. All I had to do was weld it up. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearclash Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 There are times I prefer pallet forks over bale forks to move round bales. Depends what exactly I am doing. Has to be 48” pallet forks for 5x6 bales though. There is a danger to using pallet forks to move bales as the bale can bounce off the forks where it wouldn’t with spears. A family I know lost a child to this type of incident. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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