Yes, I think a box blade is not meant to do that. They make rear blade attachments. Not sure that would work either. This would. I better quit hijacking this thread.
I think I transgressed first. I was considering starting a new thread and having Ken move these posts over.
I posted the story of my most recent tractor attachment in this comment in the "Online Purchases" thread, and caused some side-discussions. So I though perhaps a dedicated thread on All Things Tractors might be of use. I'll ask the mods to move those conversations over here, so be warned that the first few postings might seem to be disjointed and lacking clear context...it's not the result of inhaling too many diesel fumes. I bought a Kubota B3200 Compact tractor in 2010 when I moved to my current property. It's a 32hp 4 wheel drive tractor with hydrostatic transmission, meaning it's not a manual shift and it doesn't "shift gears" (just like the constant velocity transmissions in some cars, like Hondas, except that tractors had it first.) Kubota classifies their tractors as Sub-Compact (16.6-24.8 HP), Compact (20.9-62.0 HP) and Utility (63.5-133.0 HP.) I bought a new tractor rather than used because I've never owned one, so needed dealer support and product manuals (plus they offered 0% financing on the tractor and all the accessories.) I live on 51 acres (7 acres cleared + 44 acres lightly wooded) at the end of a 1/2 mile long right-of-way. The most hours that get put on my tractor are for cutting the grass (4-5 hours per session), but I use it for lots and lots of projects on my property, keeping our right-of-way clear, and helping out my 2 neighbors down here. Here's what I've amassed after 12 years of ownership: -Front end loader (new with the tractor) -Backhoe (new with the tractor) -Belly mower (new with the tractor) -PTO rototiller (new with the tractor) -Large shovel, clamps to front end loader (new, online purchase) -Debris forks, clamps to front end loader (new, online purchase) -Small tree puller, clamps to front end loader (new, online purchase) -Serrated bar to put on the leading edge of the bucket (new, online purchase) -Single bottom plow, 12" (Craigslist) -Cultivator (Craigslist) -Post hole digger (Craigslist) -Box blade (Craigslist) -Landscape rake (new, on order for Sept 2022 delivery) One of the most useful (and low cost) things I purchased were these hooks that clamp on to the front end loader bucket: Most tractor owners have hooks welded onto their buckets to attach chains to, for a variety of tasks. These are less expensive than doing that, and can be moved around (or taken off) as the situation demands.
@Faye Fox @Nancy Hart I started a tractor thread here and asked for our comments to be moved to there.
Have a very high interest in tractors, but only the kind that farmers use for field crops. John Deere, IH (International Harvester), Farmall, Case and Massey-Ferguson. Tractors have changed considerably since the 60's field work ones. A neighbor of ours had a tractor that had to be cranked from the front to start. Reach around and pull a rope to let the plough down.
I've used one of those...a 1933 Harvester International that my dad picked up when he bought a few acres to put his mobile home on. We cleared it ourselves and used the tractor to pull stumps and drag trees. It was a tank. And the commercial ag tractors that farmers use go well beyond the legacy American brands. Just about everyone that makes a tractor is in that market now. But the largest growing segment is the "hobby farms." I ordered that landscape rake, and it has a 4 month lead time (down from 6 months) because more and more people are realizing that in order to ensure their survival and the survival of their families in this nation, they have to be as self-sufficient as possible. The manufacturer of that rake and of all other attachment types tells me that they ship to new farmers in all 50 states, mostly on 40-50 acre lots. By all means, post the tractors that interest you here so we can pool our knowledge.
I've got a lot of use out of all of those attachments except that tree puller. Those green flaps are hinged steel plates that open up when you slide the assembly around a small tree. The idea is that the plates are supposed to pinch closed and grab the tree when you raise the thing so you can pluck the tree out of the ground. The issues are: -it does not grab all trees very well...it often just slides up the tree and strips off the bark --it could really use teeth or serrated edges to dig in -there are times that is doesn't even grab hard enough to strip off the bark...it just slides up -those times that is does get a good grip, the roots are often too deep and my tractor cannot pull the tree out I also think that the plates need to be separated some. They don't close enough around even the smallest of trees to get a consistent grab...but the thing is also designed to pull brush. I don't know how well it does extracting fence posts. I imagine if you have a bunch you needed to yank for some reason, the puller would be of benefit, since they aren't covered with slippery bark. I've helped my neighbor pull up an old fence with my tractor, but those were modern metal posts so we hooked my chain to my front end loader, wrapped it around the posts, the lifted up the bucket...they plucked right out of the ground.
One of my neighbors has a Kubota with a front-end loader, backhoe, and a mower. Great tractors for small acreages, but also handy on large farms and ranches for all the small jobs that seem to come up often. The old sickle bar cutters and side delivery rakes have been replaced with swathers. We rarely see small bales around here as most are the 4'x 4' x 8' that weigh in around 1500 lbs. They require a special pickup wagon that even stacks the bales. Those that grow hay for their own use, use the round bales. They are easier to feed in the winter. Tractors have changed and we see every type made around here with the large ranches and huge corporate farms as well as small acreage farming and ranchettes. Here are some of the huge wheat farms common in Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington. Many are made in circles for pivot wheel line irrigation. They are worked with huge 4-wheel drive tractors and even some track tractors. They pull several plow arrays at once.
It's interesting that some of the large farms will have a compact tractor that functions more as a farm hand than it does as ag equipment. I find that mine comes in real handy for lots of odd stuff. My neighbor had a tree fall on his property, and his wife came by to fetch me & my tractor to help. Rather than have to cut the thing up in human-manageable sizes, I was able to get under it, lift it for him to get his saw through, and then I carted off the large hunks into his woods and dumped them. Easy Peasy. When we cleared our right-of-way and did other stuff with the rented skid loader, his yard got torn up. I attached my pto tiller and scratched up all the bare spots so he could toss some grass seed on them. I use it when I have firewood delivered and I'm rotating inventory from one rack to another. I fill the bucket, carry it to the rack, then set it at waist level for me to grab the wood and stack without bending over. Funny you should mention the shape of bales...I've seen nothing but round bales here. I just figured it was easier (and cheaper) to roll the hay up than to have a machine put it up into blocks. So educate me: what is pivot wheel line irrigation?
I just have a small tractor, but it suits our needs well. I originally got a small one because I needed to go between trees and get into goat stalls to clean them after our kids moved out. We use the front-end loader the most. I designed a manure/compost fork for the bucket and one of my son-in-laws built it for me using my welder. That works well except when my wife tries to remove stumps with it. It is also hydrostatic, which originally I didn't like as the whiny noise gets on my nerves, but without it the tractor would have been much less useful for what we use it for and my wife probably wouldn't use a standard tractor. We do work the ground with it in the spring and fall. I have a fencepost puller that I used a lot when we had goats and sheep, as we moved pasture areas to prevent over-grazing. If you decide to have a large garden, I have found that if I remove every other tine from the landscape rake, it makes an acceptable rock gatherer. I don't know if you have that problem, but those of us who live on an old glacial moraine have that issue. They do make small tree and brush pullers with teeth, but I don't know if they work well or not. I don't have a backhoe attachment, when it was as expensive as the entire tractor when I originally bought it, and my impression of them, while handy to have around, do less than acceptable work when compared to a small excavator should the need arise. Do you have any Bolt-on hooks or Heavy Hitch attachments/implements, @John Brunner?
The rectangular bales are mainly for commercial hay growers. They are easy to stack on flatbed semis and secure. The round bales are for feeding on the ranch. Wheel lines may pivot 90 degrees or make a full 360. They swivel at the feeder pipe and the wheels are controlled for speed. Each set of wheels has its own motor.
I'll have to get some pics of the farms around me. It's an interesting sight, being just a couple of hours outside of DC. This is the Green Springs District. I've mentioned before that the state was gonna erect a prison here, so the locals got together and had it declared a "National Historic Landmark District" to prevent that from happening. As a result, none of the farms can be developed.
John, it was called an International Harvester, not Harvester International. Like I've already stated, John, only farm/crop tractors interest me. Nothing dealing with construction or anything else. Although there are tractors with a front fork attached, for picking up and loading large round bales of hay. And, there is also a tractor with a crop chemical sprayer attached to it. Very costly, very.