Garden Tractor Info

Front end loaders are one of the most useful, and often most expensive, attachment for your garden tractor. There are some less expensive copies of front end loaders, usually called a scoop or bucket, that will move a load from one area to another but they don’t do the work that a front end loader can do. I’ve never regretted getting a new front end loader for my John Deere 140 garden tractor in 1973. We have worked that tractor and loader hard for 34 years and the tractor and loader are still working hard. That little tractor and front end loader has moved many attachments, pulled engines out of cars and trucks, moved tons of snow, the list is endless. I just couldn’t get my work done without my JD 140 and my modified John Deere 318 with a custom front end loader we call “the Bird”. Some questions and answers about front end loaders:

Q: I recently started building a front end loader for a John Deere 318 garden tractor and have run up against a problem, I do not know much about hydraulics. I already have 4 cylinders with a 11/2 inch bore and an 18 inch stroke they are rated at 2500 psi max and plumbed with 1/4 lines. My question is on the pump how many gallon per minute should this loader take and what should the working pressure be? I would like this loader to operate quickly but not so fast that it is hard to control.

A: I don’t know the pressure; I just adjust the relief valve to lift a 600 lb load. The new loader built in the 70’s came with a 4 gallon per minute pump and worked okay.

Q: We have a John Deere 5300 tractor with a 520 front loader/bucket attachment. The bucket will raise but will not dump. Could you tell me what to look for so I can fix this?

A: Check out if your hydraulic tip bucket valve is mechanically operating from your single lever linkage.

Q: I have a John Deere 430 garden tractor. I have a home made loader that I want to put on my 430. I was wondering if I would be able to use the auxiliary hydraulics to run the loader, or if I would have to run a pump off the front PTO. I’ve been told that if I use the auxiliary lines that I might lose my drive power when I move the loader.

A: Yes you can hook onto your current hydraulic couplers for a front end loader. The only thing is the loader does not move up and down very fast. Your hydraulic transmission will work fine while using the loader.

If you live in an area that gets snowfall, then snow removal has been on your mind. Even though we are in Minnesota, close to the Twin City area, we don’t have a ground covering yet, everyone is getting ready because we know it’s coming.

We have quite a few different options for sale so you can get the job done. Our ATV or 4 wheeler snowblower attachment has been very popular and we’ve sold out quite a few times this year. I’ve learned that the snowblowers and blade/plows are a popular item with the ATV - 4 wheeler crowd. They don’t just ride them, they work them! Our 2 stage snow thrower has a big 23 horsepower engine in it and it can really throw the snow.

The garden tractors are what we personally use, I honestly use a blade most of the time because we tend to get consistent snow instead of getting dumped on. We sell 2 sizes of new Bercomac push blades and have used John Deere blade - plows.

Out East they get dumped on and many of our 2 stage snowblowers are getting shipped out there. We carry the new Bercomac snowblowers for almost any brand of garden tractor and we have used John Deere snowblowers too.

I have the luxury of having a yard full of tractors so I have one with a snow blower on it ready to use if we get a heavy snowfall. I also have a front end loader on my “Bird” the modified John Deere 318. I move snow with it keeping the bucket on the ground pushing the snow. It has headlights in the bucket so I can see what I’m doing at night. The Bird has an 23 horsepower Vanguard engine in it and with some weights on the rear, wheel weights, and fluid in the tires it can go most anywhere under all conditions. My little 33 year old John Deere 140 has a front end loader on it too. He has a 16 horsepower Vanguard engine and is weighted down, he’s out there working in every snowfall too. You should see the little guy pull cars that are stuck out of the snow drifts.

The Winter wind likes to take the snow you’re moving and blow it right in your face, for that we have the universal garden tractor cabs. This tractor cab is made of woven polyethylene and has a tubular galvanize steel frame. The windows are flexible PVC and the cab has Velcro openings that give access to the rear gas tank and under the hood. All of the tractor and snow removal equipment controls remain inside the cab. It is equipped with large air vents to prevent accumulation of carbon monoxide.

I you need weight to get your equipment to do the job it’s meant to do, we have suitcase weights and front and rear suitcase brackets to hang the the weights on your tractor. We have the garden tractor wheel weights too.

So get out there and move the snow!

Jim does a lot of modifications on the garden tractors to get just what he wants out of them. Our shop tractor, ” The Bird ” was one of those many projects done. If you would like to read about all of the modifications to this John Deere 318 garden tractor we have a web site page that explains them all. Jim even put headligts in the front end loader bucket. Rick writes asking how to accomplish attaching a front end loader to his Cub Cadet 3165:

Q: I have a Cub Cadet Series 3000 (3165), that my dad left me. The 3000 series originally offered a front end loader as an attachment, but only on the 20 HP and above versions. This 16 HP has a rugged enough frame for the job, can be fitted with a 3 point hitch, and has a 48” mower deck. I don’t want to buy a bigger tractor, this is just the right size.

Is there any loader that will adapt to this machine? Would I have to “repower” up to a 23 HP Vanguard?

A: If your engine is in average condition you will not have to worry about your 16 horsepower being too small to run a front end loader, that engine will easily handle the load.

Q: OK Jim, You have my attention. The tractor is in very good shape so that’s not an issue. The questions that come to mind are: 1) Have you, or anyone ever attempted this combination before? 2) Will my axles stand the strain of the increased loads?

A: Yes, I have put loaders on the 1250, 1450, 782, and 982 Cub Cadets in the past. You said earlier that the 3000 series had offered a loader for them, therefore I think it sounds strong enough. Although I have broken axles before, and I have broken more than one. I had the big wide balloon 15″ tires on my tractor with 30 gallons of liquid in each tire. 60 gallons X 8 pounds = 480 lbs plus 14 John Deere suitcase weights hanging on the back at 42 pounds each X 14 = 588 pounds. Then I also built a roll bar that takes
2 guys to lift and mounted it on the tractor, guessing the weight on that to be about 200 lbs. Then the loader empty weighs 400 lbs. You should easily be able to haul 600 lbs. in the loader. An average garden tractor will weigh 700 lbs., all adding up to 2968 lbs. And that’s not all, I put in a 23 horsepower Vanguard engine ahead of all this weight and then wonder why I break axles once in a while.

No you do not have to do all of this to make a garden tractor and a front end loader work. I guess I just enjoyed doing the work of what a $30,000 tractor will do. If you are the type that likes to revamp and build things or know of someone like that to help you, when you get it all said and done it will be something to be very proud of and a very useful piece of equipment that will save your back and much more.