B5100 with a one bottom plow

[tackepj]

I recently bought a 1978 B5100 (2WD). It's in great shape, only has about 540 hrs, and is just about the right size. I bought it for moving snow with a grader blade and hauling around my DR field & brush mower, which was giving my wimpy Craftsman fits. So far all I've added was a battery maintainer and a block heater. It recently fired right up at 8 degrees.

I'd like to extend my garden this spring into an unused pasture, and was wondering if anyone had any experience with this model and a one-bottom plow. I haven't bought one yet (used seem to be hard to come by), and I don't want to invest in a new one unless I'm sure this will work. Is the tractor strong enough to do the job? All it needs to do is break the ground so that I can get in there with my tiller.

My one worry is that it came with turf tires. They haven't been an issue in the snow, which was a pleasant surprise, other than the fronts tend to float and make it difficult to steer. Any advice on this model and the plow would be appreciated...I'm an admitted newbie on this stuff.

 

[skeets]

well try this link its not yours but a little one just the same

http://www.everythingattachments.com/Everything-Attachments-Compact-Tractor-Plow-p/eta-12-plow.htm

this is what they recomond for your little toy

http://www.everythingattachments.com/Kubota-BX5100-Attachments-Specs-s/3902.htm#recommend

 

[bcbull378]

Im not sure what the HP is with your tractor but I have a L3830 4x4 and it pulls a 2 bottom plow like its not there . I have photos in the gallery of the plow on the tractor. Good luck finding a plow I looked for a year then found 2 with in a week I bought them both one to use and another for parts. Ferguson 12a 2 bottom plows made in the late 30s....Dan

 

[Kytim]

I have had some experience with this. Your turfs are going to be just about useless plowing. It takes a lot of torque transfer to pull that plow. It might be more of an anchor. I have two single bottom plows a b6000dt and a b7100dt. When one of the plows was hooked to a b6000E (2wd) I used to have just sat and spin. I really think ags are a min and may not work in your soil conditions. It was much diff with the DT and ags. even using a coulter and guide wheel didn't make any difference in virgin ground. In previously worked ground in have no exprience w/2WD.

A strange observation is that the lighter of the two plows I have cut much deeper and consistent furrows. Not what I expected.

 

[skeets]

Brother I would think it would have to do with the shape of the plow share, and the angle of attack in to the ground. I think thats why the old ford plows worked so well, they were just a little bit different that the others so Im thinking while weight might play a part the geomitery would make the difference. And I would think that filling the rear tires would help a bunch as well, I don't know that for a fact,,,just sayin

 

[284 International]

I would listen to Kytim, since he has actually tried what we are discussing here. In general, pulling ground engaging implements is all about weight and traction.

I've got a Yanmar 1401D with a loader that is the next size up from the B6000, much like the B6000 is a step up from the B5100. The Yanmar weighs about 1170 lbs before the loader, while the B6000 is 1050 lbs before the loader.

The difference in how much the two will pull is significant. Some of that is the slightly larger tires on the Yanmar compared to the Kubota, and some is the greater weight overall (My Yanmar's loader is heavier built than the Kubota's, but not vastly so.). I estimate the Yanmar is about 200 lbs heavier than the B6000 as I have them ballasted. Both have heavily lugged tires on them, the Yanmar very deep "rice paddy" style tires, and the Kubota normal R-1 tractor tires. Tire tread patterns make a significant difference as well. On the up side, the turf tires will sometimes hold much more ballast than other types.

I've used my plow (a 2 bottom 12 inch) behind the Yanmar, but it did poorly. I have never bothered with the Kubota; I already know it won't do it usefully. I have a gauge wheel for setting the cutting depth, but even with that Yanmar, to be able to pull it at a proper speed the cutting depth is too low to do much in virgin ground.

The very little subcompacts, like your B5100 or my B6000, are very light for turning soil. As a frame of reference, they aren't much heavier than large ATVs. In a 2wd B5100 with turf tires, I don't think you'll be doing much pulling of multiple bottom plows. You MIGHT be able to get away with a small single bottom blow if you fill and/or weight the rear tires. You will, barring extraordinary circumstances, almost always run out of traction long before you run out of power. Adding weight to the tires (and a corresponding amount to the front based upon the implement) will really help the stability and usefulness of your tractor.

I would suggest a middle buster/potato plow and/or a subsoiler, as suggested previously. I'll give a stronger recommendation for a box blade, though. The ripper shanks will do a good job (Buy longer ones if you want to go deeper) and you can vary the load on the tractor according to how many you install.

Cross-hatch the field with your box blade, and the tiller should work very well. If you do have sod you need to turn over, or you want to roll it over in the fall to freeze and break up the clods over the winter, pre-ripping everything with the box blade or the middle buster would let the turning plow work more easily.

If you were really going to get serious and had grass or weeds that required it, I would look into having a bracket welded onto my box blade or middle buster to mount coulter wheels. (I'd try the garden bedder disks first. ) It's astounding how much resistance grass can give to even a large tractor trying to uproot it by brute strength. A coulter blade will slice the strands first, and greatly reduce the drag on the tractor.

Is your tiller a tractor mounted unit, or a walk behind? How big an area are you looking at converting?