[blown67]

Well after seeing the great threads of the weight boxes being built here and here I really didn't have a plan to build one until the other day at work they were taking down the temporary safety railings at a new building that is be built and they were tossing the 2"x2"x1/8" steel angles, so I grabbed about ten 4' lengths and brought them home, always good to have. I basically used the same design as the the ones I have seen being built here except for reversing the top angle, my plan is to fill it with sand. I will be bringing home a few pieces of 16 gauge sheet metal from some duct work that was made wrong for the building and was also headed for the dumpster. I calculated the volume of the box is just over 3 cubic feet, and sand is roughly 100lbs per cubic foot so about 300 plus the 20 or so pounds for the box. How much is ok to hand off the back before the front wheels start to come up? And on a side note my self taught welding skills are starting to improve.

My little Ryobi saw I saved from the dumpster at our warehouse about 5 years ago when someone cut the cord off by accident gave all it had for this project, I knew it was getting warm but with all the smoke from cutting it was hard to tell just how hot it really was.....
I thought it would go out by itself, no luck, had to dowse out the flames.... it was a good little saw, rest in peace buddy.

 

[deerenut]

Holy s**t that is hot... well at least it was free. :trink40:

 

[Kansas John Deere]

isnt that a wood mitre saw? And yes your weld look really good to me. I had 400 lbs lifted on my 3pt. and the front wheels stayed on the ground if thats help you any.

 

[blown67]

It was wood miter box, but our warehouse guys but the metal blade on it to cut light gauge metal studs from time to time. Funny thin is we have about 10 14" DeWalt chop saws....

 

[beabruin]

Nice looking welds on that weight box. Sorry about your saw. I don't think the saws designed for wood are as heavy duty as the ones designed for metal. At least is was free.

 

[PA318Guy]

Well it seems it's weight and ballast box year this year! Certainly have been some interesting designs to follow!

 

[esnb74]

Well it seems it's weight and ballast box year this year! Certainly have been some interesting designs to follow!

So true. There are a lot of threads on here about it right now.

:trink39:

 

[Hugh-SS/16]

Well it seems it's weight and ballast box year this year! Certainly have been some interesting designs to follow!

Last year was loading tires year... I wonder what will be next??

 

[blown67]

With the holidays and everything else going on I didn't any have any time to work on it, but today I had the time to finish it, it holds 6 50lb bags of play sand for 300 even, and the box itself weighs almost 25 so now I think I'm ready, just need some of the white stuff. I forgot to take pics of it but I put a small door in the bottom of it so I can back up to the kids sand box in the spring and empty it out.

 

[Nouveau Redneck]

You might want to cover the top with some plastic sheeting so water doesn't get in there if you think that you're close to having the front wheels come off the ground. You might be surprised how much more wet sand weighs than dry sand, and plowing during a snow storm would definitely add some water weight to that sand the way it sits.

 

[blown67]

Very good point, didn't think of that I have enough sheet metal to make a top cover for it, well I thought I was done..... :fing32:

 

[MXZRXP]

weight box looks great!

rayobi tools are less than optimal and meant for home/occasional use.

I have a few rayobi's and again for home use they work fine but in a commercial enviornment they won't last long, and that is why they are SO MUCH cheaper than commercial brands... yes, you get what U pay for -


often times I do not need a dewalt, 350$ router that would last me 100 years, when I use it < once a year in those cases rayobi is a welcome alturnative, poulan is the same for small yard tools...


.

 

[Leinie]

Cover will also keep the cats out - if you know what I mean !

I'd make the top flip up and keep a scoop in there so you can throw some sand on icy spots .

Salt sand would cause rust problems , but regular sand will still be a good aid for traction or walking on Icy drives and sidewalks.

You could also take out enough sand to make room for some ice melt stored in a couple of plastic coffee containers and spread as needed.
I'm thinking more for cars and pedestrans that your tractor., I doubt you'll need any to keep your tractor moving.
Nice work!

 

[shawnw]

That's pretty awesome that you took the time to grab a camera, even though you had a fire taking off. I would have done the same thing!

 

[POENY]

Looks great. I had the same cat thought...

What is the distance between the pavement and the bottom? The angle on the last pic makes it look lower than the other one.

Thanks for sharing the project and pics!

 

[blown67]

I think it was just the picture angle, at it lowest point, the angle that runs underneath the box to the hitch plate is 4 1/2 inches off the ground, I am going to trim the end of that piece back on an angle, when exiting the driveway to the road there is only about an inch of clearance right now.

 

[blown67]

Almost forgot the most important part.

 

[Leinie]

Nice touch !

Dont forget to check the front and make sure your grill emblem is in place before leaving the garage