IH 340 Utility Backhoe Attachment

[militiaman11]

Hello all. I have a 1961 IH340 Utility with a loader and i now find myself needing a backhoe for some work on my property. Primarily i want to relocate a lot of small trees, and having a backhoe would make this headache go much faster. i may also want to start a small tree business in the future. for now, this would be minor demand on the tractor. would use the backhoe attachment to dig around the tree and free it up, then the loader to move the tree to its new home. I will not be aggressive and will not abuse.

Does anyone have experience with a backhoe attachment on a 340 utility? can anyone recommend a particular model i should try to locate? it would be nice to have a backhoe attachment that has its own pump and isolated fluid, like my loader. but i can't afford to be picky. any make and model recommendation would be greatly helpful.

Thanks

 

[Janicholson]

Hello all. I have a 1961 IH340 Utility with a loader and i now find myself needing a backhoe for some work on my property. Primarily i want to relocate a lot of small trees, and having a backhoe would make this headache go much faster. i may also want to start a small tree business in the future. for now, this would be minor demand on the tractor. would use the backhoe attachment to dig around the tree and free it up, then the loader to move the tree to its new home. I will not be aggressive and will not abuse.

Does anyone have experience with a backhoe attachment on a 340 utility? can anyone recommend a particular model i should try to locate? it would be nice to have a backhoe attachment that has its own pump and isolated fluid, like my loader. but i can't afford to be picky. any make and model recommendation would be greatly helpful.

Thanks

I recommend a trailer mounted Hoe. Attachment is a hitch pin and maybe a PTo or hydraulics. They also come with an engine /pump to be self contained. There are few Fast hitch back hoes out there, and all that are mounted are not easily removed and replaced. Jim

 

[militiaman11]

Jim,

Thanks for the reply. Sorry I forgot to mention I have a 3-point category 2 hitch on the tractor. If this makes a difference to your recommendation. I know a lot of people use 3-point mounted backhoes and there are used units out there for sale.

 

[Janicholson]

Jim,

Thanks for the reply. Sorry I forgot to mention I have a 3-point category 2 hitch on the tractor. If this makes a difference to your recommendation. I know a lot of people use 3-point mounted backhoes and there are used units out there for sale.

That is a better circumstance. I don't have a specific recommendation, make sure that you have a easy method of holding it in position to attach/unattach. Make sure the hydraulics are capable of running it. Rear PTO driven pump, or engine driven front mount pump. Make sure the hitch sway limiters are both operational, and strong. Go for it. Jim

 

[bc]

John Deere sells a lot of 3 point backhoes of various sizes for their utility tractors of various sizes. I think Kubota may have some as well. I imagine they are all make by a third party. Assuming you can handle those colors on your tractor without throwing up.

 

[militiaman11]

Thanks for the help. Do either of you, or anyone else, know if a Kubota BL4690b backhoe would work on my IH340 utility with a category 2 3-point? It has a PTO driven pump for self-contained fluid and I believe the kubota tractors commonly used with these backhoes are smaller and lighter than the 340 utility. Just not sure if kubota units are special in some way and would be therefor incompatible.

 

[bc]

I don't know but it looks like that backhoe is a cat 1 made for a 25 to 45 hp tractor and looks like they need some kind of reinforced top link.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

Thanks for the help. Do either of you, or anyone else, know if a Kubota BL4690b backhoe would work on my IH340 utility with a category 2 3-point? It has a PTO driven pump for self-contained fluid and I believe the kubota tractors commonly used with these backhoes are smaller and lighter than the 340 utility. Just not sure if kubota units are special in some way and would be therefor incompatible.

Does it mount via a category 2 3-point? Does it have a 540RPM PTO shaft?

Your "category 2 3-point..." is it an actual 3-point hitch with separate arms, or is it the IH "3-point fast hitch" that IH made for a couple of years before the patents on the Ferguson hitch design expired? The "3-point fast hitch" is basically the same as a fast hitch mechanically, except the sockets are replaced with hooks that grab the 3pt pins on the implement.

If it's the second type, you need to take measurements. The spacing on the arms may not match the backhoe.

Keep in mind though, that anything can be made to fit with a torch and a welder.

 

[militiaman11]

Thanks for the input. i don't mind having something intended for a smaller tractor, as long as it fits. not trying to do anything really crazy, and i dont want to break anything on my tractor. my 3-point is a legit 3-point, not a 3-point fast hitch. i don't know if it came with that originally or if it was added later, but it is not fast hitch. category 2, with swivels in the lower arms to mount cat 1 or cat 2. i don't know if the reinforced top links will need some kind of adapter. also, i believe it would be best to have a PTO hydraulic pump for self-contained unit instead of sharing fluid, as i have read the demand for most 3-point backhoes are maybe 9-11gpm and the IH340 does about 7gpm with the stock pump.

 

[Jim Becker]

There was what IH called commercial 3-point hitch for the 340U. It had the standard 3-point linkage and geometry. It did not have Traction Control. It was intended for the highway mower etc. markets.

On the top link subject, take reinforced link etc. VERY SERIOUSLY. Think for a minute about what will happen if the top link fails while the backhoe is applying down pressure. A lot of what was space between the backhoe and the tractor suddenly goes away. All I have is second-hand stories, no specifics to cite. But the stories indicate that backhoe operators have died that way (easy to imagine).

 

[bc]

You should have plenty of tractor and horsepower. The 4690's should come with a pto driven pump. I found a pic of a 4790A backhoe with that heavy link. Should work for you as long as you aren't trying to dig a 20' deep sewer line.

It would be a start but what you need to do is try to engineer some kind of 3 point tree spade or one that replaces your backhoe bucket. I have some designs bouncing around in my head right now and all I've seen are the big truck mounted ones. They do make smaller ones for tractors and skid steers but are pricey.