Recent content by jacspath

The dumbest thing I think I [still] do is try to forget my dumb mistakes. I can think of at least 4 of them that I have managed to repeat in 40 years of 'tractoring'.

I run 3 different 'mixes'. 1] No oil for the lawn mower 2] 40:1 for the weed whacker 3] 50:1 for the Husky chain saw I use a black marker and write on each 2.5 gal can what is in it and what it's for. BIG LETTERS

It is a diesel which means that it has no spark plug. The way it fires a cylinder is because at the higher pressure in a diesel cylinder it gets hot enough to fire the fuel/air mixture. So in cold weather, you just need to find a way to crank it longer between having the glo plug on. Each...

The last time I bought a new tractor [don't ask how long ago that was], I was looking at Deere and a MF. Both dealers brought my model out to my place for a test drive [which lasted a week]. I went with the MF [on price since they both impressed me equally]. I wonder if any dealers still do...

I hired a GC on a T&M basis [with a set price for the use of his equipment for the finished project]. He had all the subs and crew [also hourly dudes] and skills and I chose him because he had built a house that I was using as my model home. And, he lived in the neighborhood. AND, I was...

Don't forget that every time a piston cycles, it severly compresses the fuel/air mix which heats it a lot [converting energy from the starter into heat]. If your battery is in good enough shape it should crank enough rotations to do the same work as the glo plug. I no longer use a block...

I'm a tad older than you are [by 30 years] and have been running a 20" Husky for years and highly recommend it. And, some years ago was given an 18" bar and a couple of chains for this saw [the owner of the saw burned up the engine] which I have switched off with my 20" on occasion and I find...

My experience in 'comparing colors' was very instructive. My bro and I were on the verge of taking over the farm [owned by my dad but farmed by his bro, our uncle who was slowly retiring]. We needed a new 30-40 hp machine and my dad somehow talked local dealers to 'lend' us a JD and a Ford for...

I think SR has given you a clue as to why the prior owner covered it with earth. Lot's of good suggestions here but turning broken eggs into an omelet, I'd look for a contractor who wants to buy it.

As Mr. crap-in-his-pants above has so well illustrated, keeping ones mind on all of the variables when in hilly terrain can put you in a serious situation at sudden unthinking moments. I leave mine in 4 all the time except when on pavement [which is maybe 5% of my typical week]. I prefer to...

We used to have this problem a lot. Ours would get out on the road. But the neighbors would get into our hay fields. We helped them with fence repair, but they were not very interested in doing a good job as long as we were on the case. It all got solved when my brother married their...

I would never put one of these things on my Kubota. I believe it will [as many have mentioned] give a totally false [and possibly fatal] sense of security and would lead me into over riding that pucker on my seat. As Piloon points out so eloquently, to use it you would have to test it out in...

Well you creative girls and boys who are into recycling just about everything on the farm, I'm interested in what you do with worn out chainsaw chains that can no longer be sharpened effectively. That is after they get used on rocks to the point that they won't even hack their way through...

I wonder what the story is for those who have been prosecuted/sued for 'violating' the 'old rules'. They probably have a bit of an uphill to get restitution.

Get a softer seat or padded pants. Be careful about lowering pressure too much which might ruin the sidewalls, but that will give you a bit more traction.