Correctly tie down John Deere 3032e

[lonesomedove]

I am going to haul my John Deere 3032e tractor, it has a fel and a bh. I believe it weighs under 5000lbs. My question is can i
Use one G70 chain hooked on one side and around the front axle then to the other side. Then the same thing on the back also
a strap on the bh, or separate chains front and rear.

 

[RandyT]

One on the front axle and one on the rear axle, plus one for the BH and one for the FEL would be legal, but better off having one for each corner of the tractor ie 4 plus loader and backhoe.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Yes perfectly legal and safe to have one chain go from one side to the other, holding the axle in the middle ...

If your talking about using one REALLY long chain for the whole tractor, that "could" be possible, IF you used two binders, as in chain RF of trailer across the axle, add binder to tie into the LF of trailer, then have the excess lay on the floor of the trailer, loop the chain over the rear axle and hook the end of the chain to the RR of the trailer, then come back with a binder to tighten the chain to the LR of the trailer ... Two chains are easier ... I bought a 20' chain with hooks on both ends, and two extra hooks, cut the chain in half, added hooks ...

I prefer 4 chains, and 4 binders for my tractor ...

Yes, you should also put a strap/chain over the loader bucket, and the Backhoe (BH).

You can use straps if you prefer ... Just be aware of the working load limit (WLL) for example if you have a 5000 Lb tractor, you would need at the very minimum of 2, 2500 WLL rated chains/straps if you went completely from one side to the other with it tying into the tractor in the middle ... However if you secure it like I did mine above, you would need 4 chains/straps with a minimum WLL of 1250 Lbs ... Plus the 2 to put one over the loader, and another over the BH, or whatever rear attachment you have ...

 

[QRTRHRS]

Unless the rules have changed, if the backhoe can be pinned in the upright position it need not sit on the deck or be tied down for under 10k. That aside, best practice would be to set it on the deck and throw a single chain or a chaff protected strap over the bucket.

 

[RayIN]

I am going to haul my John Deere 3032e tractor, it has a fel and a bh. I believe it weighs under 5000lbs. My question is can i
Use one G70 chain hooked on one side and around the front axle then to the other side. Then the same thing on the back also
a strap on the bh, or separate chains front and rear.

Like this: https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/PPP/PPP-75.pdf

 

[Sportsman762]

@RayIN posted a good guide.
So for the legal aspect of tying down. Per 393.128.b.1 since you load is under 10K you must have at minimum 1 tie down on the front and the rear of the tractor.

Federal Register :: Request Access

www.ecfr.gov

However since you have a loader and a backhoe 393.130 applies. Per 393.130.b.1 you must also fully lower and put a tie down over the loader and a tie down over the backhoe. This does not count as your front and rear tie downs.

Federal Register :: Request Access

www.ecfr.gov

I prefer to go above the minimum and when hauling a backhoe I will run chains on the tractor like @Shawn T. W. but go from axle knee to opposite trailer side rather than to the brush guard / weight bracket. This controls the sideways motion and put the tie downs on completely separate parts of the tractor so in a crash you have a lower chance of that part failing. I use 3/8" grade 70 but in your application 5/16" would be much easier to handle and plenty strong. If you have 4 chains on the tractor DOT generally will leave you alone as that is what 393.130 requires.

Over the loader I run a chain between the bucket and the arms.
On the backhoe I run a chain through the bucket linkage as it will control the back and forth better.

There are lots of ways to tie equipment down and everyone has their own idea. But I would view the law (1 tie down on loader, 1 on tractor front, 1 on tractor rear, 1 on backhoe) as the minimum requirement.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

I'm not aware of any written state requirements for private use, but I try to follow the federal requirements, as I also have a CDL ... We have a thread here of what we see others "getting away with" towing "unsecured" loads ...

A couple more thoughts ... If you have Slow Moving Vehicle triangle on the back of the tractor, you should remove it if you plan on going over 20 mph ...

If you don't have rear landing gear like I do, it's best to put a chock block on the down hill side of the trailer tires, as you will see the rear of the trail will sag as you drive on it, and the front of the trailer will rise, and it can actually lift the rear of your tow vehicle off the ground where your parking brakes are, and the whole thing will take off rolling down hill!

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Just saw the following posted on another forum, posted yesterday ... They wrote:

The other day I trailered my tractor to my friend’s house five miles away. I used three straps, one over through the clevis on the drawbar, one in the middle over the backhoe frame, and one over the frame at the front where the brush guard mounts.

I will NEVER do that again.

Around a turn, the machine slid across the icy trailer deck. Thank god it didn’t slide right off.

From now on, I’ll be using four separate ties to each corner.

And here are the provided pictures ...

Four separate straps/chains on the tractor would have prevented this ...

 

[RjCorazza]

I prefer 4 point straps for my 7k lbs tractor. Someday I'll invest in chains and binders.

 

[Topzide]

20' of 5/16" chain will fit in a 30 cal HF ammo boxes. I have 2 boxes with 20" in each and 2 with 2 10' chains in them. Makes storage easier.

 

[nisaacs]

Just saw the following posted on another forum, posted yesterday ... They wrote:



And here are the provided pictures ...

View attachment 4721408

View attachment 4721409

Four separate straps/chains on the tractor would have prevented this ...

As would a half hitch at the clevis. A three point triangle tie down, needs a half hitch at the center point or you can have side movement issues.