IF You are a Tractor Operator in your ROOKIE Season.

[AxleHub]

If you weren't cold sober when you started down, I bet you were by the time you were out of danger.. Sober and "puckered"

But when he was done he probably had the "d.t. shakes" something fierce . . . knowing everything turned out ok allows this to have a little humor . . But I've been on a slope with soft ground (no sidehill or fel bucket of dirt) . . And you can feel the dirt "give" and thats not a fun feeling.

 

[AxleHub]

Well.. give it a try both ways.. I have.. I know you don't believe going down backwards is better,, but it is.. And the main reason it is better is because the rear axle is solid. It does not pivot, And when you are light in the rear end by going down forwards, you are riding on an axle that pivots on the sidehill. This causes the entire tractor to start to tip over. You have got to keep that rear end planted on the ground. Going down backwards, even when he did not have anything on the 3pt would have solved his problem as the weight transfer by going down backwards would have shifted overall weight to the solid rear end.

K0ua,

Its not that I'm against backing down a short slope. But a long steep slope would take some re-learning as . . If you start to slip/slide or to reverse fishtail . . there's no alternatives to save yourself.

In motorcycling I learned you do whatever it takes facing the problem because you can at least steer . . But going backwards for anything other than a short distance on a slope was always a sure wipeout.

 

[hillsandtrees]

In motorcycling I learned you do whatever it takes facing the problem because you can at least steer . . But going backwards for anything other than a short distance on a slope was always a sure wipeout.

Tractor ≠ motorcycle.


Really, listen to the guys here.

 

[Wagtail]

Sorry Axlehub, but James is 100% correct and for the reasons he said.

This is also what is taught on a standard Industrial Forklift License course... and that's for a wee 2-3% gradient ramp.

We've got some fair sized slopes here in Tassie that I've fetched 5' hay rounds from = drive up & slooooowly back down.

 

[gladehound]

One thing that I didn't see mentioned (and I apologize if it was and I missed it). But before going down a hill, (and for the sake of discussion we'll assume it is a hill that is possible to go down without incident) you need to know which axle has more weight on it. The heavy end of the tractor should always point up hill. If you have a big brush hog on and no loader, the tractor is already nearly completely balance over the rear axle. In this example, you want to go down the hill frontwards. If you have no weight on the 3 point and a load of dirt in the bucket, you definitely wan to go down backwards.

Keep the heavy side up!

That being said, most people have way to little weight on the 3pt and in most cases, backing down is the better choice. Other benefits of backing down include larger tires going first so that they don't sink in soft ground as much. Non-pivoting end of the tractor going first keeps you more stable.

Let's talk about the pivoting front axle a little. Maybe some do not yet realize it, but we are essentially driving tricycles around (I know that doesn't sound manly but it is the truth!). The front axle provides absolutely no initial side to side stability. However, it does have stops and once you hit them it will provide some secondary stability but this comes after you've already lifted a rear tire and probably wouldn't stop a role on a hill. If you don't believe me, lift the front of your tractor with your loader and move a font wheel up and down and watch that axle just tilt from side to side with no resistance.

Imagine riding a tricycle frontwards down a hill. It is very easy to tip, just like tractor. Now reverse the wheels so that you have two up front and one in the back like one of those Polaris motorcycle things (can remember what they are called). With the two wheels in front, you drive your reverse tricycle down the hill easily. By backing your tractor down a hill, you are making a reverse tricycle. Don't know if that helped anyone but I figured I'd give it a shot.

 

[jenkinsph]

I agree with keeping the heavy end up the hill and move slowly.

Really a rookie operator should get some seat time on safer ground projects first. Recognize that a much smaller load in the fel may be best if the conditions, slope are adverse. If you care about your property consider the effects of tractor operation on these slopes, erosion problems caused by your tractor slipping can be difficult to resolve. Finally some slopes are too steep to put your tractor on, be careful out there.

 

[mecan]

Little thing I learned last night. Watch how high you raise the 3pt with the rops down. Went to pull the kubota out of the garage (door to small to leave rops up) and raised the blade up. Went to change to the ballast barrel and my top Link is no longer staight. At least it's a relatively cheap learning experience.

 

[jix]

MECAN I do not understand.... What caused tour top link to be bent?..Were you towing it out backwards, or towing it out forwards.. and was the bottom of the ballast carrier in contact with the ground at the time it was being moved? Or did the ballast box top link get bent by the force of the TPH being lowered too under hydraulic power?
jix

 

[jix]

or did the rops bar come into contact with the top link during the operation of raising the of the TPH?

 

[mecan]

or did the rops bar come into contact with the top link during the operation of raising the of the TPH?

This. Just not thinking about how it's so low when folded down. Stopped at the dealer to see how overpriced it would be, 145ish. Then he says unless you don't mind if it's aftermarket and not oem then it'll be around 20. Went ahead and had them order it, there real convenient a 2 min detour heading home from work.