Pulling With The Bucket.??

[JDGreenGrass]

I (with help) ran new wire from my garage to the house panel. The old wire was in black plastic pipeing....heavier than say, PVC. It was well buried in the ground and I wanted it up and out-of-there.

I hooked onto the buried "conduit" with a slip chain that wrapped around the backside of my bucket and attached at the bucket hook, top center on the bucket.

The first half pulled out of the ground real good. Easy. Then it got harder so I gave the tractor more throttle. I had to steer away from an obstacle behind me and as I applied throttle the rear right tire came right up off the ground about a foot and a half. I barely noticed it until my line of sight had changed. Instinct put my foot into the clutch and stopped all movement.

I got to thinking...this is one way to flip a tractor. I was in low gear so things were happening relatively slowly, it was very subtle that the tractor quietly "reared up." Remember, I had cut the wheel so I was cock-eyed....if I was pulling straight back I would have gone up onto my front wheels. But, because I was pulling off the corner of the bucket, just the right rear came up on me.

I also realized it was probably a good way to bend the loader arms. I have an SMC loader.

Is it a no-no to pull with the bucket.??

The pucker factor went up. I felt like I could have come off the tractor in a dramatic face plant with only the tractor to follow.!!

 

[Transit]

You should have used the TOW BAR at the rear of the tractor, that is what it is for, pulling.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

Transit....You are correct. Laziness caused me to not take off the rear blade.

K7LN....Yes, the bucket was 2 or 3 feet up off the ground. "Straight line" says it all. That was my problem in that I had a raised bed directly behind me...I had to steer clear of that and it put the chain off the corner of the bucket.

I was amazed at how quietly I could have flipped the whole rig. I am blessed the tractor didn't just lay-over. It was that close.

 

[Diamondpilot]

My neighbor just about got killed doing just this with his New Holland tractor. He had a tree all across the drive in a storm. He needed to get to work so he went out to just pull it off. He had his young son with him who hooked the chain up to the tree then the bucket. He put the tractor in 4x4 and started to back up. It lifted the rear and his instinct was to press in the clutch. It slammed to the ground and his foot slipped off the clutch causing it to happnen again and again. His son said he was laughing so hard. Looked like he was riding a bull in a rodeo. He said it took 4 or 5 revolutions for him to finally get control and this to stop. He was hanging on so tight he bent the steering wheel.


Always pull from the rear and below the axle line. Any pull, front or back, above the axle line will cause the opposite axle to lighten or come up off the ground and possibly a flip over.

Chris

 

[JDGreenGrass]

I have learned.

Now, I am hopeing with this post, others will learn too.

 

[ovrszd]

The safety police will be all over me for this comment. I have at least one tire off the ground frequently and have two off the ground ocassionally. You haven't tapped the ability of the tractor's pulling capacity until you have a tire off the ground.

 

[KPark]

I'm guilty of this as well. I like to keep the logs I pull relatively clean for sawing up, so I'll slip hook the log and attach to the bucket hooks. Then I can lift the log so that only one end is dragging and move it to where I want it. My saw lasts longer this way. Sometimes the wheels will start to come up or the tractor will start to shift one or another direction.

When this happens I'll either get a better angle on it or just cut the log into two and make two trips.

 

[TripleR]

The safety police will be all over me for this comment. I have at least one tire off the ground frequently and have two off the ground ocassionally. You haven't tapped the ability of the tractor's pulling capacity until you have a tire off the ground.

You are not alone, but I won't disclose who else...

 

[tungularafishcamp]

I thought that's y they come with 4 tires so you could have at least 3 on the ground most of the time:laughing:
Rick

 

[SPYDERLK]

The safety police will be all over me for this comment. I have at least one tire off the ground frequently and have two off the ground ocassionally. You haven't tapped the ability of the tractor's pulling capacity until you have a tire off the ground.

! :thumbsup::thumbsup: ! :thumbsup:

 

[RoyJackson]

I pull light loads with my loader/bucket on occasion. Most often is when I'm pulling a tree or branch out...the butt end is in the bucket so it doesn't dig in. Also, these aren't "big" trees...5-8 inches or so in diameter.

As far as JDGreenGrass's situation, I think I'd have gotten a repurchase on that tubing once it got harder to pull...matter of leverage.
Of course, I wasn't there, so the correct thing to do (IMHO) is mere speculation.

That center pivoting front axle makes a tip worse. And one thing I would definitely caution against is pulling too hard (in reverse). There have been front axle failures with the 790's when pulling in reverse and the 770 uses the same front axle.

 

[wade simpson]

I lifted the back end by trying to pull a small stump with the front brush guard. I didn't even realize what was happening until the whole backend of the tractor swung to the left. Luckily it wasn't very high. It lifted very slow as I was in low range and just idling backwards. It actually scared me a little, because of the potential, and instantly made me a little wiser.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

I pull light loads with my loader/bucket on occasion. Most often is when I'm pulling a tree or branch out...the butt end is in the bucket so it doesn't dig in. Also, these aren't "big" trees...5-8 inches or so in diameter.

As far as JDGreenGrass's situation, I think I'd have gotten a repurchase on that tubing once it got harder to pull...matter of leverage.
Of course, I wasn't there, so the correct thing to do (IMHO) is mere speculation.

That center pivoting front axle makes a tip worse. And one thing I would definitely caution against is pulling too hard (in reverse). There have been front axle failures with the 790's when pulling in reverse and the 770 uses the same front axle.

Whoah.!! Roy, you always come through with the good stuff. "Axle failures when pulling in reverse." Yikes. Sir, I have learned something here.

Wasn't we just talking about the 790 and the 770.??

Thanks Roy.

 

[Thomas]

Try curling bucket for pulling relief valve will act as safety,if not enough pull use tow low gear w/out jerking to hard.

 

[Ezlivn]

Nice post....I'll remember not to do this. I've had a rear wheel go up on me with a bucket full of gravel...strange feeling. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Axle failures pulling hard in revers is not uncommon. The running gear in the front axle is just a fraction of the size of the rear axle. Most tractors start life as a 2 wheel drive tractor and morph into a front wheel assist tractor or 4x4 if you want to call it that.

As for skidding logs this is what I do a vast majority of the hours with my 28HP tractor. What I do is use my 3 point Reese Hitch setup and a draw bar with a hook welded on it. I slip hook the log and back all the way up to it with my short 7' logging chain. Then with the 3 point in the full down position I hook the chain up with zero slack. I then lift the front of the log off the ground about 10" and start my pull. Many times I am pulling 20" or larger diameter logs 30 to 40' long with no problems.

Chris

 

[tommaple]

I think most people with a tractor have experienced either the front or rear wheels come off the ground at some time. I recall my Father telling of the dangers of a tractor flipping over backwards if pulling above the rear axle before I ever drove a tractor. No matter how often we hear this advice, there's that one time we don't want to take the time to hook onto a load properly.

My own "near death" experience occurred while skidding a fairly small, 6" diameter 15' log. It was more convenient to pick it up from the small end and pull it to the sugarhouse. I just used the hydraulic lift to pick up the log and pull it. I didn't bother to chain it to the drawbar since it was so small. Pulling it this way made the stubs left from limbing point forward. As I passed a large tree, one of the stubs caught a root. In less than a second the tractor reared up and I was looking at the sky. As this occurred, my first thought was the tractor would go completely backwards, fall on top of me, crush my spine and I would be a paraplegic. The second thought was "You idiot - you know better!"

I was lucky, the tractor stopped dead vertical and I was able to crawl off. (No ROPS, it was a 1949 Allis Chalmers Model B.) I stood there looking at that tractor pointing straight up in the air and vowed I would never pull from above the axle again. I was able to push the tractor back to the ground by hand, started it up and drove away.

There's never enough time to get off the tractor and attach the log properly, until you're sitting in a wheelchair with nothing BUT time.

Not to get preachy, but the same power that makes our work easier can also hurt us if directed the wrong way.

 

[AlbionWood]

the tractor stopped dead vertical and I was able to crawl off.

HOLY S#@%!!!! :shocked:

3 wheels on the ground is one thing. When you get down to 2 it's time to worry. But when the tractor is pointing straight up... personally, I think that's just taking it a little too far.

 

[2458n]

Now is the time of year that tires can freeze in the ground when left outside over night. Always a good idea to use care if in doubt when starting out. Same lifting experience.

 

[tommaple]

Now is the time of year that tires can freeze in the ground when left outside over night. Always a good idea to use care if in doubt when starting out. Same lifting experience.

That's right, especially if parked overnight on wet ground or mud. If freezing weather, always start out in reverse and two wheel drive to break the tires free. Then go forward.