TRACTOR SAFETY!!!!

[Soundguy]

Had a tractor related incident today.. could have been real bad.. but turned out, all in all.. a learning experience.

Had dropped of my NAA to the tire place to have a tube replaced.. ends up tire is bad.. ( bead seperation ).. new tire. Anyway, went to pick it up this afternoon at 5, after work... was still wearing my office clothes... and dress shoes.

Drove tractor up on trailer foot slipped off of clutch, tractor lurches forward, and over trailer, I finally stopped it an inch from my trucks tail gate....

Tire dealership guys help me in the long process of jacking it up, bracing with wood blocks, and getting it off .

The problem? Hard sole dress shoes with no traction.... I should have been wearing an appropriate shoe...

The damage:

Someone was watching over me, as the casualty list is as follows:

Missing some red paint on my bumper where the jack lifted it up.

Popped the C-clip off the handle to the jack on the trailer, as the front axle stopped in contact with the trailer jack... nothing broke.. .. just lost the C-clip... jack and handle are fine.. just seperate right now.

Oh, yeah, and my blood pressure is shot, and my but bit a hole in my underware...

I got darn lucky today. Hope this helps someone down the road stay safe.


...what they say about your life flashing before your eyes... well ya.. it does... and then you think about your family real quick...

Soundguy

 

[GaryM]

Glad to hear that the equipment, and YOU, are OK. I'm always careful to creep onto the trailer. My trailer has a set of rails on the front and sides about 14" high. I'm not sure if that would stop the tractor or not. I think it would.

Stay safe and thanks for the cautionary tale.

 

[rockyridgefarm]

I recently took my Yanmar 186D to a new home. That bitty tractor had no problem climbing over those 14" endrails! I caught it in time... Just sad to see it go.

 

[Bird]

Glad the end result was no more serious than it was. I think a foot slipping off the clutch has resulted in many accidents for a lot of people. I know my brother-in-law punched his brush hog right through the wall of his shed when his foot slipped off the clutch on his old Ford. That's one, and the main, reason I think a hydrostatic transmission is safer.

 

[Soundguy]

Yep... I deffinately can't argue that point in those circumstances...

Just wish these 50 year old tractors had them back then!

Soundguy

 

[jinman]

It can happen to you with sneakers on also, Soundguy. The first month after I brought my "restored" Jubilee to my farm, I had my foot slip off the clutch and lurched forward only a short distance, but far enough to push a blackjack oak limb through the grill and into the radiator. I was devastated as I watched a stream of water spewing out of my radiator. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif I was lucky though. It was near the top of the radiator and one cylinder of that radiator seal aluminum dust and a gentle squeeze with pliers cured the problem. That radiator hasn't leaked a drop since. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[19th_VA]

Main thing is you are all right and we all got to learn from it. I personally love manual trannies of all sorts, but I do know first hand that they can be dangerous. Buddy of mine in high school broke both legs when another buddy started up his challenger in "neutral." I guess this is an argument for hydro from a safety point of view, but I have always maintained that manual transmissions make drivers more aware that they are driving; hence more alert. In cars, they help traction as well. In this case, I bet Soundguy knew he was driving and had plenty of traction so out the window for that argument.

So far my only tractor incident (in a whopping one month of tractoring) has been a smashed middle finger--not realizing the bar on my rotary cutter, which is attached to the wheel assembly, was subject to as much weight as it was. Took the pin out--and whala! Instant wife worrier. Oh well, black nails are in these days, aren't they?

 

[JDGREEN4ME]

Glad you are OK... /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Soundguy]

Thanks for the thoughts guys. You all bring up good points.

I have thought about when i was driving up on the trailer and have figured out what part of the problem was. I didn't set the parking break on my truck. As I drove up on the trailer and stopped, I decided I wasn't up far enough and tried to ease up some more.. well the initial lurch I prepaired for didn't quite happen, ans the trailer and truck swayed a bit as i started letting out the clutch.. and then my foot went, and then the tractor went...

But yep.. a real learning experience.. and luckilly.. inexpensive.

I got up yesterday morning and din't have to go to work till late, so I repaired the trailer with a new e-clip on the handle.. Works almost as good as new.. close inspection will reveal the collision.. .. I sanded and painted the tractor bumper, and it looks decent.

Thanks again guys.

Soundguy

 

[prosperity]

I did something similar but without a foot slipping off the clutch. At work one of pieces of equipment is an old IH cub with a cycle bar mower. I was loading it on a 30 ton tilt bed trailer which was wet. As I started up on the trailer, the rear wheels slipped a little on the wet ramp. Then they grabbed, and at that point the governor kicked in. The front wheels came up far enough that I couldn't steer, and off the side of the trailer I went.
Your story reminded me of mine. Anything can happen at any time when you least expect it. Glad everything was ok. And thanks for sharing your story. It hopefully gives us all a little reminder.