iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

Tractor//Equipment Safety

Started by Gordon, May 01, 2001, 04:30:23 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Gordon

Ok, I'll fess up to a couple good lu lu's that happend to me a while back while skidding trees with my tractor.

One day while pushing back a slash pile a limb got hung in the throttle linkage and caused the tractor to strat running wide open. Slammed the shuttle shift into neutral and shut the engine down. Then got off shaking my head. Opon inspectin a limb had made it's way past the engine side cover and gotten lodged in the linkage. Made a screen to cover that side of the tractor lower engine cover.

I was using a (healthy looking) tree for a scrape in order to make a sharper turn out of the woods. Well lo and behold. KA-BAM looked around and there was limb everywhere. First checked my shorts and all was ok. My heart missed a beat on that one.  The limb was a good four-six inches in diameter. Appearenty that healthy looking tree has a surprize up it's sleeve. The limb wasn't rotten maybe from the shock, hard to say. The limb put a nice dent in the cab roof of my tractor. Added a layer of plate steel across the roof of the tractor.

Or what will really make your day is to get new tires great traction. About an hours worth of use on them an put a limb right through the sidewall. Not a good day. The tire man knew I was fumin and didn't say a word to me until he was finished. Said I was his best customer of the day as he was driving off with a smile.

I've got a few more that I'll add later, don't want to be the only lu lu king.
Gordon

Robert_in_W._Mi.

  I do worry about putting a hole in one of my rear tires ($1,200.00 each), when i'm skidding.  I'm very carefull, and always look for stubs BEFORE driveing into a spot.
  I do have a dozer, and if it's a really bad spot, i clear a trail out with it, or i can just skid the log with it.  I'd rather use my tractor for skidding though.
  Robert
Click here for large image of tractor

  My Milling Pictures
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=1331114

L. Wakefield

   The tractors nice- the trailer is VERY nice- and the logs are incredible, esp the big boy you are just loading. :o :o :o
L. Wakefield, owner and operator of the beastly truck Heretik, that refuses to stay between the lines when parking

Tom

Gordon,
I have had a bout with limbs too and have develope a healthy respect for them. I had limbed a felled Red Bay and was pushing a way through the limbs with the front loader on my little Ford 1910. I contacted a 3" limb that was under a great deal of tension and made it worse by pushing it.  I didn't realize the tension that was there.  The limb slipped over the top of my loader bucket, removed the muffler, barely missed my fingers on the steering wheel and hit me full in the chest.  I was knocked backwards (and silly) with the ROPS stopping the limb.  My seat belt kept me from being thrown off of the back of the tractor I'm sure. Scared me to death and I don't use my tractor for a bulldozer anymore.

Gordon

Robert, you are right to always look but sometimes it's hiding or you turn over a few limbs and shazam. The tires are the weak link no doubt.

Something does make me wonder though. The lid you have on your tractor. Would you trust a limb dropping on top of that? What is it made out of? One thing I've learned you can't beat plate steel on top of the cab.

Tom OUCH!!! Isn't amazing the sheer power that a limb or tree under tension has harnessed up. Never ripped my muffler off but I added brush bars from the top of the cab down to the grille guard. Works great. Also have wire mesh over my windows.

Gordon

Robert_in_W._Mi.

  Gordon,
  The canopy on my tractor is made from heavy fiberglass or some kind of plastic.  It's very tough, but my guess is that a large limb would mess it up.  It's held up by the ROPS, and i'm sure the ROPS will hold up any limb.  My dozer has a full ROPS all so.  I've never had a limb fall and hit my tractor canopy, but i've had limbs land on my dozer as i pushed trees out.
  If i was a comercial logger, i'd spend the $$ and get a skidder, but my tractor has worked out very well for my purposes.  
  I all so use my tractor for other purposes too, so it's used for a lot more than just skidding.
  Robert

  My Tractor And Dozer
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1331114&a=9900772&p=48547896&Sequence=0&res=high
  My Saw Mill Pictures
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=1331114

Gordon

Thats a nice rig no doubt. It the tractor won't do it the dozer sure will. There have been many times that I wished I had a dozer on site.


Gordon

Gordon

Well this is to say that I now have a custom step on my tractor. :-[

No ones fault but my own. I was working on a ditch in the woods and a log kicked up while backing up.....KRUMPLE. The step bent all the way forward. That is a good thing that the step was made of thin metal, because it saved me from really messing up my operators platform. Oh well stuff happens.

The good news it that is was sure easy to bend back. Now it's almost good as new.

Gordon

Tom

hey Gordon, if it gets torn off then a loop of cable makes a good step.  Pliable too.  ;D

Aren't you glad that log didn't get your foot.  They don't bend back so good. :D

Gordon

Yes nothing was really hurt other than the step and of course my ego. :D  But as I've said before I've been to handlin shcool and I can handle it.

Good idea about the cable. Hope it doesn't come to that. In all the time I had the last Kubota, she still had the very first step only bent in a couple of times. Not this bad though. If must be the new bright orange paint. :D

I bought it to work not to look pretty. It will be the first of many, I'm afraid.---dents that is.

Gordon

Gordon

Here is something that I think every tractor, skidder, dozer should have. It's already proven that with this simple device installed there are less rollovers. Less rollovers mean less injuries and damaged equipment. It's called a tiltmeter.


Of course nothing is foolproof but it helps to have safety in your corner. I've got one mounted on my tractor and it does help to know what angle your really at. Not just guessing by the seat of your pants.

Most important of all, wear your seatbelt! Have a ROPS on your tractor. But better yet have a FOPS to not only protect from roll over but over head limbs as well.

Maybe I should have posted this in the knowledge base?

Gordon

L. Wakefield

   I was doing fall cleanup- had a dirtpile to move that could be got at from the driveway- but as it got smaller it went in under some trees. I stopped and lopped off some branches, cuz I had a previous incarnation of the present muffler snapped right off by a low-hanging limb- didn't want to repeat the experience- but I was thinking about your ROPS and etc. I've not had that luxury yet. It was just the muffler first, and then my neck if I didn't duck. I remember one branch that about took me out of the seat. I was a few years younger then, and it was 2 tractors back. That one never did have a muffler- you just ate black soot bits any time it backfired. I'm a little higher up the tractor food chain now, but not up with the big boys yet.. :D :D          lw
L. Wakefield, owner and operator of the beastly truck Heretik, that refuses to stay between the lines when parking

whitepe

About three years ago I got a 30hp 4WD John Deere
compact utility tractor with ROPS on it. I was
doing some lawn aerating at my son's parochial school.
"I grew up on an AC WD which of course doesn't have
ROPS."  As I was approaching a tree, I slowed down
to duck under a 5-6 inch branch. After I ducked under it
I forgot about the ROPS.  The branch got hung up on it
and the tractor came to an immediate and ungracious
stop. I only had 2 hours on the tractor. I felt very stupid
and lucky. :-[
blue by day, orange by night and green in between

Thank You Sponsors!