Forestry tractor modifications

[beenthere]

I bought a dozer a year ago in the winter so I did not crawl under it and look at the bottom. $6000 later it is ready to come home with new oil pan, belly pan and clutch housing plus some other parts.

Sounds like a stump or a rock hit.

[Ford_man]

It was like that when I bought it NO skid plate. I know I didn't do it because all I have done with it is push dirt.

[mf40diesel]

So I talked to Tom Addington at (naturally enough) Addington machine.  I believe this summer I am going to pull the trigger and have him install skid plates under my machine and a full canopy with limbrisers.  I still will have the ag tires to be careful of, but the rest of the machine will hopefully be toughened up alot. 

Really wish I could add valve stem protection, but seems like to weld on the wheel you'd have to remove the tire right?

Pretty excited, thank you so much for all of the great insight!

[shinnlinger]

No experience with this, but I don't see why you couldn't weld on caps, particularly if your tires are loaded as that is a lot of mass to dissipate heat.   If worried about it, take weight off, release air pressure and only weld an inch at a time.  You could clip a vice grip to your cap as a heat synch. 

[shinnlinger]

And after each inch of weld, rotate the tire a few times so the rim guard cools the rim/tire

[thecfarm]

I think I read somewhere about the tire might explode with air pressure in the tire? That's the danger,but as shinnlinger said,release the air pressure.

[ridgerunner77]

http://www2.worksafebc.com/PDFs/investigations/IIR2005108320019.pdf

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBUVzgCHHuA

[Peter Drouin]

I think if you have a tube in the tire and you get the rim red hot with a weld you will have a hole in the tube.

[ridgerunner77]

http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/archive/index.php/t-40067.html

[ridgerunner77]

I hope I remember what is on the links I posted if I ever consider or see someone else fixing to weld on a rim with a tire on it............I showed up an hr or so after a split rim let go ............don't want to revisit that kinda scene if I can help it.......

[sawyerf250]

So I talked to Tom Addington at (naturally enough) Addington machine.  I believe this summer I am going to pull the trigger and have him install skid plates under my machine and a full canopy with limbrisers.  I still will have the ag tires to be careful of, but the rest of the machine will hopefully be toughened up alot.

Did they give you any idea of what it would cost to do those sorts of things to your machine? Just curious as to what a machine shop might charge to make all the necessary modifications? l have been giving it more thought and think l may invest in the materials and set to doing the same to mine this season, or at least start the project.

[mf40diesel]

Due to him having never done my exact model... a JD 5055e, he stated that it would be a case where I drop the tractor there and pick up a week or so later.  He thought based on the tractor's size that doing a full skid plate on the vitals (wiring / linkages / hydraulic block / filters etc) with bolt on clean outs and filter access would be a little over $2000.  Then for a steel robust canopy that ties into the roll bar, with limb risers and I assume front posts too, the same.  I would expect roughly $5000 for the whole job.

To me, $2500 to protect the tractor, and $2500 to protect me is probably worth it.  I gave a lot for the tractor, I'd like to protect my investment, and by protecting me I can be around longer to use it.

We currently just log off my parents land, however I have had some neighbors asking me to do some logging for them.  My dream has been to buy some substantial acreage (50+ acres) , and cut off it myself to help pay for the land, and harvest firewood off of it till the end of time. 

I am thinking about after modifying the tractor, getting my paws on a new Tajfun winch, and trying to actually pick up some small woodlot jobs for folks.  Just really to dub around when I am home (I go to sea for a living) Their are enough large landowners where I live that harvesting some firewood for folks I think could really be doable.

[lopet]

Protecting your self should be a primary thing imo and protecting the tractor a secondary.  You may wanna consider the weight your adding, it will give you more traction, but makes other chores slower on the downside, specially when you're on the lower hp end.  Also be aware, that no matter how careful you think you are, your baby is gonna get some dents and scratches sooner or later. ;D
Would be interesting to see some before and after pictures, because I always like to see , how others do it. 

[bill m]

This is what I did on my tractor for protection.

  

  

 
I did the same thing on a Kubota for someone. Cost him about $3000 for everything.

[woodrat]

Just ordered a Wallenstein winch for my 32 hp Yanmar a couple of days ago, should have it next week sometime. Finally! I've been borrowing a small Farmi winch for years, but finally needed to have my own. I have 15 acres and also need to deal with a couple of small lots that my parents own, 3 and 5.7 acres each. I've often thought about undercarriage protection. So far, the only damage I've done underneath is slightly bent the clutch linkage, but still...

What do people mean by "limb risers"? Is that something up above to sweep low hanging limbs up and out of the way? I have ROPS and a fiberglass roof on mine, but I have done some damage to the corners of the roof with low hanging limbs. Still not sure how to deal with that, other than to take off the roof when logging.

[mf40diesel]

Limb risers are the post that run forward from the top of the canopy to the forward part of the hood. They do just as the name implies, push limbs up out of the way, help protect your exhaust (if it is up there) and help protect you from limbs coming in the cab with you.

They would not only be helpful in the woods, but super helpful for me bushogging.  Besides dubbing around in the woods, I have a side business bushogging fields for folks around where I live.  Every year the trees make their slow march in reclaiming the fields, with risers, at the expense of my paint, I could be alittle more aggressive in staying near the edges of the field.

[wfcjr]

Had our dozer up-armored with forestry package, tank guards, belly pan guards etc, from this company;
GR Manufacturing.  They also offer forestry guard packages for ag tractors.  Does anyone have any knowledge of, or experience with these folks on the tractor side?

http://www.grtractors.com/

http://www.grtractors.com/ProductPages/AgriculturalTractorPages/5000%20Series%20Price%20Page.htm

Pricing on the components looks reasonable, of course need to factor in labor/time to install.

[John Mc]

Bill, it looks like we both pulled the trigger on this at around the same time.  I just got my tractor back from the local Monkton VT guy I told you about. Added belly pan (in two pieces), limb risers and FOPS. Pics to follow.

[wfcjr]

Bill, it looks like we both pulled the trigger on this at around the same time.  I just got my tractor back from the local Monkton VT guy I told you about. Added belly pan (in two pieces), limb risers and FOPS. Pics to follow.

John,

I did not pull the trigger on the mods for our ag tractor that we use in the woods, just for the dozer.
Trying to figure out whether to pull the trigger on the ag tractor mods.

Pics of what you had done would be great.

Bill

[g_man]

Limb risers on a woods tractor would indeed be handy. If you have a ROPS especially. Hanging limbs that get caught on the high ROPS bend forward on the opposite side and hit you around the back of the head and shoulders. A set of risers will prevent this.

[wfcjr]

Bill, it looks like we both pulled the trigger on this at around the same time.  I just got my tractor back from the local Monkton VT guy I told you about. Added belly pan (in two pieces), limb risers and FOPS. Pics to follow.

Pics sir, we need pics...

Thanks ...

[John Mc]

OK. Here are a couple pictures of the "forest hardening" done to my New Holland TC 33D. Not many so far - to wet and rainy to get under the tractor for good belly pan pictures. I've been debating doing this for years. The main reason for holding off was that I was debating getting a larger tractor. I finally decided that this size fits most of my needs, and I appreciate the ability to get into tighter spots with this tractor.

The tractor mostly stays on the trails and winches logs out to trailside, so it's not seeing hard-core logging use. I did figure I needed a bit more protection for me and for the tractor than what it came with. This is sort of a "Forestry Package Lite": I didn't have him do everything he normally does on larger tractors.

First is the FOPS with limb risers. Normally, Tom puts a screen on the back of the ROPS. I told him to skip this one, since the screen on my logging winch provides adequate coverage here. He also often puts in side screens and a "windshield" screen in front. I decided to skip these for now and see what I think of it later. Hard to see in this photo, but the top is expanded metal with a couple of bars across for reinforcement. I may wish I had gone with a solid sheet of metal, but I figured I'd rather have the extra visibility. I can always change that later if I want (when I get sick of all the cedar "crumbs" dropping down the back of my shirt).



 


Here's a partial shot of the belly pan showing the added guard that comes up around the engine oil filter. You can see the clean-looking black piece rising up from the belly pan (there are similar guards around some hydraulic fittings on the other side, and inside the right rear wheel to protect the hydraulic filter). The belly pan in two pieces: a smaller front piece is held in place by two bolts, plus a "tongue and groove" sort of arrangement that mates to the rear part of the pan. I can drop that front piece in just a minute or two in order to change the oil filter: remove two bolts and slide apart the T&G joint. This piece is small and light enough to handle with no special tools. The pan has strategically placed holes to allow greasing various zerks without removing the pan.



 

I still need to add some protection for the tire valve stems, but I'm waiting until I have to have the tires off the rims to install that. I could add uprights to further support the front side of the FOPS (attached to the Loader mount brackets), but I don't think that will be necessary.

The whole thing cost me less than $2000. I'm guessing I saved a little since the backhoe subframe on my tractor gave him an easy place to attach the rear pan to. The guy I took it to is just a few miles from me. He has done a number of forestry tractor conversions for folks who use their tractors a lot more heavily than I do. I really like how he thinks things through in his designs - little details that I would not have thought to ask for.

[thecfarm]

John Mc,I only cut on my land too.I am very fussy with my trails.  I cut back the branches and I cut down small trees to get to the logs. My stumps are always cut down as low as I can get them too. Branches in the trails are not allowed. When I was cutting with my Father,he would drive the tractor, I use to ride in and walk out. I really kept the brush out of the trails when I walked out.

[wfcjr]

OK. Here are a couple pictures of the "forest hardening" done to my New Holland TC 33D.

John Mc,

On the risers & FOPS looks like a good combination of protection & openness.
One of my concerns is that I like the open cab when working our fields in the summer.
But still want some "overhead cover" for woods work.

Also on the side & rear screens.... When using our spreader for fertilizer, I need to be able to reach back to open & close the spreader chute.   Also on sides, just concerned that it would feel too hemmed in and perhaps compromise the ability to mount other stuff in places.  So your open arrangement looks nice.

The cover for the oil filter looks nifty.  That is one of the nice things about guys who do custom work.  That kind of detail is not available in the over-the-counter protection packages.

Nice work...

[John Mc]

Thecfarm -

I tend to keep my trails clear as well. However, I've lost the hydraulic filter that is up inside the right rear wheel twice: once when the tractor was three days old. I was working in an open field, making a drainage swale. I drove across a large flat rock, which flipped up in just the right way to take out the filter and break off the fitting on which the filter was mounted. The other time my tractor was being used by a friend about 5 years ago to clean up his property. His front wheel drove just right across a 2x4. The end lifted up and harpooned the same hydraulic filter. With a Hydrostatic transmission, you aren't going anywhere when that filter comes off.

Fortunately, neither of these were out in the middle of nowhere in the woods. However, both are things I could easily see happening while working in the woods, so I've made it a point to be very careful. Still, without some guarding, I figured it was only a matter of time before I hit it again.