Bad Day for the tractor

[jachady 130]

So, one of my biggest worries came true a couple weeks ago. Some of you may have seen my custom black and silver C125 pics on the forum. I had done two tilling jobs and went up to my land to work on some trails.

It is a working tractor so I am expecting bumps and bruises along the way but what happened could have been really bad.

I was going to load the tractor in the back of my truck. I have nice long slightly curved aluminum ramps and a two wheel drive truck so the incline is not to steep. But I forgot to clean the dirt and debris from the tiller. As I went up the ramps, the nose started to go into the air. It has done this before and pushing in the clutch drops it down and I ride down the ramps. Not this time though, when I pushed in the clutch the tractor stayed with its nose in the air, this had me perplexed. Keep in mind this all occured in about 15 seconds. I quickly determined that the tiller tines were stuck in the ramp and not allowing the tractor to go down. I decided to let out the clutch to try to drive the tractor up some and dislodge it. As soon as I did that, I knew all was going wrong. The tine stayed hooked and caused the tractor to start to jog sideways, it was at that moment I knew I had to jump. I'm fairly good at jumping off the tractor as when I till large gardens I'll actually get off while its moving to pick up rocks. The only thing is I had to jump the direction the tractor was going because the ramps are ladder style and I was afraid of getting my leg caught in one of them. As I jumped and stepped away the tractor came tumbling down on its side. Luckily for me I was completely unscathed. When the tractor tipped and fell, it had enough force to rip the battery cables out of the battery. In the process it pulled the ignition switch wires out killing the engine. That was a blessing in disguise as the engine and trans were dumping their fluids all over my asphalt driveway. Me being the only one there, and adrenalin pumping, I managed to flip the tractor with tiller back on its wheels. Amazingly the damage to the tractor is minimal, I need to have the hood straightened out a bit and repainted and the PTO rubber handle is trashed but other than those things it's fine. The worst damage was done to the ramp. The one that the tractor rolled down is completely destroyed.

I'll get some pics of the damage later.

For the future, I am planning on building a weight box that will go behind the front of the hood. It will hold a logging chain for weight and to use when I get stuck in the mud at my land. Should give me about 40lbs of ballast on the front. That should be enough as the front end normally just got "light" going up the ramps.

John

[kpinnc 11,866]

Sorry to hear the tractor got a ding or two, but glad no one was hurt.

Be careful on those ramps. They can be dangerous.

[Kelly 1,029]

glad your ok, the tractor can be fixed or replaced, front wheel weights are nice for tilling, about 25lbs each wheel.

[CRE1992 135]

Sorry to hear about your ramp and tractor, but at least your okay.

I made this out of an old mule drive, and a 35-40lb brick of steel my Uncle gave me. I believe it weighs 44.5 pounds with the mule drive. I plan on melting some lead in to the back of the mule drive and making it heavier. It looks a bit different now, because it has the same bolts now, and is about to be painted, I just sand blasted it.

[Gene_S 93]

Yes very glad to hear your ok John...

As for driving the tractor up into the back of a truck I don't do that anymore. I had a small front rider catch the top of the ramps one time and spun a ramp out coming down on me.

Have you ever tried loading the tractor in low range and just stand next to it and guide it in??? Better safe then injuried!!!

[smoreau 658]

Have you ever tried loading the tractor in low range and just stand next to it and guide it in??? Better safe then injuried!!!

This is what I do, I'm not going to have a tractor land on top of me again!! I got lucky too when my 875 had a ramp spit out unloading it. very scary if you ask any one that tis has happened to. It happens so quick and you think it wound not happen to you. Take your time and do it safe! tractors don't cost as much to fix as you do. Not the wake up call I was looking for.

[perry 82]

Have you ever tried loading the tractor in low range and just stand next to it and guide it in??? Better safe then injuried!!!

thats the way i load them into pickups .

[Coadster32 793]

Glad to hear you're ok. Good learning experience when you don't get hurt. I lost a set of homemade ramps riding a snowmobile into the back on my p/u truck. Sitting on a sled looking straight at the sky. I let the tractors guide themselves, or I roll them up by the tires.

[rmaynard 15,403]

Have you ever tried loading the tractor in low range and just stand next to it and guide it in??? Better safe then injuried!!!

Dittos on the low range loading.

Have you ever tried back up the ramp? Would the tiller clear the ramp at the bottom?

[jachady 130]

I've never had an issue with the ramps themselves. My wife bought me some real nice ones with ratchet straps to hold them tight to the truck. Of course now they are wrecked.

The tiller does hit the ramps if I try to back up, I tried that the first time the front end got "light".

I've thought about walking it into the truck as thats how I load the automatics, but with the 8 speed even in low range I'm afraid I won't be able to get up and shut it down in time.

I like the idea of the front mule drive weight. I think I'll look into that and the weight box. The nice thing is the weight would be easily rmovable if I don't need it.

John

[CRE1992 135]

I like the idea of the front mule drive weight. I think I'll look into that and the weight box. The nice thing is the weight would be easily removable if I don't need it.

It is easily removable and easy to install, but if it gets any heavier you would need 2 people to put it on and take it off. It weighs approximately 45lbs, but when you install it you have to hold it in place with one hand, and use the other to push the lever and lock it in place. I just made it, because I wanted to put more weight on the front end for snowplowing so the front end is less likely to slide around, I plan on using some roller chain around the wheels also.

-Charles

[Butch 194]

I like the idea of the front mule drive weight. I think I'll look into that and the weight box. The nice thing is the weight would be easily removable if I don't need it.

It is easily removable and easy to install, but if it gets any heavier you would need 2 people to put it on and take it off. It weighs approximately 45lbs, but when you install it you have to hold it in place with one hand, and use the other to push the lever and lock it in place. I just made it, because I wanted to put more weight on the front end for snowplowing so the front end is less likely to slide around, I plan on using some roller chain around the wheels also.

-Charles

I need weight in the front for plowing? Aw geez!

[CRE1992 135]

You don't need one Butch, some people use front wheel weights, roller chains, or both. But I could not justify paying at least $100 for front wheel weights. So I made this from stuff I had laying around. I am going to use the roller chain around the front tires too, but I figured this couldn't hurt.

This is what it looks like from a side view with a plow on.

I was going to buy this for plowing instead of using a wheel horse, but it needed way toooooooooo much work. Its on craigslist for 750, its pretty cool but I don't have time. Plus for $750 there is anlot of unknown. it has a kohler K662, I timed the engine, reset the gap in the magneto, but it was backfiring because the intake valves were stuck open. It also needed to be completely stripped and painted, and it needed to be completely rewired, who knows if the pump would work or not. It drove like a skidsteer.

I will stop my rambling sorry from getting away from the original post.

[jachady 130]

So here's pics of the damage to the tractor. I think I came out pretty good for the thing falling on it's side off the side of my truck. The worst part is the damage on the black was caused by me in my haste to upright the tractor.

Off to find a bare front mule drive, or maybe chunks of metal t oweld one up myself.

[can whlvr 993]

sorry to hear of your misfortune loading the tractor,ive had alot of bad luck loading tractors on pickup trucks,i now use my trailer for my skid steer with a full metal loading ramp because of exactly what happened to you,good you didnot get hurt

[312Hydro 474]

Glad your okay and the damage seems minimal. You must have had cat-like reflexes when it happened.

[kpinnc 11,866]

It is easily removable and easy to install, but if it gets any heavier you would need 2 people to put it on and take it off. It weighs approximately 45lbs, but when you install it you have to hold it in place with one hand, and use the other to push the lever and lock it in place.

Maybe not Charles. I use 100lbs of suitcase weights on my tractors, and the bracket attaches just like your weight does. Make no mistake, it takes a few "grunts" to get it installed and locked into place, but it can be done. You just have to watch your toes when you drop them off...

Here's my setup:

Like yours, it fits any tractor with a front hitch. Works great for pushing with the plow, or for using a moldboard plow in the garden.

Now for loading ANY tractor using ramps John, I have to agree with using the lowest speed possible and "walking" the tractor up. Wheel Horses are far too difficult to dismount quickly, and the results from tipping over could literally be fatal. Don't worry about catching up to the tractor when it gets into the truck bed. The tires will spin freely after the front wheels contact the front of the truck bed, especially considering the added weigh of the operator is not there. Even if you've got a spray-in bed liner, the wheels will spin freely. If you have chains mounted on the tires you can cause some problems, but otherwise it's far safer to stay off the machine when loading/ unloading.

If your ramps are arched, you may still be able to lift the tiller high enough (by hand, standing behind it) to allow the tractor to drive up on it's on. For unloading, just reverse the process. Again, it's safer to stay off the tractor regardless.

Whatever you do, be careful!

[Wheel Horse Kid 105]

I am glad you and the tractor were okay in the end!

[jachady 130]

_{Update - I ended up having the front tires foam filled. They were able to get 22 lbs of material in each tire. That should be enough to keep the front end down, but I am going to still build a weight box behind the hood next to the muffler. My plan is to put a 25 foot logging chain in it for the extra weight. Plus, when I get stuck in the woods, I've got a chain and cum-along to get out.}

_{I am buying two more ramps, so I'll have the third one available to "walk up the tractor".}

[Rooster 191]

Glad your ok and the tractor is not too badly damaged!

One word...TRAILER!

For the money and effort we put into these things, they are worth it!

[wheelhorse656 20]

Glad your ok and the tractor is not too badly damaged!

One word...TRAILER!

For the money and effort we put into these things, they are worth it!

AGREED!!!

[clintonnut 126]

I did that this summer the night before the wheel horse show. Mower deck caught, tires spinned, kicked out ramps and went end over end landing directly on my head. Had a minor concussion but that didn't keep me from going to the show!

Glad you are ok.

In the process of making metal brackets for my wood ramps (locust wood-very very strong) the metal brackets will have a hole and then drill a hole in the pickup bed floor for each ramp so that way when you put the ramps onto the truck you can stick a bolt or pin through the holes to lock them in place to the truck.

Charlie

[Rooster 191]

For our race trailer, the ramps have a pin welded in them for just that!

[AMC RULES 37,124]

Thank God you walked away, this time. You can always replace a tractor, you only get one life though.

[tunahead72 2,400]

In the process of making metal brackets for my wood ramps (locust wood-very very strong) the metal brackets will have a hole and then drill a hole in the pickup bed floor for each ramp so that way when you put the ramps onto the truck you can stick a bolt or pin through the holes to lock them in place to the truck.

Charlie, I like this idea a lot, and it wouldn't hurt to have two holes in each bracket, for a little bit more stability.

I'm also a big fan of another thing you're suggesting, namely laying your ramps on the bed of the truck, not on the tailgate. Tailgates have a weight limit, which assumes that both cables (or whatever) are in top condition. Factor in the weight of a Wheel Horse tractor, plus maybe the weight of a driver, and consider the possibility that one or both of those cables could be badly rusted, and you've got a recipe for disaster. I still cringe when I see ads for factory-made ramp end kits showing guys driving tractors or motorcycles onto a tailgate, brings back a really bad memory.