When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick

   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #1  

DavidVT

Gold Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2005
Messages
381
Location
NorthEastern VT
Tractor
Kubota 3430
I thought I would share an experience from yesterday. No harm done but food for thought along the safety theme..... Sometimes we do things for years and practice makes it all seem right.....

While pushing snow in reverse up a large pile and reaching that 'hairy' point at the top where the backblade falls over the cliff, I lifted my foot off the hydrostat pedal and the tractor kept moving. Instant 'total panic' from blissful sunny afternoon plow operator. Visions of a flipped over tractor in the river behind this snow pile.... :)

I tried to jam on the brakes but the tractor simply loaded up and the rear wheels keep trying to move (low gear and 4x4)).

I stood up from the seat but the rear wheels keep trying to move and the engine hummed along.

Finally I pushed the hydrostat pedal forward and the tractor started to move away from 'the cliff'. (that might have seemed obvious but at that moment it was not)

Now all this took place in probably two seconds but it was enough to really rattle me.

For 5 years I thought if you took your foot of the hydrostat pedal that the tractor would stop moving as it always had. Not if a stick had jammed in the hole in the floor. __Lesson Learned__.

For 5 years I assumed the brake pedal would disengage the hydrostat. This was based on my impression that the brake will always drop the cruise control out. I never use the brake pedal except as a parking brake as the hydrostat pedal normally does everything for me. __Lesson Learned__.

For 5 years I thought if your hydrostat was in gear and you stood from the seat that the engine would cut out as it always had. Not if the seat switch is bound up from something and needs lubrication or replacement. __Lesson Learned__.

For 5 years I have allowed the hydrostat pedal to manage the transmission/ground movement which it always has. The clutch pedal was only ever used to ease the brush mower (pto) into motion. In this case I never even considered pushing in the clutch pedal to stop the tractor. __Lesson Learned__.

For many years I have enjoyed making this massive snow pile by backing up the pile over the course of the winter. Maybe not the safest thing to do just so I can make snow balls in July :). If I continue to do it, I need to be a bit more aware of the risks if things go wrong. __Lesson Learned__.

In closing for my example: the seat switch has been lubed and the stick removed from my hydrostat pedal floor slot. Also some internal scolding to reinforce that the clutch and range lever (N) would have been a nice alternative to stopping the tractor along with the key switch......

With a clear head, I don't think I was really at risk of going over the edge of this snow pile. The tractor had reached the point on the wet snow where the wheels were spinning due to the incline and thus were not able to pull itself over the edge. However that momentary powerless 'feeling' that it could happen was the point and source of anxiety at that moment. Both the safety switch in the seat and the self centering hydrostat pedal were defeated at that same moment and combined to challenge the 5 years of practice with this tractor and illustrate some perhaps bad habits. The result was a warning rather than something serious...

Happy New Year
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #2  
Good post. Glad things worked out!! Every now and again a guy gets a wake-up call.

That "feeling" you post about.....to me its the "deer in the headlights feeling". Argh!! :confused2:
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #3  
Yeah, the good old seat saftey switch issue... This is another argument for why they are a good Idea. Glad it worked out for you though and thanks for the post! As a side note... I was having alot of issues with the seat switch on my kub being very sensitive which made 3 pt hook up and fork use with the cab very veeeery frustrating as the engine would die every 5 seconds. I ended up mounting an illuminated toggle switch next to the pto switch that acted as a jumper between the seat saftey switch wires... Switch off- normal saftey operation, switch on- red light and seat is bypassed for jobs where i need to be light on the seat!
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #4  
Isnt it amazing when troubles come they come not as "spies but as battalions"?
Sure glad it worked out good for you. Yes we hardly ever touch those brakes or clutch for that matter.. Course the manual did mention to check the clutch and safety seat, and PTO switches.. So I did... once... Thanks for the post, It never hurts to raise awareness.
James K0UA
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #5  
I like to stick with the 10 hours lubrication schedule, and hit every zerk on the tractor. Did that on my old B8200, and continue to on the NH I have now.

To get to all the zerks, you kinda have to crawl all over/under the tractor. So, I use it for inspection time of the rest of the tractor. Have found issues like mentioned during that lube/inspection.

Of course, have also had stuff as mentioned happen too.
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #6  
i was talking to my kubota salesmwn about the samething that happened to you,but doing differant jobs.an said if i got in a tight an couldnt stop,turn the key off.an the tractor will stop.
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick
  • Thread Starter
#7  
Yep, the key and clutch were both on my 'scolding' list at the end of the post. Never even crossed my mind at the point of the problem. That won't happen again, especially after sharing this with you all.... :)

I hope to make the point to folks to think what you would do in the same situation. Chances are, the simple act of thinking about now might save your tail some day in the future.
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #8  
Had a somewhat similar experience a year ago. I had (maybe still have) a habit of temporarily placing "excess equipment" - gloves, tools, hearing protection, etc. - on the floor board of my BX when I don't need them. One day I took off my hearing protectors and placed them on the floor board, then a bit later went back to work. As I drove the tractor to the work area, I went to let off the HST pedal only to have the tractor keep moving forward. It was a brief 2 seconds or so before I realized the "ear muffs" had slid under the reverse pedal and prevented the HST from returning to neutral. I still remember that sudden feeling of panic. Lesson learned.
 
   / When things almost go wrong... hydrostat pedal and a stick #10  
David,
Thanks for posting and being completely candid about what you did and did not do. I have had a few similar (oh &#!t) moments too. Your description of multiple things going wrong at the same time reminded me of a comment from an aviation accident investigator about how modern aircraft are designed with all sorts of failsafes for every system, but how simultaneous multiple failures can cause a "cascade" of subsequent failures leading to a major air disaster (like James K0UA's spies/battalions). He stressed routine maintenance, checklists and frequent training drills as the best defenses.
-Jim
 
 
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