I screwed up.

[grizer]

Attention, allways put parking brake on very, very hard and then you will not drive with it on, this applies to anything with parking or emergency brakes. A simple method that allways works, you wont be brake burners anymore.

 

[Farwell]

Parking brakes? What are they? I have a 1965 JD 2010, the only parking break I have is the transmission. Even the 1957 Oliver 55 we had when I was a kid had pedal brakes that would lock. Wonder why JD left them out when they made the 2010? If I had a parking brake I am sure I would have left it on. Many times I have tried to start my JD when the shift lever was not in the park position and it would not start. It drove me crazy thinking there was some major problem. Another thing I do is to try to start the engine with the key. Duh! The tractor has a starter button not a key starter switch.

 

[EdC]

Pod
I agree with you. Until the other half of my storage shed is finished I have about 1.5 inches of clearance from the ROPS to the rafters. Had enough mud on the tractor when I pulled in to refuel that the ROPS hit the 2x8 rafter near the bottom and split a chunk out of it.

Maybe I am missing something but just how important are parking brakes when you are not on a slope. I use mine outside working but when I am done for the day I pull in the shed, lower the FEL and rear blade and that is about it. After the engine is shut down and the pressure is bled out of the FEL I walk away. Is that wrong?

 

[jeffinsgf]

While some of us are in confessional moods re: brake mistakes, here's mine from day number 1, hour number 1, with my 4410. I got home with it, backed it off my trailer drove up to the house with our slightly sloping yard. I was walking up to the house to get the wife to come out and take a look when she threw the door open and pointed behind me with a look of sheer terror on her face. I turned around and my beautiful shiny new tractor was rolling down the yard toward the woods. I chased it down, jumped on and mashed the brakes. Then the laughter started.

If we're talking about JD's with their pull handle/step on service brakes system, grizer is exactly right --- mash that sucker down after you pull the handle. Your tractor will be where you park it and you won't be moving it with the brake engaged.

EDIT: Or, do as Ed suggests on a flat surface. You can't drive with it on if you don't set it.

Re: Door clearances. I spent a lot of time and about an extra hundred dollars to make sure the overhead door on my barn addition would clear my ROPS. I only put my TuffTop canopy on when I am going to be working the field, because in general use, I just have too many trees. I knew my clearance was reaaaaallllly close, so shouldn't I have realized my TuffTop was going to smack the edge of the door the first time I pulled up with it on? You would think that a reasonable person would. I have a wrinkled bottom panel of a garage door that apparently proves I am not a reasonable person. By the way, the TuffTop lives up to all of its claims. It doesn't have a mark on it. It just mangled the door and then bounced back.

For every dumb move you can make with a tractor that you guys can come up with, I can probably come up with my episode -- I've done them all.

 

[jbrumberg]

I lost count of all the senior moments (even when I was younger) I have had when operating a tractor . The most recent was proving that "knock off" hazard lights really can be knocked off . Jay

 

[mjarrels]

Times are changing... I have mowed half the lawn with parking brake on with the new orange tractor, but on my old tractors, it is pretty much impossibe to operate with parking brake set.

mark

 

[wippster]

At the age of 14 I was racking hay around the farm implements when got I got a little to close the grain elevator or grain auger and it tipped over and landed on the hood of the the old 4010 JD! the old man wasn't very impressed

 

[Kendall69]

Look around, do you stll have all your tows, and fingers, both legs attached, arms where they should be, still breathing??

Trust me you didn't screw up.

Any time you can get off a piece of earth moving equipment with all things attached, that's good day. Like a plane crash, any crash you can walk away from is a good landing.

Your brakes may be toast, but it's nothing some cash can't fix...

 

[MadDogDriver]

Look around, do you stll have all your tows, and fingers, both legs attached, arms where they should be, still breathing??

Trust me you didn't screw up.

Any time you can get off a piece of earth moving equipment with all things attached, that's good day. Like a plane crash, any crash you can walk away from is a good landing.

Your brakes may be toast, but it's nothing some cash can't fix...

How true!! Can't replace you, but the other parts are no big deal in the big scheme of life.

...and a great landing is one where you can use the plane again.

 

[RoyJackson]

A guy isn't a real tractor operator until he runs his machine with the brake on.