Ponytug - Group embarrassment time

   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #1  

woodlandfarms

Super Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2006
Messages
6,112
Location
Los Angeles / SW Washington
Tractor
PowerTrac 1850, Kubota RTV x900
So, I am thinking by now your new shiny tractor has been working all weekend and we have not seen any pictures... Are we not good enough ;-)
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #2  
woodlandfarms said:
So, I am thinking by now your new shiny tractor has been working all weekend and we have not seen any pictures... Are we not good enough ;-)

Aha! A new attachment for your PT. A quick attach plate, with a 1/4-20 thread for a camera mount. Naturally, hydraulic actuation for the shutter release. ;-)

John
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #3  
I was thinking more along the lines of one of those sports helmet-cams mounted on the canopy.......
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #4  
My humble apologies. Carl is right. You deserve some photos.

To put it simply, without the help and advice and assistance of this forum, I wouldn't have bought a PT. So thanks for all of the help so far, and all the help in the future!

The first photo is a hill climb, just as the PT1445 was cresting an 18 degree incline. Traction was an issue in the loose gravel, but with a little speed, no problem. I can forsee a role for chains. I can't convey how useful, and reassuring autobrakes are. My spouse lugged the engine near the top, and depressed the treadle farther, stalling the engine, but the brakes came on and held. She put the parking brake on, restarting the engine, upped the engine speed, and drove off.

A neighbor happened by on Sunday. One of his first comments was "Look, it has reversible wheels!"

Question: what is the name of the fifth hose on the lift arms, just inboard of the left side QA? (i.e. 2 PTO, 2 QA and ?)

woodlandfarms said:
So, I am thinking by now your new shiny tractor has been working all weekend and we have not seen any pictures... Are we not good enough ;-)
 

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   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #5  
MossRoad has a pretty slick setup, but it is a little lower down my do list at the moment.

Rip said:
I was thinking more along the lines of one of those sports helmet-cams mounted on the canopy.......
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #6  
OK wizards. Can you explain the logic of these to a neophyte like me?

Starting on the left:
1) The air intake appears to be upside down so the water drain is at the top of the air filter. This is because...?
2) The intake is behind the exhaust, which blows on the tire. Is this to keep the right rear tire warm and clean?
3) Why do the battery cables cross?
4) Where is the ground path from the engine block to the frame?

Both the intake and the exhaust look as if they are 180 degree reversible, which would then enable the air intake drain to be at the low point of the filter.

Perusing the Deutz engine manual, I notice that Deutz supplies an oil cooler cowling that is
a) curved, and
b) directs the air flow across the engine and exhaust.
Does anyone have one?

All the best,

Peter
 

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   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #7  
Here's the Trip Report.

You know what they say about the best laid plans....

We had a bit of an adventure getting the PT over the last little bit to get it here.

After hearing the freight quote to have the tractor delivered to my place, I opted for having it delivered at a nearby loading dock. Not that anything is all that near to here, but that's another story. It took awhile calling around to find a free loading dock, but I finally found one at our local freight yard. They said that they could take a "dock drop" of the tractor and pallets, no problem. I arranged with Power Trac to ship the tractor (3950lbs) and ~4000lbs over four pallets of equipment. I reserved a trailer that could take a low tractor and a rental truck big enough to take three large pallets.

On Thursday, the tractor left Tazewell, to be delivered the following Thursday. On Monday, I received a call from the manager of the freight yard, asking about "what the heck was this about a tractor coming in". With a feeling of mild panic, I explained, and explained, and I told him that I had double checked with his assistant and that the tractor was enroute at the moment, and I hoped that all we were going to do was drive the tractor off and to the ground. He relented and said he wouldn't leave me high and dry, ("Thank you, thank you!"), but that they don't normally do this. He said that he would arrange for it on Thursday, mid morning, when the action was a bit slow.

Tuesday evening rolls around and the trucker calls me to say that he is early, and wants to drop off the load on Wednesday. ("Yikes!") So, Wednesday morning, I have multiple phone calls to find out if I can change the truck and trailer rental reservations, then calling my buddy up who was to drive the other truck and see if he can take off work on Wednesday, instead of Thursday, double check with the freight yard, call back to change the rental reservations, and complete the loop. Most everything gets arranged, but I don't have a jerry can of diesel for the tractor, which has me hoping that PT will have left enough diesel in it to complete the task.

After running out of the house with all my chains and tiedowns, I drive down to the trailer rental place, where they try to talk me into a flat bed car carrier instead of the tilt up equpment trailer that I had reserved. The sales job is going great, until the assistant says
"Oh, don't turn the wheel of the car when you are on the car carrier ramps- they tend to fall off if you do that." Next...
"We'll take the tilt up, thanks."
After picking up my buddy and the rental truck for the pallets, we drive over to the freight yard, only to discover the magnitude of the diasaster looming over us.

The issue was that the tractor and the four pallets were shipped on a standard 80,000lb flat bed semitrailer. The trailer was 48' long, and the bed was four feet off the ground. It was supposed to have pulled up to a loading dock at the freight yard, where the tractor would have been driven down to ground level via a ramp, and the pallets were be put on our rental truck with a fork lift.

The problems were several; the semi truck was too long to get into the freight yard. That meant that we would have to unload it using a fork lift in a parking lot nearby. That was OK for the four pallets, but that left the tractor. The tractor was parked toward one side of the trailer, but not at the edge for obvious reasons. While we were collectively head scratching on how to get it down to the ground without a loading dock, I wasn't looking forward to trying to parallel park a brand new tractor next to a four foot drop off so that the forklifts would have a better pickup point. After many ideas, it was decided to try to lift it off with a forklift.
"But it'll scratch the paint, buddy."
"It's a tractor! It'll have scratched paint the moment it goes to work. Do what it takes to get it off in one piece."

Then there was the load issue. The forklifts at the freight facility had a 4000lb capacity, and the tractor is supposed to be 3950, which would be OK, but and it is a big but, you have to derate the fork lift capaicity for not lifting close to the fork lift. Lifting weight near the end of the forks is likely to cause the fork lift to tip, and if you have to add tip extensions, it gets worse. And they were going to have to add tip extensions to get far enough under the tractor.

This then raised the issue of where the center of gravity was for the tractor fore/aft. By eyeball, it was close to where the seat is, but that raised center of gravity issues left right, if the fork lift raised it from underneath.

Fortunately, one of the fork lift operators eye balled the location, voiced the opinion that it would work, and tried it. The tractor tipped a little to one side, but only about four inches. The fork lift wobbled a little, but not badly. As he lifted it, he yelled out something, and I was afraid that he wasn't going to make it. What he actually said was "Wow, when they say 4000lbs, they mean it!" (Tractor, plus tip extensions, plus ?) He backed up slowly, and then slowly lowered the tractor to the ground. TaaDaa! No tractor omlet!

With the assistance of the forklift operators, and the trucker, we got everything chained down to their preferences. I took all the advice that I could get. Luckily, I had extra chains.

As it turned out, the pallets were a little larger than Power-Trac had said, so I wasn't able to get all three of them in the rental truck, as I had planned. What to do with the extra pallet? In the end, we just attached pallet with the forks to the tractor and backed the tractor onto the tilt trailer. The 1200lb post driver went into the back of my truck. And yes, Virginia, a 20 year old one ton diesel can haul 1200lbs in the bed, plus 6500lbs in a trailer from a standing start on a 10 degree slope, but only just.

Ultimately, it all worked out, but 10% less capacity on the fork lift would have killed off the project, as would having the tractor another 12" farther toward the center of the semi, or a few more pounds on the tractor. Most of all, the fork lift operators, and their company, could have just said "Nah, not our problem. See ya later." Instead, they really tried to make it work, even though their company didn't end up handling anything officially, and I am sure, isn't going to get paid by the company that hauled the tractor, since I didn't see any paperwork change hands.

So, I feel incredibly lucky to have gotten it accomplished with everyone's help, because I don't know where we would have found a rental fork lift, and an open parking lot at 5:30 at night.

In contrast, unloading it at night at my place went like a charm. For my money, the forks paid for themselves in the ease of unloading and packing of the toys, I mean attachments.

And, yes, I went back as soon as I could and dropped off a few cases of good beer for the guys at the freight yard that made it all possible. They were really great about it when I walked in with the beer- "Wow, the good stuff!" :)

Just goes to show you that not all of your PT adventures happen at home.

Drive safe!

Peter
 
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   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #8  
That is a fantastic story! I had a similar experience, although MUCH smaller scale with the delivery of my grapple. It was delivered to a local shipping company who was under no obligation to help me load it onto my truck. I brought a couple of friends but was still worried. They happily loaded it with a forklift and amazing precision. The universal currency, a case of Molson, changed hands. Good people.

Glad you got your toys!

-Brian
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #9  
ponytug said:
Question: what is the name of the fifth hose on the lift arms, just inboard of the left side QA? (i.e. 2 PTO, 2 QA and ?)

It's the return line for motors with case drain. My mower has one.
 
   / Ponytug - Group embarrassment time #10  
ponytug said:
Starting on the left:
1) The air intake appears to be upside down so the water drain is at the top of the air filter. This is because...?
You got it, it's BECAUSE

2) The intake is behind the exhaust, which blows on the tire. Is this to keep the right rear tire warm and clean?
Your tires are too big. I'll swap you a set of turf from the 1845.:D

3) Why do the battery cables cross?
Why not?


4) Where is the ground path from the engine block to the frame?
On my 1845, I had some strange electrical gremlins. I ran #10 wire fron the engine to the frame, then from the rear frame to the front frame. Gremlins went away.

Both the intake and the exhaust look as if they are 180 degree reversible, which would then enable the air intake drain to be at the low point of the filter.
Mine points down, but back in the corner. I've never had water. I suspect there's a reason for the configuration, but I suspect you wont find out much detail from PT. There tremendously helpful with problems, but pretty reticent about engineering. It's a Tazewell thing. :)

Perusing the Deutz engine manual, I notice that Deutz supplies an oil cooler cowling that is
a) curved, and
b) directs the air flow across the engine and exhaust.
Does anyone have one?
Nope. At least I don't. I suspect they reroute it out rather than over the top of the engine to run the hot air away from the hydraulic cooler above the engine.
That is one muscular machine. It makes the 1845 look puny. I'm betting you'll love it.
 
 
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