Winches Stuck in marshy/muddy section

[ShhDragon]

About to buy a new JD 3000 series.
I expect to keep the tractor in known places on property for much of its life.
Some of those known places may at times become a bit boggy (sink to shoelaces when walking on them, no worse) and or pooling. Soft earth in short that may soak well at times with weather.

I figure, at some point, I will get it stuck. the known likely to be stuck places are 40 yards from barn. I thought I could mount an electric winch to barn and run a cable to tractor if ever stuck and have a one-man job of solving the issue. It occurs to me, however that i might get a winch on tractor itself and run its cable to something fixed wherever the tractor happens to be stuck.

Thoughts? If a winch, any recommendations?

 

[Thomas]

Winch on tractor sounds like good idea..quick hitch for front and rear,you may want to consider heavy duty come along,come along will help getting unstuck also handy for other projects.

Winch/come along,I like to double the pulling power,for suction of mud etc...belly hung sometime can stress cable...extra chain,cable,straps may come in handy.

 

[Egon]

Winch for the tractor is probably preferable as a new soft spot just 20 feet past your cable reach is developing at this moment. :laughing:

Consider the battery/winch compatibility on the tractor.

 

[jenkinsph]

If I thought I was going to have problems getting stuck very often I would move up in tractor size to a 4x20 and use smaller implements. That would help alot with this issue. I would also park the tractor on firm soil or build a pad to park it on for safe keeping.

Can you subsoil to get better drainage for this area? Having to use a winch very often sure doesn't sound like fun. The 4x20 series tires have a larger rolling diameter and will be less affected by the mud.

 

[ShhDragon]

Thanks everyone. Winch is best with a few miles of chain/cable and a come-along or two. Any guess as to the rating I might need given this tractor's weight? I plan to improve drainage first but also plan not to trust that it'll work as planned or as well as planned, hence this post.

If I thought I was going to have problems getting stuck very often I would move up in tractor size to a 4x20 and use smaller implements. That would help a lot with this issue. I would also park the tractor on firm soil or build a pad to park it on for safe keeping.
The 4x20 series tires have a larger rolling diameter and will be less affected by the mud.

I do plan to build a pad so that is set. Smaller implements meaning less weight? As far as 4x20 and so on; I am new here explain? What is a 4x20?Is rolling diameter the width of the track; therefore like snowshoes the weight is better dispersed in the footprint of the wheel and hence less sinking?

thanks again everyone.

 

[jenkinsph]

Well 4x20 is the series of 4120, 4320, 4520 and 4720. These have larger tires which will float better with larger footprints. Just compare these to the 3x20 or 3000 series tractors at the dealer. Then use the lighter implements or buy the subsoil plow first to see if you can improve the drainage. Obviously if you can correct the drainage issue first this changes what implements can be used and I would wan't to know that right away.

Not familiar with your area but have you seen any analysis to determine what kind of ground structure you have that holds the water?

 

[Barely Smokin']

This guy is on the cheap side, but I have used one for 3-4 years now to load cars, etc. on to my equipment trailer and the sucker is pretty torquey. No real issues. I like the fact that it's portable---it'll hook up to anything ya got. Even if you don't use it for this app, it's a pretty handy thing to have lying around.

I don't claim it's the baddest winch out there, just handy. :thumbsup:

2000-Lb. 12 Volt Portable Winch | AC Powered Winches | Northern Tool + Equipment

Also---do you know the trick about burying a 8" x 8' log at 90 degrees, about a foot down, and attaching the winch cable to its middle? Good when you're stuck in mud and can't reach a tree, etc.

 

[jenkinsph]

This guy is on the cheap side, but I have used one for 3-4 years now to load cars, etc. on to my equipment trailer and the sucker is pretty torquey. No real issues. I like the fact that it's portable---it'll hook up to anything ya got. Even if you don't use it for this app, it's a pretty handy thing to have lying around.

I don't claim it's the baddest winch out there, just handy. :thumbsup:

2000-Lb. 12 Volt Portable Winch | AC Powered Winches | Northern Tool + Equipment

Also---do you know the trick about burying a 8" x 8' log at 90 degrees, about a foot down, and attaching the winch cable to its middle? Good when you're stuck in mud and can't reach a tree, etc.

I have used steel plates with chain hooks mounted about 1/3 the height up from the ground to pull against. I have made these plates 12" wide and 30" tall from 3/8" plate with a piece of 2"x1/2" flatbar welded to the center as a rib. Drive these down to ground level with the chain attached. Gives you something to pull out a small dozer with. I used to keep these on my trailer when in the dozer business and could drive these in the ground and hook to the lower edge of the tracks at the rear and back out of a sink hole.

 

[Cocre]

The R4 tires on my JD 3320 do a good job of staying on top of muck that sinks the 8N with ag tires. Then again, the 8N can pull in loose dry stuff that the JD only spins in.

 

[Barely Smokin']

I have used steel plates with chain hooks mounted about 1/3 the height up from the ground to pull against. I have made these plates 12" wide and 30" tall from 3/8" plate with a piece of 2"x1/2" flatbar welded to the center as a rib. Drive these down to ground level with the chain attached. Gives you something to pull out a small dozer with. I used to keep these on my trailer when in the dozer business and could drive these in the ground and hook to the lower edge of the tracks at the rear and back out of a sink hole.

I like it. Sounds a lot better than the log-chained-to-the-tracks technique I've heard so much about but never had to deploy.

That's the nice thing about having a winch rated at 66,700lbs attached to the back of your dozer. Never had to use it to pull out my JD, but I'm betting it would work...:drink: In fact, at a weight of 1,980lbs, I'm wondering if the winch itself weighs more than my 790...