Cautionary tale. Check your Shear Bolts and get a fire extinguisher for your tractor

canoetrpr · Feb 9, 2013

Good day friends. I haven't been on here in a while. I hope that this experience I have had will save someone else the hazard.

I purchased my Meteor 75" pull type snowblower with my Kubota M7040. As luck would have it I never got to use the blower last year as we had such a mild winter. This winter, we just had a storm worth blowing and I was thrilled to go out and blow this morning.

About half way through I noticed that the blower was bogging up. There was just over a foot or so of snow. I went to lift the blower but realized that it was no longer blowing any snow. If you have ever had a PTO shear pin break on you - it was just like that. I figured that one of my dogs must have done what they often do and left a piece of firewood that they steal from the wood pile on the driveway. I look behind the cab as I normally do in such instances just to confirm what the status of the shaft is expecting that it just would not be spinning and WHOA! My shaft has been torn off into two pieces. The one attached to the tractor is spinning all over the place and not only that, the wildly spinning around tractor end of the shaft is on FIRE!!!

I stop the tractor, run in the house and grab a fire extinguisher that we bought some 7 years ago upon the recommendation of our insurance agent when she was doing an inspection. I was able to put the fire out quickly with no damage to the tractor. It was the grease on the shaft that was on fire.

As I suspected, when I took the shaft off the blower, I found that the shear bolt was still intact and some IDIOT who had put the shaft together had put a GRADE 8 bolt on for the shear bolt!!. I cannot still get the tractor end of the shaft off. I normally slides right off when the collar is pulled forward but I wonder if it may have something to the heat but it is not sliding off. I will have to go work on that another day.

I called my dealer and unfortunately the owner and service manager are out. They have been nothing by great with my tractor thus far on the couple very minor things that have come up. I'm sure they will be appalled to hear about the shear bolt. I talked to a guy at the parts counter and he was surprised to hear it and confirmed for me that the shaft comes totally assembled from the blower manufacturer and they just put it on. I'll be advising my dealer that they ought to check all the shear bolts to ensure this is avoided.

So far everything seems to be in working order. I have no idea what the shock has done to my driveline but it seems to be spinning the shaft fine.

My suggestion to my fellow tractoring friends.

1. Go out now and check any shear bolts on your implements which have not been install by you yourself. It will only take a few minutes but it will save you a lot of trouble if someone made the same mistake.
2. Purchase a fire extinguisher for your tractor. I did not have this and I don't want to know what would have occurred if I was far away from the house and this was a mower on a hot dry summer day rather than a blower. I will be getting a few right away. One for each tractor, one for each floor on the house.

bigtiller · Feb 9, 2013

I have a 10 pound Halonite extinguisher at each end of my garage but none on the mower. That's a good idea you have, I'll have to look for a spot for a small one on my 2720.

Gordon Gould · Feb 9, 2013

Thanks for the story. A good reminder of how little things can cause big trouble. I am glad you were able to keep things under control. I have thought for a while that I should have an extinguisher on the tractor but just haven't gotten around to it. I will make a point to do it now.

gg

k0ua · Feb 9, 2013

It probably didn't seem very funny at the time but a spinning shaft of death flailing around the back of the tractor is one thing, but being on fire too!:shocked:
sure would have made a heck of a video, might have won some money on Americas Funniest Home Videos! Glad you "took care of business" quickly.

James K0UA

Baby Grand · Feb 9, 2013

The fire extinguisher is something I don't carry on the tractor, but really should.
Having one right when you need it, as Canoetrpr demonstrated, can really save your bacon.
I think I could rig a bracket on the ROPS that would even look somewhat sporty.

Zebrafive · Feb 9, 2013

Baby Grand said:
The fire extinguisher is something I don't carry on the tractor, but really should.
Having one right when you need it, as Canoetrpr demonstrated, can really save your bacon.
I think I could rig a bracket on the ROPS that would even look somewhat sporty.

Plus one :thumbsup:

MtnViewRanch · Feb 9, 2013

Easy and clean. 2 hose clamps and 1 fire extinguisher.

canoetrpr · Feb 9, 2013

Very clean Brian. I've got to figure out where I can put one in the cab without too much drilling.

cheoah · Feb 9, 2013

Sometimes my drivelines heat up when under a load, like the round baler, and that heavy shaft gets stuck on there. A little squirt of kroil, and just a little bit of persuasion with a pry bar and it's off. Hopefully yours is that simple.

jimainiac · Feb 10, 2013

Really glad to hear that since you were home and near a fire extinguisher things turned out okay. I think of fire extinguishers as cheap insurance policies, you get them and hope you never need them. I have them all over the place, and one with each vehicle, but here's another thought - it's important to check their gauges and replace or recharge if necessary. Example: I put a fire extinguisher on the tractor's roll bar years ago. One time while bushogging I backed under a low branch and the extinguisher got set off for a short burst. That was a surprise! The gauge now reads a little low. They say that setting them off even once breaks the seal, allowing them to leak down. The point is, this story gives me the incentive to replace that little sucker before I actually need it. I also read that the constant vibration of being on the tractor can compact the contents of the extinguisher to the point where it might not work. Don't know if that's true or not, but I figure why take a chance. I'm putting this on the top of my to-do list.

bullbreaker · Feb 10, 2013

Glad things worked out ok ! I too keep 2 extingueshers on different end of my garage. Going to make it one of my priorities to attach FE on my tractor ASAP (Brian method). Thanks to all for reminder (cheap insurance).

Boone

bullbreaker · Feb 10, 2013

Anybody care to comment on these 4 FE. Would # 2 be enough , or should order next level, if not from where ? I do a lot of HD net purchases. (free shipping/ more varietie than store etc). For mounting on tractor/truck. This thread got me thinking.

Search Results for*fire extinguishers*at The Home Depot

Boone

This one also suppose to have better finish for outdoor elements : http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25e...d=-1&keyword=fire+extinguishers&storeId=10051

Baby Grand · Feb 10, 2013

Nicely done, Brian.
You even got the paint to match!

Toyboy · Feb 10, 2013

Talk about enough extinguishers, I have 9 in my 2 story garage. 3 co2 and 6 powder. One each in the two vehicles and boat but none on the tractor (I'll have to remedy that). Also have 8 of them in the house at various locations, Halon, co2, and powder. We have a volunteer fire department here, and you are the best first responder. By the time they assemble and get on scene, their considered foundation savers.

kebo · Feb 10, 2013

jimainiac said:
Really glad to hear that since you were home and near a fire extinguisher things turned out okay. I think of fire extinguishers as cheap insurance policies, you get them and hope you never need them. I have them all over the place, and one with each vehicle, but here's another thought - it's important to check their gauges and replace or recharge if necessary. Example: I put a fire extinguisher on the tractor's roll bar years ago. One time while bushogging I backed under a low branch and the extinguisher got set off for a short burst. That was a surprise! The gauge now reads a little low. They say that setting them off even once breaks the seal, allowing them to leak down. The point is, this story gives me the incentive to replace that little sucker before I actually need it. I also read that the constant vibration of being on the tractor can compact the contents of the extinguisher to the point where it might not work. Don't know if that's true or not, but I figure why take a chance. I'm putting this on the top of my to-do list.

That is very true!! This is why you frequently need to take the dry chemical extinguishers out of their bracket, turn it upside down, and shake it until you can feel the chemical moving around inside it. On mine, it seems like the longer I let it compact, the harder it will be to break it up. I learned that right here on TBN. :thumbsup:

pat32rf · Feb 10, 2013

Don't forget too, that in a case like this, you CAN put out a grease fire with SNOW, rather than running to the house/garage. Doesn't help on a hay rig though.

Soundguy · Feb 10, 2013

i carry a FE on all my tractors. good insurance.

on the yoke ont he tractor.. if it is siezed.. I suggest carefully attacking it with a die grinder till you can split it and then use a chissle to driv eit open a hair then slide off.

canoetrpr · Feb 10, 2013

cheoah said:
Sometimes my drivelines heat up when under a load, like the round baler, and that heavy shaft gets stuck on there. A little squirt of kroil, and just a little bit of persuasion with a pry bar and it's off. Hopefully yours is that simple.

Tried again today with no luck. I'll try to figure out what kroil is. I haven't tried fluid film yet.

I found out that the heat from the fire was so much that it slightly melted a portion of the drawbar which the spinning shaft was able to get close to.! Not enough to have to replace it but I will have to grind it down a bit to smooth it out.

canoetrpr · Feb 10, 2013

pat32rf said:
Don't forget too, that in a case like this, you CAN put out a grease fire with SNOW, rather than running to the house/garage. Doesn't help on a hay rig though.

I actually tried that for a little bit. Didn't seem to be working. Decided it wasn't worth messing around with since I had a FE not far away.

canoetrpr · Feb 10, 2013

Soundguy said:
i carry a FE on all my tractors. good insurance.

on the yoke ont he tractor.. if it is siezed.. I suggest carefully attacking it with a die grinder till you can split it and then use a chissle to driv eit open a hair then slide off.

I was hoping I wouldn't have to but it seems I might.

What about just heating it up a bit and trying to use a crowbar to get it off?

Annoying thing is I can't even get it to move a bit to a position where the lock that holds it on will stay undone.