Adding Cab and Air to Smaller Tractors

[bumperm]

Nonsense. If you are so inclined, have the tools and knowledge there's nothing that can't be done in a home shop. I can certainly make one cheaper than I can buy one. But... I build cars for living. Then again; if you have trouble changing the fluids and filters, better have someone else do it. :2cents:

Well, CCWKen, I don't think your post is nonsense. You doubtless are a skilled craftsman with lots of tools and more importantly, free time.

I have a dab of mechanical ability too, along with a full on machine shop in my hangar, so I can fabricate, mill, turn, weld and cut. What I lack is lots of free time. Most of what I do have is taken up with making and fixing stuff for people (for free), along with more fun stuff like flying, soaring, shooting, grandkids, bicycle riding, family etc. I'd love to build an airplane kit too, but I realize that if I did that, I would have little time to fly . . . I tend to be a perfectionist and would probably spend my remaining years "improving" little parts on that airplane.

Besides, I bought a Kubota cab with heat and air. It's one complex sucker that would take an absolutely huge amount of time for the non-average Joe to duplicate with anything resembling satisfactory results.

A man has got to know his limitations . . . Dirty Harry

bumper

 

[chim]

I built a cab for my L3200 between November 2012 and January 2013. The main goal was to be warm when clearing snow. As fate would have it, we received very little snow following the completion of the cab in January 2013. It is sectional and not too difficult to remove and replace, so off it came for the summer of 2013.

This past winter it finally paid off. The 20K BTU heater was capable of drawing sweat while wearing a flannel shirt on the coldest nights. It is noisy inside, and I wear ear protection. This year I'm leaving the cab on to see how it works out in hot weather.

EDIT: THE DOORS LIFT OFF EASILY AND ARE REMOVED FOR WARM WEATHER.


We haven't had any 100 degree days this summer. There have been a few hot sunny days. I added a fan like we had in the school bus when I was a kid. This keeps some air moving to counter the heat buildup. By (or before) the end of July it will be apparent if leaving the cab on was a good idea. The top blocks the sun that would beat on me when it is directly overhead. There's still a lot of tinted glass to lessen the effect when the sun is at a lower angle. One nice feature is not having to flip the seat forward to prevent a scorched backside when remounting the tractor.

The project is something that took a lot more time than I thought it would - around 150 hours. Cost was about $1,200 for a sturdy cab with heat and real tinted automotive safety glass. Would I like a cab with A/C? Sure. Would I like to pay for one? No. This may not be a choice everyone would make but I'm happy with it.

Most of you may have already seen it but here's a link to the build thread for newer members:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...lly-decided-time.html?highlight=diy+cab+l3200

 

[bumperm]

chim,

How about designing your cab so the glass is removable, leaving the frame and roof for summer? That would give you the same level of cool as a sunshade. The B3350 is like a Popemobile of tractors - lots of glass and it doesn't appear to be tinted. It heats up really quickly when shut down, doors closed, and in the sun. If the wind isn't blowing, I'll often leave a door open. Can't imagine it would be tolerable without air conditioning in the summer.

The doors both come off easy enough, two hinge pins each, and that would help a lot. The rear window hinges unpin easy too. Unfortunately, the wiring for window defrosters, windshield wiper, and the tubing for window washer are all leading up into the head liner - - not easy to disconnect. So no good way to make it into a convertible

Good job on your cab!

bumper

 

[chim]

chim,

How about designing your cab so the glass is removable, leaving the frame and roof for summer? That would give you the same level of cool as a sunshade.B3350 The is like a Popemobile of tractors - lots of glass and it doesn't appear to be tinted. It heats up really quickly when shut down, doors closed, and in the sun. If the wind isn't blowing, I'll often leave a door open. Can't imagine it would be tolerable without air conditioning in the summer.......................

Bumperm, I went back and edited my post to note that the doors are off for summer. Otherwise it would be as a poster here remarked about a non-air conditioned cab - "Like driving a solar collector".

Having totally removable glass so the cab would transform into a canopy would be neat, but it sure would have added hours to the fab time. If removing the doors and running the fan won't work well I'll go back to Plan A and remove the cab for hot weather.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Nonsense. If you are so inclined, have the tools and knowledge there's nothing that can't be done in a home shop. I can certainly make one cheaper than I can buy one. But... I build cars for living. Then again; if you have trouble changing the fluids and filters, better have someone else do it. :2cents:

OK, you build cars. Do you make your own parts, like fenders, grills, padded dashes, frames, rims, engines(including casting block and making all the pistons, valves etc) I don't think so. That is what the home builder would be doing with the cab build and no home shop can do that. Factory cabs don't make all the stuff either, it is farmed out to facilities that make molded plastic and all the other goodies that have been designed in. In order to make a cab, one would have to make a one of a kind piece for everything in the cab and that would be impossible to do or at least impractical from a monetary stand point.

Even if someone could buy all the pieces to make a cab, it would be like buying all the parts individually to make a car which could be done but cost 100 times more than buying a car already put together.

As to making a cab that equals a factory cab cheaper than you can buy one, that is a farce. NO WAY. You might cobble together some steel tubing and make a frame that you can put some plexi-glass in, but it wont be nothing like a factory cab when finished and it might take you a year to do it and it likely would look something like the Ford in your Avatar.

 

[RDrancher]

OK, you build cars. Do you make your own parts, like fenders, grills, padded dashes, frames, rims, engines(including casting block and making all the pistons, valves etc) I don't think so. That is what the home builder would be doing with the cab build and no home shop can do that. Factory cabs don't make all the stuff either, it is farmed out to facilities that make molded plastic and all the other goodies that have been designed in. In order to make a cab, one would have to make a one of a kind piece for everything in the cab and that would be impossible to do or at least impractical from a monetary stand point.

Even if someone could buy all the pieces to make a cab, it would be like buying all the parts individually to make a car which could be done but cost 100 times more than buying a car already put together.

As to making a cab that equals a factory cab cheaper than you can buy one, that is a farce. NO WAY. You might cobble together some steel tubing and make a frame that you can put some plexi-glass in, but it wont be nothing like a factory cab when finished and it might take you a year to do it and it likely would look something like the Ford in your Avatar.

Your last sentence is more than a bit harsh.

Not everyone is as concerned with aesthetics as you seem to be. A lot of folks would just like to stay cool when its hot and warm when its cold. It's called function over form. Nothing wrong with that. And if someone has the time and talent to fabricate...more power to 'em.

I suggest that the OP look at Red Dot Corporation | Mobile HVAC |.

 

[dieselcrawler]

I do not have a cab on my tractor nor do I want one. However... I want a canopy/roll cage and will build one. I trust me engineering and fabrication skills dispite having no formal education in thoes areas, but years of hands on work and a solid dose of common sence goes a long way.

In the reasearch and development stage now... I have some scrap 2x4's and plywood as a canopy to get a feel for size and location in place. My father in law got a good laugh out of it the other day. It looks really cobbled... but is searving it perpous, providing shade for current use, and allowing me to get used to an object above me to crack my head on while mounting/dismounting. It took me an hour and a half to make and cost me $0. Info value? Huge... I know exactly how much steel tube it will take, with very little waste.

Currently it might look like CCWken's ford.... but it's a work in progress, and not indicative if my skills or quality standards... but one might think so based on one single photo of current state.

OP... if you are up to the fab work and fully understand the multiple aspects of adding a/c to a home built cab... go for it! But if time and money are such that a factory cab tractor is an option, factory fit and finish is hard to compete with...

If you do this yourself... document and share with us please!



Edit: added photo. I've added plywood to canopy after photo taken. Nice to have shade.

 

[peter-1959]

I saw a guy years ago that had converted a room a/c unit and put it on top of his cab and ran a generator to a quick mount on the front of the frame of his tractor. in the winter time it seemed to me he would replace the a/c unit with an electric milk-house heater remember him having to direct wire the anti-tip over switch as it was mount it on the bottom of the roof of the cab. When he was snowblowing he would mount the generator on the back of the tractor on another quick mount for winter operations.

 

[lamanated]

if your on my tractor forum, look up the popemobile, it was a small JD that the owner adapter an automotive system to..

 

[WilliamBos]

Your last sentence is more than a bit harsh.

Not everyone is as concerned with aesthetics as you seem to be. A lot of folks would just like to stay cool when its hot and warm when its cold. It's called function over form. Nothing wrong with that. And if someone has the time and talent to fabricate...more power to 'em.

I suggest that the OP look at Red Dot Corporation | Mobile HVAC |.

I agree 100%. A factory cab on the CUT's adds $6,000 to the price, a JDP cab is about the same money.

I say build it and be proud.