Backhoe operating on its own

[Ron3054]

Last week while doing some work on my vacation property and while moving forward I was lowering the bucket as I approached the firewood pile when the bucket caught a stump and stopped the tractor abruptly. It was only a minor jolt and I didn't think too much of it until the back of the tractor started going up in the air. at first I thought the bucket was caught on the stump and was trying to lift so I hit the lever to the float position but the tractor kept going up. I was quite confused as to what was going on so I pulled the fuel shut off to kill the engine. I was still scratching my head when my son who had followed me on a quad to help load the firewood pointed out that my backhoe was lifting the tractor. Heres what happened. On my kioti LK3054TLB when you are in the drivers seat the backhoe seat is folded back and rests against the controls. the control panel is movable to provide a more comfortable operating position ( I really like this) but apparantly it did not lock into position when I put it back after using it last. when the tractor stopped suddenly the control panel moved forward causing the seat to push the lever lowering the backhoe. I was on flat ground and while both rear tires came off the ground there was no harm done. had this happened on a side slope the results could have been different. I am only posting this to warn others with this setup to be sure that the backhoe controls lock into the rear position when you leave the seat. I love this tractor and the compact disign of the backhoe but this is a potential safety hazard.