Bummer

[Deerlope]

Its my gut feeling that Kubota does not like putting a ROPS on there tractors but it is no longer engineers that are designing equipment. It is the "F"ing lawyers and the courts of this land. The new L seris Kubota's have go so many electronic features that you almost don't need a brain to operate one.
What I did to repair mine and I did it in about an hour. I pit a straight edge on a flat piece of steel near the base of the structure and I could only see about 1/16" deflection. So I rasied the loader and secure a come-a-along to it and the ROPS. Then I loosened all the bolts at the first joint just behind the tool box and started takeing up the slack. I actually took it too far but I put a 1/16" SS shim in and slacked off the come-a-long, tightened all the bolts and it is darn near perfect.

 

[Deerlope]

I just had a new Bush Hog finish mower delivered yesterday and the guy was telling me that he delivered 8 new tractors last week. He said that one new owner asked him how to use it and the machine also had a BH. Now that is scary. There are so many people operating tractors today that have never done it ever before. The new generation of weekend farmers will never know what it is like to get stuck 4 times in one day or what it is like to get the towing tractor stuck also.
I came up using horses, then tractors and believe me they both have their advantages. My first tractor was a 1945 JD "A", narrow front, hand clutch. You didn't have to be a musician to back it in the woods but it would have been a big help.
I am sure that I will hit my ROPS again and maybe next time it will come off but for now I need it to attach my homemade cab to.

 

[KennyV]

I think the point is … DON’T DO dumb, stupid or dangerous things expecting someone ELSE to keep you safe.
If you are not responsible for your own safety why start looking for some manufacturer to keep you safe. Dumb and stupid things will always be done, there are just a lot of that type of person available. No matter what is incorporated in any system They are still going to be dumb, stupid or dangerous things that will get people hurt.
I DO NOT think operating a tractor without a ROPS is DUMB or STUPID. Nor do I feel all ROPS should be removed… It is just as Bob stated ‘a false sense of security’ for some… KennyV.

 

[N80]

I think the point is … DON’T DO dumb, stupid or dangerous things expecting someone ELSE to keep you safe.

I just don't see how that relates to a ROPS. How is having or keeping a ROPS expecting someone else to keep you safe? You have a ROPS. You keep the ROPS. The safety is in your hands.

If you are not responsible for your own safety why start looking for some manufacturer to keep you safe.

Right. That is why the owner keeps and maintains his ROPS and does not rely on someone else to do it.

Dumb and stupid things will always be done, there are just a lot of that type of person available. No matter what is incorporated in any system They are still going to be dumb, stupid or dangerous things that will get people hurt.

I agree, but don't understand your point. It seems like your point is that smart people don't need a ROPS. And that simply has no basis in reality or rational thought. The bottom line is that a smart, prudent person keeps and maintains his safety equipment.

It is just as Bob stated ‘a false sense of security’ for some… KennyV.

That doesn't make sense to me. If that is true, we need to do away with seatbelts, smoke detectors, fire escapes, safety glass, hard hats.....the list goes on.

And the fact is, the ROPS does give security and has been proven to do so. It won't protect you from everything. That sense would be false. But thinking that just because you are smart and alert you don't need a ROPS, well, THAT is a false sense of security.

 

[riptides]

OK, I'm not going to win this. Thought I might be able to bring some perspective to the discussion, but apparently not.

And I think it is a valueable perspective. But I think they are there for a more positive than negative reason. You mentioned looking out for your wheels, you could extend this to look out beyond your wheels to the operations of your machine in immediate surroundings.

Don't forget about pulling stuff down hill or uphill, it is not just about your tractor traversing a slope or finding a hole. You get a FEL up high enough and take a sharp turn at speed and your over.

.... dangerous.....

Education comes at a price. A lot of new operators are not taught in person these days. So how do they learn?

I had no idea on load issues pushing tractors, I was not aware of the danger.

Accidents happen, and they are just that. Accidents.

-Mike Z.

 

[BTDT]

And the fact is, the ROPS does give security and has been proven to do so. It won't protect you from everything. That sense would be false. But thinking that just because you are smart and alert you don't need a ROPS, well, THAT is a false sense of security.
__________________
Does this apply to Soundguy and Farmwithjunk and their restored tractors that didn't have ROPS originally? I don't see anyone getting on their case to upgrade their tractors. I have an old M, H, Farmall, and my newer Ford 1300 doesn't have ROPS, don't plan on one either.

 

[N80]

Everyone has got to decide for themselves. I have less strong feelings about retrofitting older tractors. It is more costly and difficult to do that, and sometimes impossible. My farmer neighbor has all old tractors. I think only one of them has anything like a ROPS. He almost rolled that one recently. (I thought I posted this already but don't see it.) He is no raw beginner and he's a sharp guy. He has no plans to spend the money on retrofitting his tractors with ROPS. I doubt you could even get one for his Cases. And by the way, his kids and wife drive them too.

If it were me, I would get them retrofitted if I used them a lot. Especially if my family members were using them. I've recommended that he should too. He shrugged it off (I'm a doctor, he's a lifelong farmer...why should he listent to me?)

But, I do think retrofitting an old tractor and repairing a new tractor ROPS are different things.

But you bring Chris up....he's the nuns and orphans guy when it comes to replacing a damaged ROPS. If you want to know how he feels about it, ask him.

In the end, I see no difference between a ROPS on a tractor and a seat belt in a car. Would you ever suggest that anyone remove a damaged seatbelt and not replace it? If you had an old car that you drove as primary transportation would you add seatbelts if it didn't come with them? Would you tell you newly driving child that if they are just real smart and real careful that they don't need to wear their seatbelt? Get it?

 

[BTDT]

Get it? Yep, so simple even a caveman can understand it.

 

[Jaybr]

Let me start by saying my ROPS has never been off my tractor, or even folded.

I don't think you can compare a ROPS to a seat belt. A seat belt is non-evasive (unless your worried about wrinkling your close) and a ROPS is invasive at times.

 

[KennyV]

To get back to the problem Deerlope originally presented…
The ROPS is made with steel, (Iron and carbon alloy), Nothing exotic here. Can it be repaired? Anything can be repaired…
SOMETIMES, it is more economical to replace things that get damaged…
Any competent machine shop or welding shop can advise as to what path to take.
The idea that a ROPS can never be repaired, welded or straightened is like suggesting that a truck with a bent frame can never be safely restored to it’s original safe operational condition… Check with your local body shops… that is always a consideration in the repair after a crash.
You may need to jump to the safety forum to state your opinion as to the value of leaving a ROPS installed no matter what...
I feel there are FEW absolutes in this life, and you can not use, always, never or any otherwise restrictive adverb that will apply to all situations…
In orchards, and other places, a ROPS can be very dangerous and destructive…
It would be a shame if all things damaged were just replaced rather than repaired.
AS usual, Bird may have stated it more accurately… “I can understand the manufacturer, for liability reasons, wanting to replace the entire ROPS, and I guess I'd have to agree with them. However, if it were mine, I'd probably take it off and straighten it (might have to heat it to do so, repaint, etc.) or have someone with the right equipment straighten it if necessary. But I'm not recommending that you do that.”
I would look into repair before replacing… Kennyv.

 

[N80]

I don't think you can compare a ROPS to a seat belt. A seat belt is non-evasive (unless your worried about wrinkling your close) and a ROPS is invasive at times.

I disagree. I hear people complain all the time about seatbelts (after I've councelled them to wear them). And with seatbelts, you actually have to do something in order for them to work. I personally think the complaints about ROPS are about as valid as complaints about seatbelts. And they both keep you safer than you would be without them, by a huge margin.

 

[N80]

Kenny, I agree with you there. I don't have enough knowledge about these things to have an opinion as to whether a ROPS should be modified or repaired. But I think common sense will get you (us) a long way in that regard too.

My only beef is not using a ROPS that you have.

 

[Jaybr]

So how many people have wrecked the car, or bent their seatbelt driving in areas with low tree branches?

 

[Bird]

Jay, when driving a car, or truck, you'd certainly better be watching for the overhead clearance, as well as the side to side clearance, just as you should do with a tractor. If you're not paying close attention to what you're doing, you can tear up anything. On the other hand, it really doesn't matter how high or wide that thing is, if you know it and are watching what you're doing. And probably most, if not all, of us have made mistakes and scraped or bent something. We just try to keep those times to a minimum.

 

[Jaybr]

There are times when operating a tractor that you must lower the ROPS to avoid overhead obstacles. I've never been in a situation in 30 years driving a car where I had to remove my seatbelt.

I have been in situations in a truck where overhead clearance was an issue, although not on public roads, but I didn't need to remove my seatbelt and my roof wouldn't fold.

 

[riptides]

So how many people have wrecked the car, or bent their seatbelt driving in areas with low tree branches?

I wrecked my S-10 on a stump, does that count?

-Mike Z.

OBTW I had just cut the tree down a few days prior.

 

[Deerlope]

I wrecked my S-10 on a stump, does that count?

-Mike Z.

OBTW I had just cut the tree down a few days prior. [/QUO





Yes, that counts. You should have been looking underneath while driving. J/K with ya.

 

[Deerlope]

If I opened a can of worms here well then I am sorry. I just wanted to relate my misfortant to others so perhaps it would not happen to them.