CK30HST near death experience

Bob_Skurka · Jul 6, 2005

Kioti wrote: this is the first occurrence of this nature that has been reported from our customers or dealers. 

Now just based on THE RESPONSES IN THIS THREAD:
1) -- TractorLegend: my left knee popped the range shifter out of low to neutral
2) -- VictorW: The knee does bump the shifter sometimes but mine is a little stiffer to move and I feel it before it moves
3) -- NevadaSmith: Wierd...same thing happened to me this weekend.
4) -- BigDouges: I've done it on my CK25hst.
5) -- VT Kioti: for me most of my work is on relatively flat land so it has not been a problem but I have experienced this many times and know exactly what you are talking about.


So while this is no scientific sample, there are 5 reports right here in the span of a little over a day. Assuming we have about 30 people on TBN who post regularly and own CK25's and CK30, that would place this event occuring to close to 15% of the owners (eventhough one user notices it before he bumps it into neutral). Even if we have 50 owners here the rate of incidence would still be high at 10%. No idea if that is a legitimate correlation or not, but it strikes me that someone else must have noticed this and reported it to someone before this? Maybe it has been reported to dealers but not passed up hill? Or maybe its been presumed to have been operator error? It sounds like a potentially dangerous design flaw but even that might be a leap to conclusions at this point.

Good thing nobody was down hill of you when you went into neutral.

TractorLegend · Jul 6, 2005

The tractor is at my recreation property (sort of between Mt. St Helens and Mt Rainier f.y.i) and I reside a bit south of Seattle 108 miles away- so when I go either this weekend or the next I will take pictures of the knee placement.
(Or TBN'er with one in their yard can do so assuming a 6'2" subject.
For those not owning a Kioti CK25 or 30HST the gear selector is on the left next to the operator. When its in low selection it is in the most forward choice, which brings the lever from about a 45ish degree forward angle in Medium gear to maybe 60? in Neutral and 70-80 degrees forward which is slightly above a tall persons knee. Calculated angles based on memory, which is subject to question /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

TractorLegend · Jul 6, 2005

Amen to Bob's observance.
I wish I had a dollar for everytime a business told me I was "the only one this happened to".
Id live next door to Bill Gates.
Of all the people on the planet I must be some sort of probability oddity. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

shoppintractors · Jul 6, 2005

I wish I had a dollar for everytime a business told me I was "the only one this happened to".

Kioti wrote:
....this is the first occurrence of this nature that has been reported from our customers or dealers.

I see two differing statements..... /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Don

Kiohio · Jul 7, 2005

This statement" ....this is the first occurrence of this nature that has been reported from our customers or dealers." reminds me of others I have heard, and a first hand experience.

I was shopping with my wife and had a customer see me in the store, he immediately after saying hello started getting a little upset telling me of a problem he was having with his tractor, he went on to say, "It has does this since it was almost new". That being said means it wasn't reported...I can't do anything about it. This was a very easy fix for an annoying problem. We fixed it and he was happy.
If you have a problem, please report it!

KO

TractorLegend · Jul 10, 2005

Heres the picts of my leg in relation to the shifter.

TractorLegend · Jul 10, 2005

Heres another angle of shifter pict. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Donnyj · Jul 10, 2005

No doubt about it being in a bad position. Looks like you would catch your leg on it even when getting on and off the machine. Being in a hurry getting on and off might result in a nasty bruise on your leg. /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

trlong · Jul 11, 2005

TL,

Glad this got moved to the "Safety" forum. I like the detail in your picture, especially the open toed sandles on a tractor... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif...just yanking your chain.

Seriously, although my 4115 does not have the same problem with shifter proximity to the knee, shifting in, and out of low is not as positive as I would like. Numerous times, working on my sidehill, I've had to shut off the tractor, or just put it in neutral for a few minutes (bucket and RB solidly anchoring it in place with wheels turned hard and brake set...). When I would start back up, I found I'd better try a little reverse, after shifting into "Low", to be sure I really was in low, not still in neutral. Amazing how fast one can start to roll down a hill in neutral! I love the HST but, some form of shift lock shouldn't be that hard to design. Numerous auto's have had various designs to reduce the chance of changing gears unintentionally (i.e. pull back, shift up/down for column, pull left or push right, or pull up or down for a stick... Designs have been around for many, many years.

Tom

TractorLegend · Jul 11, 2005

I was just being a tractor model that day in the pict. I didn't run it. Sorry for the lack of safety gear. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif