Did I waste my time? Is operator safer in this case?

[3RRL]

I like how Brian put it...

If it has to do with the pto, I turn the tractor off. Just how much time do you save by leaving it running anyway, maybe a few seconds? The consequences are to high of a cost for me to save at most 1 minute. If you get into the safety habit, you will be better off in the long run.

Sort of like drinking and driving, the price you have to pay if something goes wrong is to steep for me. A few years ago I was at the DMV to change the registration on my F600 and they had a sign up saying that if you were found guilty of DUI, the minimum fine was $10,000. Whether that is true or not I don't know, but I don't want to find out either. I always turn the tractor off when messing with the pto. I don't want to find out what happens when something goes wrong, it just is not worth it to me.

I'll get off my soapbox now.

 

[wedge40]

My question to all the folks who turn the tractor off to hook up the pto, do you also turn the tractor off when you hook any thing to 3ph? The odds of the tractor slipping into forward or reverse are the the same as the PTO mysteriously engaging. Is it safe, about as safe as driving a vehicle, any major mechanical failure can cause injury.

Wedge

 

[IslandTractor]

My question to all the folks who turn the tractor off to hook up the pto, do you also turn the tractor off when you hook any thing to 3ph? The odds of the tractor slipping into forward or reverse are the the same as the PTO mysteriously engaging. Is it safe, about as safe as driving a vehicle, any major mechanical failure can cause injury.

Wedge

My drill is: Parking brake on. HST in neutral. Engine on while needing to adjust 3pt hitch height then engine off before touching PTO.

 

[scott_vt]

Then I guess everyone wears safety glasses, wears hearing protection, still has the guard on their table saw, still has the guard on their PTO shaft, turns off the tractor while doing anything!!

Good Afternoon Rob,
I have worked with my hands my entire life. Modelmaker/toolmaker 35+ years, and I still have all my fingers ! Been a woodworker abot 20 years and you wont find a guard on my tablesaw or joiner ! IMHO they cause more accidents than they prevent ! Yes I constantly know where my fingers are in relation to the cutter or blade, its really important, and if you know what the heck your doing you should be fine !

On the tractor, when its time to hook up the pto shaft, I shut the tractor down, partly because my pto shaft rotates slightly while in neutral ! I guess Im a bit cautious on that front !

 

[jimmysisson]

Here's one area where a cab tractor may push you to taking a bit more risk. If you can reach the starter from outside next to the tractor, you're more likely to shut it down for hooking up. But PTO, I shut down. Usually.
I like it better quiet anyway.
Jim

 

[wushaw]

I use PTO implements on my Mitsubishi regularly, I never shut the machine off, I find it quite impossible for it to magically fall into gear....why? because them gears are spinning.
Try putting your gear tractor or manual tranny car/truck into gear without clutching first and you can see what I mean.

 

[SPYDERLK]

What if a tire pops while youre working under your tractor?
larry

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Every day most of us get up and go about our day. There are risks with most every single thing that we do. Do we still do them, you bet that we do, or we might as well be dead. But everything that we do has a percentage of risk that goes with it. Some of us are more comfortable with some risks than others. If we are familiar with something and know all the risks that go with it, we might very well take what would be considered a high risk. I like to think that it is an educated calculation. If you know the characteristics of something, then maybe it isn't really quite as risky, but the risk would be very high for somebody else. I have found that as I have aged I have become much more safety conscience. Figure that I still have all my parts and am not disfigured, other than by nature and would like to keep it that way.

Oh, and I do not have a drink and then drive, and I do my best to not run yellow lights and I don't park in red zones or handicapped parking. I don't really care what any of you do at home or in your house as long as it does not affect anybody else. But when you do stupid things that do affect other people in a negative way, then that is when I believe that you are in the wrong and should not be doing what you have been or are doing. And when you do something that gets you hurt, it does affect other people, it affects your family and your co-workers.

I'm done for now, I'll get back down from the box.

 

[RobJ]

Good Afternoon Rob,
I have worked with my hands my entire life. Modelmaker/toolmaker 35+ years, and I still have all my fingers ! Been a woodworker abot 20 years and you wont find a guard on my tablesaw or joiner ! IMHO they cause more accidents than they prevent ! Yes I constantly know where my fingers are in relation to the cutter or blade, its really important, and if you know what the heck your doing you should be fine !

I know...you won't find any on mine either. but technically they are there for a reason. The guard on some are hard to work around, impossible if doing a 45. The anti-kickback pawls are nice if they work right. But I have my TS set up a little wide in the back to prevent binding. But all this and I have still taken one in the thigh, any my nice Snap-on toolbox 10 feet away has a battle scar!!

 

[RobJ]

My question to all the folks who turn the tractor off to hook up the pto, do you also turn the tractor off when you hook any thing to 3ph? The odds of the tractor slipping into forward or reverse are the the same as the PTO mysteriously engaging. Is it safe, about as safe as driving a vehicle, any major mechanical failure can cause injury.

Wedge

I asked the same question wedge, only one response so I'm sure most people keep the tractor running while hooking up. In reguard to the PTO, I don't straddle the shaft like I've seen some do. On my tractor I'm outside the 3pt. Makes me feel better I guess.