Ever get your tractor stuck?

[glennmac]

Probably a good idea as a last resort, Bird. I'll check out that winch site.

Hillbilly, as to the draining the battery issue, couldnt you just keep the tractors motor running while you are winching out. Or are you saying that it will drain the battery even if the engine is running.

 

[Hillbilly]

Thanks Bird,I did not know that web address off the top of my head.

 

[Hillbilly]

Glenmac,
My battery has 500 cca(cold cranking amps) I am not sure what the reserve cca are,I need a bigger battery and a little bigger alternator,but I get buy with what I have.
It will drain your battery while the motor is running(faster than the tractor can return the amps to the battery),if it is a hard enough and long enough pull,somethings pull easier than others,like a big log does not pull as easy as a stuck tractor where the wheels turn and with the engine running you can help yourself along while the winch is pulling. It is something you just have to get used to,most places when you have your tractor stuck 10' pull at the most usually and you should be out of the hole no problem,but if you pull 100' of cable out and try to pull your self up a cliff unassisted and the winch doing all of the work,you are going to have stop occasionally and let the battery charge back up. On along pull the winch is going to drain more amps than the tractor can recover,but a short pull I get myself out of the fix,run the cable back on the winch and keep on driving. The 1st time I used the winch,the instructions recommend you unwind all the cable and stretch the cable a little when new,which I did and I let the winch pull the tractor while it was idling up an incline,after a while I stalled it somehow,and I had to get the pickup and jumper cables.
If you want to ask me anything else let me know and I will try to help,all I can say is this thing has helped out of some real jams deep in the woods.Also if I cut a tree down and it falls into another (which with my luck happens on occasion) I can drag the tree down on the ground or out of the multiflora rose etc.

 

[Hillbilly]

Glenmac,
I forgot to say when the battery runs down,the tractor will keep running but the winch loses its pulling power.

 

[rf33]

Gotta agree with you guys that a winch or another vehicle is the way to go, but I think that the original question was how do I get out without another vehicle and without any trees around to winch to. Anyone have any good ideas??

rf33

/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[mlmartin]

Years ago, when I heated with wood cut from my own woodlot, I mounted my winch on a heavy section of square steel tubing. I bolted a trailer ball clamp on the other end of the tubing. Then I took my truck to U-haul and had a category two hitch mounted on the front. The ball stuck out about 2 inches in front of the bumper. Since I already had a cat-2 hitch on the back I was all set.

Most people who remarked about the front hitch thought I had a boat trailer. They figured that it would be easier to put the boat in the water if you were driving forward. I don't own a boat so I don't know if that's true.

Having the winch off the truck this way allowed it to always have a straight cable run to whatever I was pulling and I could put it on either end of the truck when I got stuck. It worked well for me for several years. If I were logging with my tractor I'd do the same thing, again.

Matthew

 

[Rch]

I've seen a farmer take a 8-9 foot oak plank, slip it in front of both rear wheels (perpendicular to the line of travel) and chain it to both wheels so that (hopefully) your driving up on the plank as it rotates under the tractor. Obviously, there is a real danger of flipping the tractor but he proceeded very slowly, in the lowest gear and slipped the clutch big time. Loggers will use a tree. At best, a risky manuever.

RCH

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Bird,
I remember seeing a similar device used by the US Army in WWII to winch DUWKS when they got stuck. It resembled a flat shovel or anchor and was fired from a cannon. They would embed themselves in the ground at a shallow angle as the winch or come-along took up the slack. The large amount of surface area gave a lot to pull against.

I suppose something similar could be fashioned if gettin' stuck was something that happens a lot to a guy. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Harv]

YIKES! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Strapping a board to both wheels sounds pretty scary to me!

A while back, our buddy Gerard posted this message about using the same method, only with much shorter blocks which could go all the way around without interfering with the tractor itself. This is the method I plan to use. Uhhhhh.... not that I ever plan on getting stuck. /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Burying the carcass of a tire (just the tire, no rim) can get you a firm place to tie your winch cable to in an emergency. Be careful when you pull using a makeshift anchor. Just about the time you really start getting some serious tension on the line your makeshift anchor can pop out of the ground and slap you in the face! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif