Frivolously productive afternoon

[284 International]

A couple weeks ago, my girlfriend succumbed to my recent spate of tractor activity, and learned to drive some of my equipment. She really enjoyed it, and has been wanting to grow a "BIIIIIIIIG garden." After she looked some, she now has a YM2000 to do her gardening with! It's all hers, and I'm really proud of her. I think it's kind of redundant, given my plethora of tractors at the moment, but I am NOT going to argue!

The tractor was apparently used at a nursery to pull carts between their rows of plants and do general service/grading type work. It was VERY narrow. A quick test with my smallest disk harrow yielded acceptable results, but it felt really unstable for a new, inexperienced operator, particularly without any ROPS. I reversed the rims, and set them out to their widest, which worked much better, but the narrow rice tires combined with the geometry of the disk's 3 point attachment tended to hold the rear end up, and it would easily get stuck, slowly churning holes in the ground, especially when combined with delayed application of the differential lock, and tardy lifting of the implement when the tractor started to slip excessively.

While the correct solution would probably be to replace or revise the attachment points of the disk, and, especially, more thoroughly train the operator, that seemed like a rather boring solution to the problem. I scrounged around a bit, and found some Schedule 80 pipe and 1/4 inch plate. The other addition to this tale is that the girlfriend didn't just get a YM2000. She also ended up with this:


It's a Mitsubishi D1800. (It used to have ag tires on it, but we're getting to that part.) Before all this occurred, I was looking for ag tires or R4 tires for my loader-equipped YM240. I happened to find a set of R4 tires, brand new and never mounted, on Kubota rims with a 6 on 6 inch bolt pattern, which won't match my YM240. They do, however, match this Mitsubishi. I had the tire shop swap the R4s for my turf tires on their respective rims, and mounted them up to each tractor. Now I had a spare set of rice tires that were only a tiny bit shorter than those on the girlfriend's YM2000. (Everybody thoroughly confused yet?)

I cut a set of four round plates from the steel plate, and drilled holes to mount to the Mitsubishi pattern wheels in two, and the Yanmar rims in two. Then I cut the tubing, trued it up, and welded them together to get a pair of these:

Sorry for the crummy picture, all I had until this evening was my cell phone for photographs.

After re-reversing the Yanmar wheels to their narrowest setting, I put the spool over the wheel and tightened it up with some longer bolts. Then, I put the Mitsubishi wheels onto the spool, at their widest setting. After it some grunting and a couple trips to the hardware store for fasteners, it looks something like this:


The overall width is just under 64 inches outside to outside. My YM240 (The same tractor) with factory Yanmar turf rims is just under 60 inches. Yanmar originally made this same sort of thing:

(Robbed from California, who cites the optional equipment portion of the operation manual, here:YM 2220D too narrow)

When it's all said and done, the outer duals sit up from the ground about 3/4 of an inch on pavement, so there is no additional stress on the axle shafts or bearings whatsoever on hard surfaces. In soft terrain, when tire slippage is an issue, the major force they add is forward as tractive effort.

I don't see any major risks to the tractor's longevity or durability, or, especially, safety. In soft ground situations where they only deliver torque, the tractor is operating with no more load than it would in high-traction situations. Even in soft soil, the additional bending moment of the wider wheels must be virtually negligible anyway, and, besides, the tractor was originally engineered to handle dual rear wheels.

This setup will only reduce the force the tractor would see compared to that. Safety wise, the tractor is wider. That makes it less tippy. This setup isn't as stable as it would be if the tires on the outside were in contact with the pavement, but it's not as bad as the wheels at their narrow setting alone.
The failure mode of this apparatus compared to the regular tractor without duals would be to lose the outer wheel(s). The spool is bolted to the hub over the original wheel, so whatever happens, the inner wheel will stay put. Breakage of the inside wheel, or the hub would/will occur, but with no greater likelihood than without the duals, since realistically speaking there is no more force than in the original engineering specification, and, in fact, this design actually would be less than designed for.

Even so, a disclaimer: Please, please, please, nobody look at this project and decide that since some stranger on the internet did this to their tractor it must be a good idea for you to do the same. This has not been engineered beyond literally scratching soapstone onto concrete and mulling in my head. I am a competent weldor, and this will not break my tractor. I have no idea about you, or your abilities or tractor's capabilities. I used what I did because that's what I had. That is not how you should do it. If you need some stranger's advice on how to do something that puts yourself and others in jeopardy, you shouldn't try to do this yourself. If the factory didn't think it's something you should do, you ought not do it.

I'm interested to see how much better it works. I ran out of daylight before testing it out, but I had a really productive and fun afternoon, since I also built a three point adapter for a two point tiller I picked up a few days ago. Here is a shot from the front:

I need to turn out the front wheels to make it look a little more balanced. I still can't decide if it looks cool, or stupid with the duals on. The ultimate test of that will come in the morning, when SHE takes a look at what has happened to her baby.... Is anyone interested in a Mitsubishi D1800 on turf tires? It's a nice driving little tractor.

 

[California]

It looks ... productive. And that's the whole point. Great job! :thumbsup:

I wouldn't turn the front wheels out. As-is, the weight is centered between the bearings on each spindle. Reversing them would double the load on the outside bearing, a recipe for failure. Plus it might dodge toward whatever obstacle one wheel encounters, ripping the wheel out of the driver's hands.

 

[284 International]

California, you're right that reversing the front wheels would increase the load on the bearings. On the only two wheel drive tractor I know anything about the front wheels are deliberately reversible. The front axle itself also adjusts in width, to fit row crop spacing as required. In that instance, the additional load on the bearings is designed for. I have no such knowledge of that being true here, though.

Looking at the tractor, even at night, kind of is making me cringe. It's ugly. There, I said it. Flipping the front wheels to make it look better is lipstick on a pig. They're staying put! It's smarter both ways.

 

[Pete Judd]

I love it, I have thought about doing the same thing for my 186D as my property is hilly, and would like the extra stability. The turf tires and wheels on Hoyes site are out of my budget for quite a while, this might be another way to go for me. Thanks for posting.

 

[normde2001]

I know of guys that would kill for those spacers. Yanmar says DO NOT reverse the front wheels.

 

[winston1]

"FRIVOLOUSLY PRODUCTIVE AFTERNOON" If you did all that in an afternoon it must have been a loooooooooooong day. I'm impressed! First dually Yanmar I have seen.

 

[Gary Sweat]

"FRIVOLOUSLY PRODUCTIVE AFTERNOON" If you did all that in an afternoon it must have been a loooooooooooong day. I'm impressed! First dually Yanmar I have seen.

No kidding, if only I had afternoons that productive:thumbsup:

 

[Craig Clayton]

When we look at models before there was the row crop tricycle front end. It had only the 2 narrow front wheels. I do not know much about them but your concerns of tractor flip over did not appear to be as bad as one would think. ( most farm pictures showed front end over back flips )
The narrowness of your front axle or width as to roll sideways would only come into play when the axle touches the upper stop. The angle of leverage then would determine the stability point. So aslong as the axle does not hit the upper stop your front axle is really on a single point.
Craig Clayton

 

[284 International]

Pete, I think this would be cheaper than buying the conversion kit, but I'm not sure it would work better for what you want the tractor to do. My Ranger buddies say "The mission drives the gear." In other words, duals could work for you, if what you need in absolute terms are width and/or drawbar pull, or some other outcome where the need outweigh the costs. Already, even though it's only 4 inches wider than my YM240, the extra width is noticeable when maneuvering close to obstacles.

I know you use your YM186D for mowing. If your task is hilly terrain to mow that is otherwise open, duals similar to this could work. However, I would really suggest looking into other options. The 186 series doesn't list as an option a dual or extended wheel setup. I've got one, and frankly am surprised you are able to handle 5 foot Brush hog type cutter. If conditions are sub-optimal it's even more so. If you can't safely mow it as-is, I would suggest looking into other options, like goats, a different tractor, or an herbicide. Again, the mission drives the gear.

I built these dual spacers because I already had most of the parts. I'm really glad I didn't spend much on them. If my tractor hadn't been designed for them it wouldn't have happened. A setup for your purposes like mine wouldn't add much stability, because of the dissimilar tire sizes. On a tractor not intended for it, duals WILL increase loads and stresses beyond the designer's intent. Maybe it will hold up. Maybe it won't. See here for a guy who broke his Kubota axle doing this :http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/99871-am-i-first-brake-bx23.html

That guy ran duals on his tractor, which wasn't intended for it. Obviously, had he been in an otherwise risky situation (like mowing hills) the situation likely would have ended in genuine catastrophe. A tractor-type riding mower has a lower roll center than a utility tractor like ours, and also is more responsive to leaning your body weight. In no way do I condone this sort of thing, but check out this guy: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/106829-how-steep-too-steep-2.html

I think that hill is better suited to goats-it would be tough to walk on! However, that guy, with that equipment, on that day, mowed it. It looks dangerous, and is. However, running a set of duals that increases axle loads beyond the designed parameters on hilly terrain is worse. At some point, the excess strain will likely break something, and at an unknowable time. At least this guy side-hilling his Deere riding mower can see and anticipate what and when he is at the highest risk.

I'm not trying to shoot down your plans, but I wouldn't do it. Ever. The tractor isn't meant for it, and the intended purpose is beyond the design limitations of the tractor to boot. Guys who handload their .30/06 ammunition to get 300 magnum performance are bringing a bomb up to their heads. Running dual spacers on unsafe terrain on a tractor not intended for it is worse. At least the gun has design factors to channel gases from a ruptured cartridge. The tractor does not, lacking a ROPS. I know you have posted an article about tractor rollover deaths. All I can say is from what you've described, there's no way I would do this type of thing if I were you. Ever.

I hope you are able to figure something out.

 

[284 International]

Craig: I was unclear, sorry. With the wheels in their original position, this tractor started out something like 43 inches wide. It was narrower than the driver's seat was tall. With the wheels reversed, it was acceptably stable. The duals were more for pulling traction than additional stability. I was thinking about reversing the front wheels for aesthetic reasons, not stability ones. I have since decided that the tractor is really ugly looking, and flipping the front wheels won't fix that. Also, as Norm and California pointed out, this tractor isn't designed to work that way. So I'm not going to do that. Plus, the girlfriend hasn't seen it yet. It may not stay this way for long anyway! :laughing:

Norm and Winston: I started at lunch time, and ended at dusk, when I took the pictures. I cheated a little, by having measured and researched and gotten most of the fasteners ahead of time ( I should have ordered them, and waited a week. Bolts have become EXPENSIVE!). I also had the turf tires ready to swap onto the Mitsubishi. It wasn't too bad, but was pretty busy. The worst part was waiting for the spacers to cool enough to paint, then waiting for the paint to dry. So I filled that time by building the three point adapter for the tiller. Like most things, if you know what you're doing and have a plan it isn't very hard. The second one went a LOT quicker.