Have you ever turned over a tractor?

[timswi]

The older and newer tractors with a near 80" rear tire spacing have very little problem when used within reason on hills. Do they need ROPs, It would have to be a very robust one. These old tractors would slide before tip over on grassland. Dual tires would have made it very difficult to tip unless something stupid happened like a big rock. I would not like to rely on a ROPS when the tractor has too high of a center of gravity to begin with. Many compact tractors these days are very narrow and the ROPS is just a bandade, it you need to go on a side hill then the wheel base has to be as wide as it can be or more. A rops puts even more weight high up and gives you a sense of confidence. Common sense is the rule before rollover.

Man...You hit the nail on the head with that...The new ones are nicer than the old ones as far as function but some of them are narrow and top heavy.I really have to watch my BX in that respect. I had an 8n though and it was really squirly on grades..no rops..no nothin...That thing scared the begeebers out of me sometimes

 

[rdbrumfield]

I do a bit of extreme mowing on right of ways. I was on a pipeline doing blackberries. It also had a major powerline running overhead. They had cut a pole leaving it about 18 inches high in the brush. Just below me there was a road, just a small bank. Well I found the pole, backed up and was going to just go below. the brush hid the verticle drop and I knew it was going over soon as the axle dropped.
Ok, I have been an operator for over 40yrs, this is the first time I have taken a tractor over. Absolutely no time to do anything but go with it. The loader was up a bit as I was using it to pat the brush down as I was moving forward. It saved the front and the rops saved the back. I just ducked down and hugged the steering wheel. I went completely turtle. No damage to the tractor. We pushed it onto it's side and used a comealong to right it. Checked fluids and went back to work.

This was a 5300 JD. 50hp and all tires extended out as far as they would go. It was the sudden drop that got the rollover in motion.

Thank goodness for rops, use them, it saved me.

 

[CavinMan]

Never rolled it over, but my Kubota 3240 has felt quite "tippy" a couple of times, working in our woods. Maybe I've just a wuss, but it starts feeling tippy when the slope doesn't visually look all that bad.

I've seen lots of home made rear counterweights made for loader use, and often wondered if it would be worthwhile to make one that could be shifted from side to side with a hydraulic remote. When driving around a steep slope, you could use the remote to move the counterweight to the high side of the tractor.

Did this sort of thing once with a JD 310 backhoe. Had to drive it around an uncomfortably (for me) steep and treeless slope, so I unlocked the boom, and extended it to the uphill side, and drove very slowly and carefully. I know the boom and bucket are only a small fraction of the weight of a backhoe, but it felt considerably more stable with them pointed uphill.

 

[riptides]

...has felt quite "tippy" a couple of times, working in our woods....
...around an uncomfortably (for me) steep and treeless slope, ....

Trust me, listen to your inner self.
If it feels uncomfortable, or looks uncomfortable, change the equation.

 

[Hathway]

never happend