Hay ride

[JT94]

I have a L3000DT and it's the first tractor I've ever owned, so please excuse a "newbe" question. I've been asked to "host" a hay ride for a local bonfire/party this weekend. I have access to a standard hay wagon, not sure the exact size or weight. My question is, does my tractor have what it takes to pull a wagon full of people (approx 15-20) with hay bales to sit on? I was planning on pulling on back roads and not in any fields. The terrain is rolling hills.

Has anyone with a L3000DT done this before? If so, what's the recommended gear to run in?

Thanks!!

 

[sugarmaker]

Hi Mike,

I did this for 2 days at a recent local harvest festival. I had no problem pulling a full wagon around a muddy field with my L3010 in M range, which is about the same HP as your L3000.

The wagon was about 8x12, open on 3 sides, with 15 or so hay bales, and my heaviest load was probably one group of 25 rowdy teenagers.

Speaking of which, I recommend a zero-tolerance policy towards Silly String, firecrackers, and "fart" spray.

 

[djradz]

Mike, I can't comment on whether your tractor has the guts, but I think you want something at least in the 20+ hp range. You should also be very concerned on whether your tractor is heavy enough. As you say, your land is hilly, you need to be very concerned that you don't get into a situation where the wagon and passengers get to "pushing" the tractor down a slope. If your hills aren't too big or long, you probably will be OK, but be aware of the potential for this to happen. You're probably looking at doing this in some type of mid range or gear. On long or steep up-slopes, you'll have to shift or range down, and you may wish to do the same going down a similar hill, just to use the tractor engine to slow you down. Have fun and be safe!

 

[JT94]

I don't recall the exact weight of my tractor, but I do have an additional 200# on the front bumper. I will keep the weight factor in mind, though. Also I believe I have 32 or 33 HP.

I've never had the need to shift before, on the fly, but I could see how it might be necessary. Are these tractors able to be shifted, on the fly?

BTW, I'll try to keep the teenagers under control.... The wagon has full side metal bars so at least no one will be falling out, involuntarily that is.

Thanks for the input!

 

[beenthere]

I don't think you will have any problem whatsoever pulling and stopping the wagon. We used to pull fully loaded wagons stacked 5 and 6 high with bales of hay with a little 8N Ford. Your tractor should do just fine. But keep in mind the concerns of others for safe stopping and shifting to the right gear range. Know where the positraction engage lever is, and know that application of both rear wheel brakes at the same time is necessary to keep control of your tractor when braking (caused when sliding or stopping one rear wheel will cause the other to spin twice as fast due to the rear end differential). This is why the two individual brake pedals can be locked together for road travel.

My only fear when thinking of doing this type of thing is the liability you have. One thing I would have (bare minimum) is a good set of bright tail lights and even flashing yellow. You don't need someone plowing into the rear end of your load of kids on a back road at night. Or a chase car following the hay wagon at a reasonable distance (with flashers on) could also deter any traffic rear-ending the wagon. Just a thought to consider. I almost rear-ended a hayride one dark night that had no lights, and it put a great deal of fear into me about what my life would have been like (not to mention those on the hay wagon and the one pulling the wagon) had I not had some premonition to slow down at just the right moment because something wasn't right up ahead.

 

[Trev]

Hi Mike,

I'm glad you posted this, as I've been asked to do the same thing with my JD4300 (32.2 HP).

I don't know about yours, but I have the SyncReverser tranny, and yes, it can be shifted on the fly. In fact, when I'm on the road without a load, I put it in high range, and drive it just like a car.. foot throttle, clutch, shift up through the gears, etc.

Good luck! We can compare notes when this is over! /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Bob

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Great time for your post - I'm doing the same thing for a fall festival our church is putting on, but staying on church property.

The L3000Dt will pull the trailer no sweat. I've moved my 16 footer around with stuff on it and it's not a problem. I leave the FEL on to offset the tongue weight.

On the advice of TBN postings, I bought a 3 point hitch adapter from Lowery's for $55 plus shipping. Very sturdy unit that comes complete with pins and 2" ball for hooking up tractor to trailer. I'm really pleased with it - for the money it was a good deal.

One caution is that the lower hitch arms on the tractor don't resist upward force, so if the trailer has a lot of weight on the back of it, it may let the tongue/arms suddenly go up. I attach a piece of chain from the hitch adapter down to the drawbar - this limits any surprise upward movement.

Word sure spreads on who owns a tractor when fall hayrides come around!

 

[JT94]

Speaking of lights, the gentleman that is loaning me the wagon mentioned something about a light bar for the rear. Sounded like a good idea to me! He said that I should have a light aux. socket somewhere on the rear of the tractor for this. I've never noticed, but does anyone know if Kubota has such a socket?

 

[beenthere]

I think jt94 was talking about a wagon (standard hay wagon), and not a trailer. You have good points for a trailer though. For a wagon, I would leave the FEL off, as more weight on the rear tires will be most significant.

 

[JT94]

Glad to hear a fellow L3000'er speak some input! I'll be pulling a 4-wheeled hay wagon so the tounge weight will be as much as the tounge bar weights. So no issue with the tounge weight.

Word does spread quick! The same for my neighbor when he got his new Bobcat skid loader..... All of the sudden everyone starts thinking about what they could use the loader for..... /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif