how to get better stability?

[BC Dave]

Im new at owning a tractor; but know that tractors are prone to rolling over. With the yanmars they have a narrow front wheel stance; plus the 4WD "D" series have a floating front diff to make stability even more dodgy. I try to keep the FEL low and I have a rear box scraper that I try to keep that low; also it has a roll over protection bar (ROP) ... no calcium in wheels but not so keen on this idea;

Having a smalll sloping property where Im excivating and move logs around for a cabin. I'v already been surprised and scared to the point I was going to bale when a log shifted to the downhill side and the tractor began to list dangerously.

How to get a wider, more stable stance?

Can I block (or fix/ bolt) the 4wd diff so it doesnt float?

I'v seen posts where the wheels have been mounted cup outward; reverse mounting; but other say that this puts strain on the bearings, steering and drive train; can I reverse mount front rims outwards without doing damage?

what about adding dulies to the front? how to mount them? or front / rear rim extension mounts?

 

[284 International]

Don't bother trying to add duals to the front. The articulating front pretty much eliminates the usefulness of it, and the added difficulty in steering, and tendency to catch on things and twist out of where you want it to track would seem to make it more dangerous than stable.

In the back, the tractor is designed to run with the rims, hubs and tires at different widths. Designed to: In other words, you're supposed to put them wherever you need them to run. I built a set of spools for the rear of my girlfriend's YM2000. I guess it would have been more stable, but I installed them for additional traction more than anything. Spools or spacer hubs could be used to simply widen the rear track, too. The YM2000 was engineered for the spools; I don't know about the 180 or its Japanese market equivalent?

Go buy a set of inner tubes, put them in the tires, and get them filled with Calcium solution or Rimguard (beet juice). That will help. While they're off, makue sure the offset of the rims and hubs are to their maximum width in the rear. You may be able to adjust the stops to give less axle articulation up front, but you'll need some to keep the machine in contact with the ground.

You may also just be in terrain that is too steep to work that machine, unfortunately. Wheel weights will help, too, but sometimes it's more about risk assessment than equipment.

 

[TedLaRue]

Dave,

Your wheel bearings are an essential connection between your tractor and the ground. Spreading your wheels (by reverse mounting), adding duallies, or adding weight to the body of your tractor will all stress the wheel bearings. I personally don't think that's really a problem, but if you are worried about that, the only other way to improve stability is to add weight between the wheel bearings and the ground.

Adding ballast to your tires will not stress the wheel bearings. Depending on the size of your tires, it can add a considerable amount of weight right where it counts. If you don't want to use calcium, consider using glycol/water mix (antifreeze).

This is purely my speculation, but I suspect that the majority of roll-overs occur when a just-barely-stable load encounters a surprise. For example, the high-side wheel rolls over a stump hidden in the grass, or the low-side wheel drops into a hole, or the operator makes a really sharp turn with a load raised up high. The best defense against this is to keep your load low, and go slow if you're not 100% sure about the terrain.

 

[California]

I wouldn't try to block the front axle rigid. You will loose traction all the time on uneven ground because all the weight will be on diagonally opposite wheels. RF/LR etc. I know from experience that limited spring travel on a 4x4 steals the potential for what it could be capable of with long wheel travel. Plus it would stress the front components.

And turning the front wheels out puts all the stress out beyond the outer wheel bearing instead of centered between the inner and outer bearing. Snapping a spindle when you are already in a precarious situation would probably topple you. Yanmar's manuals prohibit turning the front wheels.

In summary don't rely on the front to help at all. By the time the front axle hits its stops a rear tire will be off the ground, so with no traction for engine braking, the tractor is rolling forward out of control.

Swapping the rear tires out for maximum width is recommended in the manual.

My opinion - cast weights flush to the outer edges of the tires gives the best rollover stability in theory. Water fill in the tires is good too but the unpredictable slosh isn't quite as good as solid weights.

Of course dualies on the back will be effective, and well made spacers too. Maybe smaller rear tires (turf tire option) to get the CG down?

Wow - I see while I was drafting this everybody quicker answered your question. Oh well, FWIW.

 

[Ginormous]

Just switching the rear tires around got me an extra 4" of width (to add to 44" on my YM1700) with no cost and very little effort.

 

[TerryShugart]

Doesn't answer your question but if stability while using your loader in the area you are working is an issue, you could do what I did in my old 9N days and skid the logs using a boom on the rear 3 point to a location where your tractor is stable such that you can move them with your loader.
Terry

 

[magicheater]

Im new at owning a tractor; but know that tractors are prone to rolling over. With the yanmars they have a narrow front wheel stance; plus the 4WD "D" series have a floating front diff to make stability even more dodgy. I try to keep the FEL low and I have a rear box scraper that I try to keep that low; also it has a roll over protection bar (ROP) ... no calcium in wheels but not so keen on this idea;

Having a smalll sloping property where Im excivating and move logs around for a cabin. I'v already been surprised and scared to the point I was going to bale when a log shifted to the downhill side and the tractor began to list dangerously.

How to get a wider, more stable stance?

Can I block (or fix/ bolt) the 4wd diff so it doesnt float?

I'v seen posts where the wheels have been mounted cup outward; reverse mounting; but other say that this puts strain on the bearings, steering and drive train; can I reverse mount front rims outwards without doing damage?

what about adding dulies to the front? how to mount them? or front / rear rim extension mounts?

Your first sentence says a lot. Once you learn where the hazard points are with your tractor your "seat" will feel a lot more comfortable. When I am traversing a new slope I take it slow and easy until I see/feel how the tractor behaves. Keeping loads at a low center of gravity is always wise when moving. One way to increase your stance is to put wider tires on the front. Gives you better flotation also. The tires in this pic are 2" wider than the originals. I am pleased with the results although I am still careful on hills.

 

[Roonabeck]

In addition to the suggestions above for setting your rears wider apart, I'll add the possibility of getting wider rear tires. And I also recommend rimguard (aka beet juice) for filling tires. The only reason IMO not to fill your rear tires is if you want to minimize the weight of the tractor (presumably to prevent compacting the dirt/turf you drive on). The stability added by filling tires or adding wheel weights is quite noticeable.

No amount of changing the width of the front will change the balance point of the tractor where your rear tire will lift off the ground.

 

[rScotty]

Yes, there are several things you can do. The front end becomes a lot more stable if you change over to wide round "turf" or "industrial" profile tires instead of the cleated Ag tires. Those changes require a different rim. And you want to retain the proper front/rear tire ratio to keep the 4wd happy. Other than a rim+tire change, I'd leave the front alone.

The rear tires can be spaced out to full width and reversed for even more width. I've also seen Yanmars with dual tires on the rear. Any tractor shop can show you how to do that.

My YM336d has the widest turf tires made, reversed and set out as far as they will go, and then mounted on spacers a couple of inches thick to put them out even farther. Coupled with fat turf tires on the front, I'd say it is just now getting to be reasonably stable.

Yes, all of this obviously stresses the rear bearings more, but the Yanmar axles are large, strong, well supported in large bearings mounted in thick castings. If you read back through a few years of messages, I think that you will find very few rear axle or bearing problems. I can't think of one offhand....though I do remember problems from overloading the front axles.

Goodluck, rScotty

 

[tungularafishcamp]

I put duals on mine for floatation on the beach but the added benefit was it is incredibly stable. I never really appreciated how stable it was as I put them on as soon as I got the tractor until I spent some time without them.
Last winter I put a few hundred hours on a larger(L48) tractor and even with the rear tires filled and set to their widest it was not near as stable as my little l2800.
I will be doing a bunch of logging with the L48 this next winter and will for sure put duals on the rear and probably on the front too for the mud.
Rick