My first STUCK, 2520 not big enough

RollTideRam · May 12, 2006

Did some work for my wife's boss. Loaded my trailer with dead grass/ dirt to haul off from his yard to land behing his plant. This is where I messed up. Used the loader to remove the load, and drove the tractor back on the trailer to go back for another load. Got in the truck and only made it 2 feet, and I was stuck.
I have a 4x4 2500 Ram, and my 2520 is not big enough to pull out my truck.
The bad thing is, I have a winch, snatch block, and a pull pal winch anchor, but they were all at home. Had to enlist my wife and father to help out. I would not make it as a boy scout, I'm never prepared. Just glad to get out of the mud before anyone could take a picture.
Other than that, my 2520 is pretty good machine. JC

JDgreen227 · May 13, 2006

Sounds to me like you have a perfect excuse to trade up to a bigger JD. GO FOR IT ! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

RalphVa · May 13, 2006

No, you just need to plan ahead or get a smaller truck. Trucks go almost anywhere when loaded. Should have parked so that you get a little downhill running start. I pulled my truck around back of the house yesterday to unload it and then to wash it nude. Where I parked it is right outside this window. There's a tad downhill there before going around the side of the house where it slopes up slightly and then a slight up slope going up to the front lawn. With that slight downhill start, even on the wet grass, that was enough.

Even my Ford Ranger would get out of holes, etc. with a load on it, but it would get stuck on wet grass on level ground without a load.

Go with a smaller truck so you can position it better. Your monster Ram is too big.

Ralph

AKfish · May 13, 2006

Did you try pullin' the truck with the tractor? (Course ya gotta have a chain or snatch strap -- or both!)

I'd bet that with the trailer unhooked if the ground wasn't a bottomless sink hole -- your tractor would walk off with the truck!

Hdro trans and 4 wheel traction. You got a FEL, too? What did you have on the 3pt for ballast?

Late last fall my tractor surprised me with what it would pull. I was grading the driveway and heard someone spinning their tires and roaring their engine down the road a ways. Stuck...

There was a big, old 70's vintage Ford car (low rider and big as a boat) in the ditch. The driver had slid out of a curve (too fast and couldn't hold it on the curve). He skidded down the shoulder into a pretty steep ditch. Started up the shoulder and got stuck. Lucky thing he got stuck cause the car was just about to roll over onto the side or top! (It was steep!)

When I walked down the shoulder 5' or 6' I could smell gas. Gas was leakin' out of the top of the filler cap cause the car was so far on it's side!

I was worried that the car would roll as soon as I started tuggin' on it... When I leaned it to talk to the guy I smelled booze. Great!! Just what I need; a stuck drunk! Da*n, da*n -- I wanted to tell the guy; no way! But it was cold and gettin' dark. I didn't want the guy stayin' in the car and tryin to steer. I guessed he lived back in the woods just a mile or two down the road from my place --- he had to --- the road dead ends a few miles from me.

So, I unraveled the 2 - 20' sections of 3/8' chain I carry on the backblade and my snatch stap from behind the seat (I've been stuck -- before -- when plowing,etc). That gave me enough scope that I could pull from the opposite side of the road onto the top of the A-frame member on the uphill tire.

Cranked the wheels of the car and pointed them uphill towards the road; had the boozed up driver stand up on the road to stop any cars that might come up on us and put the tranny in B range 2nd gear with trottle up to 2K and started out.

Drug that car quite a ways along the shoulder but da**ed if it didn't eventually come up the shoulder to the road! It was a $500 junker and if I'd bent the rims or popped the beads on the tires --- well, that's payin' the piper for the dancin' the guy had been doin' earlier!

I'll betcha that car had more than a 1,000 lbs on me! On an uphill pull! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

I've got a 1,000 lbs more tractor than you but only 3hp more. With your hydro tranny --- well, I think you'd be surprised what you can move! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

AKfish

jcmseven · May 13, 2006

I will say that I have also been able to pull out things I would have never expected to with my tractor. My first tractor of any note, a 595 X series garden tractor, pulled my wife's SUV out of a ditch on our very steep driveway the first winter we lived here. I have pulled the UPS man twice up my drive with my 4520 during this past winter's storms. My neighbor pulled a wrecker and a pickup to which it was attached from a ditch with his 4320 and said the pickup slid sideways from the ditch. In short, even little JD's pull well if they are ballasted properly and have good tires. I don't know if you tried to pull on your pickup with your 2520, but I would bet it could unless the traction was really bad or the machine has no ballast. I know my 595--which I no longer have--any of my mid frames or certainly my 4520 would pull my F250 out of most situations if needed--but since Ford's never get stuck, I haven't needed to yet (a good natured brand related comment only there). It would be interesting to see if you used the 2520 here or just felt it would not have done the job so did not try it.

John M

RollTideRam · May 13, 2006

I was crossed up in some ruts. The grass was tall and I did not see them when I pulled in. My truck weighs 7K. I dug out around all 4 tires, filled the ruts with the grass/dirt that I took off the trailer, and hooked tractor to the front of the truck with a 20' chain. Tractor only had a 6' rake for ballast, so all it did was spin. I tried to drive both truck and tractor at same time, but with no driver on the tractor seat, it goes dead. I thought it was worth a try. After all this, I was tired so I called my wife to come get me. Then my father brought me back with my winch and anchor and block. I was so excited I forgot the winch remote, so he went back and got it while I hooked everything up, and moved the trailer with the tractor to dry ground. I have a quick mount winch that I can put on my Samurai, trailer or truck. This was the first time I used it on the truck. JC