New TC24D

jinman · Oct 2, 2003

Legion, that's a beautiful new tractor. I'm particularly fond of the plastic still covering the end of the toplink. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif Your house looks like it is coming along very well and I know from experience that you will love having that tractor for all the cleanup and landscaping chores yet to be completed. You also have a spectacular location from the view that's visible. Have you posted pictures of your location somewhere else? Let me know if you do. I may never make it up to the "frozen north," but I'm always amazed at the beauty of Alaskan vistas. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

markie61 · Oct 2, 2003

( she's kind of skinny and 'high rumped' ...and a rookie like me really notices that on even just a little bit of a sidehill angle)

It's hard to tell from the pics, but it looks like your rear tires can be widened at least one more position. I have mine at their second widest position and they are loaded. Still, any side angle greater than 15 degrees (as indicated by my tiltmeter) gets the blood pressure moving higer. I think the newer design of compacts (flat operator station) also gives you that "tippy" feeling: unlike older tractors where you straddled the transmission, you are now sitting on top of it. Be safe, keep your loader and implements below axle level when "crabbing" sideways on a hillside, load your tires, and add wheel weights, get a tiltmeter, etc. - you'll FEEL better and WILL be safer.
Mark

Bob_Skurka · Oct 2, 2003

Even if your tires are loaded you may want to add wheel weights, either the factory weights or EZ Weights if you are working on slopes. And I'd seriously consider weights on all 4 wheels if you are crossing slopes. I put EZ Weights on the front wheels of my TC24D and am amazed and the difference I feel on my slopes. . . and I try to just go up and down, not across them. I'm not particularily fond of a puckered feeling in my boxers.

Trouser Bark · Oct 11, 2003

Well markie, you know I'm a rookie so I hope you're prepared for a stupid question... What do you mean my rear tires can be widened? I can see how I'd be able to make the tractor skinier by dishing the wheels out but I have no idea aside from flipping the dish how I might get more width out of 'em. Guess I better root through the manual tonight.

Thanks for the suggestion!

And jimman, I've posted a pic or two over the years but I don't have a site or anything like that. Faar too hi zoot for a man of my limited skills. I'll snap a couple for you and post 'em though ...and I'll do it pdq as everything's about to turn stark white around here! /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

PineRidge · Oct 11, 2003

Go BLUE..... Congrats on the new tractor!

markie61 · Oct 11, 2003

If you look at your wheel, they are made up of 2 parts - the rim and the hub. As you look from the side, the hub can be concave or convex (dish in or dish out). The rims are bolted on to the hub through "tubes" about 4" long and can be at one end or the other of the tube. Therefore, 2 hub positions times 2 rim positions = 4 possible track widths. Wider=more stable, but can't get through narrow places - it's a tradeoff.
Hope I explained OK...
Mark

spencer200 · Oct 11, 2003

This should also be explained in your operators manual.

Trouser Bark · Oct 12, 2003

( Said spencer200:
This should also be explained in your operators manual. )

That's what I thought too, Spence but I'll be dipped if I could find it in there. I found a reference in the manual that said rear wheel settings were "Adjustable by switching--- Dish in or dish out" ...but that's it. That was on pg 2-24 of the NH TC21D/ TC24D manual. Unless I'm suffering some sort of delayed intelligence here there's no other reference to it in the book.

The right rear tire came off the ground several times yesterday while working on an angle that apparently is too steep (a compound angle heading down and to the right) for the tractor, so before I tucked 'er in for the evening I looked at the inside and the outside of the wheel to see if there were something I could adjust. Now with markie's response I'll take a reeal good look, but I certainly didn't notice anything. Then again, I'm a fairly crappy wrench so it's easily possible that I might've missed something.

Btw, if it's of interest to anyone here the NH literature looks to be misprinted. It says the R4 wheel and tire combo for the TC24D is the same size as for the 29/33 ...but it ain't. Good thing too or this little tractor would've been flopped on 'er side yesterday. I need to practice my right hand handrail grabs. Might need to lose a pound or two and maybe even excersize that arm. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

I'll see if I can get a decent pic of the angle too. Maybe I'm expecting more than I should. I'm off to the property ...thanks Gentlemen.

Trouser Bark · Oct 12, 2003

( Go BLUE..... Congrats on the new tractor! )

Thanks Pine! I'm thinking I'm going to like this little booger quite a bit. My back's been just on the verge of going out for the last few days. In spite of it though this little tractor has allowed me to acomplish a huge pc of work around the place and I don't feel any worse than I did a couple days ago.

I like that. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

hazmat · Oct 12, 2003

My TC18 wheels are one piece. They don't have a seperate rim & center. To adjust them you need to "dish them out"

Dish in is with the valve stem facing out (easy to air up the tires). Dish out is with the valve stem facing in. To change the dish you need to swap them left for right so that the tread is facing the right way.

You can tell the difference by measuring from the outside of the wheel to the inner disc from both sides aka the "offset". One side will be shorter than the other. For the widest setting you want the short side towards the tractor.

Hope this helps.

PS you may want to consider getting your tires loaded for increased stability. Rim guard (aka beet juice) is the heaviest per gallon & not corrosive like Calcium Chloride. Do a search here on tbn or ask your dealer.

spencer200 · Oct 12, 2003

Hmmm! I Guess I will have to take a look at a new manual. They used to come with a chart and everything that explained the settings but it has been a while since I looked at a manual they might have changed.

jimg · Dec 1, 2003

I have a 24D which I bought new w/ a rear mount snow blower. The later is a Puma 52" made for Pronovost (a Canadian company) in Italy. Its wide enough to cover the tractor's rear tires and came highly recommended by my NH dealer. Its pretty heavy duty and Im sure itll buz right thru an icy snow bank w/o a problem. Since we can get large amts of snow here no one handles a lightweight blower. Sadly there hasnt been enough snow yet to try it out. Ill report when theres enough snow to use it. I suspect though (based on yrs of walking behind a 2 wheel blower) its going to be really nice. In fact Im sure its going to be REALLY REALLY nice....no more cold wet hands, no more aching back, no more 1/2 day sessions to clean up big storms...a big time saver for sure. In the mean time its dandy counter weight for moving rocks out of the woods.

Trouser Bark · Dec 1, 2003

( The blower ordered for it is the std New Holland 3ph model. )

I might be slow but not quite stalled out. It finally dawned on me that I can't have it on order really ...more of a backorder I guess in that they don't list one. As luck would have it I've figured out that for me, driving backwards on the little 24D would get old in about a nanosecond. Apparently my personal frame is pretty straight and likes to stay that way.

If there's a bonus in all this it's that I now know what I don't want and can keep from squandering any money on an tool I'd wind up hating, quick.

The question? What's the hot setup for putting one on the front? Do I have to remove the 12LA to do that? Is there any sort of quick change plate that would allow me to remove the bucket and attach a blower w/ minimum hassle factor?

The other question...

Using the FLA to move snow is getting a lot faster and easier now that I've learned to pick up more than a teaspoonfull of material /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif but a lot of snow sticks to the inside of the bucket. What's the trick to getting the stuff not to stick?

snowbound · Dec 2, 2003

( I'm a little concerned about it as the driveway is gravel and has some rocks on it that I'm fairly certain would be launched through that blower like a machine gun.)

This is why I didn't get a snow blower at all. I have a self propelled snow blower (7 hp dual type) and last year when it twice took three days for the guys who are supposed to plow us out to get around to us (not that they were slacking, just we are too far down their list of people to plow out), I decided to go after the snow with the blower. Well it turns out that when you have 32" of snow on 2/3 of a mile of driveway then that snowblower is not the right tool for the job. It died game, though, bending it's impeller on a rock I didn't see. I knew there were rocks on the driveway so I kept the chute pointed away from anything I didn't want to nail with an ejected rock. But this rock took out the snowblower.

So I went for a tractor with a quick-attach loader so I can use a blade to plow high and low, and the bucket to dig in case the berm at the end of the drive that the State builds for us is _that_ big.

snowbound · Dec 2, 2003

( The question? What's the hot setup for putting one on the front?)

The option I went with is a quick-attach adapter for the loader and put a front blade on there. I asked a lot of tractor users I know before doing this.

Alternatively you can get a rear-blade and keep the loader but that normally means the rear-ward driving you just said you didn't want. This is what most of the people I know with tractors do for snow removal. But most of them recommended the loader mounted blade given my driveway, which is neither flat nor straight.

jimg · Dec 2, 2003

I have a gravel drive and live on a dirt road...rocks in all sizes are common. I set the skids low so a layer of snow remains. After a few thaw/freeze cylces the surface becomes fairly static and acts as a barrier between gravel and blower. After that pt my boys follow up w/ a hand scraper to dress off the loose snow the blower missed. I also scout out the bigger rocks prior to first snow and move them out of the way. As for the plow burms I dont try to blow those until Im sure the plow isnt digging up any more rocks. That means they get moved by hand until then. This Ill use the same game plan exc instead of shoveling Im going to use the loader.

Bob_Skurka · Dec 5, 2003

I plowed 4" to 5" of snow this morning with a rear blade on my TC24D. The blade was set at a 30 degree angle and offset a bit, it is 60" overall. I had it facing forward so I was pulling the blade not pushing it backward.

I was very surprised at how the blade acted like a rudder and pushe the whole tractor to the opposite side. Granted I was driving on very icy slush, but I've used the tractor set up this way for dirt and not felt the push in the opposite direction.

My new Buhler Farm King 60" 3pt blower is due to be delivered tomorrow, just my luck the first real snow fell last night! /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

PineRidge · Dec 5, 2003

Legion I would imagine there are more than a few missprints in the NH manual. When I went to my dealer to get a couple of cans of spray paint for my TC-40D I was armed with the paint numbers that were posted in the manual for my particular tractor. Thanks to my salesman's quick eye he showed me the correct paint that I needed even before I got a chance to buy the wrong colors. I did however get the numbers from the NH manual, they just were not the correct numbers.