Operator not in seat

[yankeerider]

Interesting that some people want to bad-mouth Deere inthis forum and thread. I see complaints about not being able to rise up and scratch one's butt whileusing forks, because the engine is killed by the seat safety switch. My Yanmar-engined Deere's seat safety switch only shuts off the PTO, it doesn't kill the engine. That lets me rise up for better view ahead without the tractor shutting off. I have inadvertently stopped mowing because of it, but that is immediately apparent and only requires sitting back down and re-engaging the PTO. Also, by simply reading the owner's manual, one can learn to operate a stationary PTO attachment- like my 3 pt. woodchipper- simply by flipping the seat forward and pulling up on the seat safety switch to activate the "out of seat" PTO engaged capability- no jumpering required.

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[buickanddeere]

Lets not pretend that JD produces anything much more than the nameplate for any of their li'tul twacktors.
Last time I checked everything under about 85 HP was of Asian origin.
The nameplates ? I don't know where those are stamped out.

As the importer one would think a company has SOME product responsibility, even for afterthought safety interlocks.
Maybe, maybe not - just stick a few interlock micro-switches in, slap danger stickers (in whatever required language) on it - done.

Ever hear tell of a place called Horicon Wisconsin or Augusta Georgia?

 

[Wagtail]

Randy - you're using an awful big brush to paint your picture. Please note that I qualified my opinion with the words "interlocks of this nature". NGFS and compact tractor operation are NOT of the same nature.

//greg//

Greg mate, I don't think I'm using that big a brush (4" instead of 6" perhaps). Large caliber gun mountings & CUTs are both mindless mechanical devices that can do you damage.

Here's my thinking... The majority of work done with our tractors is individual. We do it basically alone with no one watching over us so when a stuff-up does happen, help can be a long time coming. At the very least these safety interlocks are an annoying reminder that you could be doing something dumb, to stop it and reassess the situation. How many times have people said that when something bad happens on their tractor it happens quickly.

A lot of todays tractors have cruise control. What would happen without the operator-in-seat interlock if you were blissfully in cruise control, tilling your paddock & get bounced out of your seat onto the ground? The tractor would keep on going & (worst-case) the tiller grinds you up.

I'm all for temporarily defeating the seat interlock (like putting a sack of cement in the seat) for a specific occasion. The reason for this 'qualifier' is that the situation has been thought out and will apply to that single situation at that time. When the job is done you must return the tractor to its normal operation (by removing the sack of cement).

Of course there are intelligence-insulting safety warnings all over the place. Safety Labels are cheap and cover the manufacturors collective arse. But JD or other manufacturors don't normally go to the expense of designing and installing a safety interlock just to tick-off their customers.

 

[Reg]

Greg mate, I don't think I'm using that big a brush (4" instead of 6" perhaps). Large caliber gun mountings & CUTs are both mindless mechanical devices that can do you damage.

Here's my thinking... The majority of work done with our tractors is individual. We do it basically alone with no one watching over us so when a stuff-up does happen, help can be a long time coming. At the very least these safety interlocks are an annoying reminder that you could be doing something dumb, to stop it and reassess the situation. How many times have people said that when something bad happens on their tractor it happens quickly.

A lot of todays tractors have cruise control. What would happen without the operator-in-seat interlock if you were blissfully in cruise control, tilling your paddock & get bounced out of your seat onto the ground? The tractor would keep on going & (worst-case) the tiller grinds you up.

I'm all for temporarily defeating the seat interlock (like putting a sack of cement in the seat) for a specific occasion. The reason for this 'qualifier' is that the situation has been thought out and will apply to that single situation at that time. When the job is done you must return the tractor to its normal operation (by removing the sack of cement).

Of course there are intelligence-insulting safety warnings all over the place. Safety Labels are cheap and cover the manufacturors collective arse. But JD or other manufacturors don't normally go to the expense of designing and installing a safety interlock just to tick-off their customers.

I can see that scenario;
Tilling, getting up to scratch, one hand on the wheel, hit a rock or hard spot, get thrown from the tractor (one hand on wheel, other hand scratching, seat belt NOT fastened), last desperate grab to stay on turns the wheel, tractor and tiller circle back around - not THAT far fetched.
Heck, it doesn't even have to be something as murderous as a tiller to do serious injury.

I don't think reminding folk that JD is an importer/re-badger of small equipment (Cat 1 tractors) is bad mouthing them.
I do think they should perform at least a sanity check on the safety design( /adaptation) for US requirements.
OTOH, gray market tractors DO require the owner to be ever more vigilant, i.e. it is ALL on the operator - sometimes a good thing, sometimes a bad thing.

I agree with the "annoying reminder" statement.
On my smallest tractor if the engine stalls due to PTO overload I have to shift the PTO to neutral and step on the clutch to re-start the engine.
I would LIKE to just step on the clutch (dual PTO clutch & drive line clutch pedal) and turn the key, but I can imagine situations where that would create other problems, so I haven't re-wired anything.

 

[Reg]

Please protect me so I don't have to think! The world is full of this stuff. ABS and traction control so I don't need to know how to drive. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad MOST people have these things. More and more people need them every day. Jumper the wires and use your head.........

Do you SERIOUSLY think you can out brake an ABS system ?
On a swept track - maybe.
On a road with imperfect surfaces - almost certainly not.
Slippery surface under the two left wheels, good traction under the two right wheels - I don't think you can, but I would hate to hear you got hurt trying.
Maybe you (think you) can do it with drum brakes ?

 

[nwltruck]

OK I'll clarify...... how many times do you get passed on a ice covered road by a person going way to fast for the conditions? Many of these things were created to save people from there own stupidity. No I can't out brake ABS. I shouldn't put myself in a situation to have to try. If I leave the seat of my tractor the brake is on.this is all that is needed to run the PTO while off the seat. The problem with mine was that the seat switch wasn't sensitive enough for my wife to run the tractor so I bypassed it.

 

[farmeratheart]

yankee,

The manual for the 2305 specifically states that off seat operation of the PTO is not possible. The scenario you describe certainly does work for the larger Deeres. I did not venture flippantly to go cutting wires and installing switches. I thought it was a simple solution to a troubling issue. I wanted the option of off-seat PTO operation with the continued safety of having the interlock during normal operation.

Frank

Interesting that some people want to bad-mouth Deere inthis forum and thread. I see complaints about not being able to rise up and scratch one's butt whileusing forks, because the engine is killed by the seat safety switch. My Yanmar-engined Deere's seat safety switch only shuts off the PTO, it doesn't kill the engine. That lets me rise up for better view ahead without the tractor shutting off. I have inadvertently stopped mowing because of it, but that is immediately apparent and only requires sitting back down and re-engaging the PTO. Also, by simply reading the owner's manual, one can learn to operate a stationary PTO attachment- like my 3 pt. woodchipper- simply by flipping the seat forward and pulling up on the seat safety switch to activate the "out of seat" PTO engaged capability- no jumpering required.

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[yankeerider]

Frank, I did not see you badmouthing Deere. I am not familiar with the 2305. I posted for the benefit of owners who may not have bothered to check their manuals like you did. In fact, I work with a guy who has owned a 4110 for several years now, and he was aking me how he could get his PTO to operate with no one in the seat. He bought his tractor used and may not have a manual. I don't know if the 4110 is set up like my 755 or not. Just suggesting people check what they got before they bad mouth or modify. You checked.

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[powerpace]

Spoken like a true OSHA fan. Most interlocks of this nature are lawyer-driven - by the Nanny state and/or corporate lawyers - looking to stay one step ahead of litigious owners. FWIW, there's another "old saw" that says interlocks eventually defeat common sense. Do you not find it ironic that one of the initial steps in competently isolating an electro-mechanical problem is to bypass the associated interlock(s)?

//greg//

Having personally detangled a person caught in the PTO and seen personally two others with pants ripped off and broken arms I will leave my safety devices connected. Thank you.

 

[greg_g]

Having personally detangled a person caught in the PTO and seen personally two others with pants ripped off and broken arms I will leave my safety devices connected. Thank you.

Anybody see Darwinism at work here? Meaningful interlocks are those conceived by actual equipment users. A significant percentage of those annoyingly thrust upon us were devised more in defense of the manufacturer/employer than of we actual users.

//greg//