ponytug
Super Member
Was it @woodlandfarms?Not me. But I recall one breaking a few years back. Can’t remember who, now.
And I still have my beloved PT425.
Thread 'Tractor broke in half again'
Tractor broke in half again
Rolled it over
- Thread starter Tchamp
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Thread 'Tractor broke in half again'
Tractor broke in half again
scaredychicken
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2012
- Messages
- 2,033
- Location
- Salmon Arm BC, Canada
- Tractor
- John Deere 160 (1988), Arctic Cat 400 ATV (2006), Kubota BX23S (2018), Jacobsen Super Chief 1450 (1969), Cub Cadet RZT S50 zero turn mower (2012)
I'm glad that you weren't injured.
Tractor tippyness is always my concern.
Tractor tippyness is always my concern.
Thomas
Epic Contributor
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 29,792
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- Lebanon,NH.
- Tractor
- Kubota B2650HSD w/Frontloader & CC LTX1046 & Craftman T2200 lawn mower.
Glad the out come was in your favor...whew.
Like most anything let your guard for second usually end up cost $$$'s or worse.
Like most anything let your guard for second usually end up cost $$$'s or worse.
MossRoad
Super Moderator
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2001
- Messages
- 60,216
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana (near)
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT425 2001 Model Year
Yep, that was one of them. Thanks.
I know these machines‘ hydraulics are stupid strong, and that can end up putting some forces on things. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had the rears off the ground. Probably hundreds. I do expect to break my center joint at some point in the future from that abuse. It’s one of the reasons I’d never add weight to the rear of my machine.
ponytug
Super Member
Me, too. My tractor has such varied use that I don't always get the load to be picked up eyeballed correctly, and the back of the tractor comes up.
FWIW: I also have occasionally had the tractor loaded close to the limit and gone across a swale or something that articulates the tractor left vs right, front to rear, hitting the limit of the articulation and lifting a wheel. When you hit the limit, the dog bone is resting on the frame, and it must put a fraction of the front load on that one point on the frame in the form of a lever. I have no idea what the force is, but it can't be small. I do keep an eye on the dog bone connector as well as the bottom swivel bearing, but I haven't disassembled the linkages to really see how they are doing. My dog bone has dents in it from the frame, and the frame is missing paint where the dog bone has hit it.
I do grease both sides of the swivel at each eight hour service, just to try to ensure the swivel is fully greased.
All the best,
Peter
FWIW: I also have occasionally had the tractor loaded close to the limit and gone across a swale or something that articulates the tractor left vs right, front to rear, hitting the limit of the articulation and lifting a wheel. When you hit the limit, the dog bone is resting on the frame, and it must put a fraction of the front load on that one point on the frame in the form of a lever. I have no idea what the force is, but it can't be small. I do keep an eye on the dog bone connector as well as the bottom swivel bearing, but I haven't disassembled the linkages to really see how they are doing. My dog bone has dents in it from the frame, and the frame is missing paint where the dog bone has hit it.
I do grease both sides of the swivel at each eight hour service, just to try to ensure the swivel is fully greased.
All the best,
Peter
Last edited:
MossRoad
Super Moderator
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2001
- Messages
- 60,216
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana (near)
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT425 2001 Model Year
I also can’t count the number of times I’ve been working on something heavy, go to back up, look over my shoulder and the rear end is right there when I thought it was straight! Look to the opposite side and that tire is off the ground a foot. Crank the wheel and the tire comes back to earth.
Funny how these articulated machines feel when operating. You just get used to it, and can feel the weight of the rear swinging around behind you.
I used to drive articulated aircraft movers (air horse) and got used to the motions back in the early 80s of just driving on two wheels under my butt. So the PT was just like getting back on the horse(pun intended) in 2021. If I need to make a really tight 180, I can mash the foot pedals while spinning the steering wheel. That causes the nose to tip, the rears to break traction, and the back half of the machine to shift about 120ish degrees to the opposite side in about 2 seconds. Someday I’ll film the stunt (by a professional on a closed course).
Funny how these articulated machines feel when operating. You just get used to it, and can feel the weight of the rear swinging around behind you.
I used to drive articulated aircraft movers (air horse) and got used to the motions back in the early 80s of just driving on two wheels under my butt. So the PT was just like getting back on the horse(pun intended) in 2021. If I need to make a really tight 180, I can mash the foot pedals while spinning the steering wheel. That causes the nose to tip, the rears to break traction, and the back half of the machine to shift about 120ish degrees to the opposite side in about 2 seconds. Someday I’ll film the stunt (by a professional on a closed course).
SpringHollow
Elite Member
Broke mine as well.
Ken
Ken
ponytug
Super Member
That is great news!
I definitely have a few welds on mine that surprisingly enough look like cold welds. (Naively, I would have thought that the factory welders had marks for thickness / butt / fillet amperage.) So far so good on those welds, but I do keep an eye on them.
All the best,
Peter
I definitely have a few welds on mine that surprisingly enough look like cold welds. (Naively, I would have thought that the factory welders had marks for thickness / butt / fillet amperage.) So far so good on those welds, but I do keep an eye on them.
All the best,
Peter
Torvy
Super Member
I doubt it is really the case, but just to speculate...maybe it would be like a shear pin. The weld designed to give before something more structural broke? Just a thought.