ROPS Customization

[sunnyside360]

The ROPS on my tractor must be folded down to enter/exit my garage. I dread the day when either my wife, son-in-law, or I forget to fold the ROPS prior to entering the garage. I've seen where others here on TBN have damaged their garage after forgetting to fold the ROPS and I know it could happen to mine as well. I've been thinking about having a seven inch piece cut out of the middle of each side of the ROPS -- then welded.
Just looking to see anyone has done this or have any other ideas. Any and all thoughts are appreciated. Thanks, Sunnyside

 

[SnowRidge]

That ought to work if you have a seven inch section of your head removed to accomodate the clearance issues that will arise from the shorter ROPS.

OK, that's a bit of a smartA answer, but the manufacturers would make them shorter if it were safe to do so, since they would cost less to build.

 

[sunnyside360]

That ought to work if you have a seven inch section of your head removed to accomodate the clearance issues that will arise from the shorter ROPS.

OK, that's a bit of a smartA answer, but the manufacturers would make them shorter if it were safe to do so, since they would cost less to build.

The top of the ROPS on the tractor (JD 4320) is way-way higher than anyone sitting on the seat. In fact, it almost looks ridiculously high. I would not consider shortening the ROPS if it circumvented the safety value.

 

[ToadHill]

I've been considering the same thing, On my DK35 the ROPS is at least 12 inches over my head and about 3" to tall to get in the barn. I've wondered about the strength and was considering a tube inside the tube to help strengthen it.

 

[SnowRidge]

Tie a string to the top of the ROPS and take it to the highest point of the front end. Have your tallest operator sit in the seat and see how much clearance their is between the string and his/her head. That is your best case scenario. It goes down hill from there.

Now have the operator position his/her body forward and up against the seat belt until the clearance is at a minimum. Next, take a look at the front of the tractor and imagine how much it might get crushed in a roll over. Now mentally move that string down to meet that crush point, operator still leaning forward and straining up. Next, imagine a hump or other protrusion on the ground that the tractor might roll onto. Move the string down to accommodate that, too. Do you still have any clearance between the operator's head and the string?

 

[rpoage]

Several things to consider.
A line drawn from the top of the ROPS to the front of the tractor forms the protection area. This line needs to be several inches above your head for good protection. In general since ROPS are in back of the head and the hood is lower this means the ROPS will have to be significantly higher to protect the driver.

Working on the assumption that the ROPS is mild steel and not ChromeMoly. Welding on a ROPS requires several things. Correct materials and welding techniques. Proper gusseting to bring back the strength lost in welding. Any modification would also let the manufacturer off the hook on liability if that matters to you?

You might use this opportunity to lobby for a new barn with a proper door for your tractor and implements.

 

[sunnyside360]

You might use this opportunity to lobby for a new barn with a proper door for your tractor and implements.

This is undoubtedly the best solution. However, the garage/barn is only 3 years old. I built it with two 7-1/2 X 10 ft, and one 8-1/2 X 10 ft overhead doors. All three doors should have been 8-1/2 X 10 ft. I currently use the larger door for a much bigger cab tractor which just barely fits.
Hence, I'm just exploring the idea of shortening the ROPS on the JD 4320.

 

[dfkrug]

I've been thinking about having a seven inch piece cut out of the middle of each side of the ROPS -- then welded.

That's what I did, and I am much happier. My CK30 has a ROPS that is
super-tall also. I find that many tractor owners with this clearance
problem just leave their ROPS folded. Where is the safety in THAT?

That said, I did use sleeves inside my 2x3 tubing and this part of my
new ROPS is the strongest. I had to tweak my new vertical sections a bit
in my 20T press and I could not bend them.

 

[Mith]

If you roll the tractor onto its side the height of the ROPS will prevent it rolling all the way over ontop of you even if you are on a slope.
If you cut out a section and roll it on a slope it might keep on rolling over and roll down the hill.
They dont make them so tall for the fun of it.

I'd cut a section out though, but no-one but me relies on it for their safety, whereas you have the safety of others to think about.

 

[ccsial]

First question. How flat is your land? I have no need of a ROPS since I have rolling hills. In 34 years I have never been anywhere close to tipping. For me, I would just leave it down. My 1910 does not even have a ROPS.

If you need the ROPS, now that's different of course.

 

[sunnyside360]

First question. How flat is your land? I have no need of a ROPS since I have rolling hills. In 34 years I have never been anywhere close to tipping. For me, I would just leave it down. My 1910 does not even have a ROPS.

If you need the ROPS, now that's different of course.

Good question. I have about 300 acres of which I only mow and brush hog about 60-70 acres a year --- mostly flat but a couple of fairly steep hills. I have the R4 tires (lower COG) filled with beet juice (four wheels) and the wheels are on the widest setting, all of which minimizes risk of over turning. This property has been in the family for over 100 years and there has never been an accident, however, one never knows, especially about ground hog holes from year to year. If it weren't for the ground hog holes/mounds I wouldn't be concerned.
I have a welder, but I would get a professional welder/fabricator to do the job if I decide to have it done.

 

[2manyrocks]

How is the barn door and the opening constructed? Why not make the opening taller?

 

[sunnyside360]

How is the barn door and the opening constructed? Why not make the opening taller?

Actually the door height could be enlarged up to 8-1/2 ft which would do the trick. I have a quote from a contractor of about $2200 for each door or $4400 for both smaller doors. That's a lot of money for a retired guy living on pension and social security. Might be able to offset cost a little by selling the old 3 year old doors.
But, I wanted to explore modifying the ROPS as a less expensive option.

 

[kenmac]

First question. How flat is your land? I have no need of a ROPS since I have rolling hills. In 34 years I have never been anywhere close to tipping. For me, I would just leave it down. My 1910 does not even have a ROPS.

If you need the ROPS, now that's different of course.

Good answer. Many people make it every day without wearing a seatbelt Many don't . Care to play a little Russian Roulette ??

 

[ctpres]

How about a "high load detector" like ones used at many burger drivethru. Just a wind chime type pipe would do.

 

[daTeacha]

Unless you drive through the doors at a high rate of speed, you could probably get along just fine by installing a sacrificial piece of frame material over the doors. When you hit it, unless you have the cruise engaged or something, you will probably use the brake and your vocabulary to stop very quickly before you do any major damage. When you get too many dents, replace the trim.

I have a few pairs of dents in the frame over my garage door, but nothing deeper than 1/4 inch or so. If you're worried about destroying the door opening, reinforce it with some roughsawn hardwood on the inside. The door I have dents over is an 18 foot wide garage door in a pine rough opening with no special reinforcement, just the usual header. It has suffered no structural damage from my idiocy, just cosmetic stuff.

 

[dfkrug]

A line drawn from the top of the ROPS to the front of the tractor forms the protection area. This line needs to be several inches above your head for good protection. In general since ROPS are in back of the head and the hood is lower this means the ROPS will have to be significantly higher to protect the driver.

According to at least one manufacturer, when they started making
tractors with more slope to the hood, they had to raise the ROPS
bar height. Compare the older Kioti DK hood to the newer CK hood.

For me and my CK, the ROPS is plenty tall, even after removing 8"
of height from it. But I am a shorter person. If you are well over
6-ft tall, the line drawn betw top of ROPS and top of grille guard will
intersect your head.

 

[RobJ]

I cut out part of my fixed rops, but only about 2-3 inches. What was I going to do, not put it in the garage? It stays at the weekend place. I have about 1/2" clearance with the R1 tires, a little more when I put the turfs on.

I thought I remeber a while back someone saying the taller rops were so the operator would not bang his head when using a BH. If you don't use a bh then what's the harm.

 

[SnowRidge]

Smaller tractors have a proportionally taller ROPS than their larger cousins. This is because they have the same size operators while being shorter in length. The shorter length means the angle of the protection line between the ROPS and the front of the tractor is steeper for small tractors than for large machines, hence a proportionally higher ROPS is needed to gain enough clearance for head protection.

 

[sunnyside360]

There are a lot of good responses to my question. I'm currently in Raleigh, NC for a couple of weeks and will try some of the ideas given here when I get back to Central PA (home) next week. Many thanks to all for taking the time to answer. I will let you know what I wound up doing to alleviate the problem.