ROPS message again!

[Whiskey]

Ductape:

LMTC's are foldable, the factory style are not.....deponding on where you store your tractor, foldable is a nice to have. I will get the info when I get home and pvt. it to you

 

[California]

I feel a ROPS certified for an equivalent tractor is better than none.

That was my conclusion. When the ROPS for YM2000 came out, I ordered one for my YM240. (Its US-version twin). The dealer and I were both curious if it would fit.

I asked if he would offer no-hassle return terms if I paid return shipping, and he agreed. I reported back to him that it fit perfectly and he now lists YM240 as one of the applications.

Photo, before ROPS. I got off the tractor to see if I could safely move this blockade out of the terrace and drop it off the right side. I was concerned that if I lost my grip on it, I would be catapulted over the edge:
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...t-additions-your-tractor-435269-dscn4555r.jpg

 

[arthr31]

Hey all, is Jagmandave around these days? If I recall correctly, he fab'd up his own ROPS for his 1610- Ductape, might be a decent start to you if the other options don't work out.

I still need to get one for my 1601. However it isn't doing much these days up on a block waiting for a tire.. LOL

 

[LMTC]

I used to think that as long as our fabricator could make a structure heavy enough not to break, I could work with it as a ROPS. I now know differently. The forces involved are complex. Read This Article if any of you have any thoughts of building your own. It is not pleasant.

 

[marcinzk]

Far too many folks assume they only need a ROPS if they do a lot of work on hills. Anything that allows one wheel to drop....."powdery dirt", groundhog hole, etc. can cause a rollover. If it was predictable no one but complete idiots would die in rollovers, yet many very experienced and probably very savvy operators die or are injured that way.

This is SO TRUE. I was brush hogging our land yesterday and I almost rolled the tractor on part of an old GE lawn mower that I "inherited" from the previous owner.

I was mowing along at a good clip and I had the FEL slightly raised as it dug into the ground a few moments before. All of a sudden the tractor violently lurched to the right, left rear wheel came up. The lurch threw me hard to the right and the only thing that stopped the tractor from rolling was dumb luck as I somehow had the foresight and strength to quickly grab the left fender handle and throw all my weight (250 lbs.) on the left side while quickly pressing the clutch down. The tractor teetered while I completely lowered the FEL and hit reverse - disaster avoided.

When I got off the tractor to collect my thoughts, check my shorts, and figure out what the heck just happened I found that the front left wheel had gone up and onto the old mower deck from the GE mower that the previous owner left out in the field to rot.

Let me tell you that was the single scariest moment in my life, and it happened so fast: one minute I'm plugging along on nice level ground next minute I'm nearly thrown off the tractor with the tractor following me down to the ground.

Moral of the story: GET A ROPS!!! I know I will be getting one installed before the next time I use my tractor.

 

[kenmac]

I don't know how many times I've said this . If you own a tractor , get a ROPS . I purchased 1 as soon as they came out A roll or a flip can happen to anyone at anytime . A $800.00 ROPS is cheep . How much is your life worth ??

 

[Jagmandave]

Hey all, is Jagmandave around these days? If I recall correctly, he fab'd up his own ROPS for his 1610- Ductape, might be a decent start to you if the other options don't work out.

I still need to get one for my 1601. However it isn't doing much these days up on a block waiting for a tire.. LOL

Yep, still here Arthr31...........

But, if I had it to do over agian, I'd buy one ready made for my 1602D. At the time there was none available commercially, and I was operating out of ignorance when I made mine. That said, I feel a certain amount of confidence in it as it's very strong and well anchored, but like LMTC says - I'd be so much more confident if I had one that had been tested thoroughly...........

 

[arthr31]

cool thanks. Yes, I'm thinking this is one DIY project I won't be doing. Just saving up money to get the kit for my tractor.

 

[EFC]

I know I am going to catch real h**l for this and please dont interpret what I say as saying ROPS isnt worth every penny. But your first line of defense is your own common sense. By the way, you cant purchase that for any amount of money so if you dont have any, DO NOT buy a tractor. Hire it done. ROPS is designed to give you a fighting chance in a rear flip over not a guarantee that natural selection wont kick in. Out of 2000+ customers I have lost 2 to rollovers. Both had ROPS, were properly wearing their seatbelts and the ROPS did not fail in anyway.

I think what I am trying to say is with your ROPS purchase have a serious sit-down with yourself and realize it is far safer to learn how to fly the plane properly and safely than it is to bailout and trust your parachute. Save the parachute for when it is the last resort.

Buck

P.S. yell away

 

[LMTC]

Yell at what Buck? All I understand you to be saying is that having an air bag doesn't mean you shouldn't still drive defensively. There is no substitute for prevention....forethought, preparation, and so on. The ROPS should be there for that hopefully-never-to-occur time when all those things have been done and something still happens. I would never view a ROPS as license to do something on a tractor that I would not do without a ROPS, nor should anyone else view it that way. I have fire insurance, but I still take all the precautions I can against having a fire.

You'd be surprise how many customers react negatively when I inform them that they have to buckle the seat belt to test drive the tractor. I usually hear something like "what could happen driving it around on the lot?" I usually ask them "Of all the people who had accidents yesterday, how many do you think woke up and said to themselves 'Today is the day I have a serious accident'"? None of course, and that's the point. We simply do not know.