Safely Mowing Hills
- Thread starter Anonymous Poster
- Start date
- Views: 4051
Thomas
Epic Contributor
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 31,031
- Location
- Lebanon,NH.
- Tractor
- Kubota B2650HSD w/Frontloader & CC LTX1046 & Craftman T2200 lawn mower.
Take my hat off to you Von,for I wouldn't drive up that slope mowing w/turf tires..I would mowe the bottom first than back up the bank plus have the rear tires chain up.
RoyJackson
Rest in Peace
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2001
- Messages
- 23,144
- Location
- Bethel, Vermont
- Tractor
- John Deere 4052R Cab,, Deere 855D UTV, Z920A Zero Turn Mower and assorted implements
Roy,I drive and cut both up and down the slopes, just not sideways. Attached is a photo of some of the steeper parts.
That doesn't look too bad. Seems to flatten out at the left of the picture. The slope you're on is similar to what I have, except I've a tree line where it starts to flatten.
I'm assuming you're in your lowest gear using engine braking.
Now, tractor fans...which has better engine braking: gear or HST? Which is less likely to run away or be driven down slope by the weight of the tractor or implement. I'd like answers from both the non-occupational owners (the majority of us on TBN) and those making their living on tractors.
That doesn't look too bad. Seems to flatten out at the left of the picture. The slope you're on is similar to what I have, except I've a tree line where it starts to flatten.
I'm assuming you're in your lowest gear using engine braking.
Now, tractor fans...which has better engine braking: gear or HST? Which is less likely to run away or be driven down slope by the weight of the tractor or implement. I'd like answers from both the non-occupational owners (the majority of us on TBN) and those making their living on tractors.
Von
Veteran Member, Advertiser
Roy, I use the middle gear, as low is just too slow. With the hydro I can take my foot off the petal and the tractor will stop even on the steepest of slopes.Thomas, I don't know why turfs get such a bad rap. I have never had a problem with traction with them in any situation. From mowing to heavy loader work in soupy mud. I had ags at one time on my old Kubota and changed them for turfs. Only differance was less sod damage when mowing the grass. On ice the turfs are way better, and the overall ride is much smoother. For my uses turfs are the way to go, and with the loaded rears that I have now. I never seem to get stuck or have traction problems. Just yeaterday I had to stand up some large pines that were leaning over from the wind storm. I used a strap to the drawbar and on two of the larger ones had the relief valve pop before I lost traction. These trees were about 25' tall and the little B2710 pulled them up straight. I just hope that the roots take before another big wind comes. I staked them and tied them off, but there are afew that are real tall. Only time will tell!
JerryG
Super Member
I have two poultry house pads that are quite a bit steeper that Von's hill. My tractor is a standard 16-speed shuttle and I mow those areas in third range (out of four) and first gear (also out of four). That is where the tractor is comfortable with the load on it and I am also. I have to back up because of the buildings at the top. Before the houses were complete I have drove up forward. I might add that I always have my loader on.
bky
Gold Member
kyfarmer what part nky you from?
Mosey
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2002
- Messages
- 1,565
- Location
- Conifer, Colorado
- Tractor
- 2000 New Holland TC29D with 7308 FEL, and top & tilt. 1950 John Deere B. 1940 Farmall A.
I’ve looked all through my manual and don’t see where it specifically states a maximum safe tilt angle. I have one hill that’s 15 degrees and I drive sideways on it all the time and it doesn’t seem too bad. I don’t go very fast and certainly don’t turn up hill while I’m on this hill (that would create an unstable situation). I have a couple of other hills that are much steeper that I’ve driven up and down on, but never sideways. I measured them and they are 30 degrees, but it feels like more when I’m driving on them!
GlueGuy, you stated “The accepted limit for general purposes is 15 degrees side slope (roll), and 30 degrees going up/down.”
Where did you get these numbers? They seem about right to me, but I’m just wondering if they are estimates from people using tractors or from some rigid test procedure. Does anybody know if any tractor manufacturers have done any tests to see just what angle it takes to tip a tractor over?
Believe it or not, my neighbor said the previous owner of my property used to mow sideways on the 30 degree hills! He had an old Farmall B, which is the one that has a real wide track. I’m sure that tractor didn’t have the proper oil circulation system to keep the engine lubed at that angle. They also didn’t put ROPS on those tractors! But, he never tipped it over.
My take on going up vs down on steep hills is that if you have a mower attached, it probably doesn’t matter as far as flipping over frontward or backward, because the mower will keep you from flipping over either way (unless you drive down an 85 degree bank!). But, going down can be dangerous because the weight of the mower will tend to push the tractor sideways if you don’t stay pointing exactly straight down. I had that happen to me. The weight of the mower pushed the tractor faster than I wanted to go and I lost control and was starting to go sideways by the time I got to the bottom of the hill. Fortunately, the hill was short, if it would have been a long hill I would probably have rolled it. One mistake I made was not having it in 4WD, thinking I didn’t need it going down hill. The thing I forgot was that, unlike my Jeep, the brakes only apply to the rear wheels, so I had less stopping traction, and that’s how I got going too fast to start with. The rear wheels started to skid on the slippery grass when I let up on the hydrostat pedal and hitting the brakes only made it worse. Now I always use 4WD when on hills, going either up or down. As for going up, that seems less dangerous except of you loose traction (or power), then you’ll have to back down, which won’t be fun. I’ve had the front wheels come off the ground going up hill with a mower attached. I didn’t worry about flipping over because the mower prevented it. I was able to keep going though. I’ve gone up the hill without an implement attached and the front wheels did not come up, probably because the weight of the implement was not there. But, it’s more spooky because I know there’s nothing behind me to keep me from going over if the front does start to come up. I think KYFARMER’s concern about backing up and then going down is that if you have a gear drive, when you stop to change gears, then you’re relying on just your brakes to keep you from rolling back down when you push the clutch in. I’ve had this problem with my Jeep (heading up hill) and it isn’t fun! If you can get over the crest of the hill before having to stop, then it’s much safer. So, I guess what I’m saying is that if you have a mower attached, it’s probably safer going up hill. If you don’t have an implement, going up hill can be dangerous. Either way, I wouldn’t go near a 30 degree hill without 4WD.
As for the braking power of a hydrostat, like I stated above, I just let up on the pedal and the wheels started to skid.
GlueGuy, you stated “The accepted limit for general purposes is 15 degrees side slope (roll), and 30 degrees going up/down.”
Where did you get these numbers? They seem about right to me, but I’m just wondering if they are estimates from people using tractors or from some rigid test procedure. Does anybody know if any tractor manufacturers have done any tests to see just what angle it takes to tip a tractor over?
Believe it or not, my neighbor said the previous owner of my property used to mow sideways on the 30 degree hills! He had an old Farmall B, which is the one that has a real wide track. I’m sure that tractor didn’t have the proper oil circulation system to keep the engine lubed at that angle. They also didn’t put ROPS on those tractors! But, he never tipped it over.
My take on going up vs down on steep hills is that if you have a mower attached, it probably doesn’t matter as far as flipping over frontward or backward, because the mower will keep you from flipping over either way (unless you drive down an 85 degree bank!). But, going down can be dangerous because the weight of the mower will tend to push the tractor sideways if you don’t stay pointing exactly straight down. I had that happen to me. The weight of the mower pushed the tractor faster than I wanted to go and I lost control and was starting to go sideways by the time I got to the bottom of the hill. Fortunately, the hill was short, if it would have been a long hill I would probably have rolled it. One mistake I made was not having it in 4WD, thinking I didn’t need it going down hill. The thing I forgot was that, unlike my Jeep, the brakes only apply to the rear wheels, so I had less stopping traction, and that’s how I got going too fast to start with. The rear wheels started to skid on the slippery grass when I let up on the hydrostat pedal and hitting the brakes only made it worse. Now I always use 4WD when on hills, going either up or down. As for going up, that seems less dangerous except of you loose traction (or power), then you’ll have to back down, which won’t be fun. I’ve had the front wheels come off the ground going up hill with a mower attached. I didn’t worry about flipping over because the mower prevented it. I was able to keep going though. I’ve gone up the hill without an implement attached and the front wheels did not come up, probably because the weight of the implement was not there. But, it’s more spooky because I know there’s nothing behind me to keep me from going over if the front does start to come up. I think KYFARMER’s concern about backing up and then going down is that if you have a gear drive, when you stop to change gears, then you’re relying on just your brakes to keep you from rolling back down when you push the clutch in. I’ve had this problem with my Jeep (heading up hill) and it isn’t fun! If you can get over the crest of the hill before having to stop, then it’s much safer. So, I guess what I’m saying is that if you have a mower attached, it’s probably safer going up hill. If you don’t have an implement, going up hill can be dangerous. Either way, I wouldn’t go near a 30 degree hill without 4WD.
As for the braking power of a hydrostat, like I stated above, I just let up on the pedal and the wheels started to skid.
memenzel
Member
In the John Deere information for the 4000 series compact tractors it states that it meets ANSI B71.4 Slope Requirements. Nobody at JD would tell me what that requirement was so i bought the ANSI B71.4 Safety Specifications for Commercial Turf Care Equipment ($70.00). It contains the specifications, test conditions and procedure for conducting the tests. It generally states for longitudinal test acceptance is 30 degrees (58 % slope) with either end positioned downhill. Lateral tests acceptance is 20 degrees (36.4 % slope) with either side positioned downhill. It further states that how the tractor is equipped and ballasted will effect these figures. I mow on a 20 to 30 degree slope with a JD 4400 hydrostat 4 wheel drive, 72" mmm, with turf tires. I mow up and down, can back up or back down any parts of the hill without any problems. At first it was interesting but after years of mowing it is now second nature. With the hydro I can stop, change direction, either going up or down the hill without any tire slippage or loss of control.