Seat time withdrawal?

[ssgp2]

Anybody get tractor seat time withdrawals? Here in the south, we don’t do just a whole lot of snow plowing or blowing and most don’t even have the equipment for that and mowing season ain’t year round. While there are some things to be done, there’s just not a whole lot that requires a tractor. So, who all gets the itch to just be on the tractor?

 

[bmaverick]

When I lived in the south, I had year round seat time. Today's morning high was a mere 8F, no seat time at all in dairy-land WI.

 

[JCoastie]

Yup! I have fully acclimated to the south now from many years in NH, NY and AK. When it's in the 40s and breezy now, I don't want to be outside on a tractor. It took about 12 years to get to that point, neighbors thought I was crazy, now I get it lol

 

[wolc123]

We’ve had the least amount of snow that I can remember, in my 59 years so far this winter here, in the north west corner of NY state. I’d have normally plowed snow more than a dozen times by now, but just (4) so far, this winter.

I am thankful that at least it’s been cold enough to keep burning our wood stove in the house (it gets too hot in there for that when the nighttime low is not below 40 F), so that I can fire up the tractor once a week to bring a half face cord up to the porch from the woodshed.

I do miss the seat time plowing snow though. I like snowplowing so much, that I bought the smallest tractor money can buy (10 hp Farmall Cub), so that I can stretch that job out as long as possible when we do get blessed with a little snow.

 

[Too many Kubotas]

I could use some seat time.

This winter has been dismal. Used the tractor one time, and the skid steer with the 'blower once. Not because they were needed to do the job, but because I could.

So far the little L3800 has been able to take care of the meager amounts of snow we've got.

 

[Thomas]

Living in the northeast might get couple back to back snowstorms or you wait for week two,but when mud season arrives wait could be longer

 

[Hay Dude]

Come on up here. You can have plenty of seat time.
Pay sucks though…

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Come on up here. You can have plenty of seat time.
Pay sucks though…

You couldn't possibly pay me less than I do.

Unless you want me to pay for the fuel, too.

 

[Hay Dude]

You couldn't possibly pay me less than I do.

Unless you want me to pay for the fuel, too.

You’d have to be able to carry your weight with a chain saw, cut back stickers and probably clean out an old barn or 2.

Then maybe, just maybe, I might let you play on the tractors.

Thought I’d mention that.

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Well, if you call that seat time, I have more than enough right here.

 

[Hay Dude]

Oh, and you gotta buy the beer after work….at my favorite tavern, of course….

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Oh, and you gotta buy the beer after work….at my favorite tavern, of course….

You're driving there and back, right?

 

[wolc123]

My wife and I were up in the mountains visiting her parents this weekend and our daughter back at home texted that it snowed a lot and she didn’t think she could get out with her car. I told her where there was a shovel and see what she could do with that. She did ok and made it out to her job at the movie theater.

We got stuck up there an extra day, due to the snowstorm, which hit much harder between our two locations. I was thankful to get home today, for some more seat-time on my Farmall Cub. It took me about 1/2 hour to plow about 6” from our two driveways and our neighbors. My nephew had already taken care of my aunt’s driveway, on the other side, with his pickup.

When it looks like we’ve seen the last of the snow for the year, I’m going to pull the snowplow off the frame weld some side supports on it, so that it will take the tongue weight of my boat with a front mount trailer hitch. That will give me plenty more seat time over the spring summer and fall.

It’s a lot easier getting the boat into the barn, with a front mount hitch, and the hydraulic lift is very handy for that.

 

[crazyjake8493]

I try to use it whenever I can, just to scratch the itch. In the spring/summer/fall I can find plenty of projects. Between snow storms in winter I'll use it for some yardwork if the ground is frozen, and I use the pallet forks quite a lot to load and unload things from the truck. I palletize everything I can, especially heavy things. One reason I would never want a front-end snowblower. Too much switching back and forth throughout the winter.

 

[wolc123]

I am also thinking about welding up a small set of brush forks to mount on the reinforced Farmall Cub snowplow frame, after I pull off the plow for the off-season. My hedgerows are loaded with dead ash trees and that would allow me to quickly process them into firewood, and clear the fields, as they fall.

I prefer to let those dead ash trees fall on their own, because they are too unpredictable to try and fell with a chainsaw. I’ve heard of several experienced woodcutters who were killed while doing that.

The brush forks would let me push the small limbs out of the fields and into the hedgerows. I can drag the firewood logs up next to my bucking trailer with chains using the Cub’s drawbar. Most in the hedgerows are 10-20” diameter at the base, perfect size for firewood. There’s some 30 inchers in my woods and I’ll just let them rot where they fall.

I’ve been using my larger tractors with forks bolted under the bucket for that job, but it is a pain taking my bush-hog off of that, for dragging logs from the back.

Global warming has put a stop to my winter firewood making season. This is the second consecutive winter where the ground never froze. I don’t suppose I’ll ever see that again. That means I got to get all of my firewood made in the dry part of the summer, which is also peak bush-hogging time.

With a little set of forks on the front, the drawbar on back, and a nice chainsaw/chain box on the side (I already made that), that Cub should be pretty handy for summer firewood duty.

 

[IXLR8]

I moved to VA over a year ago, still haven't found a good way to get my tractor here from ME. Just about everyday I find something I could do with my tractor... if it was here. Definitely going thru tractor seat time withdrawals.

 

[tstex]

If you want more operating time during off-season, put a frt-end-loader on your tractor...

 

[hiddentacocatneddih]

I dont mind using my tractor but I dont really miss it in the winter. I mainly miss warm weather.

 

[blacktruck]

Anybody get tractor seat time withdrawals? Here in the south, we don’t do just a whole lot of snow plowing or blowing and most don’t even have the equipment for that and mowing season ain’t year round. While there are some things to be done, there’s just not a whole lot that requires a tractor. So, who all gets the itch to just be on the tractor?

Guilty as charged.
But in my defense, I don't call it withdrawals. I live in Central Illinois but work in NE Texas. I manage to get home several times every year but definitely not every weekend. Prior to this position, I worked overseas for a total of a bit more than 6 years. When I do get some quality seat time, it is a peaceful time with no cell phones or emails to answer. Nobody coming into my office to discuss something they could have taken care of themselves. No reports to complete or meetings to attend. I would never call it a mindless activity but it is focused on the task at hand. You and the tractor doing whatever needs to be accomplished. I do enjoy that time. It is a great break from the corporate activities. It gets me out of the office and into the atmosphere of outdoor life again. When I am home, I find things that need to be accomplished. Most of the outdoor stuff needs a tractor if for no other reason than to carry the tools. It is another reason to have a subcompact or compact tractor.
Only because you asked, here's what I think about using my tractor every chance I get.