Started to learn to use my tractor today!

[r1-er]

Good idea lifting the lawn mower with the tractor...that's pretty red in istelf.

You need to put a couple long bolts through the bumper of your lawnmower in line with the slots in the end of your fork/carryall frame then you can tip the lawnmower WAY up!!!

 

[tony123]

What happened here? I'm missing all the posts and photos. Surely you've got some projects going on? Lifting something, destroying something?

 

[dieselfuelonly]

I'll try to make up some project today so I can get some more pictures .

How about you post some of your projects Tony?

I hope I'm not the only one that likes taking pictures .

 

[dieselfuelonly]

OK so you wanted some more pictures...

I got that AND some videos!

Enjoy .

Videos:

Having to use 4WD to back up:



Rolling (just a tiny bit ) of coal:




Scooping up dirt:

Here are some pics that I took of a garden I am in the process of making, I am digging out the old dirt and putting the good stuff in:

Here are some little video clips, no sound though!

I will add them as they upload, so those of you that view this topic in the next few minutes will have to check back for the video clips.

 

[tony123]

Thanks Dennis. That was fun looking at all of those. You've got a good eye for photography. The videos were a nice bonus too!

The horses look like they like the tractor.

So is the garden going to be a vegetable garden?

I'm thinking of getting a scoop, and your photos make it look pretty handy. Can you comment on some of your thought about it. Specifically, how deep does it take in a pass? looks like 6" or so? Also, how deep of a ditch can you dig? you're limited by the depth of the 3ph I assume? have you found a technique to let you dig down 2' or so?

I just had an operator come out last night to look at doing some excavation on our property. We need to clear a half acre of woods, then he will cut into the slope to make a flatter area for pasture, garden etc. I started things with my Yanmar, but quickly realized I was overmatched. I think we'll have him start soon, so be looking for the thread in the "projects" section. I'll post lots of photos.

Our land is not as flat as yours, so we have to spend money to grade it into being usable.

 

[Spiveyman]

Actually, dieselfuelonly, I am a little concerned for you. I've seen this look before:

That's the same way my wife looks at my tractor now. The difference is that your horses don't have the luxury of voicing those thoughts (I am assuming here, maybe your horses are more talented then ours). Since that red beast moved into your life, they are feeling a bit neglected.... they don't trust it. Next thing you know, they will be looking at your computer that same way when you log on to TBN. It might be best not to let them in your computer room.

Looks like you are still having a blast, nice truck by the way, and horses. Living the dream!

 

[dieselfuelonly]

I had better be very careful about leaving that little Yanmar alone in the barn with the horses, if they managed to get out of their stalls, that poor tractor might not be able to defend itself... .

That picture was actually from the horses running because they did NOT want to be ridden that day... it was pretty funny watching them, the minute you got near them they would take off. Luckily, I don't ride them, I just drive my tractor, it never runs from me, it just does the work and enjoys it .

 

[Podunkadunk]

You've got the tractor bug far worse than anyone I have seen in my short time on TBN

With the way you've been working, I think it won't be long and you'll be trading that Yanmar for it's larger compact cousin John Deere!

Roy Jackson will have you in a 790 before you know it!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dieselfuelonly]

I am going to use that Yanmar until the chassis literally starts rusting apart, then I'm going to grab my welder and some duct tape and drive it some more!

As much as I would like to have a tractor with, say, about 35-40HP with M4WD and a FEL and a backhoe and a gear transmission (still don't really like the hydros, I like to know that I've got "lockup" in every gear), right now I just can't afford one. And to add to that, my little Yanmar has done EVERYTHING that I have asked of it, is extremely easy to work on (like an oil change took all of 10-15 minutes and used only ONE gallon of oil!), and I have yet to get the thing even remotely close to being stuck.

Tony123, I have to say as skeptical about the usefulness of the dirt scoop as I was at first, I have found it to be a very good alternative to a FEL which at the moment I just can't justify spending the money on, when all I REALLY needed the tractor for was to mow the pasture. The thing I have found though is the dirt scoop actually gets used much more than the bush hog does!

The dirt scoop is a pretty cool implement. I tried using it in reverse at one point. It was COMPLETELY useless. In 2WD the minute I would set the scoop down my tires would start to spin like they were on ice. I worried about damaging something in 4WD, after reading about how one should be cautios when using the 3pt. hitch to push.

When pulling it, it will really dig up a good bit of dirt. If the soil is very hard, or you are trying to dig through very thick grass/weeds, it can be tough to get started. When I was digging that trench for the garden, I had to get a hoe and make a notch in the ground to get the scoop started. After that it worked just fine.

I am not really sure how far down you can dig. 6" is probably pretty close. If you would want to dig down further, you would have to dig out an area so your wheels could go down further too, because like you said you are limited by how far the 3pt. hitch will drop.

I don't remember if your tractor has M4WD or not. If it is just 2WD, I would advise you to stay away from a dirt scoop unless your soil is relativly easy to scoop up. In 2WD my tires will spin if I hit something that provides the least bit of resistance.

Here are the things that do bother me a little bit about the scoop:

If you want to dig deeper in each pass, you have to make the top link short in order to tip the bucket down further. The problem is that when you have the bucket at a pretty steep angle, unless the soil is sticky it will fall right out as soon as you pick it up and start moving.

Also, positioning the scoop can be a challenge in a tight area, ex. when you are digging a trench and one wheel that you want to stay on the edge keeps slipping down into the trench, making the scoop go all sideways on you.

Other than that, I really don't have any complaints about the scoop. It works good and gets the job done and is the perfect size for my little YM1401D.

 

[dieselfuelonly]

Here are some pics for today... Since my riding mower needs something fixed on the drivetrain (think its the drive belt) and... well lets just say that I am not exactly in a hurry to get it going again when I can drive my Yanmar instead , I bushhogged my lawn today. It looks a lot better than I thought it would.

Also some pics of the horses, the garden that I am bringing good dirt into, etc.

Just having fun on a Saturday .

 

[tony123]

Dennis, once again, great photos.

Garden is coming along well. Nice looking dirt you got in there now. What are you planting?

I saw where you widened your front wheels, so I tried it myself. I was looking for more stability since I have some slopes. It didn't work for me. Steering was tougher, and I don't think I was getting traction up front as well. I'll switch back tomorrow.

We had company over all day, and it killed me to not be able to sit on the Yanmar for a bit. Seems most evenings I go out and push a pile of dirt around for no good reason.

 

[dieselfuelonly]

Not really sure what I'm gonna plant in the garden yet, I plan to do a bit bigger vegetable garden out behind the barn where I am digging up some of this good soil from so that I don't have to do this whole process again .

I'm kind of split on the wheels too. I do like the bit of extra stability, but man the thing can be hard to turn sometimes. With something heavy like the bush hog or the dirt scoop with a big scoop of dirt in it it isn't really an issue, but when trying to back the tractor into the area where I park it in the barn without much weight on the 3pt. hitch it can be a bear to steer the thing, and I don't like to really crank on the steering wheel because I know thats quite a bit of stress being put on there.

So... I really don't know what to say about it, I really like having the extra stability but I also liked how easy the tractor was to manuever when the wheels were the other way...

 

[n8wrl]

Hi Dennis! Cool pix.

I've been eyeing the stalls in your barn - the sliding doors/bars. Did you put them in yourself? We've got a very old barn with petrified wood so it is nearly indistructable, but we've got all manner of make-shift latches and clasps to keep doors closed. I fear I'm stuck with this because the barn floor itself is dirt and slopes a good foot over the length of the barn for drainage!

I had no idea how much fun a tractor would be - my wife and kids have the horses.

-Brian

 

[SkunkWerX]

Dennis,

I just got caught-up on this thread, I hadn't read it for a while.
Great pics and the videos are way cool!

You are logging some serious hours with that dirt scoop.
I would have to give you "Expert" rating with a dirt scoop!

I have an idea for your dilemma with your little lawn tractor.
Get it running. Sell it on CraigsList. Use the proceeds as a down payment on a 3Pt. Finish mower. A 3 Pt. Finish mower can give a nice lawn cut, especially on your level ground. Easy-On, easy Off like most 3 Pt. implements.
This would get rid of some maintainance for you, and add to your collection of 3 Pt. toys, errr, I mean attachments.

You have a beautiful piece of ground there.

 

[dieselfuelonly]

I have an idea for your dilemma with your little lawn tractor.
Get it running. Sell it on CraigsList. Use the proceeds as a down payment on a 3Pt. Finish mower. A 3 Pt. Finish mower can give a nice lawn cut, especially on your level ground. Easy-On, easy Off like most 3 Pt. implements.

You know, thats actually a really good idea. I don't know how much the thing would be worth, but whatever I could get for it would probably help out a lot.

The problem with selling it right now is that we are still trying to sell our 3 acres over in Durham, NC. The riding mower was used for a couple years at this place, and was a big help over there, the yard is steep and it makes for a really long day to mow with a push mower.

That is all to say right now I need the riding mower to take care of that property (until it becomes someone else's problem! ). I just drive it up the ramps into the back of my truck every couple weeks and take it over there to mow.

I don't think my Yanmar with the bush hog would a. Be able to drive up the ramps without completely crushing them and falling off halfway up, and b. actually fit in the bed of my truck.

If I had a trailer, this would be no problem, but at the moment I don't.

I am going to be purchasing a horse trailer soon, if I can remove the divider on it do you think it would be suitable for hauling around my tractor?