TC24D on a slope

[Trouser Bark]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">( Thanks for the report. Thats not as bad as I thought it would be with the view from the mountain that you have. )</font>

Anytime, Spence. I've learned a heck of a lot from your posts and should say thank you.

Btw, it's not the snow depth that gets to you in the mountains that much ...it's the wind. People in FLA get 100mph winds and they howl like the world's coming to an end. Up here 100mph is just another day.

An example of what I mean? I've seen some folks on this site refer to managing their snow and planning on where it goes so they'll have room when the snow falls next. Here we just push it to a windy spot on the property and it disappears /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

I'm thinking about putting a dog dish out in a special spot for our neighbor's howly little bugger next time we get a decent blow /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[hazmat]

<font color="blue"> if I've struck the group as a man w/ delicate sensibilities ...ah, not to worry.

Teach me as if I'm a five year old...Shoot straight and I'll duck when I need to. </font>

You didn't strike me as overly sensative. I just didn't want to offend a new member. Especially one with great views with which to entertain us /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

When only being able to write what you want to say, w/o the usual non-verbal communication, conversations tend to loose a lot of intent. Occasionally someone will interpret something wrong. Since I don't know you (or at least the online you) well yet I added a couple disclaimers.

Back on topic.

In addition to your steel weights I'd still add something on the three point. A nice heavy Box Blade is a handy way to add ballast (as jinman has). A lot more usefull than a ballast box.

Regarding the tires freezing - how cold does it get up there? I'm pretty sure the rim guard's freezing point is pretty low. Loaded tires will lower your CG better than wheel weights because they load the tire 75%. The CG of the loaded tire is somewhere below the center of the wheel. Wheel weights add CG at the center of the wheel.

Last thing. Measure the tires before you swap them. They may be dished out already. In the spec section of your manual it should tell you how wide the rear is dished in & out.

Glad we could help - keep the questions coming.

 

[stvman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Btw, it's not the snow depth that gets to you in the mountains that much ...it's the wind. People in FLA get 100mph winds and they howl like the world's coming to an end. Up here 100mph is just another day )</font>

I spent many a pitch black night on the runway at Elmendorf freezing my keester off, So I can attest to that! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[Trouser Bark]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">
In addition to your steel weights I'd still add something on the three point. A nice heavy Box Blade is a handy way to add ballast (as jinman has). A lot more usefull than a ballast box.
</font>

Hanh? This thing?

I can't picture too many uses for something that looks like this. Maybe breaking up a tough adobe crust on a field(?) but I don't have anything like that.

Would it be of any use in maintaining a gravel driveway? Do you like it because it has any use in addition to being relatively inexpensive and heavy? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Temp wise we rarely get colder than -20f and then it rarely lasts for longer than two or three weeks. I intend to store the tractor in the garage but am fairly certain that plan won't work perfectly all the time. I'm also a little concerned about what tire chains might do my concrete flooring. The concrete has hot water tubes in it for heating and I can't afford to botch that up at all. Sooner or later she'll spend a night or several nights outside in the cold.

 

[jinman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Up here 100mph is just another day.
)</font>

What? Now you have my attention... /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif 100 mph!
Do you build everything to withstand 100 mph? That seems incredible, but I also know it's possible to have much higher winds on a mountain or near the top of a mountain where pressures drop and the wind speed increases. I'm thinking about your deck because it is built similar to mine. You even have the same Simpson brackets on top of your posts (see attachment). With these long decks above the ground, high winds are the only thing that scare me. If the conditions are just right, they can lift like the wings on an airplane. My builder told me not to worry, but I've seen the tornado and wind damage here in Texas, and I'm still a little skeptical. 100 mph wind and dry snow must be like pointing a sand blaster at yourself. Ouch!

Also, the boxblade is very useful for maintaining a gravel road. As you drag the road, the box collects gravel and you can move it to fill potholes ort distribute it in a thin layer by slightly lifting the box with the 3PH. Since you can't see the front lip of your loader, a boxblade is handy because you can look back and see exactly what you are doing at all times. Most boxblades also have a blade on the back, so you can grade going forward or in reverse. The scarifiers are not meant for tillage, but rather to loosen material so the box can dig and scrape the surface more efficiently. I have two boxblades because one of them came on an old industrial tractor I've since sold, and the other one I bought several years ago. For grading and spreading material, the boxblade gives you the most "bang for your buck." /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[jwstewar]

If/when you decide to rotate your tires would you let us know? I've looked at mine a couple of times and said, yes I probably should do that I just haven't yet. I'm not interested in it so much for stability (my land is pretty flat), but I'm interested in it because of the 3 pt. hitch (the bolts/fasteners for the turn buckles) rubbing the inside of the tires. Seems like no matter how tight I try to tighten them down the cutter can still manage to push them in to the side of the tire since most of my hogging is done in reverse.

 

[Trouser Bark]

Certainly JWStewar! I'd be honored. Are you interested in anything particular I should watch for or document? I've never hooked anything to a 3PH but I've noticed the turnbuckles back there and wondered how well they keep impliments from chewing up the inside of the tires. I'm the guy that just realized 4wd engagement is the left heel pedal and previously had been engaging the 3PH thinking that those icons on the fender must mean gears turning only the rear wheels or all four as an option. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif Gotta spell it out for a genuine tractor noob for me to get it right but I'd be happy to tell you what I found.

Thanks for the explanation jinman, and yes ...when the weather gets nasty it gets right after it. IIRC we clocked 110mph winds a few months ago at Anchorage Int'l Airport, which is on flat land at the lowest point in Anchorage. Here in the mountains it flat cooked!

I hadn't thought about that deck acting like a wing but it makes sense that it would. One thing I can say for certain is that when the wind is really gettin' after it you have a natural inclination to stay indoors and out of harms way. Hanging on the deck loses it's apeal.

We used to live in an ag area called Palmer and their wind usually had a serious grit in it. A lot like the sandblaster you mentioned. Here in Anc we don't really have the grit sitution but a man does have a tendency to think for an extra moment about how he's going to store that few extra sheets of plywood outside, etc.

That's a beautiful house you've got there, jinman. Neat support geometry on the fore end of that deck too.

 

[Trouser Bark]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( </font><font color="blueclass=small">( Up here 100mph is just another day.
)</font>

What? Now you have my attention... /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif 100 mph!
Do you build everything to withstand 100 mph? )</font>

Here's an example of interior construction details. The steel strip you see on the floor is called a drag strut. Same thing in the walls and on the roof. Basically a seismic provision but it helps w/ wind loads too. The one you see on the floor will be covered w/ concrete in a few days when the heating system is completed.

 

[jwstewar]

I'm mainly just curious how much extra room you gain in between the 3ph arms and the inside of the rear tires. Maybe once I get my roof on my pole garage and I kinda slack off for the winter I can get mine switched, probably not though as by then it'll be too cold and I won't feel like it as the garage probably won't have walls until spring /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[NIXON]

I was going to ask about the wind conditions where you live after looking a your initial picture . Trees don't normally grow like that . Beautiful site BTW . John