Traction Using a Tractor on Mountain Property

[majorwager]

Fuddy,
It was reported on TBN that the 3000 series has an aluminum rear axle housing assembly and therefore unsuitable for a backhoe application.

What is the truth concerning that discussion?

 

[millsan1]

I'm wondering why you ruled out JD 3000 series quickly. I bought a new 3038 with FEL, backhoe, Bush hog, auger, grapple, boom,etc. and like everything about it.
Just curious.

Price vs capacity vs construction.

As noted, the aluminum rear really scared me off.

 

[Fuddy1952]

My thought was as long as Deere has been making tractors, their reputation and a good dealership I would believe they know what they're doing. I guess time will tell if I regret the aluminum rear. So far I've done some really heavy work without problems.
No, it wasn't inexpensive though.

 

[millsan1]

My thought was as long as Deere has been making tractors, their reputation and a good dealership I would believe they know what they're doing. I guess time will tell if I regret the aluminum rear. So far I've done some really heavy work without problems.
No, it wasn't inexpensive though.

It all comes down to what we, as individuals want. All of the tractors are good. There are positives and negatives about each one, each brand, etc.

I am sure the JD will serve you well for a long time and I believe my Mahindra will do the same for me.

 

[17 Oaks]

Hi Folks, and thanks for the great forum.

Have 16 acres of mountain land, mostly wooded, with grades ranging from around 10% around the house all the way up to steep ravines where no machine will go, and everything in between. Have beat my Husqvarna lawn tractor (and myself) about to death trying to do various projects and figured I need a tractor. I mean, if the Huskvee can get around pretty well except for getting stuck about every 15 minutes, then a real tractor should do it better, right? Got it pretty much picked out and everything. Here's the problem: All the tractor videos I've seen show flat or gently rolling land, and when I search "steep" "hilly" "ditch" "ravine" on TBN, all I get is roll-over stories! Sat on a few SCUTs, and yep, yer pretty high up compared with a lawn tractor....

So....do any of you actually work steep, rough terrain with your tractors? Are some tractors better than others for this specific need? Which ones have the lowest center of gravity? Does ballasting the tires help? Any other tips? Or is a tractor just the wrong machine for the job?

TYVM

Steep, rough, off camber I got it in spades down here in the Texas Hill Country. I bought a JD 2520 abd while its a compact tractor its still a tractor with its HIGH center of gravity and I have 1 & 2 wheels off the ground so many times I cannot count, albeit I have never laid it over, but certainly been close. The tools I use most are my FEL, Backhoe and sub soiler which I use to clean out ditches and create ditches andtrailer hitch. Yesterday I pulled 3 different size trailers from 6 ft to 18 ft.

Ideally the setup would be a lower center of gravity, wide track front and rear and enough weight and HP to get the job done. I am not a farmer, have no row crops, I just work the land by clean, clearing, managing water runoff, moving rocks and tree debris. Hill Country has GOT rocks. On my place I have generally about 6 in of top soil and below that it's limestone and its limestone down a long long ways. My well is 728 ft and I know folks that get water below a 1000 ft. The ONLY flat ground on my place is where I have made it flat, otherwise none!

I have been looking at the JD 1 series, but my dealer does not take trade in's so I have not tested one out yet, but I am maybe at the stage that a 1series will do for me all that I need. I have been trying to get my land where I can mow it and I have been at it going on 7 years and now quite there yet. I want to be able to mow with a garden tractor set up and liking the Husqvarna TS348XD. for its maneuverability due to the many trees I have and I have been cutting down trees for 7 years, cut down 15 in the past 3 weeks between 30-50 ft tall and I still got a lot more to go. Bought an old cattle ranch that laid fallow for about 40 years.

As another poster said 'get to know your tractor' and I will echo that. Get to know the tractor, be cautious and learn and understand its capabilities or you can find yourself in deep kimchi real quick.

Also, ask yourself, what do you NEED to do with your tractor? This will really help you decide what implements you need to accomplish those tasks.

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Thanks, 17 Oaks. I ended up with a Mahindra Max 26XL. I have the largest Husqvarna garden tractor for mowing and can report it handles the steep very well. Just don't get the keyless ignition; it seems to cause a lot of problems. I am starting with the easiest jobs first and will work my way up to the scary very slowly. Thing seems quite stable so far; the filled tires make a huge difference. Felt tippy driving around the dealership w/ unfilled tires. Much better now, like a tank.

 

[17 Oaks]

Thanks, 17 Oaks. I ended up with a Mahindra Max 26XL. I have the largest Husqvarna garden tractor for mowing and can report it handles the steep very well. Just don't get the keyless ignition; it seems to cause a lot of problems. I am starting with the easiest jobs first and will work my way up to the scary very slowly. Thing seems quite stable so far; the filled tires make a huge difference. Felt tippy driving around the dealership w/ unfilled tires. Much better now, like a tank.

Thank you and good to hear about your use of Husq. The TS348XD is new to the US market and has some features I NEED, like a fabricated mower deck and a locking rear axle along with a commercial grade transmission.

I lived out in the Tidewater area of Va for 9 years (Newport News), loved it out there my home sat on the water where the James River meets the Chesapeake Bay, but the Ole Cowboy had to come home to Texas when I retired from there.

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Thank you and good to hear about your use of Husq. The TS348XD is new to the US market and has some features I NEED, like a fabricated mower deck and a locking rear axle along with a commercial grade transmission.

I lived out in the Tidewater area of Va for 9 years (Newport News), loved it out there my home sat on the water where the James River meets the Chesapeake Bay, but the Ole Cowboy had to come home to Texas when I retired from there.

Yep, the 4WD, locking rear differential, and commercial grade tranny made all the difference. I used to get stuck on my hills all the time with the smaller Husqv even with chains; this one never gets stuck and can even pull a small box blade, no chains needed. The only time it gets stuck is when I get the deck wedged on something. One thing I'm not as happy about is the fabricated deck (48"). It simply does not mow as well as the stamped 48" on the smaller Husqv. I have no idea why and we've had it adjusted several times. The stamped deck just seems to follow the ground better. Of course I'm talking about lawn. On tall, thick field grass the bigger one has more power and handles it much better.

I paid for a 6-year extended warranty, and am glad I did, as the reliability on my 2016 model has been sub-par. Hopefully the new models are better.

 

[AxleHub]

Just a few thoughts on seat belt use and rops. Any safety feature can also turn out to be an "unsafe" feature if used improperly. A rops pulled up to full height can catch a tree limb and pull the tractor into a tip-up backward situation. At the same time - rops are designed so if you "roll" the tractor - it not only protects the head and neck - but also can allow the roll to continue on to an upright position or angular position rather than a "flat as a pancake" position.

I've been in positions where I've had to "evacuate" from a moving lawn mower or moving motorcycle - and I can tell you it is much easier to evacuate one of those machines than it would be any tractor I've ever sat on. Why? Because evacuating out of the "high side" of a tractor is fraught with lots of things like steering wheels placed higher and seats with higher backs and front valve levers sticking out and any number of fell arm mounts or control handles on fenders. Even my scut has knobs and handles that sit higher than on riding lawn mowers or motorcycles. So the issues in "bailing out" on a tipping tractor is physically much more difficult because you sit "around" items instead of "on top" of items. Additionally - human reactions often are to attempt to "steer your way" out of danger - so a bailout decision is delayed.

Seat belts - I hate them - but I use them. For three really different reasons.

1. If you roll over or flip forward - a tractor of any size creates a "sling shot" effect on the operator not using a seat belt. Leverage is created - either by the rops or a fel or just the fact a tractor is longer than it is wide and the distance from seat to front is a higher percentage than seat to rear wheels - so tipping forward "launches" an non seatbelt wearing operator with significant leverage (an operator doesn't just "fall out").

2. Without a seatbelt - there is more inertia pulling you forward on a steep slope - yet very little to hold on to to push yourself back in the seat. Steering wheels just aren't big enough to give you good leverage to push yourself back (at least not with smaller tractors. And because tractors sit taller than lawn mowers - any shift is amplified by sitting height (even a scut). As a result - the operator on a lawn tractor sits closer to the ground than in a tractor - so going down a steep slope or bouncing around "loosens you" from the seat more on a tractor than a lawn tractor for the very same slope. And if you're not firmly in the seat - you have a hard time pressing on the brake or bracing yourself to not "come loose" in some form or positioning yourself to properly control the unit.

3. Without a seatbelt on - you don't have a choice to stay with the tractor - you will be partially off the tractor or be flying. With a seatbelt on - you have very little time option to evacuate the tractor - so they design the rops sizing to the tractor - as a "protection cage" if you will. My point is I would always choose "something" over nothing for protection when I understand a tractor is unlikely to be able to jump from (unless you are using an old tractor which was far more "open".

And yes - I've hit the pavement on moving motorcycles several times - none from reckless driving on my part - and fortunately - regardless of speed I was going - never with injury. But I've also seen reckless bikers fly over cars or "other" - and I have no desire to revisit "my luck" with my tractor

jmho

 

[Gem99ultra]

I didn't read all 158 suggestions carefully, but the thought comes to my mind is checking into a "Low Center of Gravity" tractor. A while back my Ford tractor dealer stated that most of the units used to mow along highways have special ordered Low COG units. ...that's worth checking into...