What is the dumbest thing you have done with your equipment ?

[marhar]

There are so many dumb things we have done: My father and I worked together on the farm. He bought a new tractor knowing it would be a tight fit in the shop. He was concerned that the ROP would hit when pulling in. As he drove forward, he looked back not not realize the muffler was as tall as the ROP. First day with a new tractor and he bent the muffler part way down and put a dent in the hood. This hurt his pride more than anything...first day with a new piece of equipment and bent the muffler putting the tractor in the shop rather than working on the farm.

 

[JasperFrank]

on a new to me farm, stacked hay bails higher than the electrical over head lines.

 

[Johnb0311]

Well, just about the dumbest thing you can do, I did it. While having a quiet evening watching tv I actually told the wife what I paid for the tractor and all the attachments. And then it started.

 

[SmallChange]

I had a total transmission failure on my Kubota

Hmm... ten "Good Post" awards, in a thread titled "What is the dumbest thing you have done with your equipment?"...

I'm a bit hazy about this. Did I just win big or lose big?

 

[SmallChange]

I actually told the wife what I paid for the tractor and all the attachments.

Look, everybody! We have a new winner right here!

 

[fruitcakesa]

The first time I backed my new to me M into the drive shed I built to house a small dozer,I neglected to check the height of the opening and proceeded to clip the first rafter and punch a massive, ragged hole in the cab roof. I epoxied that for a sloppy repair
As if that wasn't bad enough, a few years later I was backing into my garage, after having carefully measured the tractor height and cutting the door opening high enough to clear the roof; I backed in and while looking down and behind ran the roof into the upper knee wall and busted the roof on the opposite side from the first break. This break I duct and aluminum taped to seal it.
A new roof is north of $1k!

 

[stso9d]

When answering the question please do not include an accident that caused a fatality. Please do not insult another poster.

I will go first: My father and I overloaded a small utility trailer with logs that extended out of the trailer. We were hauling significantly more weight than we should have and the center of gravity was between the trailer tires and the end of the trailer.

We did not go far before we lost control of the truck and ended up laying on its side in a ditch. Luckily we were not injured (just our pride) and the truck only dented a door and bent a wheel.

When answering the question please do not include an accident that caused a fatality. Please do not insult another poster.

I will go first: My father and I overloaded a small utility trailer with logs that extended out of the trailer. We were hauling significantly more weight than we should have and the center of gravity was between the trailer tires and the end of the trailer.

We did not go far before we lost control of the truck and ended up laying on its side in a ditch. Luckily we were not injured (just our pride) and the truck only dented a door and bent a wheel.

A friend (Rick) and i bought a old 15000 lb case backhoe. Loaded it on the trailer to haul. We used a half ton Chevy on a trailer it barely fit. We had about 40 miles to go. We left the hoe dangling kind of off the end of the trailer. Took off for home On freeway in Arkansas. we wound up against a guard rail at the bottom of the hill. None of us had hauled a giant backhoe before. we were just plain dumb.

Fun part: Going down a hill, right before you get to Conway, the hoe started swerving. The weight of the backhoe was causing trailer to try to jackknife with the truck. I was in the back seat and I yelled at Rick to try the trailer brakes (a Godsend - Rick and the trailer brakes). This went on for about a mile before we stopped. We ran about 10 cars off in the ditch. Rick's father-in-law was in front seat (bless his heart - He had peed his pants). I think I used about 9 of my cat lives. Scary, scary moments not knowing what that backhoe was going to do. we wound up against a guard rail at the bottom of the hill with the old backhoe halfway off the trailer.

Some of the cars we ran off the road were back going. 2-3 of them came by us cussing and giving us the one finger salute. we had to have a trooper come and stop traffic on the freeway so we could load the backhoe back up. only this time, we tied that dam hoe bucket down and drove 30 miles an hour all the way home (about 25 miles).

I still get chills thinking what might of happened that day...

 

[Fxfymn413]

A friend of a friend asked me to dig some holes with my PHD. I asked him about underground wires, etc. and he insisted there were none so I foolishly agreed to help him out. On the first hole I felt something and stopped in time to see a high voltage line running across the bottom of the hole. Packed the tractor up and told him to call the power company and Miss Utility. No real damage done according to the power company, but I was lucky I did not fry myself. (I have run a couple of calls where equipment struck a high voltage line resulting in one death and the toasting of the offending equipment.)

I have helped out other folks with the PHD, but never without Miss Utility markings being there.

 

[marhar]

Well, just about the dumbest thing you can do, I did it. While having a quiet evening watching tv I actually told the wife what I paid for the tractor and all the attachments. And then it started.

Look, everybody! We have a new winner right here!

SmallChange: I agree.

I originally asked that folk be non judgmental. I am sorry JohnB0311, so far you win. Even without being judged you win. Additionally this error could have resulted in your serious injury.

I have to say I do like this chain because all of us have made errors and many times we have made the same errors as others.

As for the price of implements or repairs I use the "it is cheaper than renting a bobcat or repairing it is cheaper than buying a new one". So far it has worked. I want my wife to always see (really to think) that I am trying to do things as cheap as possible and that these are necessary tools, even with they are really toys.

 

[Shenandoah MF1760]

Ignoring the laws of physics.

I had taken the Bush Hog off the back of the tractor; and then later I was lifting a full 55 gallon drum off the back of the pickup with a grapple. In order to give myself the greatest amount of clerarance I had the drum hoist attached to the far corner of the grapple. My land being uneven is an understatement. As I was driving I hit a patch that put the tractor on an incline, the drum swung and my wife almost had a heart attack as the tractor went up on the right side two wheels. I quickly turned the opposite direction and put the trator in reverse while lowering the load. This brought everything back on an even keel.

End result I was never allowed to run the tractor again around her without some kind of rear balast.

So... I bought a roll over box blade (I needed a box blade anyway). 1. Because they're heavier than standard. 2. I work forest trails and I can swap from tines to push/scrape without leaving the cab. 3. With the tines down the push/scrape section forms a dish I can set the brake drums from an old semi on top of, and they're about 90 lbs a piece giving me another 360 lbs on top of the 700+ that the RO-720 weighs.

I got what I consider very lucky with this purchase. My local dealer that handles this type of equipment told me it would be 4-5 weeks in order to get one. He then called his distributor who found a dealer that had one on the lot at the pre-2022 price. Sure it was a couple of years old, but the price difference was over $1200.

Apparenty Rhino Ag, Dirt Dog and Bushhog are now one big happy family under the Alamo Group. I found other RO-720's on-line all branded differently but identical.