Would you go up it??

[Hangfire]

Understanding pictures can be deceiving, based on the picture, I would not hestitate to go up. The question is do you have to come down the same way (I assume so). Going down is, in my opinion, more questionable. With dry ground, and FWD should be OK. With two wheel, if you break traction coming down you will likely lose control, especially if you do what comes naturally and hit the brakes. I do know this from first hand experience.:

 

[johnk]

I'm not scared coming down because I'll drag the Box scraper with rippers down. I took my other tractor up there in reverse and it too quite a while. Once I get the rascal smoothed out with the box blade then I'll be comfortable trying to go up in forward.

 

[N80]

I wouldn't do it if you are worried about it.

On the other hand, I have hills like that on my property, most not as long, but some steeper. I like going up, better than coming down. As already mentioned, but just to drive it home, go in lowest gear and keep it there. Do not touch the clutch. Keep it in 4wd to get breaking and traction with the front. Keep the FEL bucket as low as possible. Give it only enough gas to keep it at a crawl and remember, letting off the gas should slow you down if you have it in first gear/low range.

One thought about dry hillsides. Mine can get super hard, dusty and covered with leaves. Sometimes this can be as bad as wet and soft because you have no bite.

 

[CDsdad]

I'd do it. But then I'd do a lot of stuff. Just be careful.

 

[RalphVa]

It doesn't appear any steeper than the path down to the creek behind my house. There are only a couple places where I've had trouble going down or up it, and only when fairly wet. Those 2 places are short slopes in the main slopes that are steeper than the main areas. My Gravely used to give me troubles going up and down, with dual (4) wheels no less. No problems except when a bit wet on those couple of short slopes with my JD 4010 with turfs. Always have it in 4wd. You're crazy to ever take it out of 4wd on any kind of hills.

Had trouble with the Gravely with turfs, ags and with chains at times. Turfs actually give more grip as long as it isn't wet. Ags and chains will just dig holes when they slip, and they'll slip before turfs in reasonable conditions. Ags are probably better in mud, but you don't want to try that slope in mud with any kind of tread or chains.

Ralph

 

[scott_vt]

Mornin John,
Well it looks fairly steep to me, and in actuallity it may even be steeper than the photo depicts ! The off camber would bother me more than the steepness of the grade. The off camber is going to tilt the tractor giving the operator an uneasy feeling ! I know the feeling well, as many times as I have mowed the field on the right side of my drive on the south side of my property which is off camber I get an uneasy feeling, even though I know its safe ! If that hill was straight up and down Im sure a tractor like yours with ag tires would make it providing that the ground was fairly dry ! I would just go at it slow or if it makes you feel any better I would try to fill in that rut on the left side of the trail to lessen the off camber feeling ! Just my opinion !

Good luck and go slow !

 

[EddieWalker]

I've never seen a picture yet that was able to capture how steep a slope really is. They always look much flatter then they are in reality. Just seeing that the ATV is having trouble making it up the hill tells me it's very steep. You concern over it an difficulty climbing it in your tractor just confirms this.

A friend had a hill like that in one of his easments to his land. That was the short way in, so it's how we always went. The pucker factor was pretty severe going either way, but completely impossible if it was wet out. Then we had to drive an hour more to come in from the paved road on the oposite side of the land.

That land sold and the new owner brought in a tractor and cut the road into several switchbacks. Basically made it look like a letter Z. The difference was amazing. He created a ditch and crowned the road too. After that, we could drive it an hour or two after it rained!!

I know it's a big job, but I'd seriously work on taking out some trees and creating some switchbacks. One mistake, slip of the tires, or misscalculation with a rut, and you could have a very bad accident. Erosion will just make it worse.

Good luck,
Eddie

 

[rback33]

Looking at the trees, I think it is a pretty accurate photo of the steepness. It does not look too bad at all. As for the son leaning forward on the quad... I think that is more because he is going up the hill with a dead deer on the back rack rather than empty. He is trying to counterbalance the deer not the quad. How did no one else notice this? lol At least it sure looks like a doe on there to me...

 

[thingy]

I'd have no trouble going up that hill on my chinese nortrac jinma tractor in two wheel drive in summer,,would put it in four wheel if muddy or in fall when leaves were dropped heavy,,,,if it were really muddy or icy,would stay off it. My toyota truck would go up that hill easy in 4 wheel high,,wouldn't spin a wheel in 4 wheel low,,,,course I'm a hillbilly,,,born and raised on hills much steeper than that,,thats just an incline,,,a slope,,,thing

 

[scott_vt]

,,,,course I'm a hillbilly,,,born and raised on hills much steeper than that,,thats just an incline,,,a slope,,,thing

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Looking at the trees, I think it is a pretty accurate photo of the steepness. It does not look too bad at all. As for the son leaning forward on the quad... I think that is more because he is going up the hill with a dead deer on the back rack rather than empty. He is trying to counterbalance the deer not the quad. How did no one else notice this? lol At least it sure looks like a doe on there to me...

That is what I said originally. If the atv can make it up with a 100 pound deer hanging on the "rear" rack then I would think a tractor could make it up rather easily as long as you didn't have a backhoe or something real heavy on the 3pt. If the hill was very steep I would have the deer on the front rack to help hold the front down better.I just think John is nervous with his new tractor and I don't blame him. Once he gets used to what it can do and where it can go he will be fine.

 

[johnk]

I have been riding a quad for 15 years and I always lean forward going up this section of hill. There is a section for about 150 feet that is really on a steep incline. I wouldn't even think about parking my quad and locking the brake to get off it and cut a tree etc in this area . If the snow ever melts re I'll get some pics and make the attempt when I get the tractor up there..I'm not too scared of too many situations but tis may really try my nerves. As you can see I am in my late 50's and not a lot of fear factor. This isn't the hill, it's just to show I have some garuncas!!

 

[johnk]

Thingy,

You don't have clothes warm enough to come up here. If you looked at this hill you would use your ground cable from your welder hooked to a winch to pull you up... Looks are deceiving..

 

[1bush2hog]

John - You were already going up the hill the way you were most comfortable, but that had to be murder on your neck. Are you concerned about the off camber or the tractor flipping over backwards? How does your son feel about driving the tractor up the slope? Not suggesting you let him be the guinea pig, but curious to hear his thoughts too.

Pictures usually flatten out a slope, so this must be pretty doggone steep. I have some pretty steep areas on my property too, and they were alot steeper when my tractor was new When going up my slopes, I put my tractor in 4wd, low gear, throttle up a tad, and use my foot pedal for more power if necessary. Keep any and all equipment as low as possible too. The main thing you don't want to do is stall out half way up the hill.

At the end of the day you know what you feel comfortable doing. Just do that. Age does make us more cautious.

I also think Eddie had some good points on re-routing your road to lessen the slope, as well as, control erosion.

Good Luck and be safe! Maybe Thingy will come up and show you how it's done

 

[scott_vt]

Good Luck and be safe! Maybe Thingy will come up and show you how it's done

Mornin 1bush2hog,
I doubt it ! Like John says its way too cold up hear for Thingy !

 

[JerryG]

John,
Like many have said, it doesn’t look that steep, but this is one type of thing that pictures don’t do very well. An off camber hill that is steep is one of the worse things that can be attacked by a tractor. If the hill is too steep and is off camber, the front end gets light and can slip to the down hill side of the camber. If it does that, it will turn over. Try to straighten the trail up. Can you get a straighter path up the hill between the trees in a different spot? If you don’t feel comfortable, DON’T do it.

 

[thingy]

John,us hillbillys are like all climate oil,or all terrian tires,or something?
Some of us would consider that area a nice homesite,,ready to build on.

Main thing is,if it don't feel right,don't do it,unless you have to,,,I go up some hills with my little 254 with 5 ft hog on back that you wouldn't want to park a 4 wheeler on,and you would lean forward,[probably not really needed,but most would],,don't have a loader but probally got about 400 lbs of weght on front end,,its never started to come up,,,but the areas are not sidling much,,that side ways stuff is where it gets scary,,I just let areas like that grow,,,but if it don't feel right,than don't do it,,,,,thingy

 

[johnk]

They have a new item at cabela's. Incineometer that reads the angle both ways up and side to side and even has a compass in the middle. Good price @ $19.99. Might pick one up and put it on my quad to see what that pesky angle really is. I had a tilt meter on my other tractor but never really looked at it as I was headed up backwards. I was too busy praying....

go to cabelas.com and when you get there, in the search part put 523067.

Seems like a good deal.

 

[dtd24]

Hard to say without actually seeing it. It seems to me I would go at it backwards, but that thought is based on the knowledge of my machine. Someone mentioned a winch. I think that would be a safe idea on the first try.

 

[Scrounger]

I've worked on some ATV and snowmobile trails over the past two years and I always go by my pucker factor. If you start to feel that the incline is too steep or the tractor starts to feel uncomfortable it normally is. I have a tilt meter, but I've found that my own self preservation instincts have kicked in before it did.

I've noticed that a seat belt and tall ROPS raised the level of nerve before the pucker alarm goes off.