# mountainside trickery



## ReubenT (Feb 28, 2019)

Imagine taking a '68 ford 3000 diesel tractor with virtually no brakes, vise grip on the steering column instead of a wheel. Then the power steering is very poor condition. all the link ends worn out and sloppy, making it hard to turn quite often, and slow moving when it does. Take it up on a mountain side and try to pull out timber with it. Oh it gets tricky sometimes, especially backing down a steep slope, need to switch gears and go back up. But so far I've managed to stay safe. Keep it in low gears and keep it in gear, pull the shutoff knob to stop on a hill. 
It's an operating condition I don't exactly like and yet I'm always too busy doing more important things to get around to fixing the brakes and steering. Oh well. There isn't much logging left to do. So it's use will be limited somewhat. Mostly using a 4x4 pickup and chainsaw to clean up some areas now. And the komatsu track hoe helps out. An old 555 new holland skid steer awaits final repair to get it working. Hope I can find time to do that soon. It has extra wide tires, should do quite well on the slopes to help move brush and wood.


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

Does the tractor at least have ROPS and a seat-belt ??? Too many people have died with tractor roll-overs. I know of one man whom the tractor flipped over, the rear tires keep spinning and just ground his body into the ground for well over 30 minutes. He obviously died from that. He left behind a wife and 5 kids.


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## ReubenT (Feb 28, 2019)

60's tractors had no roll bars. I've always been super careful, have a nature of thinking before making a move. But I realize I've done dangerous things and want to quit being that way so much. hence the desire to get a proper low profile hillside orchard tractor for future work. I will fix up our old kubota and put liquid fill back in the rear tires, use it for fruit work until I get enough profit from it to buy something better. At least it has roll bar and I have tipped it over harmlessly several times. It's small and light enough sometimes I could pick it back up myself with the roll bar.


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## Ultradog (Feb 27, 2005)

Your post made me laugh.
I've done things like that too.
One thing you might consider is looking for some LCG (low center of gravity) parts for your tractor. The Ford 2110 and 4110 tractors were made for highway mowers and golf courses.
The front spindles are about 4" shorter than the standard ones and would bolt right on your 3000. Put shorter tires on the rear.
Meanwhile setting your tires out to max width really makes them more stable too.
An LCG with ballasted tires and the wheels set out will cling to a hillside like a spider to a wall.
Here's a couple of photos I just grabbed off the web.
Easy to convert your tractor to this.


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

ReubenT said:


> 60's tractors had no roll bars.


There are now aftermarket ROPS manufactures here in the USA. For the most part, much of all the Fords can be fitted with them. 

http://www.herculesrops.com/ford-rops - meets all SAE and ISO standards per federal req. 
The company stocks their product via: 
http://justtractorparts.com/ford.aspx 

*USA STOCKISTS:*

*Just Tractor Parts*
PO Box 3965, Apple Valley CA 92307
Phone: 760-240-3336

Others ... 

http://www.sherwoodmachinery.com.au/products/rops.html

If you can form and weld yourself, you can make your own Ford 3000 ROPS. Drawings and detailed plans found here: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aginjury/crops/default.html#Ford3000 

Bare Co. also has the new foldable ROPS now for the Fords/JD/M-F/etc. ...
http://www.bare-co.com/files-rop-rop1 
Tested and Approved to the following standards: AS/1636, ISO5700, SAE J2194 

And the source to verify the ROPS program for older tractors! Do go here and read. 
https://rops.ca.uky.edu/ 
Click on Ford - New Holland and scroll until you get to 3000. There you will find all certified manufactures for your model. 

CPCAB made all the ROPS for Yanmar tractors here in the USA, I got theirs on my machine. 
http://www.cpcabs.com 
I like my foldable ROPS. I've never folded them down for anything. I just use the other holes to mount the SMV sign and a horizontal carry-all box for a drill, hammer and little stuff. The steel gauge is very thick. I hope to mount a DIY simple canopy made from a deck umbrella to the top this summer.  

Once you know what you are after in a ROPS with seat-belts, then go after the suppliers for competitive pricing.  $650 to $900 should be the range for this. It's way cheaper than having any relative pay for your funeral costs !


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

*SAVED BY ROPS and SEATBELT 










Can't totally afford a ROPS, then go here PLEASE. 

National ROPS Rebate Program
One Atwell Road, Cooperstown, NY 13326 

70% Rebates for Rollbar Retrofits

https://www.ropsr4u.com/ 
A farmer is 800% more likely to die while working than those in other jobs. The leading cause of farm fatalities is tractor overturns! 

*


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## Ultradog (Feb 27, 2005)

bmaverick said:


> There are now aftermarket ROPS manufactures here in the USA. For the most part, much of all the Fords can be fitted with them.
> 
> http://www.herculesrops.com/ford-rops - meets all SAE and ISO standards per federal req.
> The company stocks their product via:
> ...


No offense intended but if I had to install ROPS on my Fords I would give up tractoring and sell them.
To begin with, the areas I mow and use the tractors on have a lot of limbs and branches and a roll bar would make them unuseable.
Secondly, I enjoy the sense of freedom I feel driving them without rops and without a seat belt.
Since I gave up motorcycles it's the only thing left.
I do not dispute that all the safety devices make you safer.
But I'll continue to rely on that safety device that rests on my shoulders and take my chances.


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## pogobill (Jan 31, 2012)

Some great information! During my career days it was a safety rule to wear a seat belt while operating equipment, as most had cabs, ROPS or FOPS. Equipment with out any of this protection, it was advised *not* to wear a seat belt if the unit had them, otherwise you could get pinned underneath.
I normally leave my ROPS up, unless I'm putting the tractor in the garage. The front door is a bit low.


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

pogobill said:


> Some great information! During my career days it was a safety rule to wear a seat belt while operating equipment, as most had cabs, ROPS or FOPS. Equipment with out any of this protection, it was advised *not* to wear a seat belt if the unit had them, otherwise you could get pinned underneath.
> I normally leave my ROPS up, unless I'm putting the tractor in the garage. The front door is a bit low.



I was using my YT4000 mowing the ditch. It had no ROPS, no blets, nothing. Well, the angle further down got steeper, I hit a tiny tree rooted stump. There may had been a small tree there before the highway dept had mower last fall. Once it got hit, the YT400 rolled. I literally stood up and jumped to the high ground side. The mower flipped twice. It bent the snot out of the mower deck. Took 2 months to bend it back into some working shape. So, you wise advice is good too! 

If the YT4000 had a ROPS, I would of crawled out. Glad that when I did jump, my feet didin't get caught up in the mower or the spinning wheels.


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## bontai Joe (Sep 16, 2003)

I'd recommend getting a decent steering wheel for much better control. A pair of Vise-Grips is short in length and doesn't offer much leverage advantage compared to a two hand grip on a 24" dia steering wheel. It is a minimal investment and would be a HUGE improvement.


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