Tractor Choice for Slopes

[mtx.jag]

Sell the place and buy somewhere flat.
Life’s too short to crap yourself every time you need to use the tractor if your inexperienced.

 

[bravheart]

As a youth I was pushed down a hill by a trailed fert spreader (2wd tractor in those days) and I`ve NEVER forgot it... I`d much rather have a 1 (x 600kg) bag mounted spreader and a tractor in 4 wheel drive any day....

Had this as well but a 2wd 590 and a mounted 7cwt vari spreader. Stopped and got (what I thought) was the right gear at the top, not too slow.
Lost grip and started sledging. Luckily plenty run off at the bottom and no real damage done but it was a long way.

The most Important thing to do is get the diff lock engaged to keep the drive wheels going forward and try to accelerate but that's not easy. If you get a wheel going backwards you're in the s##t big style.

 

[le bon paysan]

Not easy to apply difflock if you have not got one.
Ohh the joys of a major and a m.f.10 baler. No matter which way you looked at the field, it was uphill or down hill and ridge and furrow.

 

[CPF]

At home I have some steep slopes when you go over the top with the combine you have to put your feet on the windscreen to keep yourself in the seat .
Of you tube someone combining a wee slope

 

[celtis man]

Years ago Dad had a friend of his upset and get killed under his tractor ploughing one night, he reversed back to an old quarry and went to far and went in . No cab to save him so be careful .

 

[bravheart]

At home I have some steep slopes when you go over the top with the combine you have to put your feet on the windscreen to keep yourself in the seat .
Of you tube someone combining a wee slope

Having just spent the weekend on the flatlands in the Lincolnshire countryside and watching this you wonder why we bother.

 

[cheggars]

Still can happen . LSD isn't locked solid,just less likely to happen. Our valtra has locking front diff which sounds great but if you brake it disengages so need to pick your gears right before heading down.

Thats the problem with modern tractors(did ask if they could stop them doing that with their laptop, but never got a answer
The older Same is my choice for side land.
Mechanical everything. Cog engagment of 4 wheel drive, full diff locks and breaks all round .
A wise old Lime spreader driver ones told me to keep the rear wheels lower than down the slope than the front.
and as little weight as possible.

 

[Pistonbroke]

Thats the problem with modern tractors(did ask if they could stop them doing that with their laptop, but never got a answer
The older Same is my choice for side land.
Mechanical everything. Cog engagment of 4 wheel drive, full diff locks and breaks all round .
A wise old Lime spreader driver ones told me to keep the rear wheels lower than down the slope than the front.
and as little weight as possible.

First 4wheel drive we had was a brand new DB 1490, the first the dealer had sold. Dad thought he'd be invincible so immediately set off spraying and fertilizing all the steep ground and nearly died first day. Kept jumping out of gear in the downhill on bumpy surfaces,he'd hit the brakes,diff would spin the opposing wheel and drive him off down the bank. Dealer tried adjusting gear linkage etc but no luck. I was only 8 but I can remember five carloads if David brown engineers turning up to diagnose the complaint and they reckoned there was nothing wrong so dad took two in the cab down a bank and it did it twice. After hosing the sh!t out if the cab they took it back to the factory to diagnose it and left us a demonstrator to use. Same problem! Turned out the rubber cab mounts were too soft,moving the selectors when hitting a bump. Stopped the production line until they got firmer rubbers

 

[box]

First 4wheel drive we had was a brand new DB 1490, the first the dealer had sold. Dad thought he'd be invincible so immediately set off spraying and fertilizing all the steep ground and nearly died first day. Kept jumping out of gear in the downhill on bumpy surfaces,he'd hit the brakes,diff would spin the opposing wheel and drive him off down the bank. Dealer tried adjusting gear linkage etc but no luck. I was only 8 but I can remember five carloads if David brown engineers turning up to diagnose the complaint and they reckoned there was nothing wrong so dad took two in the cab down a bank and it did it twice. After hosing the sh!t out if the cab they took it back to the factory to diagnose it and left us a demonstrator to use. Same problem! Turned out the rubber cab mounts were too soft,moving the selectors when hitting a bump. Stopped the production line until they got firmer rubbers

A friend had a similar ordeal with a new 1294 (it would also jump out of gear under load), after a sh*t fight with the dealer it ended up being sent back, another one arrived on the truck and had the same problem. I think he just lived with it in the end.

 

[ollie989898]

I remember someone posted a picture of a tractor that had been pulling a silage trailer uphill as it was loaded by the chopper, and it had stalled, slid backward, picked up speed and of course the momentum did the rest. A CVT, though they are slower to climb hills, would have saved the tractor from stalling and thus losing all hydraulic pressure for the steering and brakes. In all the years I have been in or around tractors the thought had never crossed my mind about what might happen if I stalled going uphill.

 

[cheggars]

I remember someone posted a picture of a tractor that had been pulling a silage trailer uphill as it was loaded by the chopper, and it had stalled, slid backward, picked up speed and of course the momentum did the rest. A CVT, though they are slower to climb hills, would have saved the tractor from stalling and thus losing all hydraulic pressure for the steering and brakes. In all the years I have been in or around tractors the thought had never crossed my mind about what might happen if I stalled going uphill.

Yes. stalling can have serious consequences when towing up hill.
Even possible going downhill if engine is idleing and using brakes to hold the trailer on a corner.

 

[john76]

fendt vario is the best tractor i have used in hills. i have a 312 com 3 , good tyres and 4wd its easy to opperate espesaly in pedal mode

 

[Fendtbro]

Tyres want to be old school.. 18.4-20.8×38's not 600-650's. Ideally New Michelin agribibs. Wheel track as wide as possible. A lower wheel size helps, 34's instead of 38's.
A longer wheelbase tractor, like a jd 6600 instead of a 6400 or a 6605? If you can find one.

 

[michael N123]

Put front and rear wheels out as far as practical, especially if going along banks sideways.
Be very, very, very careful turning on banks especially with a 3 point linkage mounted sprayer / fertiliser spreader when loaded, you can flick it over in a second
As said by others slick, greasy grass is particularly dangerous to drive on,on banks.

Strange sound the tyres sliding on grass when putting fert on hills

 

[Pistonbroke]

Tyres want to be old school.. 18.4-20.8×38's not 600-650's. Ideally New Michelin agribibs. Wheel track as wide as possible. A lower wheel size helps, 34's instead of 38's.
A longer wheelbase tractor, like a jd 6600 instead of a 6400 or a 6605? If you can find one.

Agree,definitely don't want wider tyres on grass unless the tractor is heavy enough to get the treads digging in,480-520 is plenty. Shorter wheelbase better for working across slopes,backend doesn't drop down as much,but up and down better longer wheelbase. Photos never look as steep as the real thing but phone app says 36 to 39 degrees cutting bracken below

 

[Pistonbroke]

Strange sound the tyres sliding on grass when putting fert on hills

Chirping I call it

 

[ColinV6]

This thread makes me glad our farm is bowling green flat. We have 1 field with a hill next to a river and I still don’t like it, as I’m just not used to hill work.

 

[box]

Working on hills is nothing to be scared of. Respect the machine, respect the terrain, know your limits and don't do anything dumb.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

I remember seeing someone locally who used to use a track layer (with wide bogmaster tracks) and three point linkage for fertliser spreading on banks.

 

[JP1]

Ex FiL used to do contracting around Ham Hill , Somerset and got the jobs nobody else fancied. Used to tell me about baling downhill only with a DB Cropmaster pulling a Jones baler, stood on brakes and letting the ram action move him downhill