Was I being too hard?

[Foozerush 40]

Quick question, was plowing the 8-10" of sorta heavy snow on my 416-8 ( with chains ) and twice the plow end came out of the tranny mount hitch... And yes I was moving some huge piles of snow, some times at ramming speed to move the pile another foot or so.... Is it common? Any way to "tie" the latch close? My latches are not loose. Thanks Gregg

[953 nut 52,062]

Please tell me you were not ramming a pile of snow! The latch coming undone probably saved you fron breaking your rear axil housing, don't do it! I guess you could tiwire the latches, but they did you a big faver. 

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,059]

I lock my rear tach o matic latches in place with 1/4 inch bolts and away i go. The trip option on the plow will do what it needs to. Work that horse !!

[Foozerush 40]

Unmm yes I was...... But that wasn't when it came undone, I was pushing a normal load on a flat driveway. I guess if I break something, Kelley is an hour north of me..... Thanks :)

[rmaynard 14,934]

My latches have holes for pins to keep them closed. I ram snow banks all the time. Call me lucky or whatever, but I've never broken anything in 20 years of plowing.

[wallfish 15,981]

I ram the piles all the time too. Haven't had it come off the hitch yet. Maybe your hitch is worn out a little on the back side of the slot allowing it to push down on the latches. Maybe drill a hole through and pin the latches if yours doesn't have any.

Edited March 8, 2013 by wallfish

[Kelly 1,028]

Ramming snow banks is not good, but I think most of us do it, but that is what breaks the trans mounting plate at the back of the frame, many of the newer hitches have 1/4" pins to help hold the latches closed, you could drill a hole through the latch and mount to put a pin in, if your not sure what I'm talking about I'll get you a pic, I know you have the old style hitch and they never had the holes.

[IthacaJeff 151]

Like others have mentioned, my movable hitch latch has a hole that when you

clamp it down to lock the plow bar lines up with another hole on the stationary

part of the hitch. I don't bother with fancy pins, just a piece of heavy vinyl coated

aluminum wire pushed through the hole and bent over. Without the pin my

blade used to come loose all the time.

 

Of course, ramming is not a good idea and may eventually have an effect on the

trans-to-frame mounting plate. That being said, I'm constantly amazed by the abuse

my little 310-8 takes with the plow blade. Last fall, in fact, I used a combination of a

spike drag and my dozer blade to clear out a large low area hoping to build a skating

rink. At the ends, where all the dirt is pushed, large piles of dirt began to form. Of course,

I would push the dirt further and further up the dirt pile to where I had large piles at least

3' high. On one occasion I pushed dirt up to the top, put the tranny in reverse to back down,

and ooops, accidently put the tranny in 3rd. Popped the clutch to back down, but the tractor

shot off the dirt pile and launched itself forward over the end. The whole tractor came crashing

down right on the blow blade. Wish I took a picture, but I was more worried about my tractor.

 

Anyway, had to dig 'er out, but eventually drove off the pile. No damage. 

 

Why in the world would I buy a Raven?  (see other threads).

 

Jeff

[groundhog47 347]

I was thinkin' this myself as there was a post on RS about the transmission plate be broken/stress cracked, where to get, how to fix. I didn't know how plowing could do that, but what we call plowing up here is turnin' over the soil. Thanks, now I know  for sure how/what kind plowing fractures that plate...not a fun thing to discover. Like the idea of pins in latch !   

Ramming snow banks is not good, but I think most of us do it, but that is what breaks the trans mounting plate at the back of the frame, many of the newer hitches have 1/4" pins to help hold the latches closed, you could drill a hole through the latch and mount to put a pin in, if your not sure what I'm talking about I'll get you a pic, I know you have the old style hitch and they never had the holes.

[bitten 133]

Might want to check and make sure you still have a dish shape on the lever for your hitch if not going to use the bolt cotter pin way.

I have rammed with my dozer blades since I have had one and I might just be lucky but I haven't had any problems yet. 

The soil turning plow is mounted to the rear end and might be hard on the mounting plat as well. It is a good idea to reinforce the tranny mounting plat no matter what kind of plowing you are doing.

[AMC RULES 36,957]

Previous owner of this little 702 was an admitted pile rammer too. 

[Whmaverick 54]

back to the original question. to answer, "maybe" but we were not there. work it, dont abuse it. I push tremendous amounts with my horses and have no issues to date. i try not to ram anything or even slip a tire if at all possible.try loading your tires with washer fluid. I have a 300 ft drive and 100ft of it is about 8% grade and i cant think of the last time I slipped a tire pushing even heavy snow. loaded tires, chains on turfs, my 200lb+ butt, 42" blade, and some practical knowledge / experience = no ramming needed. I have seen some videos on here of high speed snow ramming and tires spinning, throwing gravel, and what seems to me just a lack of understanding of how to operate a machine. if I could give advise I would suggest filling those balloons with liquid, slow down, reduce the plow width, (to wide of a plow blade makes the tractor to small for the job) plan a snow removal path, cause when I see vids like that all I can think is to get rid of those balloons for tires, stop just ramming snow in all directions, slow down before they break something, and angle the blade and go back and forth until a path is formed and the snow is "plowed" out of the drive area. I never saw a state truck just ramming in all directions aimlessly at high speeds.

 

 just my humble opinion.hope I wasn't to preachy.

 

make sure the hitch bracket is properly installed and not wore out and by all means, pin the levers closed.  

 

just have fun out there!                      

[wallfish 15,981]

I don't mean to be argumentative here but taking a couple of inches off the top and leaving a couple of inches of packed snow is MUCH different than scraping an asphalt driveway clean. Having plenty of room to leave the huge piles is also a problem for some of us.  

 

I have absolutely no worries at all about tire spinning or ramming piles. It's not what is intended to do all the time but it definitely happens. There would be a skating rink here if that much snow remained on my driveway because the grade just dumps the run off water across it. 

[Whmaverick 54]

That's funny, cause i plow it clean. The pics show new snow that fell overnight, if you look close you will see no snow on the tractors just a little on the tires from bringing them out of a heated garage. Besides pushing heavy wet snow is the same any where. I do three drives for neghbors and each one is different but the snow is the same.?????? My point is only that I don't condone misuse, the job can be done just the same with a little finess if you know what your doing. Of corse we are all experts right? The question was asked if he was being too hard, i stated my opionion on the subject but didnt point any fingers. I just gotta cringe a little at some of the vids that are posted. Nobody likes to work these tractors hard more than me, I am just glad I had the opportunity to be around and operate all types of equipment my whole life and had some great teachers along the way. The older I get the more I realize how right some of the old timers were.

Someone once said "The sting in rebuke is the truth"

[Trouty56 565]

Were you too hard on it....only you can answer that....if it breaks fix it....  Whmaverick said it in his last sentence...."just have fun out there".....

I've ridden dirt bikes....4 wheelers......snowmobiles.....Jeeps.....and everything I pushed to the limits and further (well...my limits) ....that was fun...breaking them wasn't but It is only a machine.  I push my tractors too because it is fun......that is why I bought them......exactly why I bought them.  If it feels good....do it.....

[wallfish 15,981]

Someone once said "The sting in rebuke is the truth"

 

Exactly!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 

If you can push 14 inches of wet heavy snow with your tractor, and without spinning a tire then maybe the laws of physics don't exist in your driveway or you have unlimited time to take hours lightly chipping away at it. There was no need for the snotty remark and I take offense to it! It appears in the pic that YOU posted that the snow is just pushed off the top and it isn't very deep. I can see car tire tracks under the snow. The snow may be the same but deeper snow takes much more force to move and colder sustained temperatures will ice over the surface much more quickly! It's the surface conditions that change, NOT the snow. Maybe you can video your expert technique and enlighten us idiots on how you do it. Remember, I don't want to see a tire spin AT ALL since you can't even remember the last time that happened to you!

[IthacaJeff 151]

Before the friendliest tractor discussion board goes astray, let me add this little story.

My father, who passed away over 20 years ago, was an engineer who despised

anything non-functional, anything "extra". On his cars he wanted nothing to do with

power locks, power steering, power brakes, A/C; you get the picture. I followed in his

footsteps with the love of simple elegance and bullet-proof mechanicals.

 

But then I moved from sunny SoCal to New England. Then to blistering hot North

Carolina. The need for A/C was real. The need for power steering when the steering

fluid had all but frozen was real. The convenience of power windows and doors made

things more pleasurable and perhaps even safer for the kids. My point? Dad's advice

was good, but there are exceptions based on individual circumstances. My dad never

drove in sub 0 temps or 98 deg with 100% humidity.

 

My bigger point? Until you plow another man's drive it is hard to be critical of his technique.

 

Jeff

[Whmaverick 54]

Wow! Gotta be careful when stating opinions round hear even when their solicited. Captain defensive will come to the rescue waving his challenge badge. I would rather have just given my first general response to the question "was I to hard?" and moved on but was personally attacked by the local tractor sherif waving his barny fife badge. Making judgements of my property and technique based on a picture of my tractors sitting in a back lot that doesn't even get used as a drive way. Think he might be A fish outta water on this one. Never intended to offend anyone, thought this was an information / educational forum, if someone has a constructive criticism he shouldn't be in danger of personal attacks on character. I mean for cryin out loud the guy asked. Some people just have to take the fun out of it for everyone else. I always try to edify others even if I disagree with them guess I will take the high road and walk away.

[Foozerush 40]

Hi all.... Thanks for your replies to this thread. I know now what the problem is that my  latches do not have locking pins/holes pointed out by Kelley ( got the bracket from him ), so it sounds like an easy fix, when i pull the plow off and remove bracket I will "fab" a locking pin/holes myself.... I'll add some pics of the snow i had to battle, to show what piles i had to "ram" a bit to give me all the INCHES of my 2 car wide drive i need for clearance for my truck and the van my wifey drives, TRUST ME i need all the room i can take, she has the knack of taking one of the side mirrors off one of  them  at least once a year because my drive could use widening. ( thats a whole new story) haha. 

Stuck on first pass without chains. Chained up!!  The piles on end of drive looking down sidewalk. Letting her cool off in driveway.  I do not ever intend to ruffle feathers when asking a question..... I do have a soft spot on chains leaving marks on drives/ sidewalks, dont like it.... i run chains when i need too, i feel my horse is heavy enough to push what it can with out them, I dont have a whole lot to plow, do more than my fair share on the sidewalks in my hood for seat time, but with that last heavy snow, had to chain up. I think I might budget another set of rear tires and have them filled and keep the chains on and just swap em out at winter time, but the only thing holding me back is storage, garage space is premium here. Thanks All. Gregg

[Whmaverick 54]

Nice neat job ya did there foozerush. Nice horse too. Glad to see your having fun.

[wallfish 15,981]

Someone once said "The sting in rebuke is the truth"