Stuck in the mud

cturok

New member

Equipment
M5040
May 1, 2019
5
1
3
Paducah, Kentucky
I have a M5040 and got it stuck last night and was unable to extract it in 4x4. The front tires were spinning and digging in deeper, but the rear wheels were not pulling or spinning as I thought they should. The mud under the bucket was too deep and soft to be able to use bucket to lift an push back. A second tractor solved the problem, but I wonder if I missed an option to use tractor features to do the job alone?
 

Vlach7

Well-known member

Equipment
L47 305DT JD500C
Dec 16, 2021
345
251
63
Frazier Park Ca
Sounds like a good place to stay away from till it gets dryer. Glad there was a second tractor to pull you out. Only happened once to me, but I was able to use my BH and FL to lift to get stuff under my tires.
 

Flintknapper

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Premium Member

Equipment
L2350DT
May 3, 2022
1,764
2,216
113
Deep East Texas
Other than using the rear diff lock (if you didn't) then you probably did all you could do. Once the Tractor is down on the frame or FEL cross member, its pretty much game over.
 

North Idaho Wolfman

Moderator
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Lifetime Member

Equipment
L3450DT-GST, Woods FEL, B7100 HSD, FEL, 60" SB, 743 Bobcat with V2203, and more
Jun 9, 2013
30,165
6,339
113
Sandpoint, ID
If neither of the rear tires would spin and the front tires were spinning, check the tire pressure, because it's known that low tire pressure can cause the rim to spin inside the tire.
If that's not the case you have something broken internally.

If only one rear tire was spinning and one front, then like others have said, diff lock will help, engage it while the tires are not spinning, and you must hold down the lock lever to keep it engaged.

You may or may not get both wheels to spin, that is perfectly normal.
 
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cturok

New member

Equipment
M5040
May 1, 2019
5
1
3
Paducah, Kentucky
I have a M5040 and got it stuck last night and was unable to extract it in 4x4. The front tires were spinning and digging in deeper, but the rear wheels were not pulling or spinning as I thought they should. The mud under the bucket was too deep and soft to be able to use bucket to lift an push back. A second tractor solved the problem, but I wonder if I missed an option to use tractor features to do the job alone?

All good info and at first i was able to use bucket to lift front tires and put additional rock under, i gave up too soon and then the bucket was digging too deep into the soft mud as well. I did try the diff lock, but was unable to tell any affect.

Bottom line, if i had listened to my wife, i would not have taken the action which caused the problem!!!
Ouch!!!
 
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hedgerow

Active member
Jan 2, 2015
277
241
43
Malcolm NE
[QUOTE="cturok, post: 758596, memb

Bottom line, if i had listened to my wife, i would not have taken the action which caused the problem!!!
Ouch!!!
[/QUOTE]
Wife's are what I call Monday morning quarter backs. Always have the answers in the hind side. You talk about stuck, one of the worst I did was years ago we had just bought a farm and I was pushing trees and cleaning up the farm with a D7 Cat. I buried it, you could step off the platform on to the ground. Heavy wrecker guy came out and looked at it and got back in his pickup and left and never said a word. We hauled in two D6 Cats and they wouldn't pull it out. This was in Dec so we were scared it would get frozen in. Hauled a dump truck load of rail road ties in and spent a week chaining them to the tracks and using a backhoe to get them under the Cat using the ties and two four wheel drive farm tractors we finally got it out. Been stuck many times over the years. That one was the worst.