I just ordered an L2502 hydrostatic will fluid filled R14 tires to clear a flat 5 acre are up on my mountain. The path up there has an initial 22 degree / 40% but after that its mostly 16 degrees. Is this safe to drive up? It will be with an empty grapple and an rcr1260 rotary cutter (not running)Will my new L2502 climb this?
- Thread starter ThatSpoon
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I just ordered an L2502 hydrostatic will fluid filled R14 tires to clear a flat 5 acre are up on my mountain. The path up there has an initial 22 degree / 40% but after that its mostly 16 degrees. Is this safe to drive up? It will be with an empty grapple and an rcr1260 rotary cutter (not running)
Can you drive up, most likely,,, How ever you might have to change your shorts after you try,, back up the hill, and you the odds of you flipping are a lot less remember all the weight is in your back end. But if you want to go forward keep everything as low as you can. But for my money back er up
in grade school we were taught anything greater than 15 degrees is very high risk.
I would want to make sure the operator was very very experienced at 22 degrees and equipment well prepared like nothing hanging out over the downhill side of tractor. At 40% no way I would let any of my loved ones try to take a L up.
My gut feeling tells me i should vote 100% you should not try it.
instead would you consider using your new tractor / loader combination and shaping this into a nice / smooth / more gentle ramp? would be a few hours work and cost you only a couple of gallons of diesel?
I would want to make sure the operator was very very experienced at 22 degrees and equipment well prepared like nothing hanging out over the downhill side of tractor. At 40% no way I would let any of my loved ones try to take a L up.
My gut feeling tells me i should vote 100% you should not try it.
instead would you consider using your new tractor / loader combination and shaping this into a nice / smooth / more gentle ramp? would be a few hours work and cost you only a couple of gallons of diesel?
When you say ‘this’…are you meaning what is in the picture? Pictures can always be deceiving but I think it’s healthy to be cautious. I am not the safety police but some of below may come off as harsh, but that is not my intention.
let’s start with can flip over fast.
But honestly if think side hilling or having a front wheel drop in a hole would be more problematic.
sight unseen in person, I would not try to drive sideways on that unless you are sure/confident…that would be more concerning IMO. (Familiarize yourself with center pivot axle if not already)
I think you were asking about driving directly up what is in pic correct? Would you drive SUV or pic up truck up it?
What I would NOT do:
1. Try when grass is wet / ground soft
2. Try with loader up in the air
3. Try without considering appropriate implement / ballast for your planned direction of travel
4. Try without seatbelt and rops up, and don’t jump the operator seat switch.
Whether you decide to do or not that is a decision for you and you alone not someone online to validate something as safe.
Whatever you choose my recommendation would be as slow as possible and as fast as necessary.
Keep the rubber side down.
let’s start with can flip over fast.
But honestly if think side hilling or having a front wheel drop in a hole would be more problematic.
Preventing Tractor Overturn Incidents - Safety, Health and Wellness in Agriculture
Preventing tractor overturn incidents. (2024). Ag Safety and Health eXtension Community of Practice. Retrieved from
ag-safety.extension.org
sight unseen in person, I would not try to drive sideways on that unless you are sure/confident…that would be more concerning IMO. (Familiarize yourself with center pivot axle if not already)
I think you were asking about driving directly up what is in pic correct? Would you drive SUV or pic up truck up it?
What I would NOT do:
1. Try when grass is wet / ground soft
2. Try with loader up in the air
3. Try without considering appropriate implement / ballast for your planned direction of travel
4. Try without seatbelt and rops up, and don’t jump the operator seat switch.
Whether you decide to do or not that is a decision for you and you alone not someone online to validate something as safe.
Whatever you choose my recommendation would be as slow as possible and as fast as necessary.
Keep the rubber side down.
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I assume the "path up there" is what you are concerned about, the brown gravelly looking part of the hill in the picture.
1 - you would be driving straight up and straight down.
2 - your rotary cutter may (possibly) scrape at the bottom going up and down even when lifted, or maybe not.
As mapleleaffarmer suggested get some fill for the "path" and make it a more gradual slope. Fill twice as wide as you think needed to avoided accidentally rolling off the edges. You'll probably need drain pipe to maintain the flow in the swale you have there - if that is what that is.
Hard to really tell from pics but yeah its straight up and down. Ill play it safe and order some dirt and gravel to put down (over a drain pipe in the ditch) to reduce the angle. Ive never tried to drive my truck up there but UTV and skidsteer didnt have an issue.
Funny how the first bit of it doesn't "look" that steep in your last picture. Be careful when it gets wet.
Forgot to say welcome to OTT and be safe out there. Look forward to more of your posts from the mountain!
Forgot to say welcome to OTT and be safe out there. Look forward to more of your posts from the mountain!
Welcome aboard! While a picture is said to be worth 1000 words, a picture usually comes up short of showing a viewer the real life condition. I can't tell very much from looking at that picture. It looks pretty tame to me but if I could see it in person it may appear to be deadly. I won't try to tell you what is safe for you and your tractor. I have a picture of me mowing sidehill that looks like a walk in the park. It wasn't. Even when dry, it had to be mowed so each pass wouldn't be on the clippings from the previous pass. Otherwise it would slide down.
The Ford on R4's would crab along the hill in 4WD while I sat on the uphill fender to help stabilize it. You can see the front wheels are running perpendicular to the slope and the rears are facing a little uphill. The RFM is wider than the tractor, but coming across the hill like that the left side of the mowed area was to the right of the front tires. The initial picture was taken with the camera a bit out of level. The power pole is quite tilted and the remnant of the fence on the left (just the pipe frame) sits on a concrete wall that has been pushed well out of plumb since it was built. The picture with the black lines imposed on it has been rotated a little to make it plumb as best I could based on the barn in the background. One time it "crabbed" a little too much and one rear wheel of the RFM went over the concrete wall. Had to have my son pull me up with the B7500 I had back then.
The last picture is a level on the grill guard of the L4240 at our place. It's a sidehill the tractor dragging a 7-1/2 RFM handles with ease, both wet and dry. There's a bank in front of the house with a much steeper slope. Either tractor can run up and down all day. Sidehill there is dicey.
The Ford on R4's would crab along the hill in 4WD while I sat on the uphill fender to help stabilize it. You can see the front wheels are running perpendicular to the slope and the rears are facing a little uphill. The RFM is wider than the tractor, but coming across the hill like that the left side of the mowed area was to the right of the front tires. The initial picture was taken with the camera a bit out of level. The power pole is quite tilted and the remnant of the fence on the left (just the pipe frame) sits on a concrete wall that has been pushed well out of plumb since it was built. The picture with the black lines imposed on it has been rotated a little to make it plumb as best I could based on the barn in the background. One time it "crabbed" a little too much and one rear wheel of the RFM went over the concrete wall. Had to have my son pull me up with the B7500 I had back then.
The last picture is a level on the grill guard of the L4240 at our place. It's a sidehill the tractor dragging a 7-1/2 RFM handles with ease, both wet and dry. There's a bank in front of the house with a much steeper slope. Either tractor can run up and down all day. Sidehill there is dicey.
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I navigate that kind of slope all the time on a L3901 HST.
With loader just above ground level engage and double check low range and 4wd. Lower the 3pt, engage differential lock and drive straight up. If it is too steep you will lose traction and have to back down. Dont even think about depressing the clutch.
That said do not attempt any maneuver if it makes you too uncomfortable.
Dan
Too me, it's looks just fine ...
But if your getting gravel ... Save half a load to put in the bucket and carry it low until you get comfortable with driving your tractor around your property ...
But if your getting gravel ... Save half a load to put in the bucket and carry it low until you get comfortable with driving your tractor around your property ...
NCL4701
Well-known member
Equipment
L4701, T2290, WC68, grapple, BB1572, Farmi W50R, Howes 500, 16kW IMD gen, WG24
What he said.
Don’t ever try it without the loader on the tractor. Don’t get sideways. If the soil is solid enough, shouldn’t be a problem. You could shave the top edge off the upper part to lower the slope a bit, but unless you need to drive up it when it’s wet, I’d just drive up it.
Welcome here. Plenty of great advice already. Just a few of my own thoughts to add.
First, there are SO MANY variables and it's ultimately on you to sort them out because no one else has seen your place.
How you configure the tractor means everything regarding stability. A tractor is designed to give each operator the flexibility to set his tractor up for different situations, so it's - again - your responsibility to get it right, for slopes or whatever else you expect. Ask questions, talk to some old-timers, read/watch online and gain a seat-of-the-pants familiarity with your tractor before heading up that hill.
Keep in mind these compact tractors have evolved from farm tractors designed for working on generally flat ground. Thus the big rear tires, a pivoting front axle, high clearance and a high center of gravity. A mountain goat they ain't.
The suggestion to do some re-grading to reduce that 22 degree initial slope sounds like a great starting point to me.
Hope you enjoy you new tractor.
First, there are SO MANY variables and it's ultimately on you to sort them out because no one else has seen your place.
How you configure the tractor means everything regarding stability. A tractor is designed to give each operator the flexibility to set his tractor up for different situations, so it's - again - your responsibility to get it right, for slopes or whatever else you expect. Ask questions, talk to some old-timers, read/watch online and gain a seat-of-the-pants familiarity with your tractor before heading up that hill.
Keep in mind these compact tractors have evolved from farm tractors designed for working on generally flat ground. Thus the big rear tires, a pivoting front axle, high clearance and a high center of gravity. A mountain goat they ain't.
The suggestion to do some re-grading to reduce that 22 degree initial slope sounds like a great starting point to me.
Hope you enjoy you new tractor.
OntheRidge
Well-known member
Lifetime Member
Equipment
Kubota L47 TLB, Homestead 55" grapple, LP 1684 rear blade, WR Long 84" snowplow
My driveway {paved} is 18 degrees and I drove it all the time in my 2501. I now do it no problem on the L47. However, the other day I had to take some brush up a trail to get rid of it, about same steepness, and noticed front end getting light. Filled tires and the backhoe on. i would say go carefully, or maybe grab a log with grapple for ballast.
With the 5' brush hog pictured, 2 wheel drive no problem ... No diff lock either!
Now if I have the 90" finish mower which weighs more than twice this ... I need 4X4, but never feels unstable.
I have to back down both sides, as it's too sharp of a transition and kinks up the mower!
Now if I have the 90" finish mower which weighs more than twice this ... I need 4X4, but never feels unstable.
I have to back down both sides, as it's too sharp of a transition and kinks up the mower!