Sun shade canopy (DIY)for compact tractor

[jkk04]

It was a good time to make a sun shade canopy for the newly purchased used tractor recently that has no canopy attached .
Because I needed to protect the skin from the strong ultraviolet rays in the Northern California Sacramento Valley in very hot summer season.
Also, pre-made sunshade from the market did not fit on my compact tractor well and it was very expensive that I couldn't afford it.
Hopefully, this video help to someone who needs to make it DIY.
John
PS: Sorry it is not an orange tractor.

 

[Old_Paint]

It was a good time to make a sun shade canopy for the newly purchased used tractor recently that has no canopy attached .
Because I needed to protect the skin from the strong ultraviolet rays in the Northern California Sacramento Valley in very hot summer season.
Also, pre-made sunshade from the market did not fit on my compact tractor well and it was very expensive that I couldn't afford it.
Hopefully, this video help to someone who needs to make it DIY.
John
PS: Sorry it is not an orange tractor.

‘Scuse me for being an ignorant Alabama redneck that loves DIY ingenuity, but your stated purpose for the canopy was to avoid the UV of NoCal sun. Did someone not explain to you just how strong the UV light from a welding process is? I noticed you wore some kind of sleeves to keep the spatter off your arms, but you were welding without gloves and using a stick welder with no fume hood. You probably subjected yourself to more UV in the time it took to weld the brackets than you would have for the next 10 years with a hat and some sunscreen, not to mention the strong X-ray and gamma radiation from the welding. You were grinding/sanding on some painted metal with no respiratory protection, and I couldn’t even see if you had on at least a pair of ANSI rated safety glasses, while wearing shorts and short sleeves. Ever seen one of those cut-off disks come apart at 10000 RPM? Crouching over that work with pretty much nothing to protect your family jewels is a strong lesson in Darwin’s theory of selectivity. On top of all that, you committed a cardinal sin by drilling the ROPS bar, meaning it will have to be removed from the tractor and replaced if you ever sell the tractor. Either that, or you will need to fully disclose that modification to any potential buyer. All this in a state where EVERYTHING causes cancer or genetic mutations or birth defects. I think even the property taxes in Cali are bad for your health, but you’re not likely to get a health warning for that from a state that doesn’t seem to understand that chipmunk habitat might just need to take a back seat to control burning of the brush that creates the wildfires. I admire your creative skills and your loyalty to recycling anything that can be used again, truly, but I do see a few inherent contradictions with your stated purpose and some very basic safety issues with your process and design. It looks great, but you may have compromised the strength of your ROPS as well as already given yourself melanoma due to lack of PPE. Your lawyer probably won’t be able to help you if you roll that tractor and sustain significant injuries. You made sure of that by posting that video. Again, not criticizing in a bad way, just pointing out some flaws that others may wish to avoid. Especially in California. It’s very clearly labeled on ROPS bars to never drill, cut, grind, or weld on it in any way form or fashion.

In Alabama, few would really care about the wonderful tan( or severe sunburn) from the welder or the sticker on the ROPS frame.But if you’re doing something in the context of health/safety, let’s make sure that it isn’t more dangerous than a much simpler solution. I mean nothing personal nor petty by this comment, but there are a lot of first-time tractor owners and DIY wannabes that use this forum that may not have the experience others do, and they need proper guidance. I only meant this as constructive advice but can’t resist a little sarcasm. It’s in my blood.

 

[B737]

Vitamin D, good for you!