Getting stuck... 8N Traction questions.

[777funk]

How well do these things do in less than ideal conditions. Say the following scenario:

-driving up a slight incline (say a 12 degree hill)
-2" limestone gravel freshly spread - 6" thick.

My 2wd vehicles [i:09ec67bfa6]will[/i:09ec67bfa6] get stuck in this. Would the 8n do better?

Would a 4WD tractor be able to use a 6' scraper/grader blade in this?

What about the same situation but with mud instead of 2" gravel?

 

[777funk]

Also, to qualify... usual tractor (not turf) tires on the 8N.

And lets make it a little more of a fair fight... turf tires on a 4WD tractor.

 

[TheOldHokie]

(quoted from post at 09:06:50 06/03/19) How well do these things do in less than ideal conditions. Say the following scenario:

-driving up a slight incline (say a 12 degree hill)
-2" limestone gravel freshly spread - 6" thick.

My 2wd vehicles [i:26a498751a]will[/i:26a498751a] get stuck in this. Would the 8n do better?

Would a 4WD tractor be able to use a 6' scraper/grader blade in this?

What about the same situation but with mud instead of 2" gravel?

That is pretty close to my exact situation with an 8N and a Kubota B7200. Both my tractors will struggle pulling stone up that grade. You have to diddle the blade to keep the load you are pulling to a manageable size which is quite small. Its doable and I did it for several years before I got fed up and paved that lane.

Your question is a little too general to answer with any degree of accuracy. The size of the 4WD tractor will make a big difference in comparative performance. My little Kubota with ballasted tears and loader weighs in at about 2000 pounds vs the unballasted 8N at 2300. Overall I would still give the edge to the Kubota because it has a differential lock which combined with the 4WD minimizes the spin on the loose stone. The 8N loses traction on the stone and spins one of the rears quite easily bringing you to a dead stop with a loaded blade. You really have to work to keep it moving and lack of live hydraulics makes lift operation when you stall the pull a royal PITA.

TOH

 

[Tony292]

I do all of my hill gravel and snow blading on the downhill slope. I used to try and blade uphill but it s such a battle especially in deep snow that I just go up the hill with the blade up,turn around and drop the blade on the way back down...much easier that way.

 

[HCooke]

I use a 5 foot box blade behind a 3410 Kubota. If I have some gravel in the front loader I can grade the gravel going uphill. I have an 8N
with loaded tires and it will go uphill but I prefer the Kubota for that job.

 

[John in Mich]

Every situation is different. You have to know your machine capabilities, your coordination ability with
steering and brakes, conditions that you are working in. 66 years on my 8N (started with cultivating
when I was 10) with a gazillion different traction situations. You know what? I still could/can get
stuck! ps My son just did Sunday in his yard. A blind soft spot in a backfill area.
Also pps: I'm a flatlander. No experience with hills and slopes. HTH

 

[Ultradog MN]

Ballast!
An unballasted 2wd tractor can only put
about 60% of its horsepower to the
ground.
Get some wheel weights or add fluid to
the tires.
A ballasted tractor is a more stable,
safer tractor too.

 

[Tony in SD]

You didn?t provide enough data for an accurate answer. Reminds me of a math story problem we all had once upon a time in school. Bob is 45, Martha is 5 years older, how old is Fred? Point is all we can do is
guess.

 

[docmirror]

I can't answer your specific hill questions, but the 8N like all 2WD tractors will struggle. I keep the brush hog on the back of mine just for added traction. Sometimes I put bricks on the brush hog at back to get better bite.

It will never, ever approach the traction of any 4WD tractor with turf tires, or AG tires. Front drive on a tractor boosts traction a bunch.

It's like all things 8N. The little guy will do almost everything well, but nothing perfect.

 

[R Geiger]

I would never spread 6" of 2 inch minus gravel. especially on a hill.

 

[hunkydory]

(quoted from post at 18:50:14 06/06/19) I would never spread 6" of 2 inch minus gravel. especially on a hill.

That would be hard to walk in much less drive in.

 

[777funk]

Yes... like trying to walk in one of those pool of plastic balls that they used to do for young kids.

I didn't [i:f5c779eccd]intend[/i:f5c779eccd] to have 6" thick of 2" gravel. The dump truck company ended up getting stuck and unfortunately didn't do a good job dumping it. Hence the need to move it with the tractor.

I ended up buying a yanmar and even in 2wd with turf tires it moves it just fine. I was pretty surprised.