Hay wagons

[dex4020]

It will do it

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

So, my apologies for lack of details. This is for giving hay rides to people once a week all summer. Average weight of an adult at 200 lbs @ 20 adults per ride( less probably, and half those riders kids) realistically 3000 lbs a ride. On mostly flat ground and paved. A 2 mile round trip at 5-8 mph is about 25 minutes a ride. I have been a tractor hobbiest for more than a decade and own fords, farmalls and J.D.s but all are on the smaller side and I never work them so this is why I'm asking. Since the general public is involved, I'm trying to get answers before I commit. Thanks again.

Thanks for the details. Both of the major steam shows in my area use members' antique tractors to pull the shuttle wagons around. Your B has plenty of weight and power to pull the wagon around with the load as you stated. It will weigh about as much as the load, and it doesn't take a whole lot of power to pull a rolling load on a level hard surface.

Your biggest concern will be insurance coverage if someone gets a splinter or twists an ankle jumping off the wagon. Hopefully the venue you will be working for will provide that.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

The road to heck is paved with good intentions. In this case it means the chances are great that something will go wrong. Even if you operate the tractor responsibly somebody could get injured screwing around and their lawyer will be looking for a pound of flesh from everybody involved. People will be your friend until something goes wrong then look out. Sad that we have to think this way but better to let the owner of the hay wagon find their own tractor to pull the wagon. If you insist on doing this then review your insurance policy for liability.

Proper coverage must be possible, as the NY Steam Engine Association has their members pulling the trams around the grounds during their annual Pageant of Steam. The show grounds in Canandaigua are practically flat. Same deal with the WNYSGSEA's annual show in Alexander, and they've got hills. No doubt someone's had a slip-and-fall accident and tried to go after people in the past.

 

[NY 986]

Proper coverage must be possible, as the NY Steam Engine Association has their members pulling the trams around the grounds during their annual Pageant of Steam. The show grounds in Canandaigua are practically flat. Same deal with the WNYSGSEA's annual show in Alexander, and they've got hills. No doubt someone's had a slip-and-fall accident and tried to go after people in the past.

I have no doubt that proper coverage is possible. The question is what the cost will be versus what the OP will get out of providing a tractor and his time.

 

[will-max dairy]

The road to heck is paved with good intentions. In this case it means the chances are great that something will go wrong. Even if you operate the tractor responsibly somebody could get injured screwing around and their lawyer will be looking for a pound of flesh from everybody involved. People will be your friend until something goes wrong then look out. Sad that we have to think this way but better to let the owner of the hay wagon find their own tractor to pull the wagon. If you insist on doing this then review your insurance policy for liability.

I'm a "due diligence" type... Sure... I'll bring up every eventuality imaginable, and I do it to myself... but in the end, I usually go ahead and do "the thing," whatever it is being considered, if I feel as though I've exercised due diligence... which includes that borderline compulsive dose of "what if" thinking.

You could run yourself a little test with the haywagon loaded with hay or whatever up to your planned weight of passengers. Take it around the course at the speed you plan on doing it. Try some "emergency stops" to see if your tires skid. Shut off the engine while on a grade and then see if the brakes hold. Check out your brake lock/park mechanism.

As far as insurance goes... I'm no insurance broker. Check with your rep on that.

People have solved this issue. There are pumpkin patches, Christmas tree farms, corn mazes, apple orchards and all sorts of places around me, that I can think of, that have wagon rides as part of their activities.

 

[Ray,IN]

My cousin owns a pumpkin patch operation that has grown tremendously. He runs a hay-ride operation, but on his property, and pulls the wagon with an old tricycle front John Deere. He said the biggest problem is stopping quickly, with that much weight pushing the tractor. I'd guess he drives about 3-5 mph.
I would expect braking to be worse on blacktop roads, due to the lug tires and lack of contact area.
For use on public roads, hauling people, you'll need to install running/flasher lights on the rear of the wagon IMO.

 

[Farmall m farmer]

If your worried about how much your tractor could handle put that rough amount of weight on and test it a few times and listen to the tractor they will tell you if there up to the challenge or not I’m not sure about were you live but in Indiana the farm bureau has a sign you put out and it basically says if your customer gets hurt they can’t sue your guts out

 

[paul]

Brakes and tires are the physical concerns. Tractor should be fine. If stopping is an issue adding some weight will fix that. Tractors are power pullers; we forget that properly ballasting them is the way to get them to do what we want. You can make it work fine.

As others mention liability on a public road would be a concern. See that you are covered by your or the event hosts policies.

Paul

 

[Fixingfarmer]

we used to use the 36 b for some hayrides up and down a hilly spot (for us it’s not much of a hilly spot really) and actually through a small creek around here when I was a kid dad would do it about once a year. It’s plenty of tractor. It has good mechanical brakes. Yours is even a hair bit heavier. But we don’t do it anymore because nowadays people would Sue your pants off if something happened. It’s 20 kids on a hay rack and for once they would be having fun and not on their phones much but it’s 20 kids on a hay rack people would get pushed off or some other nonsense. Hit by a bale saying here catch.

Unless they are all related to you and even then I’d hesitate a bit.