Nigel_Knowital Report This Comment
Date: July 01, 2007 10:48PM

COOL TRIKE

90130_ Report This Comment
Date: July 02, 2007 03:56AM

Looks like he may lose the remaining front wheel very soon.

Mrkim Report This Comment
Date: July 02, 2007 04:12PM

90130_ Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Looks like he may lose the remaining front wheel
> very soon.

Yep, that wheel bearing indeed looks strained to its limits and subject to send the other front wheel off on an exploratory mission at any time. Sadly, when that one lets go there's a good chance both of these folks could be killed from the crash and possible flip over/roll over likely to occur, not to mention someone following or approaching them might just run over them as they go sprawling across the road afterwards.

The stupidity of people and what they will view as acceptable risks at times NEVER ceases to amaze me. There's nothin quite like playin mechanical Russian Roulette ..... sheesh !

Anonymous Report This Comment
Date: July 03, 2007 02:28PM

We'll for everybody that don't know farm & tractor shit,
the FAT WIFE has nothing to do with it, you put a small wood block between the good axle & the tractor frame so that the bad axle side floats and "WHAAAMM" you've got a trike, good for limping the tractor back home.

Mrkim Report This Comment
Date: July 03, 2007 04:49PM

Although I can see the idea behind using such a method to get the tractor back home limpin along at a slow and safe pace off road it really dudn look like that's what this cat's up to. Nor does it appear he's hip to your "block of wood" idea either.

What "appears" to be shown here is a dumbass and his ol lady takin their life in their hands herdin a broken tractor down the road along with the usual car traffic and smilin big for someones camera seemingly oblivious to the impending peril they are both in should the other axle bearing also fail.

As a lifelong mechanic I can assure you this is a totally foolhardy way of proceeding since the wheel bearing on the one remaining wheel was never intended to safely support much less steer this machine.

As can be seen in the pic the remaining front wheel assy is obviously stressed and is most likely imparting a good deal of the load to the one side of the bearing surface instead of evenly across the whole bearing surface (inner and outer). This generates excess stress and heat in such a bearing, with the higher the speed of the bearings rotation only adding even MORE heat to the bearing and in so doing literally BEGS for a failure of the assy. Typically the bearing will become galded to the bearing race surface and simply lock up or an even worst case scenario, cause the axle itself to overheat, crystallize from the excess heat and simply snap off.

I have alot of respect for farmers and their required ingenuity in facing and mastering problems with brains over $$. However, the laws of mechanics and physics are pretty unforgiving when ignored or if one simply chooses to believe they won't affect "their equipment".

Anonymous Report This Comment
Date: July 21, 2007 12:34AM

Bunch of baloney if I ever heard it. I agree that it's a stupid thing they're doing; however, the bearings and axles in most farm tractors are over-engineered to handle the heavier loads and abuse that comes from farm use. The reason for the negative camber is because this farm tractor, like most, has a solid front axle with a pivot in the middle. Note how low the left axle (the one with the missing wheel) is with respect to the right. The axle is sitting all the way down on the axle stop on the right side. It's not likely to collapse. There is some danger of turning the tractor over, but with most farm tractors, there is much more weight on the rear axle than the front due to the weight of the transaxle, with it's solid casting, and the much larger rear wheels. They're made this way on purpose, of course, because they're designed for pulling and ground work applications and the weight is needed on the rear axle for pulling power.

Mrkim Report This Comment
Date: July 24, 2007 01:04PM

"Bunch of baloney if I ever heard it. I agree that it's a stupid thing they're doing; however, the bearings and axles in most farm tractors are over-engineered to handle the heavier loads and abuse that comes from farm use."


If the bearings and axles are so heavily engineered perhaps you can explain how the other side failed while it still had the support of the remaining side assy ?

If you could think past your disagreement with my statements and simply think about this from an engineering and stress viewpoint your above statement of "I agree that it's a stupid thing they're doing" is about all that needs said.