Snow

[Toolslinger]

I had a March like that several years ago... This is before I inherited my place. My folks would go to Florida for 8 weeks or so in January/Febuary. The farm was set up to just drain and close up, so no big deal. I would go out just before they came back north in March, to make sure the house, and barn was dug out. Well that year, we got alternating snow and rain, with no real warm up in between. I knew it was going to be bad, so I had brought the 646 BH with me to just get through the berm, and get off the road. There's plenty of bigger equipment there to take care of anything else.

Not that year...

I ended up needing to use the hoe to get through the berm right at the street. Loader wouldn't touch it. I knew that would take some time so I planned to get in the barn, and get a couple tractors started to warm up. I made my way up to the main door, and the snow on the roof had slid off, and piled up naturally. It had flowed under, and around the big sliding doors, and then froze solid. That was the only way in to the barn at that time that had an exterior lock. Shovel wouldn't touch that mess. So I had to attack it with a crowbar to get it to open enough to sneak in. Started tractors, and opened different doors that they were behind. Back to the berm. ( have since added an exterior lock on a door 8' under an overhang in the middle of the other side of the barn)

Oil under the back of the 646. Thought it was a blown seal, but the side plate on the BH stack valve had cracked. (Wound up having to replace the whole stackas a result.) So I chained up the hoe, and bypassed it. Finished getting through the berm with the loader, and decided I needed a bigger machine. The snow behind the berm was really only about 12 - 16" deep, but real heavy/dense. So, head for the JD300 loader. Wrestle the chains on it in a cramped barn bay. Boom was cranky, but I knew it would settle down. Started out the door, and it fell on it's face. Engine just died. I could get it to idle, but that was it, and no power behind even that. So I limped that back to it's parking spot. (wound up being the injection pump)

Next option was the 8N. Not the ideal choice for this snow, but it's still more tractor than the 646... Well that was running ok, and it would move on/through the snowpack, but the back blade wouldn't touch it... Back in the barn.

Back to the sick 646... It did it. Took hours, and hours, but it got the job done eventually.

Up at the house end of the driveway, we had a nice steel, 2 car parking shelter. That was collapsed on top of the '88 Ford Ranger. Wrecked the ladder rack, twised the bed, and pushed in the roof. (pushed everything back kinda in to shape eventually and used that truck for several more years)

I was so beat by the end of all that, I didn't even turn on the house. Just made sure the doors opened, loaded the 646, and drove 2 hours home.

Missed last call by 15 minutes.

All in all a miserable day.

Futz - I feel your pain.

[Harry]

Great story Toolslinger. Thanks for sharing. Harry

[JSinMO]

You guys are reminding me of day I’ve had like that. First words out of my mouth are usually “you have got to be kidding me”, followed by some course expletives!

There have been a couple of times on days like that I’ll come in the house and my will say , “I could hear you cussing whatever you were working on, I wasn’t coming up there to see”!
At least it’s nice to know we’re all in good company. You almost have to laugh because sometimes there’s just nothing you can do about it!

Here’s to hoping none of us have one of those days for a long while!

[Eugen]

Some good stories guys, shows how you gotta brace yourself at times and push through. Days like that... we all know how it is.

[FUTZ]

Well last weekend snow was still hard enough to walk on. I didn't even change into boots, just wore work shoes. I wanted to clear snow to be able to use yard as soon as possible.

It was slow going with blower, so I changed tactics and enlisted a different machine. Sorry about brand, but at least it's not green, lol.

Made a bunch of jelly rolls.

IDK if it was a good idea or not. Maybe I should have just let it melt.

[Eugen]

Whaaat? You never said you have bulldozer!?!?

what's the next surprise? you have a tank too?

[JSinMO]

@FUTZ Im jealous! I’d love to run that around here for awhile! Is it a 1010?

[propane1]

I see a MF 7 tractor there in the snow bank.

Noel

[FUTZ]

@JSinMO Yes 1010. I'm thinking of rigging up a hydraulic blade level.

@propane1 Yes MF8 with no engine, also have MF12, MF1200, MF1655.
Some MF's for sale near me.

BTW, it's not really a snow bank, same level all over, less deep under trees at edge of woods.