Cab Tractors - Why? - Machine Underground -Tractor & Commercial Equipment Discussion Forum

**gunmaker** · 07-06-2008, 04:22 PM

A little bit of reverse thinking now.

Tell me your opinion and experience, related to why I would not want a 'CAB' tractor as opposed to an open station tractor.

LarryRB · 07-06-2008, 04:26 PM

because in new england area it is common to see 20 below wind chill with an ambient of 5 to 10 below and run this way for days on end.. Nothing bothers me more than to use a comfortable cabbed tractor to plow my 1600 ft long driveway, and do it from a cab where it is warm and one can see through the blinding snow that is almost verticle... I mean,, you can keep those cab tractors and be like Dougster and be a real man about this..

**gunmaker** · 07-06-2008, 04:31 PM

How about cab clearance issues, or usage in wooded areas?

**Ducati996** · 07-06-2008, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gunmaker

How about cab clearance issues, or usage in wooded areas?

If you plan ahead and trim the areas of low lying branches all is well

Not much on the negative to find when using a cab - as long as it has A/C because they got real hot in the summer.

My Garden tractor is the only thing I have with a full cab. Taking the doors off and keeping the rest on works great for shade. Its great for the days where the sun is just too strong to be in direct contact with, or if you already had too much sun for the day. Its nice to hide behind some shade, and be able to mow at the same time.

If you need emotional support to justify the case for a full pressurized cab, look no further we have your back

LarryRB · 07-06-2008, 06:20 PM

gunmaker
I was trying to be a smart ---- with your question, On a serious note, I was born and raised in Boonton township which wasn't all that far from the Delaware gap and north of I 80. I can remember as a kid in the 50's when that part of Jersey got some serious snow falls,, One, first day of spring in 54, (I was about to turn 5 yrs old) they have a picture of me standing in the deepest snow fall in Jersey up to that time and it was 38 inches deep and I stood 38" tall.. That following 3 summers of 5-6-7 were the knock out hurricanes that did the most damage I believe to date...

**gunmaker** · 07-06-2008, 06:34 PM

I got a kick out of it...I'm about as far north in Jersey as you can get...where rt 206 and the Delaware River meet. The town I live in is known to be the coldest (record-setting) in the state. I've seen days where it's been -27*F ambient when heading off to work in the winter, and we've had occasional periods in winter where the temp won't go above 0*F for days to weeks. We've actually seen a 100*F+ differential between the inside and outside temps.
I'm trying to draw off others experience with a cab. I'm fairly sure that's the way to go but somebody will come up with some experience that I'd never thought of, for consideration.

**LoneCowboy** · 07-06-2008, 08:40 PM

I run two cab tractors and one open tractor. But I do this for a living. I spend 30/40/50 hours on teh tractor
MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE in comfort.

If i just had 1,2,5,10 acres, eh, no big deal, I'd survive, what's that a few hours a week? but tons of hours each week, it matters.

My cabbed tractors are just under 8' tall, same height as the ROPS on the open tractor. After a while you either break all the mirrors off, or you stop getting so close to trees. If they weren't hitting the cab, they would be hitting you. I'd rather they hit the cab.

They cost more and they require more maintenance and more power (to run the A/C)
But at the end of an 11 or 12 hour day bushhogging, I get off, refuel, load up and drive home, still able to function.
5 or 6 hours on the open platform is more than enough for me.

**gunmaker** · 07-06-2008, 09:04 PM

Assuming that a cab tractor and a open station tractor, same model units, were maintained equally well; is there any reason to think that the cab tractor would last longer or have fewer issues over the years?
(I don't know if that was a sentence or a paragraph!

)

**PaulChristenson** · 07-07-2008, 12:32 AM

Open station tractors are easier to clean...

Open station tractor are cheaper and have less to break...

Open station tractor suffer less damage on a roll...

Open station tractors are less likely to roll...

Open station tractors provide a better view of what's happening in the field...

When I dress to go out in an open station tractor in the winter...it's just like preparing to ski at Mt Mansfield...and just as enjoyable...

**LoneCowboy** · 07-07-2008, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gunmaker

Assuming that a cab tractor and a open station tractor, same model units, were maintained equally well; is there any reason to think that the cab tractor would last longer or have fewer issues over the years?
(I don't know if that was a sentence or a paragraph!

)

both
might last longer because more stuff is protected from the elements (think of all those wires under the dash, on an open platform only one layer to go thru, on a cab tractor, two.
might have more issues because there is more stuff to go wrong.

either or.
I'd call it a wash.