Trailer - wheelie bar combination???

The craftsman tractor flipped over backwards right on top of me once again.

That tractor is dead to me. It will not be forgiven. It will not be resurrected.


With that out of the way... I am now thinking about ways to keep the WHAMS from just doing the same thing.

Here is my thought...

1.) Something with pnuematic tires.
2.) Is used as a trailer.
3.) But whenever I am headed up steep slopes, it can be locked in place, and becomes a wheelie bar that works to keep me from tipping over backward on a steep slope.


Anyone care to brainstorm with me? Come up with ideas...

A couple of '4x6' builds here recently, have contributed to giving me the idea in the first place.

It'll have to be super strong. Maybe an extension on the frame, to begin with.

It has to either be carried clear of the ground, most of the time, or it has to work as a trailer. Moving as freely as a trailer does, until I need it for climbing the steep slopes.

When locked in place, to work as a wheelie bar, it still has to allow cornering.

Any ideas? Drawings? Already existing stuff that might be useful?

What if you need to cross a small wash while climbing up. Tha wheels on front and on trailer will cause the rear of the tracter to to com off da ground or loose traction if you lock the trailer in tha position to act as a wheely bar. I have an idea. How about adding an adjustable bar an the back of the tracter that could be adjusted to any hight from the tung of da trailer so it has som movement but as the tracter begins to wheely the bar would rest on the tung of trailer to stop it from raising the front to high. I think it would work great in this aplacation and be simple and out of the way. If i need to draw a pix let me know an i will.

Totally agree with CornShuck. Back tires come off the ground, you rocket backwards, and possibly jackknife (can happen very quick with little trailers) and then you have a even bigger problem in your hands.

To add to CornShucks idea, have a draw pin in different holes, so you can put this bar down, (maybe little tires on it?) go up the hill, and at the top, pull the pin and bring it back up so it doubles as a back bumper.

What kinda path is this, seems like you might be driving to fast up it. I've flipped my tractor over once going up a snowbank, because I was going to fast. Almost flipped it a few weeks ago but I was traveling much slower. I hopped off in time to catch it, and the gas petal made the engine return to idle, and it stalled out as I hopped off. So that's why I recommend one so much. Hope this helps.

Well could still do it goin slow if its starts to wheely and you take your foot off to try to catch your self and the governer takes over an here we go

Speed was definitely a factor. Problem is, you have to have enough speed/momentum, to actually make it up this very steep hill. If you don't have enough momentum, you will never make it.

And the governor was the reason the BEAST tried to kill me, years ago.

If I have any choice in the matter, the BEAST will never go back on the road. Try to kill me once, shame on you. Try to kill me twice, shame on me. You don't give it a third chance.

That said, the WHAMS may turn out not to be suitable for the purpose. Therefore, even though I have said the BEAST is dead... If the WHAMS is never useful, then I might have to put the BEAST back to use, and make a wheelie bar for IT, instead.

I'll keep any further discussion of the whams and beast, to the other thread...


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As for wheelie bar ideas...

One idea I had last night was to cut off the front of the beast. Turn it backwards. Mount it with a solid up and down swivel.

Thinking the articulation of the front axle, would work well for uneven terrain. And the wheels could spin a bit to allow for cornering.

There does need to be a bit of control on the wheels. Otherwise they'll just flop sideways.

And either use shocks somehow, or make up some sort of 'on-the-fly' locking mechanism so that it can swivel up, harmlessly, most of the time, but when I need it as a wheelie bar, I can throw a lever to lock it in place.

Maybe both shocks and a lock bar.


Then it occurred to me that anything that is long enough to be useful as a trailer, could cause different problems. (Like jacknifing if it gets out of control rolling backward. Thanks guys!)

Or if there is a sharp contrast at the foot of a hill. Then the trailer and the front end of the tractor, end up lifting the rear wheels of the tractor off the ground, and you are stuck there without traction.

I am coming back around to making a short wheelie bar, with the ability to still attach and use a trailer.

I STILL might use the front end of the other tractor, (BEAST), to make this wheelie bar from. Even if I don't actually cut that off and use it, I will probably still try to figure out a way to make use of the idea.

Once I have a test drive that I am happy with, I'll get started on the wheelie bar.

What im talkin about uses the trailer as the wheely bar

I know its kinda not in line with the topic but I was thinking about this the other day but theres a couple variables I was kinda thinking it depended on. If you have a fairly cear path to the hill like flat not a lot of ruts etc. to block your way why not go to a lowish tractor with smaller wheels like the 13" v treads that pug uses on his racer if you run smaller tires you can run less hp which saves gas. That being said if you run smaller tires you have more of a chance of spinning them out than flipping the tractor youll go slower but in the end slow>safety when it comes to flipping a heavy object onto yourself.... Ill have to take a look at your build thread I keep forgetting to.

Yea, i dont want to get to far off the thread topic just spit balling. Sounds like you need some aggressive tires and a long wheelbase, like axle a few feet behind you so flipping becomes impossible..... Maybe stretch a tractor rear axle all 12"-24" back out from original spot and put a dump bed on it or deck? Seems like that would really fix it and you'd be able to climb big hills with aggressive tires. Again, just trying to create a solution.

What about something like this?

It would function as a wheelie bar. The red is a representation of a shock but could very well be solid to the frame too. Have it be so its 2 tires in line with the rear drive tires. Then make a tongue off the back of it for your trailer.

I think the wheely bar all together is a bad idea. Mostly becouse as doug showed. The hitch for the trailer is that far behind the axel wich will couse it to rare up even  worse becouse of the tongue weight and make it hard to turnn. Not only that but as a utility mower the wheely bar would be in the way. And your pulling a trailer with it so why not use the trailer as a wheely bar as i suggested and seemingly what you actually wont to do. And as far as putting smaller tires on it may help it also lowers the rear putting it that much closer to a rared up position. I still think the idea of moving the axel back if only a few inches and putting and putting the wheely brace on the back just over the tougne would work in all areas. I drew a rough pix of what im speaking of its ugly but i think it gets the poin across. If you place the bar just over the tongue so if it rares up the bar rest on the tongue and transfers all the all the rare up weight to the trailer acting as a wheely bar. And double as a bumper. But make the top bar adjustable the you can raise or lower the bar to the tongue. Its simple out of the way and serves the purpas. 

Something like that should work really well actually. Id reinforce the trailer tongue in that spot, depending on the tongue style. Maybe add some thick rubber on that spot too to help dampen it hitting.

LOL, the way my tractor is, I made my rear bumper to do that.