Kids & Tractors

[skyhightree1]

I was wondering at what ages you all started driving tractors ? What ages you started your kids on driving tractors ?I started at 8 on a massey ferg 50 just moving it forward and helping lift hogs with the boom pole and or whatever. I have 2 small kids that love tractors and I will take my Cub and put in first gear with the throttle all the way back before it stalls out and they drive around my place while im there or riding on the back and let them drive around. They cant really reach the peddles but they can steer well son 6 daughter 4. they spent first years of there life on equip. and I just wondered when I should really feel comfortable letting them try to drive on there own. I just wondered by no means am i ready to turn them loose on myJD 8400 and JD 8410 to plant beans or corn lol just wondering what everyones opinions are on this.

 

[Craig Miller]

I ran the bush hog at 8 on papaws ford 4000. I thought the clutch would stop me so i pushed in and rode it to the bottom of a hill. Lol Never made that mistake again

 

[skyhightree1]

I ran the bush hog at 8 on papaws ford 4000. I thought the clutch would stop me so i pushed in and rode it to the bottom of a hill. Lol Never made that mistake again

I tore the rear end out of a massey 180 at 9 when i learned if i go up a hill and have a hay carry all with firewood and go up a hill I kept popping clutch on hill making it wheelie till the rearend gears got messed up.

 

[Ouachita]

For some reason I have a great deal of difficulty allowing my kids to do some of the things I was allowed to do at a given age. I find myself being much more cautious than I remember my Dad and Grand dad being with me. I think kids should learn as much as possible, as early as possible, but there a fine line there. I don't know how to explain what I'm trying to say, but am much more concerned than my parents were about such things, thus more deliberate in my delegation of chores and anything that involves heavy equipment. I spend a tremendous amount of time teaching my kids how the machine works before they are ever allowed to operate it on their own

 

[Bigfoot]

My son has been driving since age 6. He's 8, and works the arena by himself. I rolled a tractor in a highway accident at age 9. It was a super A. Those things must be designed to roll over.

 

[skyhightree1]

Ouachita I feel the same as you times are different and kids sure are as well. They know which control does what on the tractor and when to hit it and everything but just overly cautious i guess but like you I went through the same thing so now I am just trying to gauge when they should be ready to operate the equipment.

 

[Craig Miller]

My other papaw never let me run his tractor. In fact i was about 22 before i ever ra.n it and it was to level some dirt mamaw had put on his grave. He was always too afraid id get hurt

 

[sim.-ang.king]

Drove my grandpa's oliver 660 pulling hay wagons when I was 9, gave me $2 for every load I hauled. At 12 I pulled the seed wagon with the 3010, and dad would let me drive the IH 1586 pulling the drill, but while he was riding too, and sometimes the combine. After that they couldn't hold me back. :lol2:

 

[skyhightree1]

My son has been driving since age 6. He's 8, and works the arena by himself. I rolled a tractor in a highway accident at age 9. It was a super A. Those things must be designed to roll over.

Thats great for your son he will be a pro by the time hes 10 and be able to teach you tricks lol eww... glad you were ok. I haven't rolled a tractor over yet and pray I never do nor my kids. There mama says I don't care if they drive a tractor as long as its a cabbed tractor. They will not be able to drive any tractors down the road for a very long time I have alot of oversized machinery I farm row crops and alot of my tractors are dual wheeled and take up the whole road where I live.

 

[skyhightree1]

Drove my grandpa's oliver 660 pulling hay wagons when I was 9, gave me $2 for every load I hauled. At 12 I pulled the seed wagon with the 3010, and dad would let me drive the IH 1586 pulling the drill, but while he was riding too, and sometimes the combine. After that they couldn't hold me back. :lol2:

lol my kids pulling the drill would be stressful for me

 

[iowafarmer]

I started driving tractor at age 12. I started on the lawn mover at age 10. My dad rode along with me the first few times I drove tractor and I started on hauling manure as its pretty simple and hard to screw up. I wouldn't allow kids to drive a tracotr on their own until they are able to fully push in all of the pedals and demonstrate to me how to properly clutch and brake. Just remember childrens decision making skills are not the same as an adults. So when it does come down being able to make split second decisions on what to do children are not able to do it as quickly. I would start them driving tractor on something easy to due with very little chance for things to go wrong. I would start with either: hauling manure, tillage, or mowing in a large open field without obstacles. That said the only way for them to learn is for them to do it. That involves success and failures. Just try to limit the failures to none that would be life threatening.

 

[sim.-ang.king]

My son has been driving since age 6. He's 8, and works the arena by himself. I rolled a tractor in a highway accident at age 9. It was a super A. Those things must be designed to roll over.

Thats great for your son he will be a pro by the time hes 10 and be able to teach you tricks lol eww... glad you were ok. I haven't rolled a tractor over yet and pray I never do nor my kids. There mama says I don't care if they drive a tractor as long as its a cabbed tractor. They will not be able to drive any tractors down the road for a very long time I have alot of oversized machinery I farm row crops and alot of my tractors are dual wheeled and take up the whole road where I live.

That's part of the fun of driving large equipment! Dodging mail boxes, cars, and the giant tree limbs hanging out over the road.

 

[Ouachita]

I just remember my Dad and Grand dad both allowing me to do things, and remember thinking "wow, this is big. They are letting me drive a loader full of rock down the hill to the dump pile". I almost turned over a Farmall that had been fitted with a home made front end loader when I was 10. I still have a very vivid memory of that, and it still scares the shyt out of me. I was side hilling and it seemed like that tractor was up on the left 2 wheels for 5 minutes before it gradually settled back on all fours. The seat still smells after 32 years. I want my kids to know how to operate every machine on the place. They are very responsible, but they are still kids.

 

[skyhightree1]

very true iowa .... sim my kids would probably try to hit everything but a car because it would be funny to them lol since my daughter is big into counting things she would be counting how many things they hit lol

 

[skyhightree1]

II want my kids to know how to operate every machine on the place. They are very responsible, but they are still kids.

I feel the same but they will not be driving my combines any time soon on there own lol

 

[sim.-ang.king]

very true iowa .... sim my kids would probably try to hit everything but a car because it would be funny to them lol since my daughter is big into counting things she would be counting how many things they hit lol

:lol2: :lol2:

Talking about hitting things...I did about hit the sheriff with our harrow, it was in a no passing zone, but I don't think it would of helped my case any. :shock:

 

[skyhightree1]

I don't think that would have helped your cause either lol

 

[skyhightree1]

I do not want my kids driving this through a gate lol

http://i1190.photobucket.com/albums/z44 ... 145430.jpg

 

[skyhightree1]

Oh yea cant forget the sprayer lol knowing a car can drive under or you can run over top of a car after I parked it over top of my sisters honda del sol probably wasn't a good example to show them lol

 

[Commercialfarmer]

My dad had me driving a 65 MF at 8 or 9 . He was pretty careful overall with what he let me do growing up, and he was a pretty intelligent guy. But I needed more instruction the first time driving the tractor. I had driven pickups since I could reach the pedals, but clutches were new to me. Popped the clutch on the first time taking off with him hanging on the back (bad decision with an implement behind). Through him on to the spring tooth. I mashed on the break- cause I was just learning about clutches and was freaked out- thought I ran over him with the implement. Took a couple of seconds then remembered the clutch. He was perfectly okay, but both of us were really shaken up. Really need to use your head when you train them. He was always pressed for time, but not taking a couple minutes to unhook the implement and letting me learn to drive it before pulling an implement almost cost him his life. I've had plenty of other pucker moments, but none have bothered me as much. Something to ponder.