[Stonehenge]

I had posted a pic of my stuck skidsteer in my own yard a few months ago, sliding on the greasy clay toward a little creek. Well this weekend we got a little snow, and I did it again. I was attempting to go around to the back and build a big snowpile for my dogs to play on (they love that stuff), and I got too close to the edge and slid right in.

The next day my wife and I worked to get it out - she said she had fun yanking on the skidder with the diesel F700, though I ended up pulling her closer to the ditch, than vice versa - turned out that the way out was through. I drove over the frozen creek, and about a mile through a farmer's field to get out.

[Stonehenge]

Anyone else get their machines stuck in winter, or am I just extra talented?

[Will Pacala]

I don't bother to go out. Only if I need to. Hey did the farmer mind!!!???? Don't go down there next time!!

[dan deutekom]

One of the strangest stucks I have had is snowplowing with the skidsteer. It was a long very narrow lane way with a building on one side and a fence on the other. The lane way had a grade toward the fence. It was one of those snows where it had freezing rain first and then snow. I was pushing the snow and the skid steer started to slid on the ice. So I stopped pushing the snow and started to back out so that I could try again. Soon as I started to move the skidsteer started to slide side ways and there was no stopping the sliding as it slide into the fence. It moved very slowly and did no damage. The only problem is that a fence post fit perfectly between the front and back wheel of the skidsteer and I couldn't move it in any direction with out wrecking the fence. We couldn't't tow it out because there was no room to bring a truck in to give a tug side ways. Luckily one of our friendly competitors was plowing nearby with a backhoe. He backed in and we hooked up the hoe to the skidsteer and he managed to lift and move us sideways the 6" it took to free us from the fence.

[diginahole]

Oh boy I've got a goodie.

Last week my operator calls me and says he needs a tug to get out of what he had originally thought was a loading dock. I figure he has got hung up on a slick spot and slid up against the wall. No biggy, happens to the best of us. I call up another plower who was working the same site to tug him out. A while later I am talking to the guy who pulled him out and he mentions that my skidsteer was in over his tires. In what I wonder. He tells me.... water. Turns out it isn't a loading dock after all. They for whatever reason seem to be pumping water into this open pit. It had been 20 below for several days and there was only 3" of ice on top of the water which is't quite enough for a 4000 lb loader.

It's funny how quickly a story like this can get around, and how the water gets just a bit deeper every time the story is told. I was talking with a buddy the following day who had heard about the incident through the grapevine. He heard the guy was sitting in the skidsteer with water up to his waist. He actually only got his boot a bit wet and was fine to keep on working.

[Stonehenge]

Dan, I can empathize with you - the sideways slide down a slope was how this one got stuck. No matter what I did I got in worse than I was before.

To add insult to injury, as I was trying to drive the diesel F700 back to the shop today in sub-zero temps, I believe I got my first experience with diesel fuel gelling up. It was a hard start, but I let the truck warm up for about 20 minutes. Headed down the road without a problem, then she just started bogging down, then quit. Got it started again, drove a little, quit again.

After awhile I was able to figure out that if I drove in a lower gear (less fuel consumption?), the truck would drive fine. Soon as I got it in 4th or 5th, she'd die on me. BTW, what can I put in the fuel to keep it from turning to mush?

Digin - I get a chuckle out of that - sometimes even the things I do over the season become exaggerated by the guys - carrying 2 Versa-Lok block a couple times becomes lifting 2 block all day, getting mad and tossing a tool to the ground becomes throwing it 100 feet...

Kinda funny. Glad your guy got out without incident.

[Dale Wiley]

I get stuck several times a year in different things... I just don't write and post pictures on the Internet about it....

Try running # 1 Diesel or stove oil, or JP 4... its all the same thing it has a gel point of about 40 below versus # 2 gelling at about 5 or 0 degrees.

[Paul]

I use anti-gel, it's at most truck stops. Cost about $5 and will treat up to 100 gallons. I don't recommend fuel oil it dyed red and putting it in a road truck can cause problem with the revenuers (IRS).

Getting stuck! I can safely say that most if not all of us have been there, we just don't take pictures of it
I do have a better one than that I had a operator drive a tractor straight down a stream bank. Total depth was about 18' almost straight down! That one took two skid steers to bring it up!

[dan deutekom]

My wildest ride was in a small Kubota loader/hoe. I was working on the top of a large very steep hill dumping soil over the edge when a wheel slipped over it. The brakes couldn't hold the machine back and down the embankment I went. I managed to hold onto it until the bottom but there was a very deep ditch about 30' after the bottom of the hill. Trying to avoid it I turned to the right and the tractor flipped onto it's side. Tractors don't handle like a corvette Thank god for ROPS No damage to the tractor and just a cut on my head. We picked up the tractor with our crane truck and I was back on the top of the hill within a half our trying for an encore

[Dale Wiley]

For using the # 1 fuel, I did not mean to use off road fuel. You can usually ( sometimes) find the # 1 in the cardlock fueling places. Some may even mix it in the diesel. It costs a little more, but you acutally will see increased perfromance and mileage that will offset the increased cost.

[Lawngodfather]

I got a rented machine stuck in a patio excavation last spring with tracks on it.

I was stuck facing the exit, had to snatch it our with the truck.

[Stonehenge]

My most embarrassing day was when I had to call a towtruck twice in a single day.

Back when we were a one-man show, I rented a skid steer for a patio excavation. As I was driving it through a culvert toward the backyard to begin excavating, I got the thing stuck. Called a towtruck, they pulled me back onto the street. So I was stuck hand digging it.

Hand dug the patio, dumping w/b's into the skid steer bucket, then into the truck. Got the truck full, went to dump it at a place where they were accepting fill. Got it stuck again. Had to call another tow truck to get me out.

Not quite as exciting as some of these stories, though. Had one of my guys almost ride a little Kubota down a hillside. Seeing his eyes open as wide as saucers was hilarious, but only because I knew there were trees within a few feet that would stop him.

And yeah, I do stupid things now and then, and photograph them, too. That way when I claim to be perfect, everyone will know I'm lying.

[BJR]

Good one!

[Pelican]

I've had my Cat stuck a few times, but have always managed to get loose with fancy manipulation of the bucket, sometimes involving chains.

Jeff, I've had the best luck with fuel gelling by cutting the fuel 30% with Kerosene. It will also free up a gelled vehicle provided there is enough fuel flow for the vehicle to run, even at idle. Make sure your fuel filters aren't past the servicing period, a dirty filter will lock up quicker than a clean one.