Why a man needs a wife

[Studley 2436]

I didn't want to buy into this one but gee just can't help myself. Anyway the shadow looks OK to me but not so much that I can guarantee anything. Anyway others who have fancy letters after their names have worked that all out.

Regarding the counterweighting by filling the tires with water, that would act as a counterweight. If you increase the mass of the wheel and tire by filling it with water you increase the mass at the rear of the tractor and so the centre of gravity moves towards the rear of the tractor. In fact depending on the tractor's centre of gravity you could put a mass infront of the rear wheel and it might be possible to move the centre of gravity towards the rear which is all that a counterweight does.

Now of course if it had a load on the fork lift at the back that would have even more effect but doesn't change the fact that you have been able to move the centre of gravity.

Growing up in the country I don't remember anyone putting water in their tyres but that was the Riverland which is generally flat and dry too. Plenty of people had counterweights fixed infront of the radiator because they used to have fork lifts on the back to lift bins of fruit onto trucks. It was easy to pick tractor up and still have your fruit bin on the ground!

Studley

[outback]

OK, so once again I know nothing. I am glad this palce is full of experts in everything.

[joe greiner]

Actually, the ones I was talking about were rubber-tired four-wheel cranes with the pivot at the center of everything. For those, they really do provide some counterweight, in addition to the one on the boom, by increasing the mass of the lower works.

Joe

[David L]

Don't worry about it fellas it is real, I have done the same thing without my wife standing on the back.
We put water in the tires to increase the weight on the ground thus increasing traction and stability.

But tell the city folk it so we know when there is a puncture