After the fire, (pics)

My BIL was plowing with his 8070 AC MFW when he got stuck. He called my nephew and told him to bring another tractor to get him out. He then got out of the cab and hooked up a chain so it would be ready when my nephew got the. He noticed smoke coming from under the hood, called 911 and shut the tractor off. It took the local volunteer fire department 14 minutes according to my BIL's cell phone to arrive, By then the fire was already burning itself out. This was on Wen. The insurance adjuster was there on Fri, has determined it's a total loss and will tell my BIL and nephew how much they are getting a check for tomorrow. Thankfully no one was injured.










I just chopped with that tractor last Fri and Sat to help them out some. Real glad I wasn't operating it when it burned!

The white stuff is snow, not foam.

Rick

Looks like he was plowing in a swamp! What caused the fire?

Glad no one was hurt.
Those durn JD plows will do it every time!

I have a fire extinguisher on every one of my machines.

You're giving up too soon. A couple of rattle cans and some plexiglass and she'll be good as new.

Gtractor: Don't know. I'm guessing it started as an electrical fire.

Dpen: I do too, my BIL doesn't.

RRLund: LOL that's about what I told him, little duct tape, some WD-40 and a couple of cans of spray paint it's as good as new :roll: ! I will not repeat what my BIL told me to do to myself :shock: , lets just say it's physically impossible :? .

Rick

I am glad no one was hurt. More than likely a electrical cab fire. You get stuck and have everything in a twist an some wire is rubbed and Puff.

If you could find a complete cab it would not be too bad of a repair job. The lower part of the tractor is not hurt at all. It surprises me that the tires are not even burnt.

Rust orange an smoke black. Still looks like a
Alice Charmer....

(quoted from post at 15:12:28 10/20/13) I am glad no one was hurt. More than likely a electrical cab fire. You get stuck and have everything in a twist an some wire is rubbed and Puff.

If you could find a complete cab it would not be too bad of a repair job. The lower part of the tractor is not hurt at all. It surprises me that the tires are not even burnt.

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JD actually the fire started down around the out side loader controls from what my BIL tells me. Fire was under the hood too. My BIL will not fight them totaling it, he wasn't real happy with that tractor.

LOL it still does look like an AC :lol:

Rick

He didn't get something wrapped tight on the FWA driveshaft and start the fire there did he? I know of a CaseIH that caught fire when it got frosted sorgum-sudan grass wrapped in it. I was cutting hay with my 1365 Oliver FWA this summer and had green hay wrapped so tight on that one that it was steaming.

(quoted from post at 16:17:03 10/20/13) He didn't get something wrapped tight on the FWA driveshaft and start the fire there did he? I know of a CaseIH that caught fire when it got frosted sorgum-sudan grass wrapped in it. I was cutting hay with my 1365 Oliver FWA this summer and had green hay wrapped so tight on that one that it was steaming.

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Don't know??? It's possible. Had a friend who took out the oil pan on his Magnum by getting hay wrapped around the front drive shaft a couple of years ago. Fire started down low, right side right about where the controls are for the loader.

Rick

I too have fire extinguishers in all my cab tractors and combine but if a fire stars my first thought would be to get the heck away from it. Who knows when the big flare-up might happen. And that's what I tell anyone who is helping me. Can replace a tractor but not someones eyes or their lives.

Rick, Cutting that swamp grass requires a sickle mower. Way to wet even with 4 wheel drive. To much drag, plus he should have looked the tractor over after using it to make sure no grass is wound around the drive shaft. JMHO LOU.

(quoted from post at 17:22:54 10/20/13) Rick, Cutting that swamp grass requires a sickle mower. Way to wet even with 4 wheel drive. To much drag, plus he should have looked the tractor over after using it to make sure no grass is wound around the drive shaft. JMHO LOU.

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LOU: He was plowing, trying to get a close to the edge as possible.. That white stuff in the pictures is snow, not foam. As far as grass or corn stalks around the shaft that's possible.

Guess tomorrow we will be putting my 1206 on the chopper and using it without the control box for now.

Rick

If any of my tractors caught fire in a field that it can't spread in I'd wait a few minutes to call 911 so I'd be good and sure it's burned beyond recognition by the time they got there. LOL. My newest one is 25 years old.

It's good no one was hurt. The tractor is just cold iron. I hope he gets a good settlement. I hope he can find a replacement without taking it in the shorts too much. Jim

Given the conditions that farm and construction equipment run under, EVERY machine needs to have a fire extinguisher on board. I don't know how many machines I've seen over the years that were burned to a total loss, but could have easily been saved within the first minute or two, IF the owner/operator had a fire extinguisher on hand. The way I see if, if your operating a machine that, by nature, stays full of flammable material (ie-leaves, straw, oil or fuel soaked dirt, etc) and you don't have a way to put out a fire, then your just asking for trouble.

Jim, from the sounds of it they (insurance company) are going to treat him right. Course if they don't they have problems. The adjuster is talking about 25-28K. Heck he called his insurance company on Thursday morning and the adjuster was there Friday morning. He's supposed to have firm numbers for them tomorrow sometime.

Rick

I respond to a lot of vehicles fires with my fire dept--keep low and upwind and you are much safer.

That's a heck of a good settlement for a tractor that age and color. (sorry AC guys, no offense)

About carrying an extinguisher and getting it out fast, over the 15 years I was on the harvest I was around, lessee, 21 combines, I think, and we never lost one to fire. We had plenty of fires, but we had water extinguishers and dirt shovels and young guys who could spring into action at a second's notice. Besides, it broke up the boredom!

The only time the crew lost one to fire was when it was stuck in the red mud in eastern Oklahoma and the field caught fire from a gas engine pickup's exhaust on a windy day. I hadn't started running with them yet at that time. That's the first thing I thought of when I saw your pictures. Jim

(quoted from post at 19:32:40 10/20/13) Given the conditions that farm and construction equipment run under, EVERY machine needs to have a fire extinguisher on board. I don't know how many machines I've seen over the years that were burned to a total loss, but could have easily been saved within the first minute or two, IF the owner/operator had a fire extinguisher on hand. The way I see if, if your operating a machine that, by nature, stays full of flammable material (ie-leaves, straw, oil or fuel soaked dirt, etc) and you don't have a way to put out a fire, then your just asking for trouble.

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I agree completely. The only problem with that is someone like my BIL would most likely seriously endanger themselves trying to save a piece of equipment. He has no formal training and really couldn't know when to stand and fight and when to back off and let it go.

Good example would be a tank fire in Germany. The tank, a M60A3 had a full combat load of ammo on board, including 53 main gun rounds. The engine let go and parts of the engine punctured a fuel cell. It lit up. Flames were leaping about 6-7 feet in the air through the rear deck grill doors. The fixed fire extinguishers failed to put out the fire. Our First Sgt ordered the crew to use the 5LBS portable (one per tank) to try to put out a fire being fed by about 300 gallons of diesel. A young NCO showed great testicular fortitude and refused to obey that order (he suggested the 1SG demonstrate just how to use the portable to put out the fire). Fortunately, (this happened in the German country side) the local German fire squad was able to get there in time and had foam. One guy, more concerned on how that fire would reflect on him was willing to risk 4 people or more to make himself look good making them do the impossible. One guy, more concerned with the welfare of his soldiers, prevented something that would have been really bad (he actually ask the 1SG to personally demonstrate putting that fire out) .

Too many guys who are running equipment out there have no training other than how to use an extinguisher. They lack the knowledge of when to walk away.

This fire on the tractor could have been dealt with had he had the means to extinguish the fire before it flared up. He's my BIL and a good guy. But being honest his tight you know what is what cost him. He has a combine and 3 tractors. He has one extinguisher and try's to put it on the most likely piece of equipment at the time cause he will not spend enough to put one on each tractor and the combine.

I'm just getting a start with farming and trying to mount one on each tractor, my combine and my round baler. I get one or two each month.

Rick

Well, insurance or not, had he had an extinguisher it likely would have been an easy save. His rates will go up now and he'll be paying for the new tractor for a long time. I'm no better than anyone else, and I'd probably not be man enough to fight a tank fire with live ammo on board, but I've put out dozens of fires with extinguishers, dirt, soda, snow, etc. Catch them early and you win.

BTW- kudos to any local FD that can get to a fire in just 14 minutes! Ours would take at least 20-25 at best. Our insurance rates reflect that. So, being the public spirited type I am I looked into forming a fire company up here. It would costs hundreds of thousands! Why? Because somehow OSHA and the national vol fire dept over seers, I forget the name, have managed to insert themselves into the mix and create regulations that make volunteer fire depts meet professional fire dept standards. Now, I'm all for safety and all that, but where's the sense in creating a situation where for all means and purposes no fire company can exist? Where's the safety in that? Same for local ambulance squads. The days of good men and women joining together, getting some basic training and holding the front line are gone. As a result, peoples lives and property are in danger because of over regulation. Makes a lot of sense to me! :evil:

(quoted from post at 15:12:28 10/20/13) I am glad no one was hurt. More than likely a electrical cab fire. You get stuck and have everything in a twist an some wire is rubbed and Puff.

If you could find a complete cab it would not be too bad of a repair job. The lower part of the tractor is not hurt at all. It surprises me that the tires are not even burnt.

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I got some fresh info on it today. The fire burned everything off of the engine that would burn/melt. The rubber hoses/belts are all burnt and the front axle has solder on it from the radiator.

Rick

When I was a temp at P&G in a wet lab we were told
that the fire extinguishers were to be used to
knock down the fire enough to escape. Fighting the
fire was the job of the plant fire brigade and
local Fire Department. We worked with some nice
materials, our store room had a special exterior
wall to blow out to protect occupants and the
building in case things went wrong.

The Biohazard signs on my lab doors meant I didn't
get many visitors. That and the fact that
perchloric acid labs blow up occasionally.