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Re: (ET) E12M - Tractor Pull

Title: Re: (ET) E12M - Tractor Pull
I have entered my E15 in two pulls over the years.  Both with poor results I’m sorry to say.  It was still a crowd pleaser though because most people have never seen an ET work.  I know that different areas have different types of pulls.  In Wisconsin we pulled a machine that has a skid pan at the draw bar end and wheels at the tail.  As you pulled, a weight would move from the wheeled end, towards the sled end which makes the machine tougher to drag along.  

Now for the problems.
  1. The ET (and I) are heavy which put me in a class with 16-20 hp tractors.
  2. Speed is you friend in this type of pull – you need to keep the sled moving to minimize friction.  This is a problem with an ET.  I tried my first pull in the lowest range.  The meter never got in the yellow but it was way too slow to keep the sled from sticking to the ground so I ended up spinning my wheels very early in the pull, even with the front wheels lifted off the ground.  The second pull was better in the second range, but I stripped hood of the tractor down to make the lowest weight class I could.  Problem with that is that you can’t add weight to the tractor where you want it. The meter was in the red at wide open throttle so I backed it down till it was at the high end of the yellow, again with the front wheels about a foot above the ground.  The farther I pulled the higher the wheels went.  The official stopped the pull for safety reasons, but I was still a long way from the leader’s distance.  I don’t think that you could pull in the 3rd range.
  3. I think that the ET would have easily pulled the winning tractor away in a back to back pull because then the ET’s torque would never allow the high powered tractor get the speed it needs to be effective.

I heard that E20s did well years ago but I never saw one pull.  

Here are some tips.
  1. Build a hitch that is as high as the rules allow.  This helps lift the sled and transfer weight to the drive wheels. Also keep it as close as possible to the rear wheels to have more control of the weight transfer.
  2. Make sure the drive belts are tight.
  3. Make sure that your battery connections are clean and secure.  You will have a high load them for a while.
  4. The E15 was light in the nose for both of my pulls.  I would add any weight that you could to the front of the ET.
  5. If you pull with turf tires, don’t get the tire pressure too low because the center of the tire will buckle up and you will only be pulling with the outside of the tires.
  6. Most important - do some testing by pulling a car or truck, with someone slowly applying the brakes on a similar surface as the track.  Block the chain down to the ground on the towed vehicle to mimic the action of weight transfer as the load increases.  Be prepared to pull the track distance.  I was looking at trying to pull 200’ and it seemed to take forever to get to down the track. You start wondering if you will trip a breaker or something.
  7. If I was going to do it again, I would go a bit wild and strip the tractor to get in the lightest class I could. Replace the 6 batteries with 3 (or 4) marine batteries. Take out the charger and lift.  Maybe alter the drive pulley size if I found myself wanting to be between ranges.

Good luck and keep us posted.
Dean A. Stuckmann


I’ve been encouraged to enter my E12M in a local garden tractor pulling contest this weekend in Longmont, Colorado.  

An E20 would be more fun to show off.  I’m a little worried how my ’12 might fare and would appreciate any tips or cautionary statements you guys might have.

Thanks,

-Dave