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Grader Blade Stirrups


Dutch

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Just finished making stirrups for the serrated grader blade. Used exact OEM specs. Just added height to compensate for the relocated holes. Photo is my 10 year old grandson in the driver’s seat. Notice his feet easily reach the stirrups. That should confirm the rumor started by the FDC that grader blades are uncomfortable to use on RBTs is without merit.
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Herb, My what a hansome lad, spitting image of you. I know I wouldnt put kids faces on the net either...what wont you think of next, Are you logging your shoptime hours, manalive your busy. But, do you guys really stand on the blade? Doug
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Nice job, but... The acronyms have me a bit confused -- if RBT is running-board tractor, what is the "C" in FDC? Foot-dragging connoisseur?? So, are you going to be placing another order for blades?
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Kent, FDC = Foot Draggin' Crowd. I thought you were the president of that group!? Doug, I've been burning the midnight oil since that tooth was pulled. The FTC may like standing on blades, I don't. Wife said, "No grandbabies' faces on the net". She gave me one of her "special" stares, so I knew to keep my mouth shut.
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Nope. I'm not president of anything that I can recall... I'm just trying to figure out why all this engineering of weights and stirrups and stuff is required -- couldn't you just unbolt the running boards and overcome that design flaw? Sounds like an awful lot of work just to overcome the fact that running boards are getting in the way.... ;<)
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Kent, I’m astounded! As a high ranking military officer I would have thought you’d be well versed in ergonomics. Designers of modern aircraft consider pilots’ comfort an important factor in alertness, safety, and performance. Apparently engineers at Simplicity also embraced that philosophy many years ago. Full length footrests reduce muscle fatigue and cramps common with stirrup-sized footrests. Stretch your legs out or sit up -- whatever feels best to you. Those may be my thoughts, but they are not my words. Check it out. If anyone wants to jump up and down, or stand on sharp scarifiers as they grade, far be it from me to stop them. Personally, letting the machine do the work as I relax in comfort makes more sense to me. Therefore, weights and running boards is what I prefer.
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Yep, I understand ergonomics and fatigue... my wife was a human factors engineer (called an Engineering Pyschologist -- talk about an oxymoron!) in the Aeronautical Systems Division of the old Air Force Systems Command, doing acceptance testing on aircraft and other systems.... A thickly-insulated, hard-side cab with thermostatically controlled air-conditioning and stereo speakers playing "Muzak" softly in the background would also greatly increase comfort and reduce fatigue -- but it would certainly get in the way.... so I think I'll defer on that one, too. It would make it too hard to reach out and grab a cold drink as I drove by ... since my old tractors don't have cup-holders either.... ;<) Kent
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Kent, Whew! Glad to know you up on that stuff. I started to worry. Hey! Like I stated, what you do off-duty is your business. If you like to use your legs & feet to operate your B-model, or jump up & down on a grader blade, that's okay with me. Heck, I don't even care if you fly around in a "Jenny" when off duty. I was just concerned you were opposed to modern equipment when there was serious work to be done. Contact........ Contact
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Yep, different strokes for different folks, or different pieces of equipment... For example, the new jets may have INS, GPS, autopilot, "glass cockpits", "fly-by-wire", and all kinds of precision targeting/navigation via infrared, laser, TV or GPS -- I still wouldn't want to be ANYWHERE CLOSE if you tried crop-dusting with one.... Biplanes are still in use daily for some of that work... some designs are just very hard to improve upon, that's why new air-cooled VW Beetles are still being made in both Brazil and Mexico.... ;<) Kent
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Kent, Don't know what you guys use in "Frontier Land", but in Jersey the crop dusters who can't afford helicopters use MODERN biplanes. I'm told that two wings give addition lift, but that's the ONLY similarity to the old "Jennys". Everything else is state of the art electronics and computerized. Air cooled VW Beetles are still made in Brazil & Mexico? Interesting, very interesting. Can’t say I'm surprised, aren't they more or less 3rd world countries? Most American consumers moved on years ago to air conditioned, automatic transmission, 4 wheel drive, SUV behemoths. I can still remember seeing Beetle drivers in the old days. It was comical to watch them hunting for gears, with their tongues hanging out, gasping for a breath of fresh air on a 100 degree day. Some Beetle owners would laugh at me because I used 5 gallons of 35 cent per gallon gas to their 2 gallons. I justified my “wild” spending because I’d rather spend an extra $1 to drive 60 miles in smooth, quiet, air-conditioned power equipped luxury listening to stereo music rather than the roar of a hot noisy rear mounted engine. You’re absolutely right…… different strokes for different folks.
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So, Massachusetts is still on the frontier, huh... Frontier of a socialized-democratic form of government, perhaps... Yep, and about all the maintenance or service the typical owner could do for one of those new, modern SUVs is change the oil, the spark plugs and perhaps the plug wires... everything else requires a new, computerized piece of test equipment or special tools... so they pay someone else to do it. Try fixing all those electronics and "power gadgets" 30 years from now... Meanwhile as it appraches 40 years old, my '64 Beetle probably has over 350,000 miles on it as best I can tell (around 250,000 that I'm sure of).... and with the sunroof back it's still a pure blast to drive through the countryside on a nice spring or fall day.... Bet you didn't or don't appreciate convertible sports cars either.... I, for one, was glad to see the Miata revive the genre of "classic, open two-seater" and now we even have new 2-seater Thunderbirds for those who prefer freeway cruisers over sports cars.... If you ever want to have some serious fun, test drive a new Honda S2000 on a curvy road with the top down on a sunny spring or fall day... even with all it's modern electronics, it still has a push-button starter like my '53 VW! Maybe some of the attraction is nostalgia.... ;<)
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Kent, Oh my God! I forgot YOU were a Beetle owner! Hey, I always thought they were very interesting autos. Even Hitler liked them. The "People's Car" should feel right at home in socialized Massachusetts. A true piece of history you have there. Hang onto it.
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