ROPS ROPS ROPS YOU DON'T WANT TO DIE!
But get a rollbar! My buddy flipped his when a ramp scooted out getting off the trailer. I think his ROPS may have saved his life. The #1 killer of tractor operators used to be squashes by rollovers. Hence the law for ROPS. I know for farm tractors they are required by law.
I know what you mean but these micro machines don't always come with a inbuilt ROPS, my half tonner does not and whilst I could fit some sort ROPS the next problem is seat belts.
Yes I can fit seat belts to the machine but I find that safe operation is just as good and being prepared to exit the machine on the best side. There are loads of operators who use machines and not fasten the seat belt, leaving them in more danger of being thrown from the machine and crushed by the ROPS, happened to a cousin of mine who was an inexperienced forklift driver, now he has a crushed leg and suffers 24/7.
Sure I'd love to have a nice safe, air conditioned cabin with a wireless but in the micro class it's not going to happen anytime soon but give the Japanese some time and they'll probably fit a cabin to a 500kg-1000kg class ex, with DVD player. However this would make the micros less versatile.
And tell your buddy that it is necessary to secure the ramps to wherever they are attached, as you would know it is very easy for an ex to have track stopped and the other to turn, end result is it is going to spit out one ramp, leaving the operator to look like this
On my ramps I drilled a couple of holes on the back of the ute tray and use high tensile bolts to secure the ramps to the tray, I throttle the machine right back and go up very slowly. When I use my ramps to up stairs and such I use heavy duty tie downs to secure the ramps, sure it takes a bit longer to do the job safely but it's quicker than a extended stay in hospital or worse.