"I Built My Own Tractor Cabs"

"I Built My Own Tractor Cabs" TRACTORS Cabs 30-6-11 "I own and operate a mowing and lawn service and custom snow removal business. Last winter I decided to build a cab for my 1988 Deere 332 garden tractor and also for my 2001 Deere 425 garden tractor. They both turned out great," says Dale Rivinius, Lemmon, S. Dak. Both cabs are built out of tubular steel and sheet metal, with plexiglass windows. They're insulated with foamboard and both cabs are heated. Rivinius built a cowling for each tractor that surrounds the engine compartment and circulates the heat back into the cab. The cabs have great visibility and there's a sliding rear window to provide ventilation. "My total cost for each tractor was about $500 including labor," says Rivinius. "I use these tractors all the time for snow removal, with a front-end loader on the 332 model and a dozer blade on the 425 model. "Both cabs stay nice and warm inside. In fact, sometimes it can get so hot inside that I can hardly stand it. "In the spring I remove both cabs from the tractors. It's an easy job. The cab on the 332 comes off with four bolts, and on the 425 with six bolts." On the 425 model, the front window is hinged and can be flipped open for access to the engine. To make the sliding rear window, Rivinius used a house window that just happened to exactly fit the cab opening. The window is split vertically so that one half is screen and the other half plexiglass. "If I were to build another cab I'd use Lexan because it's a lot stronger and isn't as likely to crack or get scratches in it. However, it's also more expensive," notes Rivinius. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dale Rivinius, Dale's Tilling & Mowing Service, 305 4th Ave. E., Lemmon, S. Dak. 57638 (ph 701 376-7006 or 605 490-0713).

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