Hacker news

  • Top
  • New
  • Past
  • Ask
  • Show
  • Jobs

Demand Is Booming for New No Tech, Repairable Tractor (https://www.404media.co)

78 points by jay_kyburz 3 days ago | 24 comments | View on ycombinator

crabmusket 2 days ago |

I'd love to see an Oxide Computer Company but for tractors. Open source firmware and tooling, but in this case the design would have to focus on repairability, transparency, and use of easily replaceable components for compute and sensors, similar to how the mechanical components are chosen.

Oxide goes to great lengths to allow you to own your servers and operate them in an airgapped environment. Could a tractor be built to operate airgapped even with onboard tech? Or to be able to connect to a local base station over e.g. LoRaWAN instead of the cloud?

jqpabc123 3 days ago |

John Deere’s repair monopoly

I's not the technology itself that they object to --- it's the fact that it is being used (patents, DMCA, etc.) to rape them on repairs.

snypher 2 days ago |

>they went out and bought machinery from 1987 so that it wouldn’t have a computer on it

That's fine and all but Deere still carries parts for that 1987 tractor, so you can keep it running. Ursa will probably be gone in 10 years?; it doesn't matter how mechanical the system is if you can't get new parts anyways.

num42 2 days ago |

After reading the title, it reminded me of a high-tech bolt. I thought people were making even bolts more complicated, gradually finding ways to monetize them by integrating ads or unnecessary technology. Even bolts are becoming harder to use. It’s surprising to see that tractors are becoming less tech heavy now, as people prefer more usable and easy-to-repair technology again. MAKE ANALOG GREAT AGAIN(MAGA)!

SMART BOLT TECHNOLOGY:

https://smartbolts.com/

https://imbu.nl/projects/smartbolt/

undefined 2 days ago |

undefined

general1465 2 days ago |

You can look into Eastern Europe - i.e. Zetor is building relatively low tech tractors, but importing something like this into USA is going to be a pain

randycupertino 2 days ago |

Now do a no-tech highest quality repairable washing machine, no tech high-quality repairable refrigerator and no tech high quality HVAC!!