I always stand off to the side a little, making sure that my side, leg, etc, are out of reach of the crank. That way, if she kicks back, the only thing the crank can possibly hit is my inside hand.And, of course, I never, EVER wrap my thumb around the crank. (Nor do I wrap my thumbs around the steering wheel when traveling over very rough ground.) I note from the above that someone was cranking a Fordson. I assume this was the original series Fordson which came out in 1918. These could easily kick back because, IIRC, they used a manual spark advance like Model T Ford. Not much more dangerous than hand-cranking an ordinary tractor IF you remember to retard the spark control ALL the way; deadly if you don't. I've hand-cranked two tractors, a two-cylinder John Deere MT (horizontal cylinders, cranked conventionally) and my current Super C. I do it only in exremis. I guess I hand-cranked the old MT maybe five times and the Farmall twenty or so. I've yet to experience a kick-back. I'm not looking forward to it. If I can just remember to stick a charger on it every now and then if I'm not going to run the tractor for a while, maybe I won't!
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