why do draw bar hitches have side-side play?

[dmay]

Just a curiousity question but why is it that tractor frame mounted draw bar hitches permit side-side play? Everywhere else in the towing world a hitch with play would be a bad thing requiring replacement. Why standard on tractors? Must be by design but why?

 

[kebo]

I think it's to give a little bit of leeway when pulling farm trailers that have the pivoting front axle. For instance, if one of the front tires on the trailer hits a small stump, it lets the axle (and hence the trailer tongue) jump over just a bit.

That's the best reason I can come up with, will be interested in what others say.....

 

[Egon]

Allows for offsetting towed implement's.

Usually the draw bar is pinned in place for pulling wagons. Makes for much easier backing up.

 

[Mace Canute]

A swinging drawbar allows the operator to offset the path of the drawn implement. A good example of where this might be needed is pulling a plow...you don't want the tractor tires to be half in and half out of the furrow when the plow is positioned correctly to take the right amount of cut.

 

[rockinmywaypa]

I was able to roll over hay windrows with a rollabar rake by swinging the hitch right over to one side. This allowed me to keep the tractor tires off the windrow and still be able to flip the row once over instead of having to roll it a couple times to get from centre to end.

 

[John_in_TN]

Allowing the drawbar to swing also provides a better pulling angle for turning heavy loads - like turning around with a drag-type disk that is still cutting during the turn.

 

[beenthere]

In the older days of pulling ag tilling equipment, the swinging drawbar was necessary to help make a turn. After much of the equipment became attached to the 3ph, the swinging bar was not as necessary.

Pulling a combine, baler, and other row-crop harvesting equipment, swinging the drawbar to one side gave some offset to line up to hay windrows, and corn rows. Moving to the other side, allowed better tracking to go down the road.

 

[SandburRanch]

To road a piece of equipment from one field to another the bar was pinned so it wouldn't swing. When you arrived at the next field and socked it in the dirt it was evident something was wrong when attempting to turn the first corner. That's when one said to self, ya dummie, ya forgot to unpin the draw bar.

 

[Verticaltrx]

Also a swinging draw bar is beneficial when pulling drawn implements on a side hill. You can adjust the draw bar to compensate for side draft to keep the tractor/implement tracking straight.

 

[JoeinTX]

Thus, pulling a towed implement through a field or pasture is not like pulling a trailer down a paved road. Totally different.

Everyone above hit on one or all reasons for the swinging drawbar. We use to swing the drawbar out to pull one-way plows while bringing it back to center for drilling. Some loads you want off-center, others need to be in direct center.

The advent of the mounted implement over the last 30 years has decreased use of the drawbar and need for adjustment, but, by no means completely.

 

[Soundguy]

mace and egon nialed it. it can 'swing' and should be pinned in place to allow for offset towing.

soundguy

 

[Egon]

The advent of the mounted implement over the last 30 years has decreased use of the drawbar and need for adjustment, but, by no means completely.

Use of the swinging draw bar will almost have gone out of fashion for larger equipment. The fixed drawbar is in for those using large tractors and implements.

 

[dmay]

I'm guessing from the replies that BIG tractors must have a large range of side-side motion for their drawbar and that you must be able to pin it, set at different angles. Guessing again this might be a left offset-center-right offset positions.

Totally not the case on my JD2320. The drawbar has a side-side ~1/8" of play. Makes no sense to me what this play serves. :confused2:

 

[beenthere]

dmay
You don't have a swinging drawbar. Just a drawbar that has a little play, and will shorten or lengthen.

The "play" is just it being loose enough, so when you adjust the length, it will slide and not be tight.

There really IMO is no more "play" than a trailer hitch that has an insert receiver. And yes, it can rattle a bit.

 

[Soundguy]

ditto that. less than 1/8" of play and if it gets a lil rust or imperceptable bow.. or a couple extra coats of paint over the years and it will be hard to adjust.. etc.

soundguy

 

[rockinmywaypa]

The reason it adjusts lengthwise is so that you can operate a pto powered implement with the nuckles set so that they don't tighten up and vibrate. The hinge point at the drawpin should be halfway between the jointed nuckles on the pto for best operation.

 

[Marveltone]

Another benefit for a swinging draw bar is PTO shaft clearance. My snow thrower sits low enough that the shaft outer sleeve rubs on the draw bar. If I swing it to either side, I have plenty of clearance.

Joe

 

[SixHoeBob]

The draw bars are designed for a loose fit, so that they can be adjusted or removed easily. Anytime there is a possibility of the PTO shaft coming close to contacting the draw bar, I remove the draw bar. I would rather remove the draw bar, than buy a new PTO shaft.

 

[RoyJackson]

Soundguy nailed it. These aren't precision pieces of machinery and there is no good reason for a machined fit. That would just make it harder to use with no gains in functionality.

 

[tessiers]

Towing with any drawbar not pinned is a recipie for disaster, the last thing you want is an implement with a 2' head start on the tractor. Thing will get broke and people will get hurt. The drawbar needs to be pinned left right or in the middle. The offset is siply to align implements with wheels. Baler should be offset right for baleing and left for road travel for example. They are mostly obsolete with the newer implements, most have swinging hitches nowadays.