Attaching implements

[roller]

Using the standard 3-point linkage,how long does it take you to attach lets say a 'brush hog' i'm new to the tractor scene and it seems to take me ages to get things correct and set up.

I am the owner of a kioto ck30 ,the linkage has extendable lower likage arms ,should these arms be pushed in before i try and adjust the sway bars??.

The dealer i bought the tractor from told me ,with 3-point linkage i would be able to attach implemants in just a few minutes ,i think he was being economical with the truth !!.. /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

 

[beenthere]

It will get easier as the number of times you do increases.

I used a 4' pipe as a leverage tool to hook my rotary cutter up, and would hook up the lower arms first, then the PTO, and then finally the top link.

Now I just hook up with the quick hitch (iMatch in my case). That is when it gets quicker. But with your sliding extended arms, that should help a bit getting the lift arms connected.

I wouldn't adjust any sway bars until everything is hooked up and locked in place.

 

[roller]

IMO the whole 3-point linkage system seems a bit long in the tooth not to mention hard work, i'm beginning to wish i'd bought a toolcat !!..somedays i intend to put 3 or more differant implements on my tractor /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

I am new to tractor ownership so it might be me with the problem ,though looking at the thread about the 'Pats easy change system' i don't think so..

 

[Bob_Skurka]

Extendable lower links are not what they are cracked up to be! I know because I use them. I also use Pat's Easy Change. I've also used several tractors with nothing but traditional ball eyes. Never used a Quick Hitch, but I suspect if your implements match it, it would be the best choice.

What I found by switching to Pat's is that I have all the skin on my knuckles. I don't need a pry bar (beater bar) to 'adjust' the location of the implement. I no longer 'teach' my daughter new combinations of swear words. The emergency room doctors no longer call me by my first name because I frequent their services.

 

[wushaw]

I have found my TnT helps tremendiously.

 

[BB_TX]

After a lot of real time practice and learning, I can hook up my rotary cutter in less than 2 minutes, using a 4 foot 2x6 as a persuader. After doing it a few times, you can back up and drop the lift arms on the pins within a couple inches of alignment. Then it is just a gentle nudge on the deck with the 2x6. I don't have any kind of quick attach system.

 

[Dartagnan]

I have a NH TC30, no extendable arms, use a rubber mallet to knock the arms onto the pins, use a piece of pipe to nudge the brush hog. The best thing I've found to speed things up is to find a "level" place to park things. Level being where the impliment and tractor are in the same plane side to side.

The mallet stays with the tractor always, handle slips right down into the valve mount on the mast, so it's always there when I need it.

The pipe stays in the parking area.

All of my impliments have their own hitch pins and toplink pins, so I never have to worry about dropping one during the move between.

On the hog I always hang the PTO shaft with the sleeve's chain to keep it out of the dirt, making this a habit will keep you from driving off with half the shaft still on the tractor /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

I also have about 5 pounds of shear bolts on hand, it's a long way to the nearest store, and it's usually sunday to boot.

First time I tried to hook up the mower I had to remove the landscape rake first and it took me close to an hour all told. Now 18 months later I can switch in about ten minutes.

One other thing, you will want to find someplace to hang/store the PTO cover from the tractor while hog is on, I've ran over two because they just naturally migrate to the top of the back tire while you're manhandling the PTO shaft.

Welcome to the world of tractors, and TBN, the international/interbrand help desk.

Dart

 

[Nat]

Maybe I'm from a different school, but when hooking up to any implement, I just back up close and reach behind me and slide the first lower arm on the pin and then back up, or pull up, as the case may be till the other lower arm is in the right position and reach back and slide it on. I then raise the lift a little to hold them in place and lock the brakes and get off and hook the PTO, and toplink. No cheater bar required, and I have been doing it that way since I was a boy, 40 years or more. HTH, later, Nat

 

[flusher]

Sort of depends on where you're doing the attachin'.

If you store your implements on the bare ground or in the weeds, lotsa luck. In that case the tractor is the easily-moved object and you're in for a learning experience as you try to get those lower arms aligned.

If you leave the implements on a concrete floor (garage, barn, driveway, etc), consider investing a little time in building a few dollies. Makes the hookup work a lot easier since it's the implement that's the movable object in that case.
I have dollies for my brushhog, box blade and am making a gantry-type dolly for my rototiller. Be sure to use swivel casters with metal wheels. I get them for $3.50 at Home Depot.

 

[OkieG]

Like Nat, I move the tractor a tiny amount to line up the first lift arm, attach it, then move the tractor to line up/ attach the second lift arm, then the PTO and top link last. With an hydraulic top link it usually takes a couple minutes to attach a brush hog. No "persuader" is used. A threaded top link may take an extra minute.

When the lift arm ball is on the end of the brush hog lift pin, moving forward slightly will often move the lift arm all the way onto the pin. WD 40 and some practice helps.

OkeiG

 

[rswyan]

I recently picked up a Speeco Quick Hitch from TSC ...... possibly the best $200 I've ever spent. I already had a hydraulic toplink ..... between the two, hooking up is generally a piece of cake.

 

[FL_Cracker]

I set up everything with the Freedom Hitch and it was the best thing I ever did. I use it on everything but my scrape blade without a problem. Scrape blade is just to hard on the Freedom hitch and will bend it if it gets caught on a big rock or something. Here are the items I have tried and works good.

6' Rotary Cutter
90" Finish Mower
Chipper, 6" Wallinstein
6' Landscape Rake
6' Box Blade
600lb. Fertilizer Spreader

I also have hydraulic TNT and that helps a lot. Now I only have to get off the tractor for the drive shaft. No hand adjusting the top link, no beating the pins in place, no pry bars, NO HAMMER~YESSS

The whole 3PH system needs improving but no body will make any big changes in fear that they won't be accepted in the market. Look at how long it took Bobcat to become the standard on the front.

Charles

 

[RedRocker]

roller, if you have both lower arms on the pins, you can jog the tractor back till they click in the locked position. Then you hook up your top link. If I had a lot of implements and did as many changes as you do, I'd look into a quick change system. I only have two, so it's not an issue for me.

 

[TiminMN]

Try setting the implement on some old tires. It keeps them off the ground and makes wiggling them better.

 

[RalphVa]

I put the brush hog on castors that are attached to the bottom of a 1 by that fits underneath the front of the brush hog. This made it a fairly easy connection vs. a work-at-it one. Attach non-adjustable arm, then adjustable one, remove castors, attach top chain and then PTO. Then adjust the right arm so that the brush hog is level. Then adjust the sway links tight and center the brush hog (of course, these have to be loosened before hooking up). It isn't a fast procedure.

Putting the drawbar or the row maintenance equipment on is fairly easy, even without them being on castors.

Used to curse the effort disconnecting and connecting an implement to the Gravely (these are just attached to the PTO with 4 bolts but generally require balancing the tractor front-to-back, etc.). Not too much difference in effort.

Ralph

 

[Youare]

I don't have a quick hitch system and I don't have a brush hog but i do change from a rear blade to a york rake and a Farmi winch quite frequently.

Having a level spot is helpful but not necessary. Backing up straight to the immplement is very helpful if the immplement is hard to move by hand.

I get the lower arms as close to the pin locations as possible. The side that is not adjustable for height gets connected first. If it is the rear blade or rake that is being connected I will connect the top link at this point. Adjusting the top link can move the immplement in or out to line up the second bottom arm along with the height adjustment to get it on the pin.

Having the sway adjustments loose helps move the bottom arms to the side so they connect easier. Unless I am in a hurry things usually connect pretty good.

Randy

 

[BB_TX]

<font color="blue"> I just back up close and reach behind me </font>
This method obviously depends on the size of the tractor. I would need 6 foot long arms to be able to reach back and hook mine up while still seated.

 

[have_blue]

Roller,


I used to back the tractor up to the implement, and it took a good amount of time and muscle to swap them out.

I installed 2 removable caster wheels on the front of my brush hog, and attached casters on the corners of a wooden pallet to roll my disk harrow around. The implement glide easily into position as long as my floor is clean. A bonus is the implements are easy to stow out of the way.


It takes about 20-30 minutes to back the tractor in and swap. However, that's a leisurly 20-30 minutes, with no hammering, straining, sweating, or swearing. Everything pretty much lines up from the start.

 

[tjkadar]

In a single day I can go from box blade, to brush hog, to drag, to arena conditioning tool, to disc without much trouble or fuss. I just back the tractor up to the implement in a low gear, hook the lower part of the 3 pt first, then the PTO shaft (if there is one), and then the top link. Once everything is secure, I'll move to the concrete aisle of the barn to make sure the anti-sway is even and the implement level. Doesn't take much time at all.

If I'm hooking up something big and heavy, like the disc or rotary cutter, I'll back up to where I think I need to be and drop the front end loader, toothbar first, into the ground. If I need to move forward or back a hair, I just use the front end loader to ease that inch or two. Most times, I don't have to worry about it.

I've gotten pretty good at eyeballin' where the tractor needs to be in relation with the implement. I usually don't even use the extendable lower links.

Of course, now that I've said that I'll be cursed with never getting an implement on easily again.

 

[N80]

When I first tried to hook up my rotary cutter, my initial impression is that this thing isn't going to fit on this tractor. After about 30 minutes I had it on. I can do it now in 5-10 minutes.

I back the tractor up to the cutter and get the left lower link lined up as close as possible. Then I hop down and can usually shove it into place with my foot. Then I lift the cutter a tiny bit and can then shove it around with my foot to get the right lower link aligned. I never have level ground, but the right link has a screw adjustment on it and I can finely adjust the height that way. Once the two bottom links are hooked up the top link and PTO are very simple.

I'm very paranoid about the PTO so I take the extra step to actually shut the tractor off before hooking it up.