The hydraulic cylinder is 6" pin center to pin center when retracted and 12" when extended. It came off of the 54" JD snow blade I had on my 318 tractor. The same cylinder is used on the Quick Hitch for the 2305 front snow blower, sweeper, etc.
The 1/4" rod going through the center of the tines is there to try and catch a tine if it breaks. I figured with the dethatcher on the front the tine would be picked up by the mower deck and sent up the power flo unit for the material collection system. It will catch the tine if the bolt comes out, but that is unlikely since I'm using nylon lock nuts. I have an idea for tying the straight piece of the tine back to this rod which should cover a tine that breaks from fatigue.
The frame that holds the tines is 60" x 10". I used 1-1/2 x 1-1/2 x 1/8 box tubing for most of the pieces. The angles that hold tines are 1-1/2 x 1-1/2 x 1/8 - 57" long. The front push bar that mounts to the frame is 2 x 4 x 1/8 box tubing 30" long.
The brackets that attach the tine frame to the main frame are slotted. This allows me to loosen four bolts and adjust the height of the tines off the ground. Once I set the correct height I'll probably never change it again. I bought the John Deere 14T 24T 214 Baler Teeth online from The Smart Farmer.
The pneumatic casters are 6" diameter wheels that I bought from Northern Tools. The had a grease fitting on the caster bearing but nothing on the axle shaft. I drilled down the centers of each axle bolt with an exit hole in the middle of the wheel. I installed grease fittings on the bolt heads so now I can lube the axles.
