TnT question

[turkish]

I have a new to me MX with a factory TnT. At times I’ll need to use the 2 hydraulic rear remotes for a tilt/angle blade. Do I need to buy fixed/manual top and side links to use to free up the remotes, when using the blade? Or can I leave the TNT cylinders in place and just unplug the hoses and secure them safely out of the way? Tia

 

[JWR]

I'm not sure what all you mean by "unplug the hoses." If they are all quick disconnect of some typical flavor you will be able to operate for while with the hyd cylinders staying the same length. However, the seals will leak over time and the length of those cylinders will change. I think for overall satisfaction you will need to put the non-hydraulic links back in place while using the 2 remotes for other things.

 

[turkish]

That’s what I was after. Thanks. Buying it used, I didn’t get the original links…

 

[zzvyb6]

You risk blowing out a cylinder seal if an impact load comes along. Also end of travel reached can do it to. Top links are at every garage sale around hear. Try for a used one. You could also consider a chain to lock-out the cylinder (in extend mode). Be sure to cap the hose ends when not in use, dirt, chaff, leaking fluid will be an issue eventually.

 

[JWR]

That’s what I was after. Thanks. Buying it used, I didn’t get the original links…

The links are overpriced , especially through tractor dealers. You may be able to find ones that work at Tractor Supply much less expensive. Salvage yards too but those are harder to find.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

If your in the buying something mode ... Maybe buy a couple more remotes to add to what you already have?

 

[bdhsfz6]

I have a TnT kit on my MX5800 and frequently need the two remotes for other implements. For short duration use, I disconnect the hoses, cap them and use a bungee to store them out of the way. Most hydraulic hoses have a ball valve that seals them when they are disconnected. Some do not, so make sure yours have a valve before trying this.

Over time though, the cylinders tend to bleed down and lose their position. For long term or seasonal implement use, I remove the top link cylinder and use a fixed length link. I bought mine at Tractor Supply for about a third the cost of the OEM parts.

To avoid the hassle, I eventually added a third remote and ran hoses forward on the tractor so I could use the 3rd function valve as a 4th remote.

 

[Fallon]

I unplug my top link when using my snowblower. Have 3 remotes, generally TnT + 1 spare. Blower has hydraulic rotate & deflector tilt on the chute, so needs 2. You really don't need TnT for a blower. It works fine as long as I level the top link properly so the blower sits level before disconnecting it. The top link will stay fixed at the length you left it at unless something leaks somewhere. The QDs won't let oil out of the cylinder & oil on each end of the cylinder prevents it from extending or contracting.

 

[hayden]

I leave my top link on all the time, connected to one SCV.

The side link cylinder I now only install if I an using a rake or blade that I specifically want to tilt. All other times I switch back to a rigid like which happens to be the one that originally was supplied with the tractor. I found that for other implements that wanted to be level, the hydraulic side link was always drifting down and I was always hunting around trying to find level again. A fixed like solved that problem.

I also have three SCVs, which so far is all I have needed.

So I would start by getting a fixed link to use in place of the hydraulic side link. I'd probably spend the $$ on a factory link so the angles, lengths, hole sizes, and clearances are correct.

 

[JWR]

If your in the buying something mode ... Maybe buy a couple more remotes to add to what you already have?

That's expensive. Seems more practical to get the standard links to me.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

I don't remember what they are called but I have one factory on my Kubota L5030, it has a little hand crank, no wrenches needed ...

 

[bdhsfz6]

I leave my top link on all the time, connected to one SCV.

The side link cylinder I now only install if I an using a rake or blade that I specifically want to tilt. All other times I switch back to a rigid like which happens to be the one that originally was supplied with the tractor. I found that for other implements that wanted to be level, the hydraulic side link was always drifting down and I was always hunting around trying to find level again. A fixed like solved that problem.

I also have three SCVs, which so far is all I have needed.

So I would start by getting a fixed link to use in place of the hydraulic side link. I'd probably spend the $$ on a factory link so the angles, lengths, hole sizes, and clearances are correct.

I leave the hydraulic lift link on all the time. To compensate for bleed down, I use a manually adjustable lift link on the opposite side. I adjust it to match the length of the fully extended hydraulic link

 

[Shawn T. W.]

The links are overpriced , especially through tractor dealers.

Yup! Here is one for my Kubota L5030 ...

I paid $357 for the CAT 2 hydraulic top link in post # 11 from my local Massey Ferguson dealer, including the hose and ends!

 

[RobertN]

Wow! Tractor Supply has Cat 2 top links for $65...

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/countyline-adjustable-top-link-cat-2-288959

 

[JWR]

Somehow "I told you so" comes to mind...

 

[turkish]

I have a TnT kit on my MX5800 and frequently need the two remotes for other implements. For short duration use, I disconnect the hoses, cap them and use a bungee to store them out of the way. Most hydraulic hoses have a ball valve that seals them when they are disconnected. Some do not, so make sure yours have a valve before trying this.

Over time though, the cylinders tend to bleed down and lose their position. For long term or seasonal implement use, I remove the top link cylinder and use a fixed length link. I bought mine at Tractor Supply for about a third the cost of the OEM parts.

To avoid the hassle, I eventually added a third remote and ran hoses forward on the tractor so I could use the 3rd function valve as a 4th remote.

Mine is, I think a factory TnT system, and there are no valves that I see between the remote outlets and the cylinders. That may be an easy add-on, though. The manual top link from TSC is on my afternoon shopping list. The side link is the tough one.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Mine is, I think a factory TnT system, and there are no valves that I see between the remote outlets and the cylinders. That may be an easy add-on, though. The manual top link from TSC is on my afternoon shopping list. The side link is the tough one.

The "valve" is just a spring loaded ball in the tip of the male pioneer connector. Most have them. Just tap them with a block of wood to relieve the pressure.

 

[turkish]

The "valve" is just a spring loaded ball in the tip of the male pioneer connector. Most have them. Just tap them with a block of wood to relieve the pressure.

Ah. Gotcha. Makes sense.

 

[Fallon]

Control valves leak down over time. But if you unplug the QDs, unless they are leaking oil externally somewhere an unplugged cylinder won't leak down. When I put on my snowblower, it goes on for 4+ months. I don't have any noticable leak down.

When connected my TNT cylinders leak down a lot due to sloppy OEM valve clearances. The dealer actually had to swap out several valves they were so bad. They finally put a check valve on my tilt cylinder to stop leakdown. It breaks float, but stopped my leakdown. I use float a lot on my top link, so they put that on the best valve & I just live with it. 0 issues with leakdown when unplugged though.

 

[Henro]

I’m with Fallon.

A few thoughts from my perspective:

Generally leak down is caused by leakage in the control valves and not leakage in the cylinders themselves. This is because the control valves don’t use o-rings and depend on clearances between the spools and the housing. If you get lucky you will have minimum leak down. If you happen to get a valve that is on the loose end of the acceptable tolerance range you will get more leak down, even if you have the most perfect cylinders possible.

Another thing to consider is the orientation of the cylinders. When you have the hoses disconnected, there are two modes to consider. One is if the force on the cylinder rod is such as to want to push the rod into the cylinder. In this case when the rod goes into the cylinder oil must be displaced so that the rod can fit in the space that the oil is occupying. Otherwise the rod can’t go into the cylinder. Since your cylinders are not leaking in this mode they should be locked in position.

In the other direction, the forces tend to pull the rod out of the cylinder. It’s possible to pull a vacuum the cylinder so the cylinder rod can extend. I don’t know how much force would be required to cause that to happen; probably not a terribly large amount. Edit: what I just described only holds true if the seal at the piston is bad. If the piston seal is good then the rod will not extend, because the oil at the rod side of the piston has to go somewhere in order for the rod to extend. With no external leaks and a good piston seal, the cylinder locks in place just the same as if pilot operated check valves were used.

As far as shock load goes if you have the hoses disconnected from the cylinder, it seems to me that shock felt would be no greater than if you had the hoses connected to the cylinder. Other than due to some leakage through the control valve clearances the shock might be reduced slightly. But I imagine not significantly.