Why am I destroying tail wheel forks?????

[dirttoys]

When I got my first 3 point shredder, I noticed immediately that 'something ain't right'. The shredder's connection to the tractor 3 point was rigid. What I call a standard, rigid, pyramid. As other have mentioned, there needs to be give when the shredder tail wheel rises.

So many others here have mentioned removing your toplink. Poor suggestion in my eyes. You did not buy a hydraulic top link, or even a manual one to be taking it off and on. In my situation, it was only the shredder that had a problem so I modified my shredder. Each one that I have owned. On mine there were two steel bars that extend from the top link connection point to the back of the shredder. For each of these bars, I cut out approximately 2 feet. In their place I added a heavy (3/8") chain. You can either drill and bolt the ends to the remaining bar or you can weld. Be careful to make sure the length of each 'bar+chain' are equal in length. This way your toplink does what you want it to do and never has to be removed.

This would absolutely work if you found it to be less effort than sub-ing in a chain top link.

 

[ruffdog]

Here is a thread about using a chain as a top link.

Chains instead of a top link for bush hog?

 

[Midniteoyl]

You are expecting Finishing Mower height from a Bush Hog. It should be 5-6" off level ground .
Carry most of the weight with the 3PH. Tail Wheel off the ground most times.

Um, thats exactly what he's doing... and it's wrong, thus the destroying of the wheels.

 

[dirttoys]

Um, thats exactly what he's doing... and it's wrong, thus the destroying of the wheels.

Bingo

 

[4570Man]

I take the top link off when I bushhog. I have chains on the cutter but I have to adjust the top link way out to stop pulling the back end of the cutter off the ground so it’s easier to just take it off.

 

[Henro]

So I fixed it after work today and got to looking at it & just don't see how to use a chain in place of toplink????? How do you adjust the front-to-back angle? Or do you run the toplink in and just use a section of chain from it to the bush hog? Almost seems like you'd have to jack up the rear to attach/disconnect the bush hog or else have such a long chain it isn't doing anything except keeping the rear of BH from dropping like if you backed over a drop-off or something, but on level ground it would be slack? Feel dense, but couldn't picture how it works.'

Also I have top & bottom holes where the toplink attaches to tractor. I had the non-working hydraulic toplink in top hole tied up and the standard one in the bottom hole. Could that have been part of problem too having toplink attached at lower hole? I removed the hyd one tonight & put the regular one back up top.

I remember the instructions for my woods brush hog said to set up the mower with the rear wheel on the ground.

The rear wheel has an adjustability feature, to raise and lower it. You set the wheel position for the height you want the back of the mower to be at, and then set the three point hitch arms for the height you want the front to be at.

The top link is not part of the set up procedure at all, from what I remember.

I think an issue in this thread is that some do not realize that the top link plays a different role with a brush hog than it does with a back blade or a box blade.

In my limited experience the top link is only needed when one wants to lift the brush hog off the ground for transport.

(Although I have used my hydraulic top link to hold the brush hog in position, and even to lower it somewhat on an angle over a creek bank. Otherwise the top link is always in float position. )

 

[WranglerX]

Another thread on how to set up BH...

Bush hog setup

Hey y'all, I'm running into an issue setting up my new to me John Deere 513 bush hog. Paid 675$ for it, get it home to fin banged up dull blades, gearbox dry, and the top link bars not fixed to the supports. Added some 00 grease, ground and sharpened blades, but the problem I'm having is...

www.tractorbynet.com

 

[GoatHerd]

An old timer told me to keep the front of the deck slightly lower than the back, where the grass discharges. This helps the grass discharge and keeps the tail wheel in solid contact with the ground most of the time. I've done that for ages and have never had any problem with the tail wheel or the forks. And yes, plenty of lube is always good policy.

 

[ning]

I use a hydraulic top link and have it adjusted for maximum slop while mowing most of my field, but I can tighten it up to suspend the mower and then gently dip it into blackberries that are growing on the side of my pond and the pond dam. There are big rocks in some spots so I can't just let it dip uncontrollably; I'm aware that the top link limits how far *up* the mower can go so if I'm backing it up a steep bank I keep an eye on the flex link of the mower.

 

[composter55]

This is far-fetched, but possible: I bough a very used Howze 5' unit, and it was my first exposure to brush cutters. I constantly had trouble with it, then tore it up! As I replaced the wheel, I realized the frame had been assembled backward, and the "caster effect" was also working against me. If was was going forward, the wheel wobbled badly. After changing the frame mount, all was well! So, it wasn't just my ignorance!