New tractor got slightly broken in today (and a quick attach question)

[Dukslayr]

I finally got my new tractor delivered a couple of weeks ago. The weather this winter as need awful and I’ve been holding off on taking delivery. I finally got out to drive it around a bit today and get a feel for it...well as much of a feel as you can get in a couple hours.

This is a 75 hp cab tractor with a cat II quick hitch, which is quite the change from my 38 hp open station Kubota. There’s certainly a totally different feel in the drivers seat of the new rig and I think I’m going to enjoy it a lot...albeit I’m going to need a lot more diesel fuel canisters. AC/heat, air ride seat and radio are going to make me want to spend all day on it.

Getting the hang of the quick attach 3 pt hitch is going to take a little getting used to but I think the hydraulic top link is going to be a huge benefit. I tried the new tiller up on some live sod just for the heck of it and it seemed to do a pretty nice job with the moisture we still have in the ground. Going to get some wheat and clover in the ground around the pond this weekend if all goes well.

One thing I realized is that it’s going to some modifying to get some of these old implements I inherited with the farm to work with the quick attach. Case in point is the ripper I have pictured below. The ripper is certainly CATII but definitely not directly compatible with quick attach. My top link on the hitch is a good 6-8” the ripper top link attachment point. I was thinking that I might have a machine shot cut me some strapping (2 pieces) about 8” long and attach one to each side of the hydraulic top link where it attaches to the quick hitch. I would leave them on there to use on things that are too far from my top link quick hitch connector. The other thought was having someone weld up a new hitch (I have no idea how to weld). You all ever been through this? What have you done that’s worked?

Also noticed that the old cat 1 disc harrow I have is too narrow to attach...going to need some longer pins or a new disc. Maybe I’ll just tell the wife I have no choice but to get a no-till drill this spring since my attachments no longer fit?! Fortunately she has no idea what that’s going to mean...

 

[kl9]

Nice machine. At 75 horse and that size frame I’d be using a disc. Save some time !


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[Dukslayr]

Nice machine. At 75 horse and that size frame I’d be using a disc. Save some time !


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No doubt! The tiller isn’t for routine use. I’ve got a 10’ hydraulic disc I’m fixing up for firebreaks and bigger plots that need dirt turned.

 

[Mortenson]

Ahh I can smell that freshly worked ground from here!

 

[yoderjac]

I played around with a quick-hitch and gave up on it. It worked fine for some implements but not for others. Instead, I built dollies for most of my implements and store them on the cement floor in my barn. On a dolly, I can position the equipment myself quite easily. For some pieces of equipment that are large and have no moving parts (like a box blade for example), I just hook them up by hand. Several things make this fairly easy for me. First, the arms on my hitch slide in and out so I have about 6" of in and out movement in each arm. Once connected, I just back up and they slide in and lock in place. The other thing I just love is my hydraulic top-link. This makes connecting top-link very quick.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Dukslayr]

I played around with a quick-hitch and gave up on it. It worked fine for some implements but not for others. Instead, I built dollies for most of my implements and store them on the cement floor in my barn. On a dolly, I can position the equipment myself quite easily. For some pieces of equipment that are large and have no moving parts (like a box blade for example), I just hook them up by hand. Several things make this fairly easy for me. First, the arms on my hitch slide in and out so I have about 6" of in and out movement in each arm. Once connected, I just back up and they slide in and lock in place. The other thing I just love is my hydraulic top-link. This makes connecting top-link very quick.

Thanks,

Jack

That sounds like a fantastic idea. Unfortunately I don’t have a square foot of concrete anywhere around my shop let alone a whole floor! Ultimately I’m hoping to just have a handful of attachments that are pre fab or I can somewhat easily make compatible with the quick attach. I am definitely glad that I spent the money on the hydraulic top link...seems like it’s going to be great for hooking up implements and easily adjusting the angle of ground contact depending on needs.

 

[yoderjac]

That sounds like a fantastic idea. Unfortunately I don’t have a square foot of concrete anywhere around my shop let alone a whole floor! Ultimately I’m hoping to just have a handful of attachments that are pre fab or I can somewhat easily make compatible with the quick attach. I am definitely glad that I spent the money on the hydraulic top link...seems like it’s going to be great for hooking up implements and easily adjusting the angle of ground contact depending on needs.

Yes, my solution may not be a fit for you. I'm just saying I went down the route you are going and gave up. I just could not adapt some implements that were not intended for it; especially old implements. I spent more time removing the quick-hitch for those than I did just hooking up directly to the 3-pt. A quick-hitch "seemed" like a good idea to me. I think with newer implements that are made for it, it may work better. After a while, I figured out how to position the tractor for the outdoor implements and the quick hitch didn't really save me any time. I've got two of them just sitting in my barn.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Dukslayr]

Yes, my solution may not be a fit for you. I'm just saying I went down the route you are going and gave up. I just could not adapt some implements that were not intended for it; especially old implements. I spent more time removing the quick-hitch for those than I did just hooking up directly to the 3-pt. A quick-hitch "seemed" like a good idea to me. I think with newer implements that are made for it, it may work better. After a while, I figured out how to position the tractor for the outdoor implements and the quick hitch didn't really save me any time. I've got two of them just sitting in my barn.

Thanks,

Jack

Jack -
I never had any issue hooking up implements to my old cat1 38 hp tractor. Most of the implements were small and I could slightly move them by hand in some cases (especially if they were on blocks). These CATII implements I have weigh a freaking ton. I do agree that positioning is everything though. Once I get them fixed up and operational I’m planning to prepare an area that’s setup for easy pickup up and drop off. The previously owner just left things all over the place, on side hills, close to trees, etc so I’m having to use the forks just to get them moved into a position to hook up to.

 

[j-bird]

I love the smell of freshly worked dirt! I won't be to that point for a month and a half yet... You mentioned the difference between cat 1 and cat 2 and you are absolutely correct. The weight difference and being able to "man handle" the smaller cat 1 stuff can be a big help. I also have lots of concrete floor that also helps if you can build some small wheeled carriers for stuff as well. That won't fly real well on gravel. I would suggest putting some 2X's under the tools to keep them up off the gravel as well...that will allow them to slide a little bit.

 

[Dukslayr]

I love the smell of freshly worked dirt! I won't be to that point for a month and a half yet... You mentioned the difference between cat 1 and cat 2 and you are absolutely correct. The weight difference and being able to "man handle" the smaller cat 1 stuff can be a big help. I also have lots of concrete floor that also helps if you can build some small wheeled carriers for stuff as well. That won't fly real well on gravel. I would suggest putting some 2X's under the tools to keep them up off the gravel as well...that will allow them to slide a little bit.

Creating a good implement storage area is my next priority. I’m planning to build a lean to adding in concrete blocks and/composite pallets to set stuff on and make it easier to hook up. I would also like to keep the stuff out of the direct elements as much as possible...which is probably much more important with some equipment than others. Fortunately there’s room for the tractor in my main shop right now...just not much room for big attachments.

 

[j-bird]

Creating a good implement storage area is my next priority. I’m planning to build a lean to adding in concrete blocks and/composite pallets to set stuff on and make it easier to hook up. I would also like to keep the stuff out of the direct elements as much as possible...which is probably much more important with some equipment than others. Fortunately there’s room for the tractor in my main shop right now...just not much room for big attachments.

LEVEL surface for both the tractor and the implement can not be over stated. Nothing is a bigger PITA than when the tractor is sitting in a different plane than the implement. Even with a quick hitch it can create problems...especially with bigger stuff that you can't push around. Even if I have to let stuff sit outside. I use 2X4 to keep it up off the ground and then try to cover with a heavy tarp. Blades and plows I don't worry about...but anything with some sort of a rotating assembly (bearings) needs to be protected as well as possible from the elements to ensure they have a long life for you. I know concrete is $$$ but it's a wonderful asset. Build some carriers for that equipment and with a concrete floor and things become far easier to store and move around as well. You don't have to have tractor access to everything or be hitching and un-hitching to shuffle things around.

 

[John-W-WI]

I have had the same battle you are going through right now. I tried a quick hitch, it didn't fit much of what I had. Took it back.

So I honestly gave up and picked one of my implements (3 point tiller) as my "standard" width. And I'm slowly modifying everything 3 point to match that spacing. I understand it isn't practical for everyone to modify their implements but it was my solution:



-John

 

[buckdeer1]

I use the one piece quick hitch and haven't had any issues,do you have pics of dollys

 

[yoderjac]

There are some pics of my dollies on this thread: http://www.habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/pole-shed.7052/

 

[John-W-WI]

There are some pics of my dollies on this thread

Jack,

Based on that thread I bought a bunch of dollies from HF. I haven't yet used them to move implements around, but they sure come in handy. We use them all the time for moving snowmobiles, sheets of plywood, etc. They turn a 2 man job into a 1 man job. Very useful

-John

 

[yoderjac]

Jack,

Based on that thread I bought a bunch of dollies from HF. I haven't yet used them to move implements around, but they sure come in handy. We use them all the time for moving snowmobiles, sheets of plywood, etc. They turn a 2 man job into a 1 man job. Very useful

-John

The other thing this does for me is allow for efficient indoor storage of implements. I certainly don't store all my implement this way. Implements that are just steel like plow, box blade, rear blade, etc. just sit outside. Depending on the implement, I'll often block them up when I disconnect them so I don't have to lift them. I like to keep implements that have gear boxes and such indoors. This would include my seed drill, bushhogs, finish mowers, broadcast spreader, tiller, sprayer, and such. I could never afford to build a barn that was large enough for me to keep these implement in place and back the tractor up and hook up to them. However, with the dollies, I can store them tightly together on one side of the barn. When I need an implement, I simply back into the doorway of the barn, wheel the implement over to the tractor, and hook it up. I reverse the process when I'm done.

This is also great for equipment maintenance in the winter. When I want to work on an implement, I simply roll it into the bay. If I need to lift it for the particular maintenance, I simply hook it up to the 3-pt hitch and lift it. For some things like changing tiller tines, I use the FEL on the tractor to lift it off the dolly and just set it back down when I'm done.

As you say, John, dollies can make a 2 many job into a 1 man job and I work by myself more often than I have help.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[buckdeer1]

I made some dollys like you showed and even made one out of a solid oak door that I got for free.I did come across 2 48x48 inch solid metal with super heavy duty casters for 50.00 each and these work great,still have build some handles