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Tractor Tow Hitch


Roy

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Attached pictures are tow hitch I made to tow tractors. The "U" channel fits beneath the front axle. Note the recycled bicycle training wheel bracket. "U" channel swivels for turns but does not self-level. Got this idea from a similar rig someone posted here earlier. Can tow FDT's with trailer hitch ball in place. Have to remove the ball to tow a RBT. Picked up the rear of my 7013S so I know the hydro lift will work. Think I can remove the "U" channel and use a pin in place of the channel to pick up tractors from the rear. Lacks finish grinding and paint.

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Excellent concept Roy -I could certainly use something like that. Does it stick out far enough to make a right or left turn while hauling?
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Marty, I thought of that (to fit sleeve hitch) but elected to go with the type I made. Comet66, my welding is slowly improving. Half looks OK and half looks terrible. Jovee, Good point. I'm afraid it will be too short to allow much turning. Will have to check that out. Worst case, I'll have to pop the front wheels off to tow and turn. Thanks all,
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Hey Roy,Nice set up,I liked the Ball idea but channel on the swivel is even better if you pined the two outer bolts and welded another set of ears under the inner bolts you could swivel the outer bracket back under the ball frame and out of the way,Just an idea!!
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Very nice hitch you have there.It is alot better than having to push and hurt the back like i have done in the past ,with your hitch you have made.I always like to see others ideas on here and you have one of the Best i have seen yet ..
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Update: Towed the B-1 around some today to test the tow hitch. Pictures show the hitch in action. Jovee was right. :( It should be longer for clearance when turning but I can turn; just have to careful. Afterward I did move the pivot hole for U channel back an inch. Thinking of ways to lengthen the attachment arms. They need to be 3" to 6" longer. The U channel pivot pin needs to pivot fore and aft. The pin bent to make the channel level due to weight of the B-1. No problem if it stays that way. :) Fast Paul, I looked into your suggestion but don't think there is sufficient ground clearance to make it work. If I could only make pretty welds. ;)

All now,
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;)Roy, first off, if the weld holds, it's a good'n;). You will improve the looks with practice. Remember, if you lengthen the hitch, you may need front ballast. But on the other side, VERY NICE job!! Question?? The angle of the ball, is it meant to be straight up when lifted to highest point?? Joe
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JH & JoeJ. Sovereign front end didn't seem the least bit light when towing the B-1. A real long hitch might require front ballast but don't think another 3" to 6" will make much difference. Yes, the ball is vertical when lifted to the highest point. Works good. Thanks for the kind words,
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Rod, To be 100% technically correct your hitch swings in a arc as it goes up/down and is therefore not in perfect vertical alignment except at one point in the travel. ;) However, for all practical purposes, it is vertical regardless of its travel position. My hitch is not a "crude copy" of your hitch. It is a simplified design loosely based upon your more complicated version. Plus, my hitch has a removable ball. :D:D Cheers,
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Roy, I was only kidding about your hitch. It is simpler than mine, and easier to build. I beg to differ on the verticality. Mine is a true parallelogram and was designed that way. The ball does stay vertical regardless of the hitch location. Also I can unbolt and remove my ball. The bolts are just horizontal instead of vertical. Nothing like two engineers arguing over their designs, is there?:) Mine will eventually have a towing rig, and yes I will likely plagerize your design to some extent.}:):D:D:D
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quote:
Originally posted by HubbardRA
Nothing like two engineers arguing over their designs, is there?:)
Now in the real world, it doesn't matter how much the engineers argue over their designs, by the time the bean counters get done making it "marketable" we will be back to a short length of log chain }:)B):o)}:)
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Rod, "Nothing like two engineers arguing over their designs, is there?" Well, we must do something to have fun. ;) Feel free to pirate my design. Just be sure to eliminate the flaws in mine. It needs to be slightly longer and the U-channel needs to pivot fore and aft in addition to the horizontal plane. Mike, "by the time the bean counters get done making it "marketable" we will be back to a short length of log chain." Unfortunately true unless the Marketing guys have already ruined it for both the engineers and accountants. :D Cheers gang,
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quote:
Originally posted by Roy
Unfortunately true unless the Marketing guys have already ruined it for both the engineers and accountants. :D
Ah yes... "Our focus groups revealed that the consumer wants it made out of stainless steel, it has to be self-leveling, hydraulic lift, protective coating so as not to mark the towed vehicle, and it has to come in under $5 retail." Been there done that ... aint it grand. In reality, I like both designs, but I must point out that the lift mechanism should be designed to accomodate the front axles of those "other" ""wildlife models"".:p;)}:)
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quote:
Originally posted by Roy
If I could only make pretty welds.
Function before Form!! I think you are doing quite well, most projects need refining (mine do any way)
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I moved a couple of those non-Kosher tractors that are still hanging around in my back yard with my existing lift. It is interesting how those stamped sheetmetal frames all seem to have some part bent down just in the right place to hang down over the ball hitch. Only problem I had was just like Roy said, making a turn. Thank goodness the AC716 was big enough and heavy enough that when things started to bind in the turn, it just slid the boxstore tractor into line and went on. Roy, what is the need for a fore-aft pivot. I would think that the frame or front axle would pivot itself in the channel. I understand the need for a rotational pivot but just don't quite understand how you mean to accomplish a fore-aft pivot, and why it is even needed.
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;)Nothing wrong with a few "Train Drivers" to keep the rest of us in line. But there is always the point that you need to shoot them so you can complete the project:D:D!! ^I think you both did a banner job^. ;)Now if'n ya was real nice guys, you'd draw them up and add them to the section Kent has for all these fine ideas:D!! Joe
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Joe, now where are you going to find those wierd pieces that came out of my junk pile to make that hitch? I'll bet your junk pile doesn't have the same ones. LOL :D:D:D Amazing how most of my designs revolve around what I can find to make them out of. You would think that as an engineer, that I would make a drawing first. Naw, I usually make these things in place, on the tractor. That way, they always fit. Ya know, I was just thinking. It probably would take me about twice as long to measure the hitch and make a good drawing as it took to build it. Maybe I will do that when I get time. "Time", Right!!:D:D
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:DWhat weird pieces?? I bet our "inventory" piles could be cousins:D. I have a section of old silo blower pipe on top of mine that really bothers folks!!! But that is valuable inventory just waiting for a project;). Today I need to take apart a Troy-Bilt hiller/furrower and sketch it up. Then use it to help a fella in Ill. learn to draw in CAD. Then send it off to a gal in Wash. state that wants to make one for a 8.5 hp Horse model that was given to her. :DAnd I can't even drive a train:D:D.
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Gang, I also thought the frame/axle would pivot fore & aft (front-to-back) in the U-channel but it did not. Instead the channel moved and bent its pivot pin. Maybe my 1/2" diameter pin should be larger. :( "Function before Form!!" is absolutely correct. Make it work then worry about how it looks. ^ I can make an ACAD drawing if there is enough interest but, as Rod pointed out, it takes a lot of time to make a drawing. I've been working from crude sketches made as the project(s) progress. Use of available material can have a lot to do with the design of the final project. U-channel and bicycle training wheel bracket are good examples of available and why I used them. Hard to design something for those odd ball tractors when none are available to work from. All I have in stock are by B-1 and Simplicities. :D
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