Grading BX 54" Blade Hydro Angle Conversion

[Minotbob]

Do you know if you can order just the part of the hitch that mounts on the plow?

 

[CHDinCT]

Do you know if you can order just the part of the hitch that mounts on the plow?

Minotbob, no, don't really know, but it looks like there's a large roll pin that attaches the blade to the hitch plate, so the blade and hitch plate are separate pieces. Since I bought it used, I did not get a manual for the blade itself, which would/should show part numbers, I think. Maybe someone with a manual can get you a part number. Then you can look it up at Messick's or tractosmart.com

 

[CHDinCT]

Minotbob,

Your question got me thinking and I realized I could request a parts list from tractorsmart for the 54" blade, not that I need it right now, but good to have. Anyhow, they e-mailed it to me so I'm posting it here. It does show part numbers for the hitch box and female quick hitch that can be ordered if you need them.

 

[blackmajicwoman]

Also, a shout out to Blackmajicwomen who post pic's of the same conversion on an old thread from 2004 or so. Those pic's gave me a starting point for how to do this. There was mention in that thread that Kubota was going to offer the 54" blade with 4-way hydraulics but I guess they never did.

An now for some pic's.

Thanks for the shout out! Great job! The only thing I am finding to a a bit of a pain it that the front hitch tends to be a bit heavy with the added weight of the cylinder and hoses. Not a big deal right now, as my 34 year old legs and back can handle it so far! Also, I typically have to "bungee" the cyclinder in place when the plow isn"t attached so it doesn freely swing, as I leave the plow dismounted while storing it in the garage over the winter, while it waits patientlyfor that killer snow storm!

 

[CHDinCT]

Thanks for the shout out! Great job! The only thing I am finding to a a bit of a pain it that the front hitch tends to be a bit heavy with the added weight of the cylinder and hoses. Not a big deal right now, as my 34 year old legs and back can handle it so far! Also, I typically have to "bungee" the cyclinder in place when the plow isn"t attached so it doesn freely swing, as I leave the plow dismounted while storing it in the garage over the winter, while it waits patientlyfor that killer snow storm!

BMW - I don't know if I would have even tried this without having seen your results. The pic's really helped. I hear you on the weight. I'm pushing 51 and it wasn't exactly fun getting the quick hitch onto the front frame of the BX. I did use it Wednesday for some wet slushy snow and it worked better than I expected. I'm sure the 60" is really nice, but this should be fine for moving snow here in southern New England.

 

[amg280]

Chris,

great job! Im getting the 54" soon and would like to do the same. Do you have a parts list and/or specific vendor you can recommend for the cylinder/hoses/qh etc.?

Thanks for sharing!

Andy

 

[bp fick]

Yup, all these tractor "parts" get heavy. The older we get, we are gonna have to enlist some younger muscles to do our fall/spring change overs. Or we have to come up with good ways of working smarter, not harder.

Rolling floor jacks can be used to position things, for example. A lot of the guys here on TBN use dollies to position things too.

At this juncture, my BX has to be a snow plow in winter, and garden tractor in summer, so the QH has to go on and off. It hangs too low for dirt work.

 

[CHDinCT]

Chris,

great job! Im getting the 54" soon and would like to do the same. Do you have a parts list and/or specific vendor you can recommend for the cylinder/hoses/qh etc.?

Thanks for sharing!

Andy

Andy, no problem, I saved my e-mail confirmation from surplus center. Here's what I bought for hoses, fittings and the cylinder. The first number is the quantity followed by the SC item number, so you can plug that in their search to bring up the parts.

2 9-6901-6-4 SAE 6M x 1/4 NPTF 90 SWI $6.18
2 916-1460 1/4" X 60" 1/4 NPTM X 1/I HYD HOSE $19.70
1 9-4872-06 1.5X6X1 CHIEF DA HYD CYL $107.95

I bought the quick connects from discount hydraulic hose. I bought the 1/4 female QC's - these are the type that work with the existing BX male QC's on the tractor. I also bought two dust covers (don't forget those little saviors!)

ISO 7241-1B Hydraulic Quick Disconnects

I bought the cylinder pins locally at the hardware store. The rest was welding which I paid a guy to do, but if you can weld, you can save that cost. If you take this on, post up some pics with your results.

 

[amg280]

Thanks for that list Chris! The total comes to around $154 plus the welding work (which my friend will do for free).

A couple of other quick questions came to mind as I was persuing the parts. Did you have to bleed the cylinder at all? Or was it hook up and go? I assume you would have to add a little bit of oil to the tractors tank afterwords? I take it you did your hw, and found that this was the best cylinder ram situated for this?

Did you just use a standard black paint to paint the welded areas? I just realized this blade comes in black from the factory, not orange like the 60". Thats why your decals look so good and not painted over, haha.

Is that the best attachment point for the ram? I know kubota places the entire angling assembly on the 60" onboard (no ram to quick hitch). Would that even be possible with this one? Does mouting a ram mount on the Quick Hitch impair its ability at all with other attachments, say if I wanted to add a snow blower down the road? It doesnt look like it will, but just thought I would ask.

All in all looks like a very clean factory looking job! Good work. Are you going to keep that ram red?

Thanks!

Andy

 

[CHDinCT]

Thanks for that list Chris! The total comes to around $154 plus the welding work (which my friend will do for free).

A couple of other quick questions came to mind as I was persuing the parts. Did you have to bleed the cylinder at all? Or was it hook up and go? Basically, hook up and cycle the cylinders a few times to remove the air and you're good to go. The cylinder will move in steps the first few times, then smooths out nice.

I assume you would have to add a little bit of oil to the tractors tank afterwords? Just a little. Cycled it a few times, then checked my tank and added maybe a pint.

I take it you did your hw, and found that this was the best cylinder ram situated for this? I spent a lot of time contemplating this question and measuring and looking and measuring and .... I found this to be the best I could come up with and I also stole from blackmajicwomen who posted pic's on the same project he did back in 2004 I think. I came to the conclusion that 6" of movement on the ram would move the angle from full left to full right. I then looked for cylinders with that stroke and found one with a retracted length that would allow for mounting about as you see it. It turned out perfect and moves the blade from stop to stop just right. As far as the way the 60" blade works, I could not find a good pic of how that was set up, but I did not see a way to mount the cylinder only on the blade side hardware. If I wanted to use the hitch for a snowblower, I could just take the cylinder off. The mounting bracket won't interfere with any other use of the quick hitch.

Did you just use a standard black paint to paint the welded areas? I just realized this blade comes in black from the factory, not orange like the 60". Thats why your decals look so good and not painted over, haha. Actually, the guy that did the welding painted it for me - don't know what he used, but it matches pretty good. I do wonder if he used primer. Guess I'll find out by Spring.

Is that the best attachment point for the ram? I know kubota places the entire angling assembly on the 60" onboard (no ram to quick hitch). Would that even be possible with this one? Does mouting a ram mount on the Quick Hitch impair its ability at all with other attachments, say if I wanted to add a snow blower down the road? It doesnt look like it will, but just thought I would ask. I hope I answered this above, if not, ask me again. Maybe BP could post a pic of how his 60" blade angles?

All in all looks like a very clean factory looking job! Good work. Are you going to keep that ram red? Thanks for the complement. I'm thinking I will keep it red. I thought about painting it, but I like the CHIEF decal showing on it and it would be a pain to tape over it as the decal is not a block but only for the letters. This question is not settled yet in my mind. One things for sure, they'll be no painting anything until Spring.

Thanks!

Andy

Andy - see responses in bold above. Also, I saw this pic posted on another thread. It's the blade for a B series tractor and it shows how the angle cylinder is mounted. I actually went out and looked at the 54" and can tell you this approach won't work - hard to explain, but the hitch set up is different enough to prevent it.