Pushing with a 3pt hitch...

[AKfish]

Since I really wanted to use the pushing in reverse feature, I ended up reinforcing my drag links. I used a couple old 3/4" thick scarifiers and welded them to the bottoms of the drag links once I straightened them out. they are welded with heavy gussets and now the links form a "T" with the reinforcement on them. They are much stronger now. I do a lot of bulldozing in reverse and since this modification, I've had no problems of bending, nor has the tractor mount (for the links) suffered any damage. I still try to watch how much force I use pushing in reverse since my tractor is 55hp and weighs about 8,000lbs loaded. I still advocate using the implements in reverse since there are great benefits from such use. Just be sure you have the reinforcement and watch what you are doing and never slam into your object pile. That goes for going forward or reverse and for FEL use as well.
Rob-

Rob - nice work!

We all do it (reverse plowing, etc.). It's really a matter of being sensible about what you're doing.

And as mentioned - you can cause damage to implements going in a forward direction, too. I bent the vertical lift arm on the draft link while using my 7' rear blade. I was down in a road ditch with narrow shoulders and caught the right corner of the blade on the shoulder while moving forward. The momentum of the tractor and the leverage of the blade "pretzled" the opposite lift arm. Lesson learned.

The great thing about this site is the opportunity to learn from the experiences of others.

P.S. Are the gussets meant to allow contraction/expansion of the shank during the welding process instead of causing distortions to the 3pt arm? Thanks.

AKfish

 

[3RRL]

P.S. Are the gussets meant to allow contraction/expansion of the shank during the welding process instead of causing distortions to the 3pt arm? Thanks.

AKfish

Thanks AK,
Regarding your question, I re-read what I wrote and saw it was misleading.
What I meant to say was the weld was laid down in many passes so the weld itself ended up like a 1" wide gusset.
I merely tacked the reinforcing steel several places before running my first set of passes. I ran several passes and let the links cool down slowly...no special treatment after that. I guess I could have stress annealed them after welding but elected not to do that. One thing for sure, they came out very very heavy duty.
Rob-

 

[tatra805]

Would like to add to the push-pull thing:

- 3pt arms and leverage points are not a push design but a pure pull design
why a dozer or fel has a different construction. Does not mean you cannot push with it but design is pull. (self centering btw)

- reversing over long distances, eg snow pushing etc wears out your gearbox faster. Small gears high rotation and you get the point. (check your oil temp when reversing over prolonged period compared to similar labour in forward mode and you will see the difference )

- differentials (the ring and pinion teeth) are set up to grip in forward drive and not in reverse, Therefore never pull in reverse (and so, push in reverse) Jumping teeth on R&P are not something you are really waiting for. Possibly some gears in the gearbox / drivetrain also.

- Reversing you have more grip with your tires(might seen funny but is the case) that means you will actually be able to push harder in reverse before your tires start slipping. Slipping tires can be a safety margin to not damage your drivetrain.

Add the above together in a scenario where speed, traction and inertia come together with an abrupt stop and yes you will break, bend and damage something.


about the horse harnesses: the point of using a collar versus a breast harness is to enable the horse to throw at best its weight in the harness for ease and power on torque requiring moments. (collar better) But also and in first place that it is quite hard to attach something at the back of a horse to pull something(no hitch there)

 

[Knight]

Would like to add to the push-pull thing:-

about the horse harnesses: the point of using a collar versus a breast harness is to enable the horse to throw at best its weight in the harness for ease and power on torque requiring moments. (collar better) But also and in first place that it is quite hard to attach something at the back of a horse to pull something(no hitch there)

You could use a rope and tie a horse tail to load knot.

 

[600rider]

I think the most important thing to remember is to adjust your sway chains so there is not a lot of play side to side as that is what will bend your 3ph arms when you hit something immoveable. When you have everything adjusted right I belive it is equaly strong and pushing or pulling will be ok. I do not belive there is any disclaimer in my owners manual that says DO NOT PUSH WITH THE 3PH! just be smart about it. Ken.

 

[kebo]

Question for 3RRL..... I notice you have top-n-tilt with tilt on BOTH sides. I was reading the CCM website and it was saying that it's not good to have tilt on both sides. The reason they gave was that you could possibly apply downpressure on both sides thus lifting the rearwheels off the ground and upsetting the machine or possibly causing something else bad to happen. Have you ever given that any thought??

 

[3RRL]

Question for 3RRL..... I notice you have top-n-tilt with tilt on BOTH sides. I was reading the CCM website and it was saying that it's not good to have tilt on both sides. The reason they gave was that you could possibly apply downpressure on both sides thus lifting the rearwheels off the ground and upsetting the machine or possibly causing something else bad to happen. Have you ever given that any thought??

Good question kebo,
I don't want to deviate to much from Max's thread about pushing with the 3pt, so forgive me...
I purposely used 8" stroke very big 3-1/2" cylinders with 1-1/2" rods for the side links. I was trying to get the set up to apply down pressure with the box blade when fully extended. Well, I miscalculated and even fully extended there is still about 1" gap when fully extended on both sides. What it does do successfully is allow me to cut gutters easily that way since the box is shoved down into the ditch pretty good. To me, that is a good thing. Again, you just need to be aware that it can lift the tractor up a little and use your head when doing work with it.
Here is a video. When fully tilted, you can see the cylinder just starting to lift the tractor rear tire.
Rob-

 

[AKfish]

I think the most important thing to remember is to adjust your sway chains so there is not a lot of play side to side as that is what will bend your 3ph arms when you hit something immoveable. When you have everything adjusted right I belive it is equaly strong and pushing or pulling will be ok. I do not belive there is any disclaimer in my owners manual that says DO NOT PUSH WITH THE 3PH! just be smart about it. Ken.

Ken, very good point about the sway link chains. I probably adjust mine 2-3 times every hour of use. So, you always need to keep payin' attention to them.

But... when you really get goin' on a project - it's not always "convenient" to stop and take up the slack. So, you need to be paying attention and cautious when pushing in reverse because with some sway in the 3pt; things can go real wrong - real fast!

One additional point to consider regarding pushing in reverse on the 3pt. The 3pt normally "floats" and when pushing into a berm or pile the arms will move up the slope of the pile. But, there's only so much upward rotation available before the arms "bottom out" or stop. If you've got a big pile and some momentum behind the tractor - when the 3pt stops moving upward - the 3pt links - can bend!!

AKfish

 

[600rider]

AKfish
That is true about running up a pile with the 3ph but I have had 3 tractors with 3ph and have done some heavy pushing in hard clay soil and probably even abused the tractors some but have not bent an arm on any of the tractors in over 15 years, maybe I've just been lucky! but with proper adjustment you have less of a chance of bending something. My Kubota B7510 has a cotter pin to lock the turnbuckel where I put it so it doesn't lossen up.

 

[Max2310]

This is all very interesting, thanks!! It's greatly appreciated!

Max