BCS "curved coupler" for DIY sulky or trailer?

[nomad289]

I have a BCS 732 (+tiller and shredder) and would like a "sulky" or trailer to tow behind; with the intention to pull a sprayer or other "tractor" pull implement behind it (core aerator, fertilizer spreader, etc.)
Looks like the BCS design requires the tiller to remain installed to counterbalance the engine weight; the sulky "curved coupler" part no: 922.59500 attaches to a vertically mounted "U" shaped clevis pin hitch above the PTO hitch. However, the tiller sits to high to allow a straight connection to the "U" shaped clevis pin hitch, necessitating a "curved coupler".

BCS sulky is $399, trailer is ~$1000+, seems excessive just to attach a towed implement to the tractor.

Can I buy the curved coupler PN#922.59500 and fabricate an attachment method; or has anyone done a DIY substitute for the curved coupler?

Tx

 

[milkman]

I use a regular trailer with a straight tongue in the hitch on the BCS and carry the tiller in the trailer, works fine for me.

 

[farmerboybill]

Hi Tx,

The curved coupler is only if you want to leave the tiller attached. Historically, Italians live in town and go out to their fields. If you're driving your tiller to and from town every day, it'd get old taking off the tiller every time, so the curved coupler was designed to hook a transport sulky or trailer and leave the tiller installed. The more basic (I hesitate to call them "smaller" because they were just as durable as the 725 and 735) older tractors, like the 715, didn't have a trailer hitch and had to have a hitch attached to the PTO.

That said, if you want to leave the tiller on, yes you can buy a curved coupler or make your own.

 

[nomad289]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the prompt responses, suggestions and explanations regarding the BCS curved coupler and clevis hitch design.

The ~70lb engine is mounted ~16" in front of the axle, while the U shaped clevis hitch is only ~8" behind the axle; so the counterbalance force on the clevis hitch will need to be about 140lbs. Somehow I thought it would be more.

Good to know from first hand experience that the U clevis hitch is designed to accommodate that much weight, and is in fact intended to do so.

I think I can fabricate a straight shaft hitch to attach various implements. Thanks for your help.

 

[PGC]

I have that curved coupler and it doesn't allow me to leave the tiller on when I pull a trailer...I have to remove the tiller box even with the curve and even on completely flat ground (30" tiller box on an 853).

I wish the curve was more drastic and allowed one to pull a trailer and keep the tiller attached, but it is not. And removing the tiller every time you want to pull the trailer gets very very very annoying as the BCS quick coupling system is less than quick, in my opinion, and my tiller box weighs like 100lbs or something.

My $00.02 for ya.

 

[PGC]

On the other hand the trailer coupler is cheap and useful. If you can fabricate something very easily I'd do that, but if it will take you more than a couple hours I'd buy the coupler. Maybe you could modify the curve so that it will accommodate your tiller box...that would be sweet.

 

[PGC]

One other thing.....I picked up a 1500 lb dump trailer for way less than the $1000+ they want for the BCS trailer and it is very nice...Clevland Steel I believe, from Depot.

 

[farmerboybill]

Hey PGC,

Beings I don't have a BCS trailer to pull behind my machine, this is kind of outta my knowledge level. How old is your curved coupler? The curved couplers would not have needed as much clearance to get over the old flat top tillers of the early 80's. BCS stuck the depth control lever out the top on the flat top tillers in the mid 80's. The newer round top tillers of today have a higher shroud and a depth control lever out the top. I wonder if they re-engineered them to have a higher curve when they went to the current style tiller in 1995. If you have an old coupler, this might be the problem.

This would be a question to ask Joel. I just don't know if they re-engineered the coupler for the taller shroud.

EDIT - I googled "BCS trailer" and found a few pics of one attached -

 

[PGC]

Hi,

Both machine, tiller box and coupler are new in 2012. It almost works, but as you said, the depth control lever comes out the top of the tiller box and just touches the tow coupler. Maybe the smaller tiller boxes have shorter tines and therefore a "skinnier" profile.....I don't know. It also seems that if it weren't to just work the slightest dip in the terain would result in the tines scratching the ground and hanging up.

BTW, my trailer looks a tad meaner than that little guy.....though I just realized that it's actually 1,250lb and not 1,500. Still very cool and it dumps and swivels and can accept side rails to heap a load higher.

Now that I look at the difference between the BCS cart and mine, the problem might be that my trailer tongue is lower....below pic is similar, but mine has a curved axle for a ton more ground clearance.

 

[Ford850]

Hi,

Both machine, tiller box and coupler are new in 2012. It almost works, but as you said, the depth control lever comes out the top of the tiller box and just touches the tow coupler. Maybe the smaller tiller boxes have shorter tines and therefore a "skinnier" profile.....I don't know. It also seems that if it weren't to just work the slightest dip in the terain would result in the tines scratching the ground and hanging up.

BTW, my trailer looks a tad meaner than that little guy.....though I just realized that it's actually 1,250lb and not 1,500. Still very cool and it dumps and swivels and can accept side rails to heap a load higher.

Now that I look at the difference between the BCS cart and mine, the problem might be that my trailer tongue is lower....below pic is similar, but mine has a curved axle for a ton more ground clearance.



View attachment 283263

How is that cart working for you? I was wondering if you got the one with the extra wide tires or not (see attached images from the HD site). Also, how does your 853 handle this cart with an average load and you riding on it? I have an 850 with the 5x10 wheels, but I'm concerned about it losing traction easily. Thanks for your input.

 

[PGC]

Hey F850!

I have the one with the extra wide wheels on the right there....you found the actual one I bought.

The cart does OK, but to be honest it is not an ideal way to haul any volume of material and it does lose traction.

With that cart loaded up to the top (with no extra rails, as pictured above) with leaf/soil mulch and me (210 lbs) it will go over just about any flat land and take an incline of I'd say maybe 30% as long as the soil you're driving on is compact and not covered with any grass/leaves etc. As soon as you hit any lose soil or areas of leaf & grass on an incline the tractor loses traction. You can sometimes coax it through these spots by turning the handle bars back and fourth with the differential locked, but most likely you'll have to dismount while still controlling the tractor and help "push". For extreme inclines I had a buddy behind me pushing on the cart and we were able to get some super heavy loads up a steep hill.

Going down hill, assuming you have some "grapes-on-the-vine", you can take a huge load and slide it using the brakes and handle bars to guide your somewhat uncontrolled decent. I had fun doing this on one job, but knew I was playing with fire for sure.

I now have some wheel weights and can fit some decent plates on each side so I hope that this added forward weight will help the machine maintain traction on at least slight inclines.

They aren't lying when Earth Tools says that the best implement to get material up a hill is the powerbarrow. That said, the cart is easy to put together yourself, is capable of hauling a lot of material in a day, and is pretty darn fun to ride around on (your turning radius is greatly increased with the use of a trailer though....you end up steering around corners with one hand and using left hand turns as much as possible because this is the hand that holds down the clutch lever...awkward, but fun).

It also makes one great mobile swimming pool for a 5 year old, and it's really easy to change the water....lol..

 

[PGC]

One more thing about hillside trailer towing with the BCS....you can find yourself in a pickle really quickly when your tractor starts to flip over to the side but your trailer, having a much wider axle, isn't. I found out just how heavy my 853 was.

Later I was told that my stock wheels can adjust outward for a wider track, which would no doubt help with this problem.

 

[Ford850]

PGC, Thanks for the details. I think I'll order a trailer coupler from Earth Tools and fab a pipe on an existing flat trailer of mine to try it out. If it works well enough on my terrain, I'll spring for the poly dump trailer.

 

[sgt_rjp]

I realize this is an old thread, but thought I'd add my $.02. You hit the nail on the head when you noted the BCS cart sits higher. I've got a lawn cart with a pipe and curved coupler for the hitch. Instead of the curved coupler going up over the attached tiller, it goes down to meet the low cart hitch(after the tiller is removed). It's still not low enough so the cart sits low in the back and reduces the effectiveness of the dump action.

The latest BCS utility cart, although much more expensive than the DIY alternative, has a couple of distinct advantages: 1. Able to leave tiller mounted. 2. "heavy duty brakes". I've only read about it, but the brakes are for both operating and parking. Those are the two big advantages, there there are others depending on the model you chose for your DIY. Advantages over mine: seat separate from the cart, back of cart sits higher for better dumping, wider tires, more capacity(weight and volume), sits level so things less likely to slide back or off the top.

Earth tools shows a picture that the cart is level, but it's hooked to a Grillo with a taller curved coupler. If a similar curved coupler was available for the BCS, that would solve a lot of my problems and make it much easier to adapter other lawn tractor implements like my aerator.

Concerning climbing hills: a simple solution for traction while climbing hills with the cart, is backing up the hill. Still not as good as a power barrow, but it works great for me. Whether ascending or descending, it's best to keep the weight up-hill from the drive wheels.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with BCS in any way but I own a good bit of their equipment for residential as well as agricultural uses. Nearly all of said equipment was purchased from Joel at Earth Tools.

 

[Ford850]

I ended up with the trailer coupler and rigged up a pipe hitch on the front of an old Harbor Freight style small trailer. The trailer bed is approximately 40" x 48". Then I built up wood sides on the trailer and added a 2x8 bench seat across the top front. I hardly get to use it, as any job that could be done with a cart or wheel barrow, my son volunteers to do with this BCS/trailer combo. The first job for it was hauling sod we removed from areas in the yard. We had the trailer heaped above the sides and made several loads with it. I made a conversion hitch for the trailer too, so I can pull it with my mowers or tractor, and my 25 gallon boom sprayer rides nice in the bed.

 

[stickymonkey]

I'm in the same boat - want to hook up my existing trailer to my BCS. Can anyone post a photo of the connection of the ball hitch to the curved coupler? The curved coupler has holes on the side, but most ball hitches I'm aware of have hole on top. I'm thinking of getting a metal shop to twist a flat plate with bolt holes to use as an adapter for the ball and quick hitch, but I was thinking a photo from some of you guys who've already done it would make it easier, so we're going from scratch. Thanks!

 

[CADplans]

I am trying to think "outside of the box" a little,,,
since the handlebars can rotate,, why not connect the trailer to the engine end, like a Gravely?

To make it easier to visualize,, here it is in the "correct color" :laughing:

The Gravely tows the sulky or trailer nicely when connected to the engine end,,,

 

[Ford850]

Sticky, I’ll try to get some pictures for you. You use a short piece of pipe strapped to the trailer tongue instead of a ball hitch.

 

[stickymonkey]

Sticky, I値l try to get some pictures for you. You use a short piece of pipe strapped to the trailer tongue instead of a ball hitch.

Thanks, my trailer has a ball hitch tongue on it already and I'd like to keep it on. also the ball provides some flexibility for rotating up, down and side to side.
I think the connection of the BCS tractor to their "curved coupler" just allows side to side movement, and my terrain is pretty bumpy.
Also to clarify what I said earlier in my post, I think I'd use a round pipe to horizontal flat plate type adapter for the ball hitch, some kind of custom fab connector piece..


thx

 

[Maine Hills]

Thanks, my trailer has a ball hitch tongue on it already and I'd like to keep it on. also the ball provides some flexibility for rotating up, down and side to side.
I think the connection of the BCS tractor to their "curved coupler" just allows side to side movement, and my terrain is pretty bumpy.
Also to clarify what I said earlier in my post, I think I'd use a round pipe to horizontal flat plate type adapter for the ball hitch, some kind of custom fab connector piece..

Two wheel tractor hitches are not ball hitches and do not allow for "up and down" movement for a reason. The trailer keeps the tractor from tilting fore-aft. The combination of the tractor and trailer become an articulated 4 wheel vehicle. Also see the explanation on the Earth Tools website: Earth Tools