Hitch upgrade.

[JDTank]

Well, I really did not like the way my #18 cart attached to my X740, so I decided to change that yesterday.

I work at a tool store, and we sell trailer hardware, so I was able to pick all of this stuff up for cost, overall this mod cost me $8! Even if you paid retail pricing, this could be done for under $20, if you already have a receiver hitch on your X700 series and a ball.

I opted for a 2 inch receiver size because I have other tow-able equipment that all takes a 2 inch ball. This way I do not ever have to remove my hitch from my X740, just to change over to another ball size. Now all of my tow-able equipment shares the same ball size, so life is good!

I have already run with this setup for about two hours, and I can say it is a world of difference. There is no more banging around of the trailer with all of the slack the factory setup had. It pulls nice and smooth, and does not bind in turns like the factory setup. It also only takes 2 seconds to attach or remove the trailer. The factory setup was a pain because you had to try and line up a cotter pin with a hole you cannot see at all, unless you lay on your back. Yes, you could just install the pin upside down to prevent the issue, but cotter pins are still a pain at the best of times.

I had to cut about 2 inches of material off the end of the tongue to accommodate the receiver. If you do not cut a little material off, the first bolt hole will only have about 1/8 of an inch material left before the front tongue ends.

I highly recommend this mod to anyone with a cart.

 

[CliffordK]

Nice upgrade. Did you add the receiver to the garden tractor, or did it come with it?

As I brought home a fertilizer spreader with a pin hitch a couple of days ago, I was thinking about the difference between ball hitches an pin hitches.

If you use a 3pt drawbar, only attached at the sides,, then it would tend to roll with a ball hitch, but not with a pin hitch.

If, however, one uses a drawbar that is also connected to the 3 pt hitch toplink, then it would be stable for both a ball and a pin hitch.

Obviously your garden tractor doesn't have the 3 pt hitch, so it isn't an issue.

I was thinking of mounting the trailer portion of the hitch to a 2" receiver, to make a quick change between ball hitch & pin hitch.

 

[JDTank]

Nice upgrade. Did you add the receiver to the garden tractor, or did it come with it?

As I brought home a fertilizer spreader with a pin hitch a couple of days ago, I was thinking about the difference between ball hitches an pin hitches.

If you use a 3pt drawbar, only attached at the sides,, then it would tend to roll with a ball hitch, but not with a pin hitch.

If, however, one uses a drawbar that is also connected to the 3 pt hitch toplink, then it would be stable for both a ball and a pin hitch.

Obviously your garden tractor doesn't have the 3 pt hitch, so it isn't an issue.

I was thinking of mounting the trailer portion of the hitch to a 2" receiver, to make a quick change between ball hitch & pin hitch.

When I made the deal for my X740, I told the Salesman I wanted the receiver kit, dual bucket mount and JD buckets thrown in for free. Considering the jaw dropping price I got my X740 for in the first place, I was completely surprised when he agreed.

The difference this change made is amazing. I took it through some pretty rough terrain tonight. Up, down, steep angles where the trailer was on a 30 degree angle and the tractor was straight. I took it through uneven ground where it would pitch the trailer up and down as well as on a side angle. It didn't show any signs of weakness, or even coming close to popping off. Now, there is no slack. Before the trailer would clunk away back there as it moved forwards and backwards in the sloppy factory setup.

I feel much better now that I changed this over.

 

[arlen4720]

Looks good, although I've become rather accustomed to the clanging and banging of pin hitch on farm equipment....I don't even notice. I always run my receiver flipped the other way on my
X748. Maybe with the ball it's different.

 

[JDTank]

Looks good, although I've become rather accustomed to the clanging and banging of pin hitch on farm equipment....I don't even notice. I always run my receiver flipped the other way on my
X748. Maybe with the ball it's different.

I had to run the receiver that way so the trailer would sit level.

With these carts, the axle is directly in the center of the cart. So, the higher the front of the tongue is, the less of an angle you get when you dump the box. Had I turned my receiver upside down, the trailer tongue would have sat on an uphill angle, which would bring the tail of the cart even closer to the ground.

All I wish for now is hydraulic dumping so I wouldn't have to leave the seat.

 

[arlen4720]

I had to run the receiver that way so the trailer would sit level.

With these carts, the axle is directly in the center of the cart. So, the higher the front of the tongue is, the less of an angle you get when you dump the box. Had I turned my receiver upside down, the trailer tongue would have sat on an uphill angle, which would bring the tail of the cart even closer to the ground.

All I wish for now is hydraulic dumping so I wouldn't have to leave the seat.

I suppose the ball hitch screwed the geometry all up compared to mine... Mine sits downhill if I have the receiver like that. That's the beauty of the receiver, you can always get a hitch that gives you the right height. Your setup looks very good. I never used the regular hitch pin hole...just the receiver. It's pretty cool that they have a receiver in front also. That's nice for precise maneuvering.
As far as a hydraulic dump... That would be nice. I've been considering a 4 wheel one for my 4720.

 

[JDTank]

I suppose the ball hitch screwed the geometry all up compared to mine... Mine sits downhill if I have the receiver like that. That's the beauty of the receiver, you can always get a hitch that gives you the right height. Your setup looks very good. I never used the regular hitch pin hole...just the receiver. It's pretty cool that they have a receiver in front also. That's nice for precise maneuvering.
As far as a hydraulic dump... That would be nice. I've been considering a 4 wheel one for my 4720.

Actually, I was surprised to find the cart sits level after this modification. When I purchased the receiver draw-bar a few weeks ago, I was in a hurry and didn't know which drop size to get. I finally just grabbed the 2.5 inch drop one, and hoped for the best. I was originally concerned the cart would sit too low, and the tongue would scrape into the ground in dips. Turns out, everything lined up nicely, and my cart sits perfectly level, you would never know I had even done the mod!

The front receiver hitch is one very nice part of the X700 series. We did some clean-up from reno's about 4 weeks ago, and we knew if we could get the utility trailer into the garage itself, it would save a ton of time and labor. I stuck the hitch on the front of my X740 and hooked the empty utility trailer to it, and steered it into the very narrow opening, only an inch or so on each side. No big deal for a truck driver like myself, but it saved me from having to keep my neck bent around for a few minutes on end.

 

[BigMike50]

hello. have you considered getting a johnny bucket for your machine? I considered one for my garden tractor I sold last year before I decided to by my new machine. I have seen people build make shift ramps to load material into trailers or carts like this one. just need a jack on the tongue so you can get under it with your new hitch setup. something to consider so you don't have to shovel it full. I used to have a trailer made of sheet metal like yours but I reinforced it to be able to hold about 2k pounds. Just needed to weld a few gussets here and there on the tongue and axle supports. plus I added sides

 

[Nooodles]

can you load the concrete in it. how much fer it