BX24 three point hitch questions

rnbrn21 · Mar 26, 2013

Ok, I took my first look at the three point hitch for my BX24 that I will be using on the new 4' bushhog. I am a complete newbie to tractors and I have lots of questions but three are the most important for now. First, how to I get the lift bars to go down? I'm assuming that they do not power down but only go down by the weight of the attachment, but when they are all the way up with no attachment how do you get them down. I tried pulling them down while my son pushed the lowering lever but they didn't budge. Keep in mind that this is a 2007 tractor and the previous owner never used the three point hitch, it was still new in the box. The second question is: What keeps the lower link pin from sliding side to side and becoming disengaged from the frame? I realize that there will be a lot of weight on it but it seems that vibration could shift it sideways. The last question for now is: am I suppose to supply the top link pin to attach the top link to the bushhog? I got one with the three point hitch but I didn't get one with the bushhog. Thanks for any help that is provided.

Maestro71 · Mar 26, 2013

The arms should go down when you move the control to the down position weight or no weight. The adjustment knob is in front of the seat did you try speed adjustment? I don't undertand the second question I'm not sure what ou mean. And yes you must supply your own pins

Deano · Mar 26, 2013

Lower link pin stays in place with offset bushings.. The center plate goes over the pin and holds the bushings in place.

radioman · Mar 26, 2013

My BX24 came with hitch pin with top link to go on implements. If yours is missing for some reason - you can steal your drawbar pin for your truck for now. To get the upper arms to go down, turn the knob on right side closest to HST pedal with arrow all the way to left (lefty-loosey) as you are standing on ground . Push down on the 3 pt lever with right hand and with leeft hand push down on the upper link arms. will go down easy with little or no force. It will probably be sticky for a second if you left back hoe on for a long time. I am not sure of what you mean by lower part loose, but I am guessing you should have a gray plate that goes on there and pinned in place. Did you put the two metal bushing collars on both sides of that metal bar?

Pm me if you still have issues and still need help. you are about an hour from me.

rnbrn21 · Mar 26, 2013

Thanks for the responses and not treating me like the idiot that I feel like. The arms are down and the lower link pin is in and locked. I didn't know about the hitch speed knob and that did the trick. I also didn't realize that the offset bushings (the important word is "offset") would force the link pin out of alignment with the holes in the frame locking it from moving side to side. I also went to the tractor supply store to buy a top link pin to fit the bushhog. I did have one strange thing happen, when I was pushing down the lifting arms when I got to the arm to the bottom the tractor shut down. I started it again and pushed down on the arms not sure if they were all the way down and the tractor shut down again, is this some kind of a safety feature?

David Devuono · Mar 27, 2013

Not familiar with your tractor, but if in all your efforts you engaged the PTO, getting out of the seat would likely cause the tractor to shut down.

Deano · Mar 27, 2013

rnbrn21 said:
I did have one strange thing happen, when I was pushing down the lifting arms when I got to the arm to the bottom the tractor shut down. I started it again and pushed down on the arms not sure if they were all the way down and the tractor shut down again, is this some kind of a safety feature?

Does not happen normally. Must have bumped the PTO lever??? I have to pull the PTO lever back to make sure switch is met. Easy to bump with your leg or butt.

Concordriver · Mar 27, 2013

When I was learning how to assemble the 3 point hitch on my BX24, I used this reference photo from this web site... http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...1924-bx24-step-step-attach-3-3point_hitch.jpg

rnbrn21 · Mar 27, 2013

That's a great picture, it helps. Now I have a new problem/question. When I put on the left lift rod I can barely get it on the lift arm. It seems like the lift rod was welded together at the wrong position to align with both the lower arm and the lift arm at the same time. I was thinking about buying another right lift rod because it is adjustable and able to twist the position of the bracket and use it on the left side. I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem. The one in the picture seem to align with the lower arm and lift arm pretty well.

Concordriver · Mar 27, 2013

I suspect you just don't have the lift rods lined up right. I seem to recall it took me several attempts before I got everything lined up correctly. Make sure you don't have the right and left rods switched. Enlarge the photo I posted so that you can see the components more clearly. Hope this helps.

GolfAddict · Mar 27, 2013

If you have the left one positioned like the picture, it should be correct.

If the lower link arm is drifted way in toward the center, it will seem like the lift rod is bent strangely for meeting up with the lifting arm up above. But when you pull the lower arm way out (like it will be when attached to an implement) it should then look like it lines up better.

Leejohn · Mar 27, 2013

rnbrn21 said:
That's a great picture, it helps. Now I have a new problem/question. When I put on the left lift rod I can barely get it on the lift arm. It seems like the lift rod was welded together at the wrong position to align with both the lower arm and the lift arm at the same time. I was thinking about buying another right lift rod because it is adjustable and able to twist the position of the bracket and use it on the left side. I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem. The one in the picture seem to align with the lower arm and lift arm pretty well.

Yes my bx2660 was like that, it was so bad that it would not let the 3pt to go all the way down with no weight on it. I cut the left arm at the bottom, put it level strighten it up there and rewelded.

radioman · Mar 27, 2013

I'd post a pic of your setup before buying parts to swap out. I think its just a alignment issue -- mine has no issues. As for tractor shutoff - I suspect the HST pedal was not centered so it was bumped causing it to shutoff since there is no one in the seat.

rnbrn21 · Mar 27, 2013

GolfAddict said:
If you have the left one positioned like the picture, it should be correct.

If the lower link arm is drifted way in toward the center, it will seem like the lift rod is bent strangely for meeting up with the lifting arm up above. But when you pull the lower arm way out (like it will be when attached to an implement) it should then look like it lines up better.

Golfaddict was right, after pushing the lower arm outward the liftarm aligned much better. I was almost ready to hitch up to the bushhog when I found out that the PTO shaft is too long. So now I need to cut that down before I will attempt to hitch up again. It sure is a lot of setup but after all this it should go smoother from now on.

Tractor Seabee · Mar 27, 2013

My BX 25 is identical to your 24. I fought through this several times before I got it down. You have to loosen up the sway turnbuckles to both take it off and put it own, then re-adjust it snug after hookup. The adjustable link on the lower arm up to the lift arm is how you either level the implement or give it deliberate tilt like if you are grading a slight slope with a box scraper (BS to us guys). I swap around 8 different implements and quickly got tired of groveling in the dirt on dis-connects and connects, bit the bullet and bought a Quick Hitch (we use QH for short). Now I do it standing up. Good luck, think about getting manuals on your tractor and implements, saves a lot of wondering. I do most of my own work so the tractor shop manual has saved me mega $.
Ron

bellweather · Mar 28, 2013

Sounds like you are nearly there. There is a correct way to cut down a PTO shaft, be sure to follow the recommended procedure.

rnbrn21 · Mar 28, 2013

I cut down and reinstalled the PTO shaft. Hooked it up and leveled it. Everything seems to be doing what it is supposed to do. Pulled it out of the garage and powered up the PTO, shakes a little but run good. Went out to the field and cut some brush, this thing is a beast, If I can push it over with the bucket the Bushhog can cut it up. My field is pretty wet so I'll have to wait a while before I get serious but the first attempt went great. Thanks for all the help everyone.

Maestro71 · Mar 28, 2013

What brand of cutter did you get? How thick was the brush you were cutting? I'm waiting for the snow o melt to try mine.

rnbrn21 · Mar 28, 2013

It is a "County Line" from tractor supply. The biggest I cut was probably 2" and I went pretty slow when I did something that big, but it seemed to handle it. I need to check my HST fan blade and make sure that my Bxpanded skid plate is doing its job.