Drawbar Adapter

[Big Barn]

Tryin to wrap my head around this.... Are you sure you can do that?? Won't you change the level front/back by doing that? To move it enough to do you any good are you going to have enough adjustment in the cutter hitch assembly to regain level??

I'd give this a lot of thought. Maybe unhitch the cutter. Leave the tractor sitting with your drawbar just outside the cutter hitch. Then jack the front of the cutter up 6" and see how it looks?? And with it jacked up that high can you adjust the self leveling hitch assembly to get the deck back level?? :confused3:

Definitely unhitch it as ovrszd described.


In all fairness you could be correct but I can’t tell from the pics and would need to physically see it to make an informed opinion.

 

[ovrszd]

Definitely unhitch it as ovrszd described.


In all fairness you could be correct but I can’t tell from the pics and would need to physically see it to make an informed opinion.

Terry, my theory is the cutter doesn't know the difference of whether he has jacked the tongue up 6" or it's been cut and rewelded at an angle. Won't that raise the front of the cutter deck? And if he has enough hitch adjustment to lower the front of the deck until it's flat again isn't the gearbox right back where it was? And if so, doesn't he have the same clearance problem he had before? :confused3:

 

[ruffdog]

I think I would re-engineer the tongue starting in the back, a foot behind the op's arrow, to get clearance back there.

 

[ovrszd]

I can't see any hitch alterations doing any good. The issue is the elevation of the gearbox, which is going to be determined by cut height, in relationship to the drawbar, which would change the equation, and the elevation of the PTO shaft, which cannot be changed.

So changing the cutter hitch won't solve anything. Imagine a straight line from the gearbox to the tractor PTO shaft.

 

[kthompson]

It will be amazing if there is not a machine and welding shop in your area who can help with your needs. Ask tractor mechanics where they are. Some tractor shops and especially heavy equipment garages have such a shop also.

 

[Liquidsilver]

I can't see any hitch alterations doing any good. The issue is the elevation of the gearbox, which is going to be determined by cut height, in relationship to the drawbar, which would change the equation, and the elevation of the PTO shaft, which cannot be changed.

So changing the cutter hitch won't solve anything. Imagine a straight line from the gearbox to the tractor PTO shaft.

Yes, the leveling bars have lots of adjustment left, so leveling should be no problem. To come up with my six inch elevation change, I did as you suggested and unhitched the bar and jacked it to six inches lower than the drawbar and connected the driveshaft and hydraulics. It gets a great deal more clearance to the driveshaft. It accomplishes the same thing as having a lower drawbar.

If I used an adapter to lower the hitch point by six inches, there would still be pretty good ground clearance unless I had a 'high center' situation. The bend in the bar should accomplish the same thing as have a lower attachment point, but without a ground clearance issue. As I look at how it articulates, creating more vertical height between the drawbar and the PTO shaft should completely solve the problem.

Ruffdog, that might give me even more clearance between the towbar and the driveshaft, but I believe it would be a more complicated task with the proximity of other welds. I'll see what the welder says.

I like the way the cutter works, but the configuration of that towbar, with the high crossmember seems to me like it could have been engineered a lot better.

Thanks guys.

 

[ovrszd]

Give us a follow up after the alteration and operation of the cutter. Got my mathematical curiosity perked.

 

[Liquidsilver]

Give us a follow up after the alteration and operation of the cutter. Got my mathematical curiosity perked.

Will do, sir.

That straight line between the gearbox and the PTO output shaft would have no problem if the tow bar piece didn't have such a high center crossmember.

Anyhoo, I just dropped it off with the welder and he was doing some head-scratching with me about it. Pretty sure we're on the right track. I'll update when I get it back.

 

[dieselscout80]

Would it not have been easier to put the drawbar in a shorter position and the mount a 2” receiver hitch to the under side of the drawbar and then add a shank that lowered your hitch position?

 

[farm boy00]

Would it not have been easier to put the drawbar in a shorter position and the mount a 2” receiver hitch to the under side of the drawbar and then add a shank that lowered your hitch position?

It would have, but then he would have ground clearance problems with the cutter