New to quick hitches

[Golden Rocket]

I have been utilizing pat's easy hitch - luv them, could less about having to hook the top link, gotta get in there and connect the PTO anyway - these adapters just make it so simple to get the lower pins connected - the most inconvenient aspect could be the need to "on occasion only) I have to change the width but that alone tells me that the quick hitch would not have hooked up due to different width at the pins - have kinda self determined that it is due to older equip that wasn't quick hitch compatible - and thus the Pat's allow me to use them as well - ton of it out there too!!

 

[scootr]

I have been utilizing pat's easy hitch - luv them, could less about having to hook the top link, gotta get in there and connect the PTO anyway - these adapters just make it so simple to get the lower pins connected - the most inconvenient aspect could be the need to "on occasion only) I have to change the width but that alone tells me that the quick hitch would not have hooked up due to different width at the pins - have kinda self determined that it is due to older equip that wasn't quick hitch compatible - and thus the Pat's allow me to use them as well - ton of it out there too!!

That describes my Pat's easy hitch experience as well. My neighbor bought a new Yanmar with QA 3pt and new attachments. But I have a collection of old and new attachments with different pin widths.

 

[MechanicalGuy]

They're worthless on the rear unless you just happen to have the perfect implement collection.

 

[scootr]

They're worthless on the rear unless you just happen to have the perfect implement collection.

It works for my neighbor who has everything new aka QA compliant.

 

[California]

They're worthless on the rear unless you just happen to have the perfect implement collection.

Or they are modern. Or you have the ability to modify your old implements to industry standards.

 

[rogerneal]

Just chiming in and agreeing.... if a mix of older and newer 3 pt attachments...then Pats is the best practical answer. I'd didn't know better early on about how the pin width on 3 pt attachments made up until a few years ago wasn't really followed as a standard. I first bought a heavy-duty Cat 2 quick hitch .... which only fit 1 of my 9 attachments. Then I bought a Cat 1 quick hitch ..... that only fit 3 of them. Making the necessary modifications to all of my 3 pt attachments to fit one of fixed width and upper pin arrangement for the quick hitches just wasn't time or cost practical for me. So then I finally bought a Pat's hitch .... which fit them all......with no modifications, and I have since bought 2 more Pat's for my other tractors. About 2 years of experience now with the Pat's hitches and haven't seen any downside at all to using them so far. Would be happy to make anyone a great deal on an unused Cat 2 quick hitch and an unused Cat 1 quick hitch!!!

 

[JWR]

Just chiming in and agreeing.... if a mix of older and newer 3 pt attachments...then Pats is the best practical answer. I'd didn't know better early on about how the pin width on 3 pt attachments made up until a few years ago wasn't really followed as a standard. I first bought a heavy-duty Cat 2 quick hitch .... which only fit 1 of my 9 attachments. Then I bought a Cat 1 quick hitch ..... that only fit 3 of them. ... So then I finally bought a Pat's hitch .... which fit them all......with no modifications, and I have since bought 2 more Pat's for my other tractors. About 2 years of experience now with the Pat's hitches and haven't seen any downside...

1) The fixed width QH's are nothing but frustration. I'd never buy another.
2) The definite downside to Pat's (or any other attachments for the two lift arm ends) is they are not self-centering. They leave you with repeated tries to line up left/right to hitch. For a one person operation with no practical way to move 1500 lb implements in any direction they art NOT the solution. Help a little bit but that's all.
3) As I said in a prior post, the real overall solution is triangular shaped quick hitches (like Jiffy or Delta) which are self centering with an implement. No levers or other nuisances. All that is left is to hook up the PTO.

 

[CobyRupert]

It's all in the installation. You have so many adjustment bolts and shims that it takes a trial installation and then when you have it mounted correctly alternate tightening the bolts to keep hookup slots straight up and down.

…but why even tighten the adjustment bolts and prevent the Pat’s from swiveling in the tractor’s arm ball? Allowing Pat’s some movement to swivel on the lift arm allows the implements pins to remain sitting squarely in the Pat’s hook as you raise and lower the implement.

That is, normally the tractor’s arm balls swivel as the angle of the pins to the lift arms changes as you raise and lower. Now imaging you eliminate the ball and it was a fixed hole the attachment’s pin went through (similar to a Pat’s hook), something has to swivel somewhere when you raise and lower the arms and the angle changes.

After many bent adjustment bolts, and fights to remove them, trips to machine shop, I’ve found no reason to clamp them down or why I even use to do it other than that’s what the instructions said. And that was after upgrading to a stronger grade bolt than what was supplied.

Then again, I’m using my Pat’s on a 75hp Class II hitch pulling 1000lb 7’ mower and 8’ rear blade which can put some torque into those adjustment bolts.

 

[Sandroost]

Now there is an interesting perspective. Why indeed eliminate the arms ball effect with alignment bolts on Pat's?
Maybe because the shims taking up/down slop would fall out then?

 

[ovrszd]

My previous tractor did not have extendable arms. I bought Pats. It was an improvement.

My current 90hp tractor has extendables. I put a QH on it just after I bought it and have never removed it.

In CATII size, the QH is invaluable.

In CATI size you can man handle implements into position.

Everyone's needs/uses are different.

 

[LouNY]

My tractors are Cat 2, I've had quick hitches and immensely disliked them.
My Branson has the Euro hooks which are a multitude better then a quick hitch ever thought it could be.
My IH doesn't have the hooks or a quick hitch, it only gets used on 3 point implements occasionally usually on towed.
No way am I going to fight heavy (6ft.) pto shafts and try and fit under a quick hitch.

 

[Williy]

My little tractor YT235C the quick hitch is so easy for me
as all I do is back up to attachment raise quick hitch and
it connects to all three points get out push levers down and
I'm all set to use the land plane no fooling around with pins
etc. all my attachments I can pick up by the 3 points push
levers down hook up the PTO and away I go. On my quick
hitch the bottom does not have a bar so hooking up the PTO
is very easy and I always put the ignition to off before hooking
up the PTO! For all you guys that think that Pat's hitch stuff is
better than a quick hitch go for it! It don't make any difference
to what kind of hitch you use somebody always has something
better??????? I am not 70 add 12 yrs and the PTO is no
problem to hook up as nothing is in the way not even the quick
hitch like somebody said. Wonder if he made his own hitch with
a lot of extra bars etc that were not needed?????????

willy

 

[ovrszd]

My tractors are Cat 2, I've had quick hitches and immensely disliked them.
My Branson has the Euro hooks which are a multitude better then a quick hitch ever thought it could be.
My IH doesn't have the hooks or a quick hitch, it only gets used on 3 point implements occasionally usually on towed.
No way am I going to fight heavy (6ft.) pto shafts and try and fit under a quick hitch.

Each situation is different. I hitched to my 15ft batwing today, cut roadbanks for 3 hrs, unhitched, all with my QH on. No problems. When done I hitched to my BB. Couldn't possibly be easier.

 

[ovrszd]

My little tractor YT235C the quick hitch is so easy for me
as all I do is back up to attachment raise quick hitch and
it connects to all three points get out push levers down and
I'm all set to use the land plane no fooling around with pins
etc. all my attachments I can pick up by the 3 points push
levers down hook up the PTO and away I go. On my quick
hitch the bottom does not have a bar so hooking up the PTO
is very easy and I always put the ignition to off before hooking
up the PTO! For all you guys that think that Pat's hitch stuff is
better than a quick hitch go for it! It don't make any difference
to what kind of hitch you use somebody always has something
better??????? I am not 70 add 12 yrs and the PTO is no
problem to hook up as nothing is in the way not even the quick
hitch like somebody said. Wonder if he made his own hitch with
a lot of extra bars etc that were not needed?????????

willy

If you latch the QH before getting on the tractor you don't even have to dismount to do that. I've got a comparison video somwhere, I'll dig it up.

 

[JohnnyMX]

On my previous tractor, a quick hitch would have made no sense. Each implement was non-standard, which would have meant converting things or using the QH only in certain circumstances. In either case the "quick" is lost. Because the new tractor was 2-3X the size of the old one, all newly sized implements made sense and they were only purchased if they were QH-ready. A quick hitch makes the most sense when you are buying new and can assure things will work together in a cohesive system.

Right now all but a Fred Cain field cultivator is quick hitch ready and that is the one that hears the most curse words. Each time the QH has to come off to attach it. I may eventually modify that since breaking ground here usually involves the field cultivator, landscape rake, rototiller, and drag harrow. Due to my large quantity of tiller-destroying rocks, I usually have to rip, rake, rock bucket at an initial depth and then repeat at the preferred depth. There are days when I have each of these on/off twice.

 

[DonRybak]

If you latch the QH before getting on the tractor you don't even have to dismount to do that. I've got a comparison video somwhere, I'll dig it up.

Good suggestion for those using non PTO powered implements.

 

[California]

An issue I haven't seen in this thread: sway chains that go from the outer ends of the axles to the ends of the arms are easy to swing aside, to put the arm sockets onto an implement's pins. In contrast sway chains that start at the center rear of the tractor must be unhooked to swing the arms outward. This is difficult on a compact tractor with limited space back there. So adapting an implement to fit a QH is more worthwhile when this is the case.

I had an old back blade I never used because hooking it up was a PIA. It was incompatible with QH because the QH hooks couldn't slide under its pins.

So I added new 3-point pins farther forward on the back blade. Here's my thread describing the project. I enjoy design/fabricate/welding projects like this.

A photo from that thread. (And the inner-side sway chains are in the photo). Now I can just back into the implement, lift, go.

 

[Williy]

frcnLS​

Why didn't you go to Amazon and get the upper hook
replacement for the HF quick hitch?? it only cost about
$50

willy

 

[Smokeydog]

An issue I haven't seen in this thread: sway chains that go from the outer ends of the axles to the ends of the arms are easy to swing aside, to put the arm sockets onto an implement's pins. In contrast sway chains that start at the center rear of the tractor must be unhooked to swing the arms outward. This is difficult on a compact tractor with limited space back there. So adapting an implement to fit a QH is more worthwhile when this is the case.

I had an old back blade I never used because hooking it up was a PIA. It was incompatible with QH because the QH hooks couldn't slide under its pins.

So I added new 3-point pins farther forward on the back blade. Here's my thread describing the project. I enjoy design/fabricate/welding projects like this.

A photo from that thread. (And the inner-side sway chains are in the photo). Now I can just back into the implement, lift, go.

Good solution.

When I installed the Pat’s QA I also changed to telescopic/pin sway arms. Can easily adjust hooks to the perfect side to side position.

Had homemade pat’s type hooks with turnbuckle style sway control and used an temporary adjustable bar for width. Didn’t work very well and bent the width bar several times.

Enjoying the telescopic sway arms as much as the Pat’s.

 

[WranglerX]

An issue I haven't seen in this thread: sway chains that go from the outer ends of the axles to the ends of the arms are easy to swing aside, to put the arm sockets onto an implement's pins. In contrast sway chains that start at the center rear of the tractor must be unhooked to swing the arms outward. This is difficult on a compact tractor with limited space back there. So adapting an implement to fit a QH is more worthwhile when this is the case.

I had an old back blade I never used because hooking it up was a PIA. It was incompatible with QH because the QH hooks couldn't slide under its pins.

So I added new 3-point pins farther forward on the back blade. Here's my thread describing the project. I enjoy design/fabricate/welding projects like this.

A photo from that thread. (And the inner-side sway chains are in the photo). Now I can just back into the implement, lift, go.

Not sure on sway chains, but I have stabilizer turnbuckles on my arms, and I have set them once when I first put QH on tractor, have about 1/2 inch side slop all through hitch arc from all the way down to all the way up....