skidoo said:
Both sets look great! But, I am now wondering which will perform better, those with a short length or those with a long length. I would tend to think the longer set will make it smoother quicker. I have some factory gage wheels for the Frontier Rake. They are really short and don't seem to make any difference. So, I removed them.
Anyone have some theories or experience on the differences between the long or short length (from blade to wheel) of gage wheel?
Other gauge wheel post indicate the further back you can get the wheels the better. My limiting factor was I did not want the extension arms to be forward of the 3PH when in the retracted position. I think the shorter setting will be useful if you are making tight turns. That way the wheels will stay within the graded area and not swing and raise over the blade edge berm.
I tried them out today. Marvelous!! Effortless grading. The trick is to get the height adjusted correctly. I'll likely wish more than once I'd sprung for the trailer jacks. If my adjusting nuts get to be too big a hassle I'll upgrade.
What surprised me is that for fine grading (gravel driveway) the blade is actually a couple inches above the ground (when checking the optimum setting later on flat concrete). I'm glad I left the all-tread long. Was going to trim but now I won't. I still have down adjustment left but I think wheel depth settings will change if the top link blade angle is changed. In hindsight I'd have made the "T" bushing longer and lower to reduce the amount of exposed bare all thread...stronger.
RobJ,
Yes, I doubt the HF wheels will last. They have bearings, but not sealed well despite the specs stating they were. The pivot bearings have zerks, the wheel bearings don't. The pivot bearing race has an exposed gap at the lower ball bearing race. I made a silicone dust cover for them. After masking I packed the race with a needle grease gun attachment (Kragen Auto) then removed masking and greased the outside of one race for silicone release. I was going to take pictures of the process but didn't. But here is the finished seal. When it sets overnight (or longer) I'll see if the release worked.
Other posts have used the HF wheels so I thought I'd give them a try...cheap. I've already begun to think about replacing them. The wheel is not difficult, it's finding a sealed pivot assembly that's hard without spending a fortune.
3RRL Rob,
Thanks. I got the mounting idea from another post but he mounted the cross arm above the blade arm because his blade tilted too. That one is earmarked on my other computer but here is another. He used two cross arms. I'm hoping my single arm is stout enough for the task. Two would interfere with my planned ripper bar
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/build-yourself/90568d1196716825-my-version-skunkwerxs-gauge-wheels-gauge-blade.jpg
Yes I like the added weight. And I'll add another 100# or more with my ripper accessory and side plates. I'll post separately the whole rear blade upgrade when I'm done.
