Drawbar ignorance

[rambler]

This has been an interesting thread for a farmer to read. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Swinging drawbar is the only thing I knew for the first 7 years of my life, 'til dad got a tractor with 3pt.

I see on most compacts & sub compacts, the 'swinging' drawbar is actually fixed. On a real tractor with some dragging implements you need to let the drawbar swing from side to side so you can make corners at the ends of fields. It also helps you hook up implements a lot easier.

I have found the bar with holes in it to go on the 3pt arms to be a rather wortless thing, as it pivots & swivels and you can easily lift the bar too high & damage things and it has no down pressure so it is _VERY_ dangerous with loads that are heavy in back or going down a hill (I frequently haul 24,000# of corn behind a tractor, going downhill with a 3pt hitch and the wagons would push the hitch upward & break things...) and so on. However I do have an old swinging & extending drawbar that fits on the 3pt, this is very handy, as long as I am careful on the down-hill issue. (Would not be hard to fabricate grom a 3pt hitch bar...)

The little clamp that several pictured here helps also, as well as the limiting chain that keeps the 3pt down - tho that defeats the ease of use of lifting & lowering the drawbar to some extent. But for anyone using the 3pt to hook trailers & the like to - that chain is _real_ important.

I'm still curious about the original question tho - what was the question??? The fixed or swinging drawbar is the best place to tow from, and a chain works great with a clevis & hitch pin, and since about 25 of my implements have a regular hitch you just back up & drop a pin in, or if you use ball couplers you bolt a ball hitch into it.

What was the question? /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

--->Paul

 

[MMM]

I guess my question was answered indirectly. There is nothing to stop 3pt dbar from pivoting in lift arms?

 

[Knight9]

<font color="blue">There is nothing to stop 3pt dbar from pivoting in lift arms?
</font>

By default, no. However there are lots of options to do so. There are products you can buy or make that will do two things. Prevent the 3PH from moving up (chain to fixed drawbar for example) as well as prevent the 3PH cross drawbar from twisting or pivoting.

Kevin

 

[MMM]

Seems if one was so inclined to move their boat or utility trailer around with a tractor, they could mount ball directly to drawbar. If it was a tractor with big tires and turn radius was a problem, an adjustable length drawbar like my Super C has would seem more stable and avoid the lift float and rotation problem inherent with 3pt drawbar. Unless seriously overloaded, I guess I can't figure using my tractors for towing utility trailers around anyhow. I have the truck for that. Maybe for parades- or the Louisiana hayride.

 

[OkieG]

<font color="blue"> This has been an interesting thread for a farmer to read </font>
It's good to have "real" farmers contributing on TBN. Nothing in my tractor manuals refer to the drawbar as "swinging". That was something I picked up on another thread here. Doesn't make much sense, but somehow I got the impression every drawbar qualified, whether mobile of fixed. Mine is definitely the fixed variety. I think I have it straight now. Some of us have never seen a real swinging drawbar, so I appreciate the clarification.

OkieG (non-farmer, in case you couldn't tell) /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif