Grader blade guage wheels again

[kthompson]

Rob, I have thought several times about how I could make them QA but really I do not have a rear cutter, rake, or anything else that they might be used with. If I had somehting then for sure they would be. About the hyd I would really really like to do that, but I do not have any hyd on the tractor (beyond the 3 pt). I am already tired of climbing on and off the tractor for minor adjustments. I want to rectify that situation, but have not yet. Finances and free time holding me back on that. I have dreams of adding a loader this winter, but we will see.

Mike

Mike, if you were to use a flexible top link (Elsie71 uses a chain) you may find you are able to adjust your 3pth enough to save some of the changes in your wheels you are now making. OK, can not think of what they call if but you could use one of the electric screws (Northern Tool has them in current catalog) to adjust your wheels.

 

[Elsie71]

KThompson - You are right. With the chain in place of the third link, I can control the height of the blade by adjusting the 3 pt. The blade, of course, is suspended between the wheels and the hitch. This only works for light grading, however. For heavier material I have to use the third link or the blade will rock forward.

3RRL - Your system if far superior to mine but way beyond my talent level. Mine only involved cutting and drilling with a very limited amount of welding. It still needs a coat of paint.

 

[Sherweld]

KThompson - You are right. With the chain in place of the third link, I can control the height of the blade by adjusting the 3 pt. The blade, of course, is suspended between the wheels and the hitch. This only works for light grading, however. For heavier material I have to use the third link or the blade will rock forward.

3RRL - Your system if far superior to mine but way beyond my talent level. Mine only involved cutting and drilling with a very limited amount of welding. It still needs a coat of paint.

Would a weight tray on top of the blade help to keep the blade down for those times you are doing heavier cutting?

Looking good as is though.

I've got my eye on a "boneyard" trencher blade to put together a 3pt blade, and you folks on this forum have shared some really great ideas.

Thanks
Sherweld

 

[MJPetersen]

Mike, if you were to use a flexible top link (Elsie71 uses a chain) you may find you are able to adjust your 3pth enough to save some of the changes in your wheels you are now making. OK, can not think of what they call if but you could use one of the electric screws (Northern Tool has them in current catalog) to adjust your wheels.

ahh guys do not do this to me!! I thought for sure that I had a perfect REASON for needing to tap into the hydraulics. Do not take that away from me.

Actually the chain idea is great and I had not thought of that. It does make good logical sense as I think through the action with a chain. With a rigid top link the blade height is dependent on the top link adjustment and the adjustment on the wheels. basically if it is set then you can just drop the 3 pt down and go and the blade does the work of taking off the high spots and filling in the low.

With a chain then the adjustment is predominately with the 3 pt. Consistency from pass to pass becomes a bigger challenge, but the biggest problem with a chain that I can see in my mind--not in practice because I have not gone out there today to figure out how to do this.--would be if you had your blade at an angle. It seems to me that then you would need a rigid toplink to maintain the level of the blade, so that the corners did not dig in.

A very interesting idea that I will have to try. Thanks for posting the suggestion. Now the actuator would work, but I am going to hold out for hyd. Your suggestion of the chain will keep me busy for a while.

Mike

 

[jimmysisson]

Sherweld, like your Moynihan quote, thanks!
Jim

 

[JoeL4330]

MJP: I wanted the compliance a chain would offer but I have T&T and my blade angles, too ...so, my solution was to put a swinging bracket between hyd toplink and toplink mtg pt on blade ...in fact, I used the top link adapter that HF sells for their quick hitch ...works great.

 

[sandman2234]

Due to my neighbors barn fire, I have several nice pieces of "New Junk", slightly charred. One of them is a Gravely Zero turn mower, and I was talking to the wife about maybe adding a set of gauge wheels to my boxblade. Right in the middle of her asking how much I was fixing to spend (question actually was "what do you need to do that"), I grabbed a flashlight and walked out being the garage where the Gravely is sitting. Called her to come see what I was looking at, and she said, "that is exactly what you just discribed".
All I have to do is cut the main beams loose from the engine compartment cage and I can use the front wheels as guage wheels on my boxblade.
Just mentioned this, in case somebody has a zero turn with a similar fate and they need some guage wheels.
Wonder if them being swivel wheels is going to make any difference, or am I going to want to weld them into a straight line only wheel?
David from jax

On Edit:
I just went and looked at the "King of boxblades" setup, and unless he has welded them in place, 3RRL is using swivel wheels, so I should be ok with them!

David from jax

 

[Egon]

Just mentioned this, in case somebody has a zero turn with a similar fate and they need some Gage wheels.

Oh no, will there be a spate of barn nows where folks are in the need of Gage wheels???

 

[sandman2234]

Might be a good reason to start leaving your zero turn mower outside, so somebody doesn't burn your barn down for the guage wheels!!!
David from jax

 

[3RRL]

Wonder if them being swivel wheels is going to make any difference, or am I going to want to weld them into a straight line only wheel?
David from jax

On Edit:
I just went and looked at the "King of boxblades" setup, and unless he has welded them in place, 3RRL is using swivel wheels, so I should be ok with them!

David from jax

Hi David,
Mine are the swiveling type like you thought.
Mine are off the rotary cutter tail wheel. In fact, that's where this set was made for. I made them so I could take them off and use them as gauge wheels on other stuff.