Rotary Cutter Hookin' Up That Rotary Cutter

[TBone]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

Harv,

I've got two cutters, a light 6' and a HEAVY 6' Howse that weighs about 900 lbs. The light one is not too bad even on dirt. I just use a 6' pry bar and jack it around in position to hook up the 3ph arms.

The heavy duty Howse is something else. When it is in soft dirt (which is mostly the case), it is a real pain to move enough to get the arms hooked to the pins. Hooking up the arms makes hooking up the driveshaft seem almost like fun./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

The Howse has a twist lock on it too. I actually prefer the kind that pulls back. When I try to twist the end the whole shaft tries to turn.

One of these days I am going to fix a concrete pad with some type of roller bed to sit my cutter on. It would be so much easier on the old back.

TBone

 

[Harv]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

<font color=blue>One of these days I am going to </font color=blue> ...

Sounds like a good title for a new thread, except Muhammad wouuldn't have enough disk space to hold it. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Know what you mean, though. I'd sure like to have big ol' barn with a nice, flat concrete floor. Then I'd fer sure have my implements on roll-around dollies.

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

<font color=blue>"big ol' barn with a nice, flat concrete floor"</font color=blue>

Ahhh.... Dare to dream... /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[smilingreen]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

Hey,...uh...Harv...???
Kinda funny.....but my "green machine" doesn't seem to have these problems /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif. Sorry, I couldn't resist!!!!/w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif . But seriousy, I have the collar on my JD513 cutter and I connect it first to the PTO before I hook up the rest of the Rotary cutter. Works very well for me. (except for the broken welds on the back of the cutter, which Hillybilly forewarned me about that would eventually happen).

 

[Alan L.]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

Was that Slim Pickens that rode that PTO shaft in the movie Dr. Stranglove? Kinda reminds me of that......

My Rhino 5-foot cutter has the collar that you have to pull back while pushing the driveshaft onto the PTO shaft. The key seems to be making sure the splines are lined up ( I try to mark it in the grease and try not to turn it) and that there is plenty of grease on the PTO shaft. I have that PTO cover that gets in the way, and this is the most frustrating part of changing implements. I have a bad shoulder that makes ot even worse.

I like the idea of putting the end of the shaft in a plastic bag, and maybe I should cover my stuff with tarps. I have been just subjecting the implements to the weather.

I usually do one side, then the PTO, then the other side, then the top link. But the PTO is by far the hardest part.

 

[BB_TX]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

Wow! All this talk about the pull and twist collars makes me glad mine is the spring loaded pin type on my 6' cutter. I have never taken more than a few seconds to get mine on. I can easily rotate my PTO shaft by hand to align the splines and the collar slides right on.

 

[gerard]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

<font color=blue>does adding a quick hitch make the job (hooking up PTO) tougher?</font color=blue>

I have a quick hitch and while it makes hooking up a LOT easier, it does make access to the PTO shaft even more restricted. I have the pin type but it does take a little contortioning to get in and hook up the shaft. I'm very happy with the quick hitch though as it makes hooking things up a lot easier since you don't have to line things up so perfectly when on uneven ground. (I noticed bigger tractors all have the open three point arms which accomplishes the same thing as the quick hitch. Seems like a much better design. Wonder why the cuts don't use that style too. Be a hell of a selling point with me........) /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[beenthere]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

Do you have a picture of your quick hitch and of the 'open' 3pt arms you are referring to on the bigger tractors? I am not getting a mental image of the differences. Thanks

 

[gerard]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

I don't know how well the detail will show up but if you can open the file in a photo program you can blow it up and look at the link arm ends. They are basically an open "C" with the cup facing straight up. All you do is lower the three point below the pins, drive under and lift the three point. There are two latches you then release that extends two bars and kind of closes the cup. If you're on uneven ground it doesn't matter as one side will contact first, then the other will slip in. Not like a conventional one where you have to get two sides perfectly lined up. Not quite as good as the "triangle" design but for $199 I can use it on all my implements and don't need a separate peice for each piece of equipment I own. Since I got it I haven't had it off. No reason I can think of they can't make the lower factory links the same way. Much easier to hook up.
Not so the

 

[chim]

Re: Hookin\' Up That Rotary Cutter

How does the top connect between the implement and the QH? In particular, my RFM has a connection that requires a swinging connection, unlike a scraper blade. The QH looks like it simply has a hook on top. What would keep the swinging connection from flipping off? Thanks.............chim