I just got my first "real" tractor, a 1956 JD 420U. The tractor came with a front loader, but no 3 pt hitch. I don't really NEED a 3 pt at the moment, but I would like to add one for possible future use. What are my options? Is there an aftermarket setup I can use, or will I have to search for OEM stuff?
JD 420U 3 pt hitch
- Thread starter argosybob
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Tx Jim
New Member
Does tractor have a rockshaft?
tlm720
Bronze Member
What is your level of knowledge with tractors, specifically the Dubuque built Deeres? They are workhorses. Does it have the direction reverser? Does it have the rockshaft and hydraulic pump mounted on the torque tube or is the loader using a front engine driven pump. There are enough of them around that you will be able to find the components, but it likely won't be cheap. Keep your eye out for a junker with the hitch that you can pick up for a good price. Some 1010 parts might fit and are less of a collectors item. Not sure if the 1010 rockshaft housing would fit but it wouldn't surprise me. The transmission and final drives are very little changed on the 1010. Deere's website has parts manuals for many of these older tractors. You can get a good idea of what is missing. These tractors came in many configurations including crawlers. The crawler 3pt was completely different though.
I'm very new to tractors, there is so much to learn. I do have the service manual and even the original owners manual. The loader is using a front engine driven pump. I'll have to look to see if it has the direction reverser. Thanks for the replies.
tlm720
Bronze Member
A great book to learn about the history of your new machine is The Little Giants by J. R. Hobbs. The Dubuque Works was built to begin production of the M tractor and move the manufacture of crawlers from the recently purchased Lindeman Brothers Yakima Washington business into the new Deere facility. Your tractor is part of the lineage that launched the entire construction and industrial line of Deere. While i've never read this anywhere I also believe it was part of the engineering effort that lead to the new generation 4 and 6 cylinder engine, since this was Deere's first vertical inline engine configuration in a tractor (other than the L and LA which was more of a garden tractor in how it was built). It was a way to still use a 2 cylinder engine and yet learn how to build a tractor with that engine configuration. Matter of fact the 1010 (new generation) was little more than a 430 with a 4 cylinder engine and new sheet metal. There is also a 320, 330, 430, and 440 that might have hitch parts that will work. Depending on configuration some of those models are rare and demand top dollar though.
