Newbie questions about my new FX24D

[Fredster]

Fredricks Equipment delivered my FX24D yesterday afternoon, and so far I'm in love. I cut about 3 acres with the mower today, used the box blade to scrape up some brush around trees, and used the loader to level some ground and move a bunch of trash out of the way.

But, I have a few questions. First, please tell me it gets easier to switch out attachments. It seems to take me 10 or 15 minutes each time. It'll get faster and easier, right? Right now it's like a dance, where I'm moving the attachment (as best I can) to get it close, then having to get on the tractor and adjust the hitch, then back to move the attachment, and so on. That's just newbie-ness, "never used a tractor before" stuff, right?

Second, anyone ever have a foldable ROPS that didn't want to fold? I've taken the pins out, and the top part won't budge. Each side has a big hex nut near the pin, and it looks like the top part should swivel on those, but they're tight. REALLY tight. Like, "pull myself off the ground and hang by the wrench and it doesn't move" tight. This isn't normal, is it? I can't get the tractor into my shed until I can get the ROPS down, because it's about an inch too high. Any ideas, bearing in mind that I don't have an air compressor or associated tools.

Finally, I hooked up the post hole digger, because I need (pretty desperately) to dig a hole for a mail box at our new house. Problem is, when everything's attached, the driveline is about 1 or 2 inches too short, and won't reach the PTO. I can't see any way to lengthen it, and I'm stumped. The top arm of the auger is pinned through the top of the three holes in the piece above the PTO where the top arm of the 3-point hitch (no, I don't know what it's called because I'm new to all this ) goes. Perhaps putting it in one of the lower holes? I've attached a picture to show everything hooked up, just to make sure I don't have it on upside down or backwards or something. Anyone have any ideas how to get the drive line to reach the PTO?

Hopefully I explained everything so people can understand it. It's frustrating not to know what things are called. Thanks in advance for any help anyone can offer.

 

[phatgemi]

I bet an overrunning pto clutch would give you the 1 or 2 inches you need for the pto shaft to reach.

 

[Fredster]

I bet an overrunning pto clutch would give you the 1 or 2 inches you need for the pto shaft to reach.

Thanks for the suggestion - it's already got one on it.

 

[LMTC]

That pto shaft is probably 60" or so....I don't see how it can be too short. It does not appear that you have it pulled out as far as it will go.

 

[Fredster]

That pto shaft is probably 60" or so....I don't see how it can be too short. It does not appear that you have it pulled out as far as it will go.

You mean all I had to do was pull on it?

Getting that auger hooked up was by far the hardest thing I did today. I'm gonna kick myself if I just needed to pull on the shaft to make it longer.

 

[kenmac]

Loosen the bolts a little & shoot some grease in between the folding area work the unit back& forth then, tighten back up . This should help, mine was tight at first.Like LMTC said,. Have you pulled that drive shaft to it's full extension ? You do know it slides in & out to make it longer or shoter ? looks like I was posting at the same time you were . glad to see you figured it out

 

[California]

For attaching implements - the tractor's arms don't resist upward motion. If you start a little low just pry them up. Or just reach down and lift one by hand.

And, get a 2x4, 6 ft or longer, to use for a pry bar. This is safer than a steel bar if it slips and hits you. Pry the implement into position, lifting it a little if that makes it move easier. Implements that size arent too big/heavy to muscle around, if you have a long enough bar.

There's a long thread on here about Harbor Freight's $69 Quick Hitch. Measure the width of your implements at the lower pins. If they are all uniform then the QH may be the answer. As I posted in the QH thread, my implements are uniform width but random heights. I have to unbolt the QH top hook and set it for each. Even so, this minor effort is far easer than rasseling the implements into position, since I park them on soft sloping ground and they are never aligned properly when I go back to use them again. The QH is a huge improvement. There's an inepensive adapter available claimed to deal with the rendom heights - I intend to try it.

On the ROPS, I took mine apart at the fold and cleaned it up a little with a file then greased it with a chunk of solid paraffin. Now I can fold it from the seat.

Enjoy your new toy!

 

[roxynoodle]

I made dollies for my implements with the exception of the finish mower, which has 4 swivel wheels and hooks up fast. The rotary cutter and box blade were another story though. No matter how well I back up I'm always like 1/2" off on one side. I used 2x6s and swivel caster wheels and now I can hook up and unhook in like 2 minutes at most. And I have an old cement floor that is all uneven and it still works great. Cheaper than a nice quick hitch (in fact for me it was free, had a barn fall down and have all kinds of 2x6s and got the wheels from a neighbor who gets them free at work). The dolly also allows me to adjust the sacrificers for the box blade before I hook it up. Somebody whose post I read hung his post hole digger from a truss in his barn to help him hook that up fast.

 

[Tractors4u]

Practice, practice, practice and you will get faster at attaching implements. Don't fight the implement too much. When you are backing up to the implement, raise the lift arms up, lower them down over the lift pins, and then once the arms are resting on the pins ease the tractor forward until you have the ends of the lift arms where you need them over the pins. Now on hooking up that post hole digger. That is the single most hated implement i have. I chain mine to a post and unhitch and hitch from the post. It still doesn't make things any better. As for your ROPS, the ROPS on my John Deere were like that when I bought it new. They just need some elbow grease.

 

[Fredster]

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Especially thanks for that dolly suggestion, Roxynoodle. Being able to roll the implement so that it's straight seems like it would make things a lot easier, to keep me from having to move it the way I do now, which makes me fear for my back. I tend to pull muscles in it when I'm lifting weight from a bent over position.

To the matter of the ROPS, the problem right now is that I can't loosen the bolt, so I can't grease it or paraffin it or anything it yet. I literally pulled myself off the ground by the wrench trying to loosen it yesterday. Now that I think about it. I'm thinking maybe I should try it with something like a tire iron for better leverage.