That Never Ending T&T Path!

[Henro]

Best laid plans of mice and men. Well, it was a good idea, I guess, but those middle two pair of quick disconnects would not work because of the amount of angle that the top link took when the 3PH was tilted.

On top of that, I also did not consider the extra width that the clevis ends on the cylinders would add to the width when connected to the lift arms. Double whammy. So I moved the quick disconnects a little closer together before I saw it was mission impossible. Six holes to hide instead of four. Live and learn.

The four quick disconnects in the center had to be moved. Poor me.

 

[Henro]

I found a piece of rusty 1/8 inch plate that I had around for years, that was bent in a way that I could use it for a mounting bracket. Off came the rust and it worked perfectly. I was lucky that I was able to bend the hoses without too much stress on them and connect up to the quick disconnects at their new location.

Knowing what I know now, I might just as well had put two sets on like this, next to the amber lights, one pair on each side. I do think the location of the quick disconnects that remain in the original position will be OK though.

This picture also shows well the six holes that need to be hidden.

 

[Henro]

I put the backhoe on just to be sure that the new location for the disconnects would not be an issue. Since these disconnects are used for top link and the float valve section, there will not be anything connected to them when the backhoe is installed, so I am home free.

 

[Henro]

A couple stick-on reflectors from TSC at $1.24 each makes me feel better.

The lower disconnects are left tilt and right tilt. The upper ones are top tilt and the float control valve. I have the option of using the float capability on either the top cylinder or the right tilt cylinder.

 

[Henro]

My tilt cylinders ended up being about an inch shorter than the length of the fixed lift rod on my B2910. That and the retract capability of the top link resulted in the rear blade being held up off the ground when the 3PH is fully raised and the top link is fully retracted.

I am hopeful that the net result is that when I have my post hole digger on, I will have a little more lift. As is(was) I have(had) about 4 inches clearance between the auger tip and the ground. I am hopeful that I will have double that now. A one-month loan of the post hole digger to a friend is stretching out to six months now. I guess I will find out in the spring. I also think I will stop loaning things to people.

 

[Henro]

I still have to make some hose length adjustments. This is about what things look like currently. Everything seems to work fine. But I know I can make it slightly better by making some of the hoses a bit shorter. This is easy to do since I have reusable ends on one end of each hose.

 

[Henro]

This picture shows two things of interest. One is the angle of the top cylinder when the 3PH is tilted. A second thing is the slight angle that is imposed on the implement in the direction of travel. These are two things that I failed to consider. Hope this photo brings them to the attention to whoever might be putting T&T on their tractor in the future.

Guess that is about it for my installation. I am hopeful that having my control valve up out of the way will be beneficial. Time will tell on that I guess. Also, from what I can see having float on a tilt cylinder as an option sure looks promising for snow plowing with the back blade. But that is up in the air too as far as conclusions go.

 

[Henro]

One other thing that surprised me was that I don't have restrictors in the lines and I still have good control over cylinder movement.

I think it is because of the size of the cylinders. The top cylinder is 2.5 inches and the tilt cylinders are 2.75 inches in diameter. I have good control and don't feel the need to have a flow restrictor in any of the lines at this point. I am able to inch out the top cylinder when hooking up an implement without any problem, with movement being very slow when I "feather" the control valve.

After getting some experience using the setup I will know more, however. But so far, so good... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[beenthere]

Very impressive project and really appreciate the trouble you went to in posting all the detailed pictures. I am currently adapting my FEL forks to go on my 3pt quick hitch (iMatch) and will be looking forward to getting the T-N-T to make the use of the forks much more maneuverable when sliding into a pallet of split wood. Hopefully I don't exceed the limits of the cylinders when I do that.
Thanks and will anxiously await how snow clearing goes (not sure we will get any this year /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

 

[GerardC]

Most interesting thread you started Henro. Love all the details you took the time to share with all of us as that is a project in itself. Can't wait to hear how things go once the snow flies. Keep us posted on any and all pros/cons you come across with your T-n-T. That is why we are all here....to learn from others. Great job. G