Tie rod hydraulic cylinders?

Ron25 · Jul 18, 2006

I intend to build a FEL onea these days and have noticed most factory types and even pics here of projects don't use tie rod cylinders. Why?

Checking on prices they seem to be less expensive. Is there a reason they aren't used that much?

stevenf · Jul 18, 2006

Ron, Hopefully someone with some hydraulic knowledge will reply but I was very recently working on a Hydraulic top link and that was the first thing that my hydraulic cylinder supply house recommended, I would avoid the ones with the bolts on the outside and go with a welded cylinder but they should work fine. The reason that they are cheaper is bound to be that they make more of them for applications other then us playing around with our tractors hydraulic system.
Steve

MadReferee · Jul 19, 2006

Ron25 said:
I intend to build a FEL onea these days and have noticed most factory types and even pics here of projects don't use tie rod cylinders. Why?

Checking on prices they seem to be less expensive. Is there a reason they aren't used that much?

First of all, what is your definition of a tie rod cylinder? A tie rod cylinder typically has both ends being a clevis with a pin. This design will handle a large majority of applications. There are also cylinders with tube ends and ball and socket ends. Some cylinders have removeable ends that can be changed depending on the application.

However, in general terms there are 2 types of cylinders, welded and non-welded (ie. they have bolts holding them together). The non-welded ones are typically less expensive since they are easier to manufacture. Welded cylinders tend to be used for more heavy duty applications. A FEL, for example, would be considered a heavy duty application and would be using welded cylinders although I have seen some aftermarket FELs using non-welded cylinders.

Welded and non-welded cylinders can have a variety of ends depending on the application. A design engineer is the only one who can give an answer as to why he choose one type over another. In most cases the choice is due to duty cycle, availability and cost considerations.