Never planned for this

Bulldog

Well-known member

Equipment
M 9000 DTC, L 3000 DT
Mar 30, 2010
5,440
73
48
Rocky Face, Georgia
Out yesterday on the back 40 just having the best day. Cool air, cold water, M9000 and batwing doing what they do. Then the $hit hit the fan.

Felt a hard bump and got turned around just in time to see the hyd lines ripped from the tractor. Batwing down, literally it's on the ground with the driveline flopping like a sea gull.

Long story short, the hitch broke. This is what I found. The first pic with the fresh break was all that was hold it on. None of the other welds penetrated both surfaces. Most of the welds looked nice but only stuck to one side. And looks to me with 1" plate they would have "V" it out so it could be welded with multiple passes.

My point is this. For the ones using these heavy cutters it might be worth while to inspect your hitch. I would have never thought of looking for cracks because from what you normally see everything looked fine. After this happened I think back to the countless miles I've pulled it down the road in traffic. I'd hate to see what a 5000 lb cutter would have done to a car if it had broke in the road.

Be safe and happy tractoring.
 

Attachments

Bmyers

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
Grand L3560 with LA805 loader, EA 55" Wicked Grapple, SBX72 BB, LP 1272 mower
May 27, 2019
3,151
3,628
113
Southern Illinois
Besides the hitch, did everything else survive the incident ok?
 

D2Cat

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L305DT, B7100HST, TG1860, TG1860D, L4240
Mar 27, 2014
12,901
4,268
113
40 miles south of Kansas City
Bulldog sometimes when something breaks, after it's all settled down, you are thankful it actually broke! But only in circumstances where it could have been much worse.

Like not getting started on something like you had planned, and when you get going you discover something that could have been catastrophic if you had followed your plan.

I'm sure when you have it back in the field that hitch stays put!
 

BigG

Well-known member

Equipment
l2501, FEL, BB, Rotary cutter, rake,spreader, roller, etc. New Holland TL80 A
Sep 14, 2018
1,950
774
113
West Central,FL
What brand was the mower? Info is our friend.
 

Bulldog

Well-known member

Equipment
M 9000 DTC, L 3000 DT
Mar 30, 2010
5,440
73
48
Rocky Face, Georgia
Bmyers, everything else was fine. It was real pain to get the driveline back together. It feels like it weighs 100 lbs and has the strange shape to line up. Hardest part of the repair was getting the tongue high enough to hook it back to the tractor. It's hard to make a 5K cutter do what you want with a jack on dirt.

Chim, that's a fact. Where this hooks on you can't add weld to make it wider because of clearance issues. We're talking about 1" plate. It should have been ground out so it could be filled with weld like what I did.

D2Cat, after damn it the first thing that I thought was what it would have been if it broke in the road. I was just starting my second pass in the field. 5 minutes before it broke I was going down the road. I got it fixed yesterday and went back to work.

BigG and SDT,
It's a Bush Whacker brand.
 

200mph

Well-known member

Equipment
L4740-3 Cab, FEL, Fnt Snow Blower L2185, LP Finish Mower, LP Rotary Mower
Mar 3, 2017
1,228
58
48
PA
I would consider sending the pictures to the equipment manufacture as feedback. If they have a continual improvement mindset they will appreciate seeing the details of the failure and look to correct for future product.

I'm not suggesting they will warranty or compensate you in any way.
 

SidecarFlip

Banned

Equipment
M9000HDCC3, M9000HD, Kubota GS850 Sidekick
Oct 28, 2018
7,197
546
83
USA
At your suggestion I checked mine. No issue with the welds at all. Mine is a Landpride
 

Bulldog

Well-known member

Equipment
M 9000 DTC, L 3000 DT
Mar 30, 2010
5,440
73
48
Rocky Face, Georgia
I wouldn't think this is a common problem with any brand but I do plan to send the pictures to Bush Whacker to see what they say. If I was a big company like that I would want to hear about those issues so it wouldn't become a regular problem.