Implements that pull on the drawbar and the world of good enough.

[North Idaho Wolfman]

I just don't know how robust a ball and coupler interface is when pulling on rough terrain. The fact that pintle hooks and lunette rings are common for off-road applications, and the fact that there are off-road towing setups, it gives me the impression that a ball and coupler approach is less than ideal.

I can see 2 issues with a 2 5/16 ball coupler for this application.
They bind when the angle gets too far off and I could see the angle getting too far off really quick with the terrain we have up here.
Trying to hitch it up and unhitch it would be a nightmare, again nothing is flat or level up here.

When I say up here, North Idaho and North West Montana are very close in terrain makeup.

 

[airbiscuit]

Why not just use a twisted clevis on the drawbar?

 

[GreensvilleJay]

yup, THAT'S the thing I used, and a regular one as the 'tongue' on the discs.

 

[mcmxi]

I can see 2 issues with a 2 5/16 ball coupler for this application.
They bind when the angle gets too far off and I could see the angle getting too far off really quick with the terrain we have up here.
Trying to hitch it up and unhitch it would be a nightmare, again nothing is flat or level up here.

When I say up here, North Idaho and North West Montana are very close in terrain makeup.

I have the same concerns, and yes, Northern Idaho and Montana have very similar terrain. I really like the area you live in and would have no problem relocating to that part of Idaho.

 

[mcmxi]

Why not just use a twisted clevis on the drawbar?

View attachment 122071

I have one of those but I don't think that would be an ideal set up if you're talking about pinning the existing coupler to the twisted clevis. There would be a lot of movement between the disc and the tractor with two links in the "chain". At this stage I'm still leaning towards ordering a pintle hook and bolting it to a plate that is pinned on the drawbar. Then cutting off the current coupler on the disc and welding a plate to the disc tongue and bolting a lunette ring to it.

 

[airbiscuit]

I have one of those but I don't think that would be an ideal set up if you're talking about pinning the existing coupler to the twisted clevis. There would be a lot of movement between the disc and the tractor with two links in the "chain". At this stage I'm still leaning towards ordering a pintle hook and bolting it to a plate that is pinned on the drawbar. Then cutting off the current coupler on the disc and welding a plate to the disc tongue and bolting a lunette ring to it.

That is a sound solution, or you could weld the current "coupler" solid to make it a traditional pin on hitch, and use a twisted clevis. It's your money

 

[mcmxi]

I ordered a CURT pintle hook which is rated for 30.000lb and 8,000lb of tongue weight which is excessive to say the least, but for only $64 and made in Taiwan it's a no-brainer. I have a 3" lunette ring already on a plate so will get that welded onto the disc harrow.

To make things even easier, I can remove the tongue from the harrow and put in on my welding table. Looks like I might need to remove or cut off some bolts but they're easily replaced.

Pintle Hook (30,000 lbs., 2-1/2" or 3" Lunette Rings)

In agriculture, construction and even military applications, pintle hitches are the trusted product of specialized towing. They are notorious for their high weight capacity and simple design. The basic pintle hitch is essentially a hook and loop, with the hook attached to the vehicle and the...

www.curtmfg.com

 

[mcmxi]

The pintle hook showed up on Friday and I started working on the drawbar and mounting plate this afternoon. I wanted the center of the hook to be in line with the center of the hole that accepts either a pin or a ball shank, so I cut off a section of the drawbar.

I have some scrap 1/2" plate and cut off a section, drilled two 7/16" holes and six 1/2" holes to give me six height positions for the pintle hook (or other systems). I tapped the top 7/16" holes with a 1/2"-13 tap because there's no room for a nut and lock washer on the back side of the plate. I used a couple of bolts in the threaded holes during welding to protect the threads, and once done, I ran the tap back through the holes to cut some threads in the weld and to ensure that the 1/2" bolts would bottom out.

I put an aggressive bevel on the end of the drawbar to get better weld penetration (used preheat too) and then welded it up with 7018 rod. I have triangular gussets cut that will sit between the plate and drawbar but I need to figure out the purpose of the two holes near the end of the drawbar. I'd rather double up two 1/2" gussets and center them in the middle of the plate, but that would interfere with the two holes (which I'd fill). So does anyone know what they're used for?

My plan is to weld the end of the draw bar that I cut off to a plate that will bolt to the new plate on the draw bar. I also plan to cut off the 2-5/16" and 2" balls shown below (not sure where they came from) and weld them to a section of solid square bar and then weld that to a plate that can bolt to the new plate on the draw bar. This will give me the option to connect to a lunette ring, a ball coupler or a clevis coupler.

The outsides of the plate need to be squared up and cleaned up but that's a simple job. I'll add the gussets once I know whether the two holes have any value.

 

[mcmxi]

The M6060 owner's manual doesn't mention any function re those two smaller holes. I'm inclined to cut a pin down to fill those two holes i.e. cut off a 1" stub (drawbar is 1-1/4" thick) and fill up 1/8" divot either end and grind smooth.

 

[Trapper Bob]

The pintle hook showed up on Friday and I started working on the drawbar and mounting plate this afternoon. I wanted the center of the hook to be in line with the center of the hole that accepts either a pin or a ball shank, so I cut off a section of the drawbar.

I have some scrap 1/2" plate and cut off a section, drilled two 7/16" holes and six 1/2" holes to give me six height positions for the pintle hook (or other systems). I tapped the top 7/16" holes with a 1/2"-13 tap because there's no room for a nut and lock washer on the back side of the plate. I used a couple of bolts in the threaded holes during welding to protect the threads, and once done, I ran the tap back through the holes to cut some threads in the weld and to ensure that the 1/2" bolts would bottom out.

I put an aggressive bevel on the end of the drawbar to get better weld penetration (used preheat too) and then welded it up with 7018 rod. I have triangular gussets cut that will sit between the plate and drawbar but I need to figure out the purpose of the two holes near the end of the drawbar. I'd rather double up two 1/2" gussets and center them in the middle of the plate, but that would interfere with the two holes (which I'd fill). So does anyone know what they're used for?

My plan is to weld the end of the draw bar that I cut off to a plate that will bolt to the new plate on the draw bar. I also plan to cut off the 2-5/16" and 2" balls shown below (not sure where they came from) and weld them to a section of solid square bar and then weld that to a plate that can bolt to the new plate on the draw bar. This will give me the option to connect to a lunette ring, a ball coupler or a clevis coupler.

The outsides of the plate need to be squared up and cleaned up but that's a simple job. I'll add the gussets once I know whether the two holes have any value.

View attachment 122668

View attachment 122669

View attachment 122670

View attachment 122671

View attachment 122672

Is that 3 passes on the weld, root & 2 caps? Very nice.

 

[mcmxi]

Is that 3 passes on the weld, root & 2 caps? Very nice.

Yes, and thanks. A good rule of thumb for fillet welds is a leg that's at least 75% of the plate thickness so that's what I was going for. When the plates are of different thickness, the rule is based on the thinner of the two.

 

[mcmxi]

So no one knows what the two smaller holes near the end of the drawbar are for? Attaching chains perhaps? I think I'll get rid of them and put the gussets in the center of the plate.

 

[Matt Ellerbee]

So no one knows what the two smaller holes near the end of the drawbar are for? Attaching chains perhaps? I think I'll get rid of them and put the gussets in the center of the plate.

Looks to me like another bracket would bolt there for a pin to stick through. Something like a hay wagon pintle loop or the like. I’ve seen them like that on AG tractors, where the drawbar has a double shear connection.

 

[mcmxi]

Looks to me like another bracket would bolt there for a pin to stick through. Something like a hay wagon pintle loop or the like. I’ve seen them like that on AG tractors, where the drawbar has a double shear connection.

Matt, your post got me searching and I learned something new today so many thanks. There's such a thing as a hammer strap which is basically what you mentioned. I've never seen them or heard of them so I think it's safe to say that I don't need those two holes in the drawbar ... until I do!

Hammer Straps | Abilene Machine | Abilene Machine

Hammer straps and retainers for drawbars of Case, Case IH, John Deere tractors. Abilene Machine, Inc.

www.abilenemachine.com

Photos lifted from another tractor forum.

 

[Matt Ellerbee]

Matt, your post got me searching and I learned something new today so many thanks. There's such a thing as a hammer strap which is basically what you mentioned. I've never seen them or heard of them so I think it's safe to say that I don't need those two holes in the drawbar ... until I do!

Hammer Straps | Abilene Machine | Abilene Machine

Hammer straps and retainers for drawbars of Case, Case IH, John Deere tractors. Abilene Machine, Inc.

www.abilenemachine.com

Photos lifted from another tractor forum.

View attachment 122726

View attachment 122725

I learnt something too! Didn’t know it had a name.

 

[hedgerow]

Sorry late to the party but yes holes are for a hammer strap. Lot of different ones of them. Most tractors 100 HP and up use a hammer strap hitch on the implement and tractor. All my bigger implements use them. As a matter of fact I don't even have my three point arms and quick hitches on my two biggest tractors. They are just in the way hooking up implements like a grain cart.

 

[mcmxi]

Sorry late to the party but yes holes are for a hammer strap. Lot of different ones of them. Most tractors 100 HP and up use a hammer strap hitch on the implement and tractor. All my bigger implements use them. As a matter of fact I don't even have my three point arms and quick hitches on my two biggest tractors. They are just in the way hooking up implements like a grain cart.

There's no end to the learning! If I ever find that I need to use a hammer strap I'll buy a new drawbar ... or maybe not! I just checked Messicks and they want $300 for that thing. I do have a drawbar on the MX which is the same thickness but a 1/4" narrower ... good enough.

 

[Flintknapper]

I just don't know how robust a ball and coupler interface is when pulling on rough terrain. The fact that pintle hooks and lunette rings are common for off-road applications, and the fact that there are off-road towing setups, it gives me the impression that a ball and coupler approach is less than ideal.

Pintle for sure....for strength and articulation. I run one on my Land Cruiser and use an off-road trailer when conditions are rough and demanding.

 

[mcmxi]

I had some travel for work, and other stuff got in the way, so I didn't make much more progress on this, but I need to get this project wrapped up. I bid on some discing work today for the guy who bought a trailer from me last week, and he's enthusiastic for me to come out and run around on a 1.5 acre property that's very rough. He wants two passes so I told him $450 all in.

I've never changed an automotive tire myself but may get that experience soon. The tires on the disc are very old and worn looking with lots of cracks, so I'll most likely buy some cheap tires such as these. Obviously the only function of the wheels and tires is to raise up the disc to move it from A to B so I only need to get it on/off the trailer and over to the field to be disced. Balancing isn't required so I just need to remove the old tires and get the new tires on. Lots of dish soap, some levers and all should be good right?

The irony is that it turns out that I will need to use the drawbar with a clevis type connector when I'm pulling the folding cutter that I ordered. No big deal though. I'm going to weld the "stub" that I cut off to a plate that will bolt to the modified draw bar.

 

[mcmxi]

So as is typically the way, after cutting up the M6060 drawbar and modifying it to work with a Pintle hitch, I bought an implement that pulls on the standard drawbar and my modified drawbar won't work for this Land Pride folding cutter. Luckily the local dealer has a spare M6060/M7060 drawbar laying around that I can have so it looks like I don't need to make a "jack-of-all-trades" drawbar after all. I'll have a dedicated Pintle hook hitch drawbar and a standard drawbar.