He Made His Own Hydraulic 3-Pt Top Link HITCHES Manually-controlled screw-type top links on tractor 3-pt hitches can be difficult to adjust especially when the 3-pt is carrying a lot of weight Commercial hydraulic-operated top links are available but sell for $250 or more John Herren Louisville Ky made his own using a standard 10-in hydraulic cylinder Herren bought the 2 by 10-in cylinder at a Northern Tool store www northerntool com for $89 He cut a pair of round clevises out of heavy plate steel and welded them to each end of the cylinder The clevises in turn pin onto the tractor and implement hitch The cylinder’s piston rod has 3 spacers clamped onto it which allows Herren to change the pitch of the hitch from the tractor seat “I use it a with a 3-pt mounted dirt scoop on my Kubota tractor which has about 45 hp ” says Herren “By removing or adding spacers I can change the pitch of the hitch I retract the cylinder to tip the scoop so it bites into the dirt as I back up By raising the 3-pt hitch and extending the cylinder I can dump the dirt out I also use it with my Woods 7 1/2-ft finish mower “I also welded a piece of flat metal to the cylinder and attached a chain to it to hold the cylinder up whenever I unhook the tractor from an implement “I bought the spacers at Tractor Supply Company and also bought 3/8-in dia hydraulic hoses and fittings My total cost was about $125 ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup John Herren P O Box 72069 Louisville Ky 40272 ph 502 741-7521; jrherren31@yahoo com

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