"Lift Boom" For Riding Mower

"Lift Boom" For Riding Mower FARM HOME Lawn Mowers (31h,38) 28-6-38 By modifying an old No. 5 hitch off an IH planter, Leonard Seltzer built a "lift boom" that makes it easy to do maintenance work on his riding mower. A 1-ton chain hoist does the lifting. The 10-ft. long, Cat. I bridge hitch was designed to pull a field cultivator going ahead of a planter. He started by removing the rear dolly wheel and welding a steel plate over the open end. Next, he heated the hitch plate and bent it down to conform with the shape of the boom. Then a hole was cut at the bend and a slot made to accommodate a medium duty chain, which serves as the top link hook-up. At the bottom of the boom, he removed the original clamps. Then he took the boom to a local machine shop where the holes were bored out to 1 1/8 in. for Cat. II size pins that attach to the tractor's lower lift arms. On the top end, a 3/4-in. hole was bored and a 3/4in. I-bolt put in place to support the chain hoist. The factory Cat. II pins were an inch short due to the thickness of the 2 by 3-in. tubing that makes up the main frame of the boom, so he made new ones on a lathe to fit the 3-pt.'s lower lift arms. To complete the hook-up, he removes the 3-pt. top link and places a chain around the original pin that held the top link. "I use it to service my Woods model 6170 zero turn riding mower, and it works great," says Seltzer. "I put a light chain around the mower's dolly wheels and arms, then hook the chain hoist to the chain. It's a heavy mower but the boom has no problem lifting it. I think it could be used to lift any garden tractor with up to 20 hp." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Leonard Seltzer, 16040 W. Elmwood, Manhattan, Ill. 60442 (ph 815 478-3578).

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