2021 - Volume #45, Issue #4, Page #31
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Bucket-Mounted “Double Hitch” Locks Into Place Automatically
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The hitch extends about 2 ft. past the edge of the bucket, making it visible from the cab. A 1-ft. length of square tubing bolted to the front lip of the bucket supports a pair of clevis-shaped steel brackets, one above the other. The top bracket holds a ball hitch, and the bottom bracket holds a spring-loaded “jaw” that opens and closes by pulling on a rope from the cab. A 3-pt. top link bolts on between the top of the bucket and the square tubing to provide reinforcement.
“It works slick and saves a lot of time,” says Heinz. “To hook up to a wagon I leave the tongue jacked up with a pin in the hitch, and then back up until the the spring-loaded jaws snap shut. To unhook it I just pull on the rope. Most of the time I can hook up to a gooseneck trailer without having to remove the jaws, but if they get in the way I can quickly unbolt them. I made a similar hitch for the back of my tractor, which I use to hook up to wagons and trailers out in the field.”
Heinz says the jaws came off the back of an old pull-type forage harvester that was used to make corn silage. “The jaws were mounted on back of the harvester and a rope ran up to the tractor. When the wagon was full the operator would pull on the rope to disconnect the wagon,” he notes.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, John Heinz, 26178 423rd Ave., Alexandria, S. Dak. 57311 (ph 605 999-6811; JohnHeinzfarm@santel.net).
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