They Built Two Hydraulic-Driven Tractors

2022 - Volume #46, Issue #4, Page #04

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Reynold Petersen motorized a 3-pt. backhoe kit and also built an articulated loader tractor with the help of his son, Nick. Both tractors rely heavily on hydraulics, including hydraulic motors for drive wheels.
    “We farmed, but I really didn’t understand hydraulics until I built these,” says Petersen. “Nick was an engineering manager with a large equipment firm and asked the hydraulics specialist when we had questions. He also got me books on hydraulics and the parts I needed.”
    Petersen had purchased a 3-pt. backhoe kit in 2002 for use on his IH 856. Tired of putting it on and taking it off, he decided to turn it into a wheeled backhoe with its own power unit.
    “My neighbor had given me several 1978 IH Scout trucks, and I have a lot of salvaged parts cut up and set aside,” says Petersen. “I shortened a Scout frame and used its transfer case as well as the axles and mounted a hydraulic motor on the transfer case for 4-wheel drive.”
    Petersen mounted a Predator V-Twin 22-hp. engine on the wheeled loader with a 13-gpm hydraulic pump and a 5-gal. hydraulic tank. He used hydraulics from the backhoe kit with an added valve for the hydraulic motor on the transfer case. He also powers a hydraulic valve on the rear of the wheeled backhoe for use with a wood splitter.
    “I used to use tractor hydraulics on the splitter, but the relief valve isn’t high enough on it,” says Petersen. “I busted a wood splitter when trying to split knurled pieces. This is a smaller pump, but I can get lots of pressure and set it where I want.”
    Petersen follows a well-worn mantra of build it, and if it doesn’t work, burn it off and try again. He admits to doing a lot of it on the wheeled backhoe as he experimented with the design.
    “Mounting the backhoe on the frame took some thought,” says Petersen. “I wanted to make a 360-degree table, but the mechanism was too expensive. I retained the swing mechanism that was on it. As it is, it works great. I use it at home digging rocks out, and the neighbors call me to dig up water lines and other things.”
    With the wheeled backhoe under his belt, Petersen tackled another project. A YouTube video of a home-built loader tractor inspired him to build one, but he decided to make it articulated.
    “I always wanted to make an articulated tractor,” he says. “I used to drive around and take pictures of large articulated equipment.”
    Again, he leaned on his son Nick to help. They sized the unit for a Woods loader. Previously employed by the company, Nick had purchased a returned loader for only $100. It sat in the company yard so long the hoses had rotted and had to be replaced.
    “We used the axle units from one of the old Scouts, and I built the front frame out of 4 by 4-in. steel tubing salvaged from an old forage harvester,” says Petersen. “Nick gave me scrapped, dropped steel from his shop for similar rear frames. The front and rear frame are slightly off square, so they don’t bind when turning.”
    One problem with the Scout he salvaged was a shortage of wheels. “Nick made patterns to match the Scout axles,” says Petersen. “He cut the centers out of a set of 16-in. truck tires from an old 4-WD Chevy and welded in the patterns.”
    The biggest challenge the two faced was the articulation joint. Here again, Petersen got inspiration from YouTube videos before making his own pattern.
    He used an axle hub and a shaft stub from a 20-ton wagon for the joint to flex over rough ground. His son cut the parts out of 1-in. steel, and Petersen welded a hinge for left/right movement. The hub is bolted to the hinge plate for the rear frame, and the shaft is bolted to the rear frame where it would normally be bolted to a wagon frame.
    He used the same 22-hp. Predator V-Twin engine, hydraulic pump, and tank as he put on the wheeled loader. He mounted high-torque, low-speed, hydraulic motors on the differentials of the two axles. The freewheeling motors equalize speeds between the axles. A two-way foot pedal controls forward/reverse and speed.
    Petersen purchased a hydraulic steering mechanism designed for a Massey Ferguson tractor to control the rams on the articulation. He modified it to use a steering wheel from an old riding mower. He also added a counterweight basket to the rear to hold several concrete silo staves.
    “It’s a lot of fun to buzz around with,” says Petersen. “The direct drive works well. It can’t dig like a big loader, but it’s great for moving snow. I can plow the driveway in half the time it would take with my big tractor.”
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Reynold Peterson, E2064 Wolf River Rd., Iola, Wis. 54945 (nitowl77@yahoo.com).

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They Built Two Hydraulic-Driven Tractors MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT Earth Movers Reynold Petersen motorized a 3-pt backhoe kit and also built an articulated loader tractor with the help of his son Nick Both tractors rely heavily on hydraulics including hydraulic motors for drive wheels “We farmed but I really didn’t understand hydraulics until I built these ” says Petersen “Nick was an engineering manager with a large equipment firm and asked the hydraulics specialist when we had questions He also got me books on hydraulics and the parts I needed ” Petersen had purchased a 3-pt backhoe kit in 2002 for use on his IH 856 Tired of putting it on and taking it off he decided to turn it into a wheeled backhoe with its own power unit “My neighbor had given me several 1978 IH Scout trucks and I have a lot of salvaged parts cut up and set aside ” says Petersen “I shortened a Scout frame and used its transfer case as well as the axles and mounted a hydraulic motor on the transfer case for 4-wheel drive ” Petersen mounted a Predator V-Twin 22-hp engine on the wheeled loader with a 13-gpm hydraulic pump and a 5-gal hydraulic tank He used hydraulics from the backhoe kit with an added valve for the hydraulic motor on the transfer case He also powers a hydraulic valve on the rear of the wheeled backhoe for use with a wood splitter “I used to use tractor hydraulics on the splitter but the relief valve isn’t high enough on it ” says Petersen “I busted a wood splitter when trying to split knurled pieces This is a smaller pump but I can get lots of pressure and set it where I want ” Petersen follows a well-worn mantra of build it and if it doesn’t work burn it off and try again He admits to doing a lot of it on the wheeled backhoe as he experimented with the design “Mounting the backhoe on the frame took some thought ” says Petersen “I wanted to make a 360-degree table but the mechanism was too expensive I retained the swing mechanism that was on it As it is it works great I use it at home digging rocks out and the neighbors call me to dig up water lines and other things ” With the wheeled backhoe under his belt Petersen tackled another project A YouTube video of a home-built loader tractor inspired him to build one but he decided to make it articulated “I always wanted to make an articulated tractor ” he says “I used to drive around and take pictures of large articulated equipment ” Again he leaned on his son Nick to help They sized the unit for a Woods loader Previously employed by the company Nick had purchased a returned loader for only $100 It sat in the company yard so long the hoses had rotted and had to be replaced “We used the axle units from one of the old Scouts and I built the front frame out of 4 by 4-in steel tubing salvaged from an old forage harvester ” says Petersen “Nick gave me scrapped dropped steel from his shop for similar rear frames The front and rear frame are slightly off square so they don’t bind when turning ” One problem with the Scout he salvaged was a shortage of wheels “Nick made patterns to match the Scout axles ” says Petersen “He cut the centers out of a set of 16-in truck tires from an old 4-WD Chevy and welded in the patterns ” The biggest challenge the two faced was the articulation joint Here again Petersen got inspiration from YouTube videos before making his own pattern He used an axle hub and a shaft stub from a 20-ton wagon for the joint to flex over rough ground His son cut the parts out of 1-in steel and Petersen welded a hinge for left/right movement The hub is bolted to the hinge plate for the rear frame and the shaft is bolted to the rear frame where it would normally be bolted to a wagon frame He used the same 22-hp Predator V-Twin engine hydraulic pump and tank as he put on the wheeled loader He mounted high-torque low-speed hydraulic motors on the differentials of the two axles The freewheeling motors equalize speeds between the axles A two-way foot pedal controls forward/reverse and speed Petersen purchased a hydraulic steering mechanism designed for a Massey Ferguson tractor to control the rams on the articulation He modified it to use a steering wheel from an old riding mower He also added a counterweight basket to the rear to hold several concrete silo staves “It’s a lot of fun to buzz around with ” says Petersen “The direct drive works well It can’t dig like a big loader but it’s great for moving snow I can plow the driveway in half the time it would take with my big tractor ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Reynold Peterson E2064 Wolf River Rd Iola Wis 54945 nitowl77@yahoo com

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