Backwards Loader

Backwards Loader TRACTORS Conversions 12-4-8 "Most loader tractors are designed wrong. The weight of the loader should be positioned over the rear driving wheels rather than the front steering wheels," says James McDougall, Dover, Minn. McDougall solved the problem on his own International 656 hydrostatic drive chore tractor by mounting his Schwartz front-end loader on the back of the tractor and reversing the controls. "I mounted the main frame of the loader on the tractor normally and then put the rest of the loader on backwards. The loader arms clear the rear axle ,of the tractor the same way they cleared the wide axle in front. I exchanged the seat with the steering post and gas tank, which I moved to the rear, and converted the hydrostatic drive lever to a foot pedal. "I made a quick-tach hitch to make quick switches between bucket and fork. It consists of two half-moon cams, con-trolled by a small hydraulic cylinder, which pull or push wedges to lock or unlock. I can change buckets in seconds from the tractor seat. "This loader tractor now has great traction and is much easier to operate. Be-cause it has hydrostatic drive, you can change speeds and direction as fast as you can change foot pedals. It turns on a dime and is very stable. We use it for loading manure, silage, hay and straw. We can still use the pto and hydraulic outlets." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, James McDougall, Rt. 1, Box 92, Dover, Minn. 55929.

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