Tony Chicklo made a simple metal bracket to keep the top link on his Ford 8N out of the way when he hooks up 3-pt. implements. He says his homemade top link bumper automatically keeps the link away from the pto shaft, so he doesn’t have to hold it by hand.

     Chicklo made the bumper using a 9-in. long piece of 1/8-in. thick by 1-in. wide strap steel. He drilled 3/8-in. holes in each end of the metal, then made two 90-degree bends 3-in. in from each end. In the center of the U-bracket, he welded a 3-in. long piece of the same metal with a 1-in. 90-degree foot at the bottom.

     The bracket attaches to his tractor just below the top link with a 3/8-in. bolt. The foot rests against the tractor to keep the bracket at the proper height. Chicklo put a small piece of foam rubber pipe covering over the bracket to keep the metal edges from scratching the top link.

     “The bracket isn’t anything fancy, and certainly not high tech, but it does the job for me,” Chicklo says.

     He uses his 8N for grading, mowing, plowing, and light yard work on his 20-acre homestead. He says the bumper bracket has saved him a lot of pinched fingers and makes implement hookups much easier.

     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tony Chicklo, 741 Selms Rd., Bridger, Mont. 59014.