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Eat your heart out Saginaw.

Still need a Fast Hitch wishbone (bail) w/sockets. This part is basically potential junk for most salvage yards, but they want $150 and another $150-$175 to ship it. Pickin's are slim in Eastern Mass.

Wow, I didn't think anyone would be able to shoe horn something like that on the back of one of those. Guess I was wrong. Are all of those parts homemade or are some of them factory? Looks like it'll be a great rig when you get it done. Sam

The offset lift arms and 3.5" x 8" hydraulic cylinder came from a 450 or similiar. Everything else was frabricated.

The trick on a standard tread tractor is not to mess with the sheetmetal. The cylinder bracket was made from five pieces of metal. It would have been easier to shorten the stroke due to the lack of space. The space limitation also required that I not use a cylinder with a clevis end on the piston rod. That adds two inches.

I like it. I believe that a 3 point or other modification should not only work properly, but look good and utilize space efficiently. you could say i like it to look factory but maybe a little more user friendly. The old Farmalls in basic form get to be hard enough to climb on and maneuver around to sit or get off when IH added a TA lever IPTO lever, and battery box seat to the small but adequate platform for the 40s (luxury for the time). Add a fast hitch and some user-added equipment and a young guy really has to be careful where he steps. Rain, mud or an oil leak/spill on the trans cover or poor shoes will make a young man an old cripple fast!
which leads me to why i don't like the saginaw and the like. Built heavy and quite functional, but they sure look like they clutter up the tractor rear. It looks like safe, easy mounting and dismounting for the driver become hindered.

I've been spoiled with a 656, 1256, and ford 5000 in my life, so the older ones are a bit inconvienient for my spoiled expectations. However my dad is nearly 70 and now has trouble getting on and off the newer ones--he's fallen a number of times in the last few years from missing a step on them so he's almost scared of the 400 and will let someone else climb up and drive so he doesn't have to.

nice work, looks like climbing aboard will not be more or less difficult than similar aged tractors.

karl f

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Karl,

Thanks for the complement. I try to do things that look professional and might have been engineered by IH. It's one of the reasons why I prefer using IH parts. It gives the modification some continuity back to the factory. For instance, I will always use tie-rod cylinders because that's what IH used. Plus, I can shorten them if necessary.

As you can see things are kinda busy in the cockpit and you can't even see the TA lever shielded by the gear shifter. The left foot rests on the hydraulic cylinder and is comfortable.

As for climbing aboard the tractor, it is way more difficult now. The lift arms have two tapped factory holes. I will probably make a non-slip step to attach to the holes. With the rock shaft down, it will be easy to step first on the drawbar, plant the next foot on the new step, and swing the alternate leg over the seat.

I have added three more hydraulic cylinders to this tractor in addition to the foldout traction aids, an air compressor, and AC generator. I am putting together the parts for a surplus military hydraulic winch to go on the back. It will be powered with a large capacity crankshaft driven pump. I still haven't started with the soda fountain and ice cream making equipment. I'll have a few more pictures next week.