3pt stabilizers on 454 and similar tractors

Sorry for all the recent questions about 454s but I have a lot more experience with Fords and old Farmalls...

Anyway, my "new" 454 is missing the stabilizer mounts that are cast iron and bolt into holes under the axle; instead the previous owner put on two Ford-style angle-iron stabilizer brackets with U-bolts over the axle, and the geometry seems wrong. I was out hogging for much of the day yesterday and it was a major pain getting standard stabilizers lined up with the ends of the lift arms, and when I finished mowing I noticed that one of the bars had a significant bend in it. I can get the missing mounts used from the usual tractor breakers but before I spend the money I want to ask those of you who have the correct mounts, what do you use for stabilizers? The original IH ones are hard to chase down but I'm not sure what else will fit into the correct mounts -- cheap flat bars, generic made-in-India adjustable tube-style ones, or what? Thanks.

BTW, I love rough cutting with this thing. It chews up everything, even on hills, with no drama. Still, I can't figure out when one would use any of the gears above high-2 -- I tried driving down a paved road in high-2 and that was about as fast as I'd like to go (I can't imagine using high-4, which is twice as fast, except maybe on something like an airport runway).

4 speed with hi and lo range? 4 high is no more than 15 mph, your steering must be bad. As to the stabilizer bars, for mowing you really don't have to have them, more precision work such as cultivation, yes. It will flop from side to side when lifted, perhaps why you don't like 4 high.

Hi Teakettle, if you can find the proper brackets for the axles and the proper sway chains are still on the tractor almost any 3pt implement can be controlled properly. When not in use put a bungee cord between 3pt lift arms.
Yes 3H and 4H are for road only, used to haul corn silage wagons about 1 mile between farms on 4H. Had to make sure your brakes are equalizing properly.
There are 3 different transmission speeds on those 74/84 series tractor and can be identified by suffix letters on left side transmission case.

Our 454 had the High speed transmission.

JimB

The manual says 4 high is over 20 mph (3rd is 16) and the public road between our two fields was probably last surfaced when this tractor was new. Even with the suspension seat 2 high wasn't a lot of fun. The weight balance would likely have been nicer without the mower but going over 20 on this thing still seems more of a thrill ride than I need these days.

Without the stabilizers the mower tends to swing side to side when I turn (not as much as on my Jubilee but still noticeable) and I find the tractor less tail-wiggly with them.

Yes, road surface makes a very big difference. Our road was good.

JimB

20 is a little fast, just use judgement and don't go faster than you feel comfortable with. Advantage of the 454 and other utilities is the low center of gravity. Yes without stabilizers it will wiggle on turns, should be ok straight, I usually raise the mower on 180 degree turns, less damage to the mower and also the ground surface. As Jimb2 said you can probably find some workable stabilizers.

I'm running a Bush Hog 296 on my 454 which is a pretty stout cutter. It is amazing what it will cut. I don't have stabilizers and have no issues with it wandering. The chains to the lower arms ensure that even on an incline, the mower moves very little.

On a good road surface, my little 454 will really snore along in 4H! The steering is nice and tight however the set back front axle does make it sensitive at road speed.

The original manual has good info for adjusting the three point arms, etc and I recommend it. I found a good one on ebay however copies are also available.

My 464 is supposed to go 22 mph in 4 high.

SF

Depending on what that mower weighs, you might need some front weights for safe highway speed.

I bought the brackets that go under the axles for my 574. I then used stabilizers off of a jd4720. They fit almost perfect. I don"t use them for brush hogging. I only use them when using the post pounder, post hole digger, etc. My mower is two heavy and I broke a stabilizer. I must have side swiped something with the mower. I managed to keep the chains on the inside with this setup. Make sure your chains are adjusted properly and adjust for the hills and you will be fine. I forget what it all cost but I think around 300 to 400. That"s a lot more than I wanted to spend. But once you start you have to finish.