Help with lift adjustment

[Ed729 57]

Probably a stupid question so I apologize in advance. I’m trying to adjust the lift height to get my snow plow up as high as possible on a 312-8. While fine tuning the height I’m moving the nut up and down in my picture. The only way I can move the nut is by removing the pin and pulling it out, moving the nut with a wrench, then putting it back in the tractor. This seems inefficient and is very difficult to reinstall due to tight spaces and big hands. Is there an easier way? Thanks 

[Jeff-C175 7,199]

On my c series the panel below the dash comes off very easily with four screws and allows easy access to that adjustment.

[Lee1977 6,652]

1 hour ago, Jeff-C175 said:

On my c series the panel below the dash comes off very easily with four screws and allows easy access to that adjustment.

That don't work on a 312 as the  keyswitch, light switch, hour gage and amp gauge is in that panel. There is no easy way to get to the lift adjustment.

The 520 is like your C-series.

[Jeff-C175 7,199]

2 hours ago, Lee1977 said:

don't work on a 312

 

Well that's not a good thing! 

[953 nut 55,128]

11 hours ago, Ed729 said:

moving the nut with a wrench, then putting it back in the tractor.

Could you use a deep socket and a ratchet to locate the nut on the rod?

[ebinmaine 67,339]

Park the machine on level flat hard ground. 

Connect the rear (pivoting) point. 

 

Use blocks under the blade or frame to hold the plow up as high as possible. 

Hold it HIGHER than you actually want it. It'll settle down a bit. 

 

Adjust the nut and link while the plow frame is held in its max upward position.  

 

[c-series don 8,677]

@Ed729 If you use a solid lift link there’s no adjustment necessary and you can have down pressure as well. If you have hydraulic lift it will lift the front wheels off the ground! I don’t have a picture handy but I’m sure someone does and I believe one of our vendors sells them. 

[peter lena 8,590]

@ebinmaine  agree with that  lift / hold set up , also did some washer detailing / lube to stop the  sloppy connection  set up , been thinking of a  heim joint  refit , male / female  90  working off the bolt thread  point .  combination of available  fittings , just tinkering , pete

[ebinmaine 67,339]

13 minutes ago, c-series don said:

solid lift link

 

7 minutes ago, peter lena said:

heim joint  refit

 

Interesting thought to combine there. 

 

A heim joint link rod from the upper lift rod connection to the plow frame would eliminate the wear points at the ends caused by the pins moving in the holes.  

 

You boys have me a neat idea!

 

[peter lena 8,590]

@ebinmaine  go for it !  why not improve a chronic sloppy fit ? just looked over the entire  intended function , of its lift . never look at a problem thru a straw ,  always add a what if ?  thought , then again  I  jumped over the fence a long time ago , so this is regular stuff to me ,  my horses look original , but  there is a lot of  failure removals  throughout ,  make it a solid runner ,  plow snow , pete 

[Blasterdad 2,691]

You can also move the trunnion forward for more lift.

[ebinmaine 67,339]

That's a good pic to show where the solid lift link would go. 

 

Outer lift hole at red arrow to the longer of the two plow holes.  

 

 

 

[peter lena 8,590]

@Blasterdad  yup that trunnion  , in my own opinion  is the culprit , first off  its a sloppy fit , attempted thin  washer ing it up , is difficult at best . that threaded lift eye bolt  would be my  male / female 90 deg  heim joint  trial ,  very durable and smooth, also a solid , no  wobbling  fit. you can get those hein joints  in  all sizes / threading . think I  would  also ,  move  lift chain , DOWN  a link  letting you thread heim joint up / down for  smooth solid fit .  BTW  while / if you have that steering plow quadrant removed  , great time to  red grease  detail  that spring loaded pin slide point ,  can slide like a rifle bolt , smooth / solid . talk to me , pete

[Ed Kennell 38,052]

I made a slotted bar so I could use the deck lift arm with my plow.   Makes it easy to switch plow and deck.   I also changed the front wheels to 8" and left the long 6" spindles on. It gives a little more clearance under the axle to increase the max blade height.

Just another way to improve operation.

 

 

[Lee1977 6,652]

The fix is to have a tractor for each piece of equipment so you don't have to change it .My 312 is set up for the grader blade with a solid link. 

Two other tractors have mower decks.

[peter lena 8,590]

@Ed Kennell  agree with your lift slide bar idea , always looking for a way to make any part of the horse work , better / easier . my horses all have 8"  front wheels , pete

[ebinmaine 67,339]

2 hours ago, Lee1977 said:

The fix is to have a tractor for each piece of equipment so you don't have to change it .

⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️

This is the way!! 

[Handy Don 12,178]

2 hours ago, Ed Kennell said:

I made a slotted bar so I could use the deck lift arm with my plow.   Makes it easy to switch plow and deck.   I also changed the front wheels to 8" and left the long 6" spindles on. It gives a little more clearance under the axle to increase the max blade height.

I don’t recall seeing this posted before, Ed, but it is a great idea that I’ll likely copy. I like that it’ll allow extra vertical movement where needed. It’ll also lift a tad farther with the lift point farther from the lift arm pivot (which is why you added the stop to prevent it from jamming against the bottom of the front axle)!

[Ed729 57]

15 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

Park the machine on level flat hard ground. 

Connect the rear (pivoting) point. 

 

Use blocks under the blade or frame to hold the plow up as high as possible. 

Hold it HIGHER than you actually want it. It'll settle down a bit. 

 

Adjust the nut and link while the plow frame is held in its max upward position.  

 

Thanks everybody. I’ll have to try this and see if I can get my hand up there. With the blade down it’s tight between the frame rails.

 

I have it moved to the forward most hole for max lift, but the plow frame was hitting the axle before the lift mechanism would latch so I needed to bring it down just a little.

 

I really wish the blade would go higher so you can still use the tractor with a plow on it for other tasks. It would be nice if there was a hinge at the front of the frame to move the plow up higher when not in use. I would probably leave it on all winter if it wasn’t always getting caught on every hill. 

[Ed Kennell 38,052]

1 minute ago, Ed729 said:

plow frame was hitting the axle

Replacing the 6" wheels with 8" will help to correct this problem.

[ebinmaine 67,339]

5 hours ago, Ed729 said:

wish the blade would go..... 

...... How about off?

 

If it's the corner of the plow that keeps catching up, you could pull the two long pins at the front and drop the blade. Leaving the frame and pivot lever in place would be a little easier maybe?

 

You can also put a pair of spacers between the rear axle mount and the axle. Lowering the rear of the plow frame raises the front. How much, I'm not sure.  

[Ed Kennell 38,052]

22 hours ago, Blasterdad said:

You can also move the trunnion forward for more lift.

 

Can you simply turn the chain /eyebolt around putting the trunnion at the bottom where you reach it without disconnecting it from the rock shaft lift lever?

[Jeff-C175 7,199]

5 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

How about off?

 

If I did this, I would sure put a 'flag stick' at the end so you knew where it was... sticks way out in front and would not be seen from the seat.

 

5 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

How much, I'm not sure. 

 

Probably nearly equal... since the lift point is nearly in the middle.

 

One can only raise it just so high though until it starts hitting the axle.  That's where the bigger wheels/tires come into play.

 

 

[ebinmaine 67,339]

5 minutes ago, Jeff-C175 said:

That's where the bigger wheels/tires come into play

I went from a 16" front to a 20" front. That extra two inches made quite a bit of difference. I liked it so much that on my woods tractor I went with a 22" front. 

[Ed729 57]

10 hours ago, Ed Kennell said:

 

Can you simply turn the chain /eyebolt around putting the trunnion at the bottom where you reach it without disconnecting it from the rock shaft lift lever?

Yes. With the plow blocked up as suggested there is no tension in the chain so I can turn it 90 degrees and get a wrench on it without removing. Thank you everyone for the help, you turned a 15 minute adjustment into a 30 second adjustment. 
 

I agree bigger front wheels/tires would help. I would love to switch to 8s which would also add opportunities for front wheel weights.