Well, here’s the 3 point hitch I built. It was constructed for the slowly ongoing snow blower project but will come in very useful elsewhere on the farm. 3”x 4” x .25” wall rectangle tubing for the lower heavy arm assembly with 2”x 2”x .25” wall square tubing for the pivoting insert. At the widest, there is just over 32” inside to inside at the balls and that can swing down to 24”. The 2”x 2” arm extends past the pivot point by the same distance to the front of the tube…if that makes sense. A 5/8”-11 nut was welded to each heavy lower tube and a 2” bolt with a 3” piece of rod is welded to that so the arms can be held at specific locations once pinned onto whatever. The hanging rod welded on the bolt keeps them from backing off. The 2”x 2” square tube calc’s out to 2,340lbs @ 60% yield PER arm so there’s 4,680lbs @ 60% safety factor for both. The front pump won’t make enough pressure to overcome the 100% weight of 3,900lbs per or 7,800lbs total lift.
The position of the ram on the lower arms pulls a little less than 2/3 the power away from the ram so I’m still under the 4,680lb limit and should be at the 2,300-2,800lb area. Obviously down pressure on the strong side of the rams is significant. There are .500” thick by 2” wide x inside tube width (like 3.25+”) under the front and rear of the pivoting arm for a little more support for the bottom of the larger tube.
Rams are 2”x 10” Maxims from Bailey International and sourced on eBay. The side plates for the upper ram mounts are .375” thick. I made up a cardboard stencil, put that into AutoCAD and emailed it to Kyle at Black Rock Fabrication (
Black Rock Fabrication) and he burned them out on his CNC table. He’s a real good guy located outside of Philly, PA. I definitely suggest trying him if you have something like this and don’t want to eat up grinding wheels.
I clamped all the plates together and drilled the upper ram mount, the main heavy mount, and a small lower hole so they would all be dead on to each other. Once mocked up on the trucks front implement mount, a piece of 2”x 5” x .375” (old bumper stock) was fitted between then welded in to mate the plates and space them apart. A piece of 2”x 2” x .250” angle was used to brace the bottom of the sides and keep everything square. At the top, a hunk of .750”x 3.5” solid bar was welded in to locate the sides, become the mount for the upper link and the hydraulic block. A pair of large truck U-bolts were cut to become handles for carrying, lifting, or positioning the whole upper unit. By pulling the lower ram mounts, the system is separated.
The hydraulic block was a lucky find in an aluminum block just about sized correctly. One side was milled then two holes from the rear were bored, then two hole for the pass side, then four holes on the driver’s side for the two inlet pressure lines and the two outlet pressure lines. Ram lines are Parker, pressure lines are TSC Co prefab with an appropriate rating. The block fits tightly between the upper link’s mounts and has a bolt securing it to the heavy bar from below.
Upper unit pins on factory implement mounts-- you may notice the pins don’t look finished or sized right; they’re not. The pins shown are for my front winch dealie…I still have to turn the front upper pins.
I got a chance to use it briefly yesterday as I had to pick up corner of a back hoe attachment which had bled down. Hooking a chain into the pintle hook on the T-bar in the 3pt hitch and down the outrigger foot, I pulled on the handle and the truck pulled down, pulled down, pulled down as the front suspension squatted…then with no more sound of effort, it picked the side of the hoe up and I could do what I needed. It seems pretty darn powerful so I’m happy and fits all but one of my John Deere’s class one 3pt stuff.
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My 406: XM-47's, hydraulic driven Garwood 10,000lb pin-on front winch, custom bumper, small jib for front or rear, PTO driven 20,000lb Garwood rear winch w/ level wind, (super secret
) forward-N-reversing unit for rear winch/PTO operation, 8 speed 2x4 conversion, and front 3pt hitch.
"I was just walking down the hallways of a high-school while kids were changing classes. Believe me, the world may not have ended today, but the future doesn't look so bright. 
-Trev" 
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