Post Hole digger lift height problem... with photo

[Dan Truax]

So the available post hole digger from my local tractor supply was obviously not made for my 8N. The lower yoke is not high enough to get the tip of the auger off the ground. It drags.

So I drilled a new 3/4" hole at the "blue arrow" in the picture and on level ground the tip is barely out of the dirt. A little uneven ground and she drags again.

I am thinking of adding steel plates like those drawn to add height to the lower yoke. Maybe someone else has a better idea.

But my real question is this. When I lift the lower arms as high as they will go the tip currently drags. BUT if I engage the PTO for a second the lift comes up 6 more inches and stays up.

Is this normal behavior for the lift and PTO or is this indicative of wear and or maladjustment.

Sorry for the newbie questions. She had been mine less than two weeks.

-Dan.

 

[Dan Truax]

[/img]https://www.dropbox.com/s/uflzduhk4xpq11q/20170504_193159a.jpg?dl=0

 

[Dan Truax]

[/img]https://www.dropbox.com/s/uflzduhk4xpq11q/20170504_193159a.jpg?raw=1

 

[Den N Ms]

Dan,The PTO has to be engaged for the hydraulic pump to work thus be able to raise the lift arms all the way up.

 

[Dan Truax]

Sorry tried to use Drop Box to upload photo at first...

 

[Dan Truax]

(quoted from post at 18:35:27 05/04/17) Dan,The PTO has to be engaged for the hydraulic pump to work thus be able to raise the lift arms all the way up.

OK so this is normal, thank you for the reply.

 

[Bruce (VA)]

See tip # 62 to check your lift height.

And see tip # 58; position or draft control can make a difference.

If all else fails, try the quadrant adjustment. Loosen the 4 bolts & tap it to the rear to get more height out of the lift arms. Tap to the front to lower the arms.
75 Tips

 

[Bruce (VA)]

PS...............

" Sorry for the newbie questions. She had been mine less than two weeks.'"

And do check out tip # 39.

Do not forget either that your PTO does not reverse. And your lift arms do not have down pressure. It's real easy to bury the phd to the gearbox. If you do, we will all be entertained as you tell us about it!

Then we will tell you how to unscrew it.
75 Tips

 

[Royse]

Welcome to the forum Dan.
As Den said, hydraulics only work when the PTO is on and the
clutch is engaged/up. Once the 3 PT is up, it should hold there
for a while. Maybe not days or weeks, but at a minimum, several minutes.
If it won't do that, you may have to repair the top cover and cylinder.

Your lift doesn't look to be all the way up in the picture either.
Do you have it in Draft mode or Position Control mode?
Does the behavior change if you switch it?

 

[Den N Ms]

Dan Be careful and let it dig down real slow raising it up in the hole often to clear the dirt and dig maybe 2-3"only before raising it up.Otherwise it will grab a hold and suck the auger all the way down and you will have to use a big pipe wrench to unscrew it to get it out of the hole.A N ford wit out live hydraulics is not at all the best tractor to use on a post hole digger.I have drilled many post holes with a N but it is a real PITA,especially if your not on the game.

 

[Dell (WA)]

Dan........yeah, draggin' the auger izza problem. Yer internal hydraulic cylinder is leakin' a little bitt. As long as yer PTO driven hydraulic pump is pumpin' yer digger will stay UP ...but... that means yer auger is swingin' in the wind too. Whatcha end up doing is disconnect the auger driveshaft from the PTO so it don't screw around. Ittza compromize ...but... I wouldn't want the auger turning when I'm driving from place to place. Think SAFETY. When I drilled some new post holes, the auger caught a BIG tree root and next thing I knew, my front wheels were 1-ft into the air. (gasp) You do know there is NO REVERSE on yer PTO don't you? I hadda jack-up the front end to take the pressure off'n the auger so I could un-couple the auger from the lifter. Then I gott out my BIG 24-in pipe wrench and started un-screwing. I have since bought a spring loaded hydraulic post pounder that works just fine in my ROCKY ground. Pounded posts are tighter in the ground than filling up a drilled post hole. (there's never enuff dirt to fill'em up) But I'll tell ya what, pounder or auger, shure beats a set of idiot sticks........HTH, Dell

 

[Den N Ms]

Dan,Especially if your not on the (UP) game. lol

 

[Dan Truax]

Thank you for the replies.

I have the draft control up and I don't touch it.
She does stay up after I get the arms up after I engage the PTO.

BUT the arms do come up 90% without engaging the PTO using the position/quadrant control arm, is that NOT supposed to happen?

I'll have to try the quadrant adjustment before I start modifying the post hole digger.

I only have 26 pressure treated 4x4s to sink with a bag of concrete in the bottom of each. And baby head sized rocks here and there in some soft glacier till. Wish me luck. At least there are no trees in the area I am digging! (Home made above ground pool)

Used to dig all my posts with a rented Toro Dingo that I rented and I relied on the reverse auger movement, this will be a learning curve...

 

[JMOR]

hear the echo!
Your lift doesn't look to be all the way up in the picture either.
Do you have it in Draft mode or Position Control mode?
Does the behavior change if you switch it?

 

[Caryc]

(quoted from post at 02:11:05 05/05/17) Thank you for the replies.

I have the draft control up and I don't touch it.
She does stay up after I get the arms up after I engage the PTO.

[color=red:980e2ceb27][b:980e2ceb27]BUT the arms do come up 90% without engaging the PTO using the position/quadrant control arm, is that NOT supposed to happen?[/b:980e2ceb27] [/color:980e2ceb27]

I'll have to try the quadrant adjustment before I start modifying the post hole digger.

I only have 26 pressure treated 4x4s to sink with a bag of concrete in the bottom of each. And baby head sized rocks here and there in some soft glacier till. Wish me luck. At least there are no trees in the area I am digging! (Home made above ground pool)

Used to dig all my posts with a rented Toro Dingo that I rented and I relied on the reverse auger movement, this will be a learning curve...

Maybe it's the terminology you're using that we're not understanding. Looking at your sentence above in RED...No, that's not supposed to happen.

First off, the small (maybe five inch) handle just under the seat on the right hand side must be in the UP position for your position control to work. Position Control means that you can set the lift arms to any height between full up and full down using the quadrant lever and they will stay at that height.

Engaging your PTO means that your PTO shaft is turning. If your PTO is not turning, your quadrant handle will not raise your lift arms. If your PTO is not engaged, your pump is not engaged so it will not lift an implement.

 

[HFJ]

(quoted from post at 14:17:08 05/05/17)

Engaging your PTO means that your PTO shaft is turning. If your PTO is not turning, your quadrant handle will not raise your lift arms. If your PTO is not engaged, your pump is not engaged so it will not lift an implement.

ty, this has been bothering me, trying to figure out where the other 90% of lift was coming from. i almost said something, but since i've been dead wrong on a hydraulic question before, and i figured i wasn't gonna double down

 

[Caryc]

(quoted from post at 11:23:35 05/05/17)

(quoted from post at 14:17:08 05/05/17)

Engaging your PTO means that your PTO shaft is turning. If your PTO is not turning, your quadrant handle will not raise your lift arms. If your PTO is not engaged, your pump is not engaged so it will not lift an implement.

ty, this has been bothering me, trying to figure out where the other 90% of lift was coming from. i almost said something, but since i've been dead wrong on a hydraulic question before, and i figured i wasn't gonna double down

Well...somebody had to. :wink:

 

[Dan Truax]

Ok so to be clear, under the seat on the right side is the draft control, little guy, it has been up since I bought it, never moved it. Just to right of that is the position control, it moves a quarter turn. On the left it the lever to engage the PTO.

[b:66863b70ec][u:66863b70ec]Without[/u:66863b70ec][/b:66863b70ec] the PTO engaged the lift arms will come up 90% using the quadrant control, then I step on the clutch and engage the PTO and the lift arms come up 100% and stay up even after I disengage the PTO.

I knew when I bought this tractor that by the way the clutch operated that it may have a bad pilot seal, AKA gear oil on the clutch plate. I wasn't going to by it but then he knocked another 200$ off (Paid 2600).

Is this clutch malfunction keeping the hydraulic pump partially running all the time?[/u]

 

[TheOldHokie]

(quoted from post at 05:00:03 05/06/17) Ok so to be clear, under the seat on the right side is the draft control, little guy, it has been up since I bought it, never moved it. Just to right of that is the position control, it moves a quarter turn. On the left it the lever to engage the PTO.

[b:57bf34d637][u:57bf34d637]Without[/u:57bf34d637][/b:57bf34d637] the PTO engaged the lift arms will come up 90% using the quadrant control, then I step on the clutch and engage the PTO and the lift arms come up 100% and stay up even after I disengage the PTO.

I knew when I bought this tractor that by the way the clutch operated that it may have a bad pilot seal, AKA gear oil on the clutch plate. I wasn't going to by it but then he knocked another 200$ off (Paid 2600).

Is this clutch malfunction keeping the hydraulic pump partially running all the time?[/u]

It sounds like you have something non-standard - possibly a live hydraulics conversion of some sort. Post a picture of that "position control" thing that moves a quarter turn.....

TOH

 

[Dan Truax]

I don't know why the lift arms were able to move up and down without the PTO engaged. Something was stuck but after drilling a few holes into the lawn this no longer happens.

After reading some old posts I think the lack of lift is due to a worn cam follower pin. I actually had the lift arms come all the way up once after I drilled a hole. It shocked me as I didn't think the arms could come up that high. And since it doesn't hold the auger up long I am going to look at replacing the lift rings and or piston depending on what I find.

Got the auger stuck tonight too, had to use a pipe wrench and and 6 foot cheater to get it out of the ground. And I was doing so well up to that point :lol:

 

[54FergieTO30]

(quoted from post at 18:54:03 05/04/17) PS...............

" Sorry for the newbie questions. She had been mine less than two weeks.'"

And do check out tip # 39.

Do not forget either that your PTO does not reverse. And your lift arms do not have down pressure. It's real easy to bury the phd to the gearbox. If you do, we will all be entertained as you tell us about it!

Then we will tell you how to unscrew it.
75 Tips

Been there, done that. Had to get a back hoe to dig out the auger. Not one of my proudest moments.