Digger

picture of my 1957 TO-35 with my (new to me) used Greenline EM5000 post hole digger attached.

Always wanted one, found this one for $300
had to replace one u-joint, but other than that it has a new auger and is in good shape.

Its all painted and pretty, so I am ready to go dig some holes, if the opportunity ever comes up.

At least its in good shape if my neighbors need to borrow it.

would ask how is the best method to store the PHD. When i borrowed one from my neighbor, we always just dug a hole about 15" or so and left the auger sticking in the hole so the digger was standing in the upright position. That method appeared to work fine as it made unhook and hookup fairly easy.

get on of these baby's on the ground and by yourself they are hard and dangerous to hookup.

I tie mine to a tree and then disconnect, it's still a pain to hook up. Don't wear loose clothing around it!!

I think you already have the best answer to your problem when you drop it into a hole in the ground. As you say it won't fall over and is easier to fit onto the tractor. The reason that the u-joints break is running the PTO at too great an angle, that is when they oscillate most. Keep lifting the PHB out of the ground every few inches to clear the soil or the Auger may Jam, a lot depends on the type of soil that you are working in.
If the Joints make a noise, that tells you that they are running at too great an angle and you should prevent this as quickly as possible to prevent premature wear or damage. I know it isn't always possible, but don't let it run unnecessarily when making a noise. Take it out of Gear asap and don't run it at PTO speed like you would with other implements, just watch the speed to see what works best in your land. You may find that running it slower will make it dig-in faster. If you run it too fast, it can drag the Auger down too deep very quickly and you won't be able to control it easily and getting an Auger out that is stuck in the ground is not always easy...John(UK)[email protected]

I am looking at the picture you sent and from what I can see, the PHB is attached to the Draft Control Spring Housing, this isn't a good idea as it can break that off as it is only cast. It should really be attached to the Long Hinged Pin and you should also use Stabiliser bars to prevent it swinging

A tip on hook-up, which you may already know, is to attach the middle connection first, then the lift arm connections after that.

good point,

i do use lower arm stabilizer bars when digging.

but where would you find a connector for the top link of the digger that would connect to that long pin??????

my to-35 came with a set of stabilizer bars that when down from that long pin to the cross bar hitch. That is the only thing i have ever used on that long pin. After i got a under belly hitch they were no longer needed.

It appears in the picture you provided the top link of the old digger is connected to one side of the long pin, not centered on the tractor lift arms, but i could be mistaken.

if so how would that work

This is the only way mine hooked up. Wouldn't even go in the upper link. Leaving the auger in a hole sounds nice, but with my dirt, I'd rather think of something else

Thanks Tony,

I will look around for a piece like that for the top link on my tractor.

I have never seen anything like that before.
wonder if it has a special name.

Your post hole digger must be a heavy duty model as it makes mine look like a toy.

thanks again for the picture.

Got a shed you can put it in? And something you can hang it from? That would seem to be the best. Maybe hung with a come-a-long so you could adjust the height as you hook it up.

If not, I usually see them with the auger folded up under the frame and just laying on the ground.

I got two augers with mine, this is suppose to be for tree root balls, I find more uses for this than the one your size. The idea of leaving it in a hole to stand up is haunting me. Maybe in a plastic barrel or 'concrete tube' kind of walled in hole would work here. I don't know what that top link casting is called, it was there when I bought the tractor.

The PHB top connection is attached either side of the Centre Connection for the Top Link. This is the Ferguson PHB by the way, so it should be right how they attach it. Where you have one connection like yours is made for other tractors and not really even for the TO20 or TO30 as on those tractors it should still be attached to the long hinged pin like this one. It is much stronger as you will appreciate. Really I suppose that the PHB should be modified to fit the tractor, so that it attaches something like the Ferguson one. I am sure that someone will come along and say they have had one for years and it has worked without any problem, I am sure that it did, but its the odd occasion when something happens and it breaks the Top Casting. It is better to prevent it happening in the first place. There used to be some Top connectors from a Ferguson Mower and a Boom Crane that would have been OK for this, but they are few and far between now. It does seem a shame to cut it, but I would think about converting the one that you have to attach to the Long Hinged Pin like the one in the picture, it will still fit the earlier tractors if necessary.I have attached another picture that gives a different view of how it attaches, the other picture is the attachment they used for a Boom Crane or a mower, if you made one of these you would have to make sure that it was wide enough to pass over the Draft Spring Housing without any chance of catching.John(UK)[email protected]

@Tony in Mass

Any chance you can give the part number cast on that top link bracket?

Thanks

(quoted from post at 14:04:27 07/19/23) @Tony in Mass

Any chance you can give the part number cast on that top link bracket?

Thanks

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Welcome to the forums.

A couple problems here in getting you an answer. First, Tony passed away back in February of 2020. Second, due to the two ways the forums on this site can be viewed, anyone using Classic View will not see the old post you tagged onto, so what you are looking for will be unknown to them.

You should start a new post of your own and describe fully what you need, and someone might be able to help you out. If it is a part for your posthole digger you may want to post about it in the Implement Forum above. A picture or two may help get some ideas as well.