860 draft control

ray hofstetter · Jul 4, 2012

I know it's a stupid question, so try not to razz me too much. I just graduated from a 9N to an 860, so the little lever under the seat is the draft control - what's it's purpose, and don't say "To control the draft".

Ultradog MN · Jul 4, 2012

We wont harass you here. We only do that on the N board

That draft vs position lever was one of the finer improvements that came out on the 8Ns and was used on all fords through about 1975 or so.
When the lever is in the down or forward position it is in draft control mode. 9/2 Ns only had draft control on the 3 point. So you could raise the lift arms all the way up or set them all the way down. But there was nothing in between - you could not set, say a mower, halfway up or halfway down. With the little handle in the up position you can lift an implement 1/2 or 2/3 up and it will stay there.
It is great for brush hogging, back blading or using a boom pole. About everything Except plowing really.
You just took a huge leap forward buying an 860. Not only did you get position control, live hydraulics, live PTO, a real drawbar, a more modern OHV engine, 5 speed tranny instead of 3, lots more power and a host of other refinements.
Comparing an 860 to a 9N I can only say; Welcome to the Real Fords.

ray hofstetter · Jul 4, 2012

Yeah, the 860 is way better than the 9N, it pulls anything I hook behind her with power to spare, an the live power is a big asset too....

jbp · Jul 4, 2012

Cogratulations, you have one of the handiest tractors ever built, alot of power in a small package.

The little lever under the seat in the horizontal position puts your 3 point in position control. The quadrant lever will then put and hold the draft links anywhere you wish to put them between full up or full down. The little lever in the vertical position allows the hydraulic system to control the draft load on the tractor and depth of such implements as plows and cultivarors automatically. The quadrant lever controls the depth of those implements and only raises them completely when the lift lever is near the top of its travel.

Hope this clears thing up for you. Joe

OH - 961 · Jul 4, 2012

Not trying to hijack the OP, but what did Ford do for draft control after 1975?
Do they run the lift in "position" control all the time?

Myron

Ultradog MN · Jul 4, 2012

After 75 they had two handles for the lift. One for position control, one for draft. By using them together you could have draft With position control or some such marvelous thing which was supposed to be better but rarely got used.

OH - 961 · Jul 4, 2012

Thanks for clearing that up. I couldn't imagine plowing without the draft control mode.

Myron

860 draft control

ray hofstetter

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Ultradog MN

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jbp

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OH - 961

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OH - 961

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