3 Point Top Link Adjustment

ml_work

Member
Ford 4000 1967
I have used my tractor the past 3 weekends to get our road back in shape. I just got it last month so these are the only times I have used it. I have found the hitch will stay up with the box blade connected while the tractor is running. It goes down really quick when I cut the engine off. While dragging the road it works when in the lowest position, but will not hold any setting in between. From reading older post on here (and the new one about the 850) I think this is normal for a tractor of this age. I hope to do more testing this winter and see what needs to be rebuilt and is it something I can do myself. But for now I am trying to get the road in shape before winter. The first weekend that I worked on the road I just pulled dirt into the large holes that had been the worst. I knew this would not hold once it started raining. So the next 2 weekends I continued to drag and lower the teeth to break up the holes. This past Saturday I had it pretty tilled up so I figured I would lower the teeth and start to drag and smooth. Well I had the dirt so worked up that when I started to pull with the bb in the lowest position it was pulling WAY too much. As I pulled and tried to release the dirt in a level smooth layer, it did not work very well. Continuous up and down, making piles all along the road, drives worst than it has since I started. I am sure if I take my time I can get it back to a smooth layer. What I want to do now is maybe remove the teeth and bring the Top Link in toward the tractor. Which would give me a couple of inch between the blade and the road even when the bb is in the lowest setting. As you can see in the pictures I don't have any more adjustment at the tractor side and very little at the BB end.
So I will take the arm off and unscrew at each end. Replace connect at tractor but now I am sure it is not going to line up with the BB. I am thinking if I crank the tractor and lift the hitch it may line up so it can connect at the BB end...? I will be doing this alone so I am ask any ideas that my help to make this work as I think it should?
Thanks,
Michael
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The upper link of the 3 point hitch is meant to be adjustable with it hooked up to the tractor. It looks like you have a pin in the hole of the middle section. Remove that pin, there should be a rod that comes with the top link , that will fit in the hole that the pin is in, you use that rod(or a big screwdriver) to turn the center section and it makes the ends move closer or farther apart. Before you start this, remove one, (or both) ends of the upper link and make sure that each threaded end is screwed in or out so that are the same. Now when you turn the center section, it screws or unscrews both ends together at the same time. Now you can leave this link attached at both ends and by using the lift to take the load off to it, you can adjust it as you desire.
 
Does that model have a draft/position control lever? It should be in the "position" setting for blade work.

You'll want to lengthen your top link until the box blade is more or less level. If you want to use the blade as a drag, tilt it up a bit so the rear edge is dragging the ground.
 
get rid of that sloppy toplink undersized pin at the implement. that slop will multiply many times by the time you see it at the blade of the box.
 
I regularly pull a box blade with my little 8N. My process goes as follows:

- put rippers (teeth) all the way down
- adjust top link so that the bottom of the box is parallel with the ground
- Place tractor in draft control
- Rip up the road.
- Put rippers all the way up
- Adjust top link so that the front of the box about 1 1/2 to 2 inches higher in the front
- level the road

I will use position control if I have some large humps I want to knock down but mostly use draft control. This lets the box blade follow the ground and fill in low spots as needed. I'm still a newbie at using the blade but I'm getting better

It just takes practice. I made a mess of the driveway before I figured it out. It helped me to have someone watch what was going on from the side to provide feedback.
 

As others have already said.... take it out of draft mode...

"the sides of the box help level!!!", so they must touch the ground and the box must be adjusted so its level.

If using draft mode, it senses pressure from the top link and then lifts the box.... so... if too sensitive, keep the position lever all the way down in draft mode. If still too sensitive, move top link to lower hole on tractor. This will reduce sensitivity.

And remember, the sides of the box are suppose to drag flat and allow the box to level... it must be adjusted so that when under load and dragging, the sides ABLE to follow the ground and provide the leveling of the spoils. If the the box rides up or down, it will not work.

as others said, the slack by using wrong size pins will allow the box to jump and stumble. get the correct pins and or adaptors for the pins . Because its a 4000 you might need a top pin adaptor to take the slack out of the cat II top link and make a cat I pin tight.
 
2 things I have learned in using my box blade on both an 8N and a 960:
1. The best way to set whether the blade digs or smooths is to keep trying different length settings of the top link until it does what you want, and sometimes 1 turn can make the difference!
2. While sometimes a little more speed can make a back blade smooth the ground better, the slower you go w/a box blade the better job the blade does.

Just my experience. Others may have different results!
 
Thank you to everyone for your detailed answers.
BikeRider, I understand what you are saying and that is the direction I am headed. My concern is the end at the tractor is out of adjustment. When I remove it and unscrew to get some threads to work with it will not go back on and trying to figure how I will get it to. I guess if I start the tractor and adjust the lift. From then on I will be able to leave it connected at both ends and adjust with a screw driver as I do not have any rod that may have come with the link.

Soundguy, that makes good sense of the effect the loose "sloppy" undersized pin can have on the blade. When we brought the BB at Tractor Supply I got a pin that was larger, but it was too large to fit in the hole on the BB. Went in and that was the only one I could find or may have been my hurry. I will get something larger. What you do not see is the hole size in the Top Link that connects to the BB. It is even larger than the BB hole. I think TS had some type of bushing that can fill the hole, will look for that.

Skeeter102, I agree with you steps, I think I kinda did the same. Except for:
"Adjust top link so that the front of the box about 1 1/2 to 2 inches higher in the front "
I am trying to get the back a couple of inches higher, which may be completely wrong, I will find out Saturday.

Sotxbill, I am trying to understand what you said, it makes sense,,, I just have to think on it.
I did not know what you are speaking of:
"Because its a 4000 you might need a top pin adaptor to take the slack out of the cat II top link and make a cat I pin tight.?

Lynn, Once I get some type of adjustment at each end of the top link I will keep in mind a little will go a long way when making adjustments. As for speed, I was in 1st going real slow, I agree it works better for me.

MarkB and Sotxbill, mentioned the draft mode, I think it is in the correct setting. I have a copy of the original manual and I think it is right. As I said this is the third time I have used the tractor. I do not know any of the history or past users to ask. I have pictures of both sides, I assume the left side is the PTO. I have not even tried it to see if it works. The right side has what I think is the draft control lever. I tried to lift it and it move and then stopped, I did not force it as the tractor was not running. Not knowing if these things have been working before I am slow to force anything and chance doing damage. Is the lever in the correct position for pulling a BB?
Thanks again to all!
Michael
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You're in DRAFT mode. You gotta get that three point into POSITION mode. See the link below for information on the draft/position control lever.

Once you're in position mode you'll have no problems adjusting the top link. You need to get something to stick in the hole in the middle of the link and turn it. A large line-up punch works great for this. With the three-point in position mode, lower the blade to the ground and adjust the three-point control until there's a little slack in the top link. You'll then have no trouble adjusting the link without disconnecting it, since there will be no pressure on it. As you adjust the link, it will of course tighten up; when that happens just tweak the three-point control until you have slack again.
Ford 4000 draft control lever thread
 

It may be that setting the draft control to position will solve your problem, but your description makes it sound like you have an internal leak problem as well. In order to get your drive way prepared for winter you can apply a temporary fix. This is very similar to the chains that come with some three point mowers to keep them from dropping too low in front when the front wheels go over an obstacle. You take about five feet of suitable sized chain, and using a pin and a large chain repair link, you attach the center to your tractor just above or below your top link attachment point, Then attach the two ends of the chain to the box blade at or near the two lower mounting points, again with chain repair links, or something similar. The chain will then hold the blade at whatever height you want and you will be able to adjust it by adjusting the length of the chains.
 

Just to clarify, you should be adjusting the top link with it connected to the tractor and the box blade. Don't unhook it to adjust.
 
(quoted from post at 23:51:51 09/17/15)
My concern is the end at the tractor is out of adjustment. When I remove it and unscrew to get some threads to work with it will not go back on and trying to figure how I will get it to
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in your photo of the top link, it shows no threads at the tractor and threads at the box end. You need to get it so that both ends are the same, have the same amount of treads showing. You can remove the top link, measure between the eyes, screw the thead showing end in and unscrew the other end out. When they are the same, measure again , (and adjust by turning the center and not letting the ends turn,) put it back on the tractor or box and it the other end does not line up, hold the eye(threaded part) and turn the center with a screwdriver or punch to adjust the length so the holes line up. Once this is done, you can make all kinds of adjustments to change the angle of the box just by turning the center section as when you do that you are screwing or unscrewing BOTH ends at the same time. Hope this helps , along with getting out of draft mode you should be well on your way to having a smooth road soon.
 
You know,

It may be possible that the whole link is just too long and not providing enough adjustment. You may need to purchase a shorter link so you have enough threads exposed to make the proper adjustments
 
(quoted from post at 11:16:32 09/18/15) You know,

It may be possible that the whole link is just too long and not providing enough adjustment. You may need to purchase a shorter link so you have enough threads exposed to make the proper adjustments

You may be right. That could be a cat II top link.
 
Once again I want to Thank Everyone for your Helpful advise and the time you have taken to give it. Although my daily work requires me to type a good bit, I do not type very fast (wish I had put more effort in that 7th grade typing, never dreamed how much it would be needed). I know how long it takes me to try and explain my question to where you will know what I am asking, with my lack of knowledge in this area. I appreciate you all taking your time.

Light Bulb moment .... BikeRider: "You can remove the top link, measure between the eyes, screw the thead showing end in and unscrew the other end out. When they are the same, measure again , (and adjust by turning the center and not letting the ends turn,) put it back on the tractor or box and it the other end does not line up, hold the eye(threaded part) and turn the center with a screwdriver or punch to adjust the length so the holes line up."
That is what I have been trying to figure all week and hoping it would come to me when I removed the link. As I was reading replies to leave the link connected, I knew there was no adjustment at the tractor end and that was where (I think) it needs the adjustment. I had thought about just removing it and swapping ends. Which would give me the adjustment at the tractor side where it is needed for now. I do not expect to leave the back side of the bb lifted up once I get this loose dirt spread. Really it has packed down this week with everyone driving on it all week.

As Skeeter and Showcrop said, the link may be too long. If dividing the difference of the screws does not give me enough adjustment I will check into a replacement link.

MarkB, Excellent idea with the chains and will give it a try if this other does not work, thanks.

Getting the control to Position mode, I have read the link (very helpful) and the author Swilk describes may situation to a T. I hear the same clunk sound when moving the lever and have the same fear that I may break something. I realize or assume most of the people on this forum are farmers or use their tractor for their income. And cannot afford to 'fear" to pull a lever because it may break. The tractor has to do what you need it to do, if it breaks it, you get it fixed or fix yourself. I do not have a shop or tools to repair myself and cannot afford to take to a shop right now. I have always had the mindset that I can do anything if I have the right tools and enjoy trying. So my fear of breaking something is that it is working somewhat now but if I force something and loose the Lift altogether, I am out of a tractor until I can afford to get it fixed. Maybe I am being too long winded about this, but I don't want to come across as asking a question, everyone giving an answer and then say "naw too scared".
The tractor was purchased to keep our road up that is the main purpose. I am coming up with some other uses but the road is why I got it. I don't think the person I purchased it from really used it for much. I think they did the paint job but never used it. I am going to get with them and find who owned it before them. It would be very helpful to talk with someone that really used it.
Also I am going to ask Swilk how it worked for him (if the thread is still open for posting)

Thanks!
 
The chain idea was Showcrop's, not mine. Shouldn't be necessary if you can get the draft control lever moved up into "position control".

Top links do come in different lengths, so it's possible yours is too long. The Category really refers to the pin diameter rather than length, so a Cat 1 top link has holes in the ends for 3/4 inch pins. If your link won't go any shorter than 21 inches, you may have an extra-long Cat 1 link.

You can try posting to that old thread; if the original poster has set email notification he may get your message. Otherwise it will just get posted as a orphan message on the board (since the original message is in the archives), where it will be read by the same folks who are already on this thread.

You really have to get that lever into position control to use your tractor.
 
Glad to hear that the "light bulb" came one about the top link. It is possible that the one you have is too long.
As for the draft control lever, I have a 3000 and I was very surprised to see how hard it is to move it from "draft" to "position" control. You can move it without the tractor running. It can be very hard to move, but I doubt that you will break anything. My guess is that the lever has been in "position control " for most of its life and there is nothing wrong. Whoever had the tractor before most likely used it for things other than plowing and that is the only reason for it to be in "draft" mode. Someone along the way, changed it and since it is hard to get back into "position "mode, they thought as you do, that it too risky to put much "muscle" into changing it. I wish you luck with it and will be following to see how you make out.
 
If you'll post the length of your link from eye center to eye center with it at it's shortest length and it's longer than one of the almost brand new one's I have (cat 1) I'll send you a shorter one for postage.
 
The first thing I recommend is you get the proper size pins. I see the pin at the box blade connection is much smaller than the hole in the top link and the holes in the attachment. That alone makes for a lot of sloppy movement which equates to a lot of up and down movement at the cutting edge of the box blade. And be sure thats a catogory one top link.
 
MarkB, Thanks for the correction about the chains, and thanks to Showcrop for the idea. I tried to post on the old link and it was closed to posting. I ask a friend at church (found out he has a 4000) about lever and was his hard to pull up... he had no idea what I was talking about. Said he must not have ever used it, but he plows a garden so I guess it is good for him. As I explained my concern of doing some damage in the process, I will have to hold off for now. I realize Everyone is saying that it must be changed for best results.
Bikerider, I did the change to the link, as you can see in the picture I gave it a little more threads on the end at the tractor. the other end has more than show as some are covered by the lock down "whatever" it is called. Later to find out my lightbulb moment was still missing info. I thought by have more threads at the tractor it would give me more lift there where I needed it. Then when I made the adjustment, I got the Full understanding, about the reverse threads. As I went in at the tractor it ran out of threads at the BB. Lesson Learned, the threads have to be same at both ends. Even with the change I did it did not make much difference. It was a little better, but I think the link is just too long. I spent most of the day dragging and was able to get things a bit smoother, not as many humps. We really need some (a lot) of dirt hauled in and rocks on top. I am just moving dirt from one place to another. Which will catch up with me at some point. Monday we had our first ran in over a month..... yep..... fresh red dirt not packed down. It is a mess in some places and some held pretty good. One of the neighbors is mad about the mud as if it was my fault... don't get me started on that.
TexxasJoe, I agree and plan to get the larger pin.

Now Michael's Dad - WOW, this is a very kind offer! And kinda through me when I saw it. Just the night before I was telling my Dad (we own the tractor together) about the link issue. He is 83 and computer experience is limited to checking email of great grand kids and Google search. I have told him about this forum and how helpful everyone are to me. But just could not figure how he joined the forum and was making a post. I had to double check you user name as I had not seen it on here before.
Best I could measure (pictures posted) is 25 1/2 all the way in and 29 all the way out. I will PM you the address once you get this and see if you have one that length.
The middle picture shows the link when I divided the difference of the threads, it uploaded in between the 2 measurement pictures.

Thanks to Everyone.
Michael
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(quoted from post at 02:53:28 09/23/15) That's a category 2 top link; the pin hole diameter is the giveaway. Definitely too long for your application.

Yes being able to see the hole verifies it is CAT II.
 
Michael's Dad,
I replied to the post with:

Best I could measure (pictures posted) is 25 1/2 all the way in and 29 all the way out. I will PM you the address once you get this and see if you have one that length.

Never heard back, tried to PM you and it is disabled. This post has been moved back about 3 deep, thought you may have forgotten or missed it. Not trying to rush, just checking.
Thanks
 
Dumb thought here but the one end has to be left hand thread for it to work. Maybe you're trying to turn it the wrong way?
 
Okay, lets all get on the same page here!
1st, The tractor end needs to have a 1" pin.
2nd, the box blade needs to have a 1" pin.
3rd, that means category 2!
4th, You may need a shorter category 2 top link.
5th, the tractor end will [u:f66692ac65]always[/u:f66692ac65] be cat 2!
6th, You can get a bushing to convert the implement end to cat 1, if your implement is only able to take a 3/4" pin.
One thing I have not seen mentioned is the lower lift arms.
Do you have slop in those as well?
Cat 1 = 7/8" holes and pins.
Cat 2 = 1&1/8" holes and pins.
If you have small pins in large holes, that won't help your problem!
HTH, Dave
 
Phil_n, Wish it was that simple, but either way I turn it I am out of threads so it will not go more. If I do not hear back from "Michael's Dad" of his offer to send one, then I will purchase a shorter one. Not sure which category to get as it seems there is a difference of opinion.

Dave, thanks for your detailed steps.
I have different replies/ answers about the category I or II... this is my first tractor. I do not know about cat I and II, I work with category 5 network cable so this is all new to me.
I will get a shorter link when I know for sure which one to purchase. I have made do as is and got the road in pretty good shape. I will get a larger pin for the BB end and bushing to convert to work with pin.
I checked the lower arms, they look to be correct pin size and not slop there.

Thanks to ALL!
Michael
 
ML, Get a Cat 2 top link!!
As stated before, the tractor will always be Cat 2, and one bushing in the opposite end will convert that end to Cat 1, if your implement will only take a 3/4" pin!
 
(quoted from post at 20:17:56 10/05/15) ML, Get a Cat 2 top link!!
As stated before, the tractor will always be Cat 2, and one bushing in the opposite end will convert that end to Cat 1, if your implement will only take a 3/4" pin!

Is the 4000 really Cat II?
 
The break comes with the change in diff, if I'm not mistaken. All that I have seen had the rocker with 1" pins, and either !-1/8" inch lift arm balls & bushings or provisions to be able to change the lift arm balls to either category. The 3000/3600 with the outboard drum brakes would be straight Cat 1, like the early 4 cylinder tractors.
 
(quoted from post at 22:24:54 09/28/15) Michael's Dad,
I replied to the post with:

Best I could measure (pictures posted) is 25 1/2 all the way in and 29 all the way out. I will PM you the address once you get this and see if you have one that length.

Never heard back, tried to PM you and it is disabled. This post has been moved back about 3 deep, thought you may have forgotten or missed it. Not trying to rush, just checking.
Thanks

This is a cat 1 link.
20-1/2" collapsed, 32" extended.

Please advise.
 
(quoted from post at 08:59:46 10/06/15)
(quoted from post at 22:24:54 09/28/15) Michael's Dad,
I replied to the post with:

Best I could measure (pictures posted) is 25 1/2 all the way in and 29 all the way out. I will PM you the address once you get this and see if you have one that length.

Never heard back, tried to PM you and it is disabled. This post has been moved back about 3 deep, thought you may have forgotten or missed it. Not trying to rush, just checking.
Thanks

This is a cat 1 link.
20-1/2" collapsed, 32" extended.

Please advise.

You can buy Cat I and Cat II top links of various lengths.
 
"Michaels Dad"] wrote: This is a cat 1 link.
20-1/2" collapsed, 32" extended.

20 1/2 collapsed and 32 extended should work. Right now I have been working with it collapsed (25 1/2) which has the blade about level. My understanding of this would be that I would replace it with the new one set at the 25 1/2 which would give me 4 to 7 inch adjustment..?

Thanks
Michael
 
(quoted from post at 22:20:39 10/06/15) "Michaels Dad"] wrote: This is a cat 1 link.
20-1/2" collapsed, 32" extended.

20 1/2 collapsed and 32 extended should work. Right now I have been working with it collapsed (25 1/2) which has the blade about level. My understanding of this would be that I would replace it with the new one set at the 25 1/2 which would give me 4 to 7 inch adjustment..?

Thanks
Michael

Pretty much.
 
OK, sounds like it would work with my tractor and meet the need for raising the back of BB when needed. If your offer is still open, how do I get you my address. Your PM is disabled and I see no email address?

Thanks
Michael
 

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