Gravely Quick Hitches

Hi,

I have a 1970 Commercial 14 that has a 4 bolt Quick Hitch and have recently bought a Snow Cannon that has 2 (LARGE) bolt holes and the 'horn' hole in the crescent shaped mounting plate. The much larger 2 bolt holes on the snow blower don't come anywhere near matching up to the 4 holes in the square pattern on the machine's quick hitch

I've mounted the blower on the horn and hooked up the universal joint, but there's no way that the bolt holes are ever gonna match up. Thus my question as to whether I need a different (2 hole) mount on my machine or is there an adapter plate, bolts and bushings available that will hopefully let me use my beast of a machine with what is supposedly a beast of a snow blower to battle our beastly upstate New York 'Lake Effect' snow dumps of 2 foot, 3 foot, 4 foot plus.

Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanx, Pat aka flgudmusic

I've played with a lot of old Gravely equipment over the years, but have never owned what you are describing. Gravely made a number of different "quick hitch" adapters over the years, and they all seemed to work slightly differently with different attachments. Looking on the computer, I found what I think that you need:

http://gravelymanuals.com/pdf/Locking_Strap_Kit_IPL_0782.pdf

Gravely made a number of different snow blowers, and a lot of folks referred to them as dog eaters and snow cannons. I don't know what model you have, but I imagine that it attaches something like the one in this manual:

http://gravelymanuals.com/pdf/32_Inch_Snowblower_Op_Man_0984.pdf

For other manuals, see:

http://gravelymanuals.com/docs/index.html

Finding new parts can be a challenge. Gravely changed part numbers a couple of times and Ariens changed the part number again after they bought Gravely. I think that you need:

http://www.partstree.com/parts/gravely/accessories/35052-gravely-locking-strap-for-2-wheel-tractor/locking-strap-kit/

Another website shows the dimensions of the bushing/spacers:

http://www.propartsdirect.net/08538800-ariens-parts.aspx

Thank You TomIn for your replies.
By visiting the sites that you suggested, I downloaded a bunch of manuals & actually found out exactly what model of 'snow cannon' I have. I am the proud owner of a 28" model #20979 and am kinda on the right track for hooking up to my Commercial 12.
I can now better explain my predicament. It seems that the original unit was fastened to the machine via the QH horn and 1 bolt & bushing to the top left hand(looking from the rear/ operator's position) stud of the 4. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
An aftermarket vendor sells a 'locking strap' that fastens at one point on the blower but TWO points on the QH, the top left and the bottom left, to keep the entire blower unit from rotating and messing up the 'U joint'.
The gentleman that sold me my blower had a plate(rotary plow adjuster) fastened to the unit and now I'm thinking he probably used this as a 'locking strap'.
If all of this makes any sense, please let me know. Also, with my setup, does it matter which direction the 'U joint faces'
between the tractor and blower?
Again, thanx for your reply/ info.
Pat aka flgudmusic

I found a link to a manual for model 20979:

https://www.manualslib.com/manual/62428/Gravely-20979.html?page=13#manual

The manual doesn't make any mention of using a "locking strap" It appears that the "bushing" on one bolt that attaches the QH to the tractor just functions as a "spacer". When the spacer (and a longer bolt) is used, the head of the bolt will protrude far enough from the QH so that the head of the bolt will extend into the large hole in the crescent shaped bracket on the snow blower. This will severely limit the amount that the blower can rotate.

Manuals for other models showed a strap attached to two bolts in the QH. I'm guessing that this served the same function. Attaching at two points might provide some added strength which might be needed if you had one of the wider snow blowers.

I have a 28" snow blower that came with a Gravely Super Convertible that I bought more than a decade ago. I've never used it, and it is stored at my rural property a hundred miles away. I don't recall that it had a "locking strap", but I haven't looked closely at it for many years.

I am guessing that could just buy a longer bolt and a stack of washers so that the bold head would go into/through the large hole in your crescent bracket. If you are running the snow blower on a flat driveway and/or sidewalk, the weight of the snow blower would keep it from rotating much---even without a longer bolt. (It would be another matter if you drove the whole unit off the edge of a tall curb or ramp.)

One of the manuals I read said that the long end of the U joint should attach to the QH and the short end should attached to the blower. As I have said, I haven't looked at mine in years and don't even know whether the splines are the same on both ends. It may only attach one direction.

Most old time Gravely fans seem to think that the best source of parts and advice for old Gravely Equipment is Richards Lawn and Garden in West Virginia. They seem to know everything and stock everything. Their strong suit seems to be that they have the ability to translate old part numbers shown in 1970's manuals into current part numbers. Their web page is:

http://www.gravelyparts.com/index.htm

Also check out the Gravely Tractor Club. Of America web site. TONS of information. On the right side find manuals. Open it and you will find every book and service manual ever. Download the PDF to your smartphone and you now have it in your pocket.