sleeve hitch mounted aerator

[prime65]

hi i am a new member to this site and i am looking for feedback in regards to a sleeve hitch mounted aerator i have designed and fabricated. unfortunately i do not yet have any pictures, but i will attempt to accurately describe the aerator i have built.

first off i have a 2001 craftsman 21 horse kohler vtwin garden tractor equipped with a craftsman sleeve hitch and an electric actuator.

i aerate lawns as a side job each fall. i began aerating lawns with a simple tow behind residential style aerator. i quickly discovered its short comings and decided that being able to lift an aerator into the air would be very benificial. My tracor obvioulsy doesn't have a 3 pt hitch, as that would be ideal, but it does have a sleeve hitch.

i fabricated a sleeve hitch aerator...heres where you have to use your imagination a little. imagine a standard tow behind aerator with a very short tongue length and obviously it attaches to the sleeve hitch as a normal sleeve hitch implement would. now imagine a pivot built into the tongue...behind the location where the implement is attached to the sleeve hitch and before the aerator. this allows the aerator, when engaged in the ground, to pivot and follow behind like a tow behind. the advantage to this is that you are able to turn while the aerator is engaged in the ground without putting the aerator in a bind. with this set up i am able to navigate around trees, landscaping etc. with a standard three point set up you can only aerate in straight lines, any turning puts the aerator in a bind. as my sleeve hitch move upward the aerator is lifted into the air, as this happens two chains simultaneously draw tight and automatically straighten or square the aerator inline with the tractor and prevent side to side sway of the aerator. i realize this may be hard to picture without any photos. i'll try to get some soon. thanks for your feedback.

[davidg]

and YES, we wants pics!

[Diz Jr.]

prime65,



Your aerator sounds like a great idea. Try to get us some pictures if you can.

[Jonbeattie]

[slkpk]

and with your areator. slkpk

[prime65]

as promised here are some pics of my sleeve hitch mounted aerator. try to look past the surface rust and dirt. my main objective was to design an aerator that worked well. i guess you could say this is my rough draft. I didn't care so much how it looked, but how well it worked. I aerated approx 100 lawns this fall, did some minor tweaking to the aerator along the way, but overall it worked very well. i intend to build a beefier unit this winter. it will utilize commercial quality tines and a will have a square tube frame. Is there a market out there for this aerator? does it fill a void between the tow behind and the 3 point mounted market? shoot me your opinions, good or bad. Thank you for your time.

[Chuck_050382]

leaguedude made his aerator 3pt.

here is the thread
http://www.mytractorforum.com/showthread.php?t=92917

[prime65]

bumping

[slkpk]

What are the chains used for and why do you have it swivel? slkpk

[prime65]

the chains draw tight as the sleeve hitch moves upward and since each chain tightens evenly it will square the aerator with the tractor. the swivel allows you to turn while aerating, like you would with a simple tow behind aerator. it allows you to go around trees, landscaping ect. With a 3 point you can NOT turn while aerating. you can only aerate in straight lines. if you attempt to turn with a 3pt aerator you will put it in a bind. so basically my design gives you benefit of being able to lift the aerator and also be able to turn when it is engaged into the ground.

[Forward Look]

Would a belly-mount aerator work? Something that could be raised/lowered in place of a deck? It would have the full weight of the tractor to get the job done... or would turning be an issue?

[elsimon]

I like your thinking. Your design looks good. By the looks of the tines the rest of it is significantly beefier. When you said you want a beefier one yet are you aerating driveways? What are your current limitations with your present design? With an underbelly mounted one you may run into issues. Basic kinematics would indicate you would be binding on your tines every time you turned. You would either bend tines or tear the ground up.

As I think about it, it just might work if you have it hanging from a single pivot point. This would allow it rotate as you turn. It would limit the binding. Do each set of tines rotate independent? That would help as well. The other limitation would be that you couldn't get into tight spaces. With a tow behind you can back into tight spaces or up against curbing or walls to complete the job.

Some some random thoughts I had.

[Exto]

I like the setup, I'm just trying to wrap my head around how the chains square the aerator behind you when you lift it. It looks to me like they should loosen, but I know I'm missing something here.

[NoTime]

Originally Posted by Exto

I like the setup, I'm just trying to wrap my head around how the chains square the aerator behind you when you lift it. It looks to me like they should loosen, but I know I'm missing something here.

It is confusing, but I think the pictures show the actuator in the "up" position (actuator piston cannot be drawn up more), and the chains are currently "tight" because the structure is a it's highest point relative to the fixed tractor hitch plate, as the aerator structure is lowered, the chains get more slack..

[prime65]