'07 CC 2542 Hitch/Sleeve Hitch

there have been a couple on here who have modified a MTD quick attach manual hitch to work. I can't think exactly who is was, but searching something like 2500 series hitch or 2544 hitch..... something like that. I've got the MTD electric hitch that I modified to work by using a rear weight holder and welding it to the hitch. Keep an eye out on ebay...

I haven't saw the craftsman hitch, but I would be willing to say if you were half way decent or had an idea of how or what you needed to modify on it, then yes, it could be done. I think the biggest concern(s) are still being able to access the hydro release and the transmission dipstick. That's why I went to use the weight bracket mount. You can get them for around $30-$40 or again, if you a decent fabricator you can weld a make a bracket that will fit.

Here's a few pics of mine, if it gives you any ideas about what I'm talking about...

I own a 2544 and I picked up a MTD manual sleeve hitch for step thru tractors and modified it. I had to replace the two bolts in the side of the tractor with shoulder bolts, I used a hole saw to cut clearance to access the transmission port, and used a sawzall to elongate a hole to allow access/clearance for the transmission release. All in all it took me about an hour to make it work and that included the time it took me to measure and cut the hole with the hole saw in the wrong location first lol. Measure twice cut once.... I know better and still did it. As far as your tires I am still running the stock turfs and have plenty of traction for the cultivator.... havent tried the plow yet I expect thats where I will start having traction problems. If I can get a chance I will take a couple pictures of my setup for you.

you'll definitely want fluid filled tires no matter what. I think you can see in one of my pics I'm running the Carlisle All Trails and I plowed two gardens and pushed snow without any problems. They are filled and I also have wheel weights and suitcase weights. You may want to go with AGs depending on just how much "ground engaging" you plan on doing.

ericdube said:

I'm not sure if this is in the right price range for you, but Johnny Products makes one for $550 (+$35 shipping). It's a little cheaper than the Cub Cadet one and will bolt right on without any modifications.

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Casual_Farmer, I have this setup on my Cub Cadet 1200 along with a JBJr.

I love this set up! I can't tell you just how pleased I am with the way things turned out with my Cub Cadet.

thanks for all the replies and guidance...it sure would have made things easier if the manufacturer had put a more robust hitch plate on the back of this thing, similar to those found on the old 100s...guess they wanted to sell more of those $1000 electric sleeve hitches but that's another story...and the location of the trasmission dipstick and engagement rod makes things a little tricky too...

i've never considered pulling anything other than one of my little carts or the lawn sweeper with the stock pin-type hitch...has anyone tried pulling a ground engaging implement such as a disc harrow with the stock hitch? on ebay i've seen a little ball type hitch modification plate that bolts onto and would give a bit more strength to the horizontal portion of the hitch plate...has anyone tried this and does it allow you to pull ground engaging implements without leaving pieces of the tractor behind? i would probably be more inclined to try this if not for the location of the dipstick and rod...

as of this date i've done exactly nothing about getting a sleeve hitch on the cub, having gotten the old troy bilt horse tiller fixed last fall...the tiller is probably 30 years old, but since getting the carb rebuilt by a local repair guy, it runs great and does a nice job on the garden...but it's still a lot of work to wrestle around, and it would be nice to have a garden tractor that could do a little of the prep and weed abatement work...sooooooooooo:

i've been keeping an eye out for a weight bracket that will be compatible to the 2500...haven't seen anything less than $100 yet but am thinking that can be easily modified to allow a pin or ball type hitch such that i can pull a little harrow around the garden to keep the weeds down...and with a little work and fabrication this could be modified for other implements...i don't mind the work but i'm not much of a fabricator...

also looked at the jonny lift - would be more interested if it were manual and a little cheaper, but at least theirs is an alternative to the cub cadet version...if they made a robust manual version would be worth $250 - $300 to me to buy...maybe i'll shoot them an email just to see if they do...

the craftsman MTD hitch modification idea could also be a possibility...i've heard lowe's sells for under $200 and maybe i could pick up a used or clearance model for less...the modifications could be a challenge for me, but there's a first time for everything...would also be concerned that this might not be as robust as i might like, since if i do the hitch, i'm probably going to want to find a brinly plow to get a little deeper into the garden soil...have seen online posts from some folks that are real happy with the MTD hitch and some that are not so happy...

btw this cub still has less than 100 hours on it...i bot it for $3k a few years ago as a backup mower to my Dad's cub 1170, which is still running fine...this year i am trying to use a ward's signature 2000 that was given to me as my primary mower, and i just got it running a few days ago...so now i can give the 1170 a bit of a well deserved rest...

Regarding your question about hitch plate strength:

I have used a chain attached to my hitch plate to pull honeysuckle stumps out of the ground. I've had to slack the chain and get a 5-foot running start in order to yank some of them out, sometimes 3 or 4 times per bush (resulting in the ag tires digging holes). To date there are no signs of the hitch plate bending or the pin hole elongating. I've pulled at least 8 of these bushes out over the last 4 years or so.

CCinCT said:

Regarding your question about hitch plate strength:

I have used a chain attached to my hitch plate to pull honeysuckle stumps out of the ground. I've had to slack the chain and get a 5-foot running start in order to yank some of them out, sometimes 3 or 4 times per bush (resulting in the ag tires digging holes). To date there are no signs of the hitch plate bending or the pin hole elongating. I've pulled at least 8 of these bushes out over the last 4 years or so.

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so with turf tires and chains, i'm gonna spin my tires long before i damage the hitch...thank you this is good to know...i should be able to pull a disc harrow or cultivator set at shallow depth with no problem at all...right now i just want something to keep the weeds turned under in the garden as they are popping out of the ground...i didn't plant much this year so i have some wide open spaces that need to be kept turned up for next year...

again, thank you for your help...this will certainly save me a lot of work...i didn't think the hitch plate looked heavy enough, but obviously i was being too cautious...

happy to report that i was able to tear up half the garden in about 1/10 the time and 1/50 the energy it would have taken to use the tiller...i made a very crude spike tooth harrow and hooked it on with a chain...the only thing it did was rub a little paint off the hitch, even with two cinder blocks for weights...

as it's been raining for the last twelve hours on and off, and i have turf tires with no chains, it did spin a bit in spots, but once i got some momentum, it did the job quite nicely...after several passes the weeds were obliterated...i'm sure they'll be back in a week or two, but for now it looks good...

now that i know this works, i can get a small disc and maybe a cultivator...will probably at least need some chains, but that's ok...it's worth it to be able to avoid wrestling with that tiller (it's an old Troy Bilt 8hp that runs great but it has a mind of its own about where it wants to go)...

Here's what I did with an old Sears hitch. I added a crossbar to attach the hitch frame to my actuator. Although the hitch is mounted a bit higher than it should be, I can still pull a cultivator, plow and most other sleeve hitch attachments with it and the implements do a nice job. I use chains and some MF two-piece wheel weights with the turf tires. I usually lug things down a bit before I run out of traction. When I can tell the implement is running a little too deep, I just hit the lift switch a touch or vice versa.

Not pretty but it works.
Mike in CO

kemery1980 hooked me up with a modified MTD sleeve hitch, a pair of ag tires and wheels, and a set of chains...i've got the hitch mounted, and the tires and wheels are on...will start looking for a disc harrow and cultivator immediately...the weeds haven't been too bad since it's been so hot and dry, but that surely will not last...