Wow - nice job! Do the pedals function like you expected? What happens now with the dash control?

Once again, nice clean install! :thThumbsU

 

Yes, it works just like a newer model-the pedals operate opposite each other and spring return to neutral. The dash lever is still operational, too. The compromise with the hand control is that it returns to neutral under spring tension. Everything is intact-the start switch and the parking brake. Here is the modification to the dash.

 

Any chance of getting a drawing or photos of the inside?

 

I set my 317 up similar to yours. On my 400 I only have a pedal for forward and lift it with my toe for backing up. Makes it alot easier having both hands for steering and hydraulics. A guy needs three arms for the old setup.

 

Very nice! Looking at doing this mod. On my 318

 

Very cool.
Have you done a write up thread on the install? I'm sure there are a lot of guys on here that would modify their hand control machines with this mod!! :trink39:

 

Nice job. :thThumbsU

 

Indeed! :hatsoff: :thThumbsU

 

Looks great. Nice addition to your tractor. :fing32:

 

Very Cool. I'm in the process of doing this to a cub cadet. Interested to hear more about how you made it work.

 

Very nice....Is this a kit or did you make it all yourself?

 

i also would like to have some more info on this i hate my 318 dont have enough hands

 

I don't have time to get into the whole shebang tonight but I'll post a bunch more pics. The only things I didn't fabricate were the foot pads that I bought off ebay from (I think) a 235. I cut the arms down and bent them in. I wanted to tuck the mechanism up close to the foot pan and stay inside the frame. It's tight.

 

The key feature is to get the pedals to return to themselves at neutral. Thats what this part does. Also a pic of the hub mounted in the frame and a couple more with the pan raised. The pan backs out as normal. The 400 comes to a stop pretty quickly the same as if I grabbed the hand control and brought it to neutral. It's not neck snapping or tire skidding but very positive.

 

Very Nice! I really want to do this with my 318 I just don't have the fab skills.

 

How hard was this to do and how much did it cost? That is so sweet!

 

ok so did you have to move brake pedals over to left side? if so did you need anything special to do that?
please post a step by step of this build including part numbers etc

i know there are many of us waiting for this so we can modify our units. that hand operation is the biggest drawback of the 318 for me.

thanks and wow a great job you did.

 

The only real cost I have in this part of the project is the $35 ebay purchase of the two pedals and a few dollars in some hardware-a couple of collars and washers. I bought the pedals early in my thinking just because I liked the look of the molded rubber forward and backward arrow.

Everything else was laying around in the scrap steel bin. So no part numbers, sorry. It's a reasonable fabrication project. There is some machine shop work to make shafts fit inside of shafts and fit again inside shafts. The flange that attaches to the frame with the triangular plate is 1.25 o.d. with a .875 hole for the .875 shaft. The .875 shaft that the forward control pedal operates is bored to .5 for the reverse pedal shaft.

I'm not real happy with the geometry of the reverse linkage and will refine that as I take a lot of stuff apart in warmer weather to rebuild the driveshaft (Thanks for the info on driveshaft rebuilding all you guys and that other forum contributors!). Both forward control and reverse control attach to the main (original) control arm at the same point. The main control rod moves about 7/8" forward from neutral and 3/8" reverse from neutral so the forward pedal moves about twice as far as reverse. This caused some head scratching out at the pedals with the movement limited by the foot pan.

The location of the pedals in relation to the foot pan was just an ergonomic decision as I sat on the tractor and figured out where my foot rested most naturally. My heel sits back just a bit from the bend in the pan and against the inner wall. My toes are slightly splayed out and found their way to the top outside corner. That is why the controls end up where they are.

 

Great job!

 

any chance you can build more of these and make a kit to sell, for those of us who don't have the tools etc to do this ourselves?

 

did you have to move brake pedal over to the left side? if so what was involved in that?

 

I'm not really inclined to mass produce this conversion but I will gladly offer my ignorance up to anyone that would want to do it. Thank you all for the kind words! I just enjoy solving mechanical issues and am having fun making this 400 (my first JD and I'm up to about 4 hours seat time now) my own poor man's 720 (with maybe a couple of Series 1 features). I was looking at those 1 Series UT's today and am liking that joystick on the fender...

I did a short thread a couple of weeks ago about the left side brake move. It's not too complicated but making the pedal assembly a mirror image of itself is pretty tricky. Again, it involves a little machine work. If a guy took a couple of 6" lengths of 1.25 shaft and had one of them bored for a .875 shaft and the other for a .75 shaft you'd be well along for both projects-just cut them to length as needed. You'd also need a 6" long .875 shaft bored to fit a 1/2" shaft. Everything else is saw cuts, drill press, and welding. A lathe is a handy thing. A Hossfeld bender should be in every machine shed, too.

 

Awesome work and as asked before I wold love to get instructions or a kit from you I have a JD 430 and need to covert it to foot controls. Awesome my user name is 2fishnnuts my name is Eddie Farmer and would be more than happy to pay for your time on any help.

 

I always very impressed to see what fellow Members can come up with here on MTF. This is a awesome , clean and professional job. congrats on a great out-come.:thThumbsU:thThumbsU

 

Very nice setup I'm looking at doing the same thing to my 317. I like your neutral return bracket and the fact you left the hand control in place.

Later,
Justin

 

Nice !!! Never knew wheat a Hossfeld bender was until reading this thread. Thanks for the free education

 

I thought to update this thread following a Thanksgiving weekend remodel of the foot control. I finally got to drive a 1026 at the dealer demo days and was impressed with how smooth and easy the pedals operated. My version one from this thread took a little too much foot pressure-I didn't know any better until the test drive.

So I abandoned the dual foot/hand control to remove any extra friction from the hand control. I haven't removed the neutral start switch and the hand lever itself, yet. Everything else is gone from the hand control. I will be making up a bracket to hold the neutral safety switch down by the pedal return spring mechanism. Nice, easy, and smooth now!

The pedal arms are fabricated on the end of those stubs.

Of course, there is a loader to work around now, too. Jay