[muscletruck7379]

I recently acquired a parsons front end loader and a ford 723 backhoe. they were supposed to work best on a ford 4000, but were mounted on tractors as small as the 2000.

I was curious on thoughts on mounting it on my wide front Z? someday i would like to get a 4000 to mount it on, but i have some digging to do in the meantime.

 

[G. L. Grumpy]

Old MM's have no 3pts, so you would have to make your own mounts up for sure. Maybe where your platform and pedals mount to case and up higher just under seat area? The axles on these also have tabs under and behind unless you have cultivator mounts or such in those places. Running hydraulics......you have those on the Z now? Would think you will need bigger tank for sure. Would have to lock the control lever to one position to have flow at all times and come off the pump on the feed line?? OR, have diff pump for that running off the pto or the engine somewhere else?

Loaders on MM's mostly mount on those big flat areas on each side of tractor near clutch area if you have them. Also along front pedestal mounting ahead of engine, and the arms also go back to the axles and bolt on there or use big U-bolts over the axle.
I'm really thinking the Z is not the tractor you should start with, they are kind of ill-equipped and not very adaptable to anything not made for them.

 

[muscletruck7379]

This Z already has a 3pt, but I'm gonna swap it over to the trike. I wouldn't hang this hoe off one unless it was a class 2 minimum. I figured I would build a subframe to bolt to the axles, flat spots next to the clutch, and the front. It has hydraulics, but I would probably just use a PTO pump I have for both volume and simplicity.

However I'm trying to scrape up the cash to buy a fordson major that I could delegate to doing all the hard work (my Z's have sentimental value) if I do neither I might just make the hoe a very big towable.

 

[Nouveau Redneck]

The Ford 723 backhoe is a subframe mount, so it has no requirement for a 3 point hitch. Also, a Ford tractor with a 723 backhoe usually also had a loader and the loader frame was the front part of the backhoe subframe, but they did make a full subframe for that backhoe that did not make use of the loader frame, but there weren't that many of them out there because, as I said, most also had loaders. Hopefully it has the full subframe or you will have to fabricate something.

 

[Nouveau Redneck]

Sorry, just read your second post and see that you already plan to fabricate a subframe. That would definitely be the best way to go, whether you mount it on your Z or a Fordson Major.