1990 articulated tractor/loader with 18HP Briggs And Stratton gasoline engine (engine new in 2000), 4-wheel hydrostatic drive (hydraulic wheel motors at each wheel), articulated steering (steers by bending in the middle, offering increased maneuverability and minimized turf damage), and hydraulic remotes ("Hydraulic PTO", 8 gpm @ 2500 PSI) on front of machine. The tractor weighs a little over 1000 lbs, so it can easily be moved on a 2 wheel trailer. Attachments include a 48" front-loader bucket (can be used for digging, grading, and carrying around 600 lbs or so of material), hydraulic stump grinder, hydraulic power auger header w/ 8" and 24" augers, and a "Front-Hoe" w/ 8" trencher/backhoe bucket. The manufacturer (www.power-trac.com) makes several different models (small and large, gasoline and diesel) with around 40 attachments available.

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Stump Grinder Attachment / Power Auger Attachment

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Mounting eyes on the large bucket and the stump grinder plate. Attachments connect with 3 pins, remotely similar to a 3-point hitch. Horizontal distance between the eyes is 16". Vertical distance from bottom eyes to top eye is 6" on the bucket and 9" on the stump grinder. The two lift arms use dual acting cylinders (power-up and power-down), as well as the single curl/tilt arm. Maximum lift height is around 60" or so.

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The "front-hoe" is an 8" trencher bucket with homemade attachment plate and boom. The hydraulic cylinder has a 12" stroke. This attachment can dig to about 3' deep or so. The adjustable thumb is useful for picking up tree trunks and brush, as well as improving the digging performance. The contraption on top of the rear hood is a solar battery trickle charger…it's a 5 watt solar panel with welding magnets attached to the bottom to hold it securely to the hood.

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In addition to the non-reversible hydraulic PTO for powering the stump grinder and power auger, a directional hydraulic circuit was necessary to operate the curl function of the front-hoe (and other potential uses). The tractor did not have a directional auxiliary hydraulic circuit, so I installed a solenoid operated double-selector valve. This selector valve is electrically actuated, so I've placed a push-button on the joystick. Moving the joystick forward or backward raises or lowers the lift arms, moving the joystick left or right raises or lowers the boom, and moving the joystick left or right while pushing the button curls and uncurls the bucket. When the button is pushed, the selector valve simply re-routes the pressure and return to the 3^rd hydraulic circuit. I've attached a hydraulic schematic below in case anyone viewing this site would like to add a selector valve to their tractor or loader.

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email: davesisk@ipass.net