Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

This is just like the old coffee shop, which was like the old coffee shop down the street. Pull up a chair, sit down and enjoy some good discussions. Please, no political, religious or racial posts.
User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Guys , I'm going to be buying a new sleeve hitch box blade in the very near future . Its main job will be to maintain my gravel driveway .
I'm needing opinions on which model to buy ?? The Agri-fab or Brinly models .
The Brinly is 38" wide while the Agri-Fab is 42" wide .
I've got a friend that has the Agri-Fab model , but isn't crazy about the bolted on beam as it tends to flex when weight is added to it .
I want opinions from owners of either model , so if you have one or the other , give me your likes or dislikes on each model .
Also if anyone who knows of another manufacturer of sleeve hitch box blades let me know .
I've got a welder , so beefing up one or the other is very likely .

This is going on the rear of my 782 loader tractor , so you know its gonna get abused ..... :lol:
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

junderwood
Posts: 49
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:04 am
First and Last Name: John Underwood
Location: Ogema, WI

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by junderwood »

http://www.xtrememotorworks.com/Parts%2 ... ipment.htm

Aaron makes a pretty nice blade. Ask him he may be able to add some ends to make it like the blades you are talking about. He has always been good to work with for me.

John

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

John , yeah Aaron makes great quality products . I've purchased 3 Cat-0 rear hitches from him over the years . I need the box blade now , and I really don't want to add the end panels or the scarifying blades or wait to see if he can do it to his sleeve hitch model .

Anyway , I order the 38" brinly as it looks to be made a little more solid , although I don't like the C channel hitch beam on it ( I would have thought they would have used thick wall square tubing ) ,but I believe that can be reinforced easily . I'm also going to see how hard it will be to mount a replaceable cutting edge on it like the IH snowblades have . I'm thinking that gravel will eat the edge of that box blade pretty fast .

I would have liked the Agri-fab as it is 4 inches wider , and the 38 " Brinly is barely going to cover the cubs 36" footprint . But I can't get past the Agri-Fabs wimpy looking hitch beam . My friend who owns one says it flexes and sags when lifted with weight added to it . I'd bend that thing the first time I used it.... :lol:

One thing I like about the Brinly is the rear weight bracket that is made for a cinder block , but it looks like it be perfect for the stack of 10 lb. barbell weights I have . :D
Attachments
Brinly box blade.jpg
Brinly box blade.jpg (30.64 KiB) Viewed 12168 times
Agri-Fab scraper-box.jpg
Agri-Fab scraper-box.jpg (6.29 KiB) Viewed 12168 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

UPS brought daddy a new toy today ........ :D
I can't wait to put it together tomorrow ........ :headbang:
Attachments
Brinly box 001.JPG
Brinly box 001.JPG (829.26 KiB) Viewed 12164 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Jess - I am almost as excited as you to see the results! I haven't been able to man up to spend the money, so I can at least let you test it for me. TSC also has a Cat 0 rear blade that is larger and heavier, but no box blade.
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Tom , I have a big heavy duty (rusty) Brinly 60" Cat O that I have used on my 982's on rare occasions . I wanted a dedicated box scraper for my 782 loader tractor and didn't want to go thru the time and expense of changing the 782 to Cat 0 . Plus I've heard that box blades do a better job of smoothing dirt and gravel than the plain scraper blades , and if my loader goes down for any reason , I have a couple of other hydrolift cubs with rear sleeve hitches I can use in a pinch .
Attachments
60 inch Cat 0 Brinly back blade 001.JPG
60 inch Cat 0 Brinly back blade 001.JPG (830.03 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Well here it is assembled , and thought I better get pictures of it while it still has all its paint .... It won't look this pretty again . :lol:
There's a lot I like about it , but there's a few things right off that I don't like .
I was originally thinking I was going to have to beef it up a bit , but its actually made out of heavier gauge metal than I expected . I also thought that if I made it to stout my sleeve hitch might suffer . I did make some small modifications right out of the box though.

In the second picture it shows the spiral roll pin that's driven in on one side and I will be surprised if it doesn't eventually fall out , if and when it does it will be replaced with a bolt or maybe a heavy duty cotter pin .

In the third picture Brinly provides a wimpy 3/16 snap pin to go in a 3/8 size hole to hold the scarifying tooth bar in place , so I swapped it out with a much heavier and better fitting 3/8 snap pin shown in the fourth and fifth picture.
Attachments
Brinly box mods 007.JPG
Brinly box mods 007.JPG (846.42 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 004.JPG
Brinly box mods 004.JPG (766.44 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 001.JPG
Brinly box mods 001.JPG (807.74 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 003.JPG
Brinly box mods 003.JPG (741.82 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 002.JPG
Brinly box mods 002.JPG (832.35 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Last edited by Jlaws on Wed May 20, 2015 4:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Now we get to a couple of things I really don't like about it and see as potential problems . I also want to thank Ed Wells for his experience with this box blade and what I'm about to address .

Namely the lack of anything holding the other end of the toothed scarifying bar shown in the first photo . If the sides spread apart even a small amount that bars going to fall out . I took Ed's advise and drilled a 3/8 hole on the other end and added another 3/8 snap pin shown in the second photo . It will also add a little extra strength to the side panels , keeping them from bowing out . :beer:

I'm also looking at how easy it would be to add a cutting edge to the bottom edge of the scraper , and it appears that it wouldn't be to hard . It looks like the four holes located near the bottom edge would be logical attachment points shown in third photo .

The last two photo's show the 10 lb barbell weights that work great , and it attached to my 782 .

Now it gets put thru performance and endurance trials..... updates pending ......:lol:
Attachments
Brinly box mods 005.JPG
Brinly box mods 005.JPG (851.36 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 010.JPG
Brinly box mods 010.JPG (793.71 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 008.JPG
Brinly box mods 008.JPG (852.58 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 011.JPG
Brinly box mods 011.JPG (867.72 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
Brinly box mods 012.JPG
Brinly box mods 012.JPG (845.74 KiB) Viewed 12153 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Spent about an hour today box blading my gravel driveway and must say I'm happy with the results , and I didn't break anything................. :lol:

Before and after shots of my driveway
Attachments
driveway 001.JPG
driveway 001.JPG (824.6 KiB) Viewed 12142 times
driveway 002.JPG
driveway 002.JPG (850.57 KiB) Viewed 12142 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
EdWells
Posts: 32
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 6:56 am
First and Last Name: Ed Wells
Location: Jeffersontown Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by EdWells »

Jess looks like you did a good job on your driveway.If you come up with a cutting edge idea I would like to see how you do it. Not having a replacable edge looks like a drawback for long term use.

User avatar
dag1450
Posts: 2356
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2011 3:16 pm
First and Last Name: Dave Gibson
Location: Chalfont, Pa

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by dag1450 »

It looks like u got a new load of driveway stone! Did the teeth work good in the hard packed stone.....all four of them.lol I guess if u had more it might b to much resistance for two wheel drive. Looks great! :beer:
127, 1650, 1572, 1872, 2072 . A mower, blower and blade for each.

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Ed , I'm definitely going to fashion some sort of wear edge on this back blade , I've got some 1/8 thick plate here that I'm going to cut down to fit .
I had 20 tons of fine gravel added to the driveway about 10 years ago and it handle the fine stuff great . It on top of the existing coarser gravel that has been there for a long time ...This house is 60 plus years old and has multiple loads of gravel added over the years and has a really thick base .

Dave , tractions not a problem with the loaded rear ags and 12 , yes 12 added wheel weights . Including the loader this thing weighs around 1500 lbs. ..... You are also correct that the 4 tooth scarifier bar just isn't going to cut it . I think I'm going to add 3 more teeth like what's shown in my crude drawing below , my only concern is that added more teeth might be to much for the scarifier bar to handle without bending . Its kind of the domino effect , you beef up one area only to find another weak spot .
Attachments
Brinly box blade.jpg
Brinly box blade.jpg (1.68 MiB) Viewed 12124 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
dag1450
Posts: 2356
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2011 3:16 pm
First and Last Name: Dave Gibson
Location: Chalfont, Pa

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by dag1450 »

Wow.....u and i must b telepathic :lol: I was going to suggest more teeth but then i did not want to get into the whole stiffing of the bar thing.....and how then u must do this because of that and the other :lol: Now i know u got things covered i will just sit back and watch the magic! :beer:
127, 1650, 1572, 1872, 2072 . A mower, blower and blade for each.

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Added three more teeth to the tooth bar and I don't know if it will work any better , but it looks better . :D
The four teeth wasn't enough and with the large gap between the teeth , it kinda remind me of my old girlfriend . :lol:

Cut the 1/4 X 1 1/2 bar stock and welded them into place , I will see if my welds hold up .
A little wire brushing and cheap black paint .
Also we'll see if it does a little better job and if the tooth bar holds up without bending .
If it does start to bow I'll probably end up welding another 1/4 inch thick by 1 1/2 wide piece of bar stock on top of the existing one for added stiffness .
Attachments
Brinly tooth bar 002.JPG
Brinly tooth bar 002.JPG (747.25 KiB) Viewed 12105 times
Brinly tooth bar 003.JPG
Brinly tooth bar 003.JPG (765.98 KiB) Viewed 12105 times
Brinly tooth bar 004.JPG
Brinly tooth bar 004.JPG (813.23 KiB) Viewed 12105 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
dag1450
Posts: 2356
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2011 3:16 pm
First and Last Name: Dave Gibson
Location: Chalfont, Pa

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by dag1450 »

U mean business! I think i would put that second pcs of flat stock behind the teeth ...then weld to original bar and to back of teeth for sideways support. Then if more is needed a pcs of square tube on top...side to side. If u wanted to get crazy u could cut it though the sides. :lol: Looks really nice! Dave
127, 1650, 1572, 1872, 2072 . A mower, blower and blade for each.

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Jess - That thing did an impressive job on the driveway!

I remember reading another review on these awhile back where the guy had to drill a hole in the end of the scarifier bar like you did because the end wing did spread enough for the bar to fall out, so good move there.

I would suggest not waiting for the bar to bend but to just go ahead and weld an angle on top the scarifier bar; an angle will give it strength in both the vertical and horizontal directions. The attachment needs the weight anyway and the extra strength on the bar will help it dig in rather than flexing.

The bolt on cutting edge is a great idea too; I would think a piece of regular mild steel flat would take are of it.

If you wanted to use it for grading out some dirt without the teeth, it would be good to be able to turn the bar upside down to still have end wing support. Probably can't do that now with the extra teeth, but could have another bar without teeth for that purpose.

Anyway, me likey!
:beer:
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Paul B
Posts: 586
Joined: Wed Sep 08, 2010 8:20 pm
First and Last Name: Paul R. Bell
Location: Louisville, KY, where all your IH built Cub Cadets were born

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Paul B »

Jess,

You could bring that down here and practice on my driveway, and then when you did yours, you would get it perfect :lol: Guess I need to order one for myself.
May you always have as many landings as you do takeoff's.........

User avatar
Jlaws
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:14 pm
First and Last Name: Jess Laws
Location: Independence , Ky

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Jlaws »

Last modification to the scarifying bar are done , and this will be my last post on this project .
I really like this boxblade with my modifications .
1 down and about 20 more projects on the list to do. :lol:


I've only used the back blade a couple of time and could already see that the scarifying blade was starting to bow up in the center a little , not bad but it would get progressively worse with use .
I clamped the bar in a vice and with a little elbow grease straightened it back out , I then clamped and welded a piece of bar stock to it leaving just enough space on each end so I could still remove it easily for flipping it over .



Tom , I wanted to use angle iron but everything I have on hand is either to light or to heavy of gauge . I searched my scrap metal shelf and found an old piece of 7/8 bar stock that will stiffen it up nicely . ;) It also adds about another 10 lbs. of weight to the boxblade .

I also never even considered that the extra teeth on the scarifying bar might interfere with flipping it over , but it does just clear the beam by about an inch and I can still angle it OK without hitting the beam . :beer:

I'm not going to make a replaceable cutting edge because its not showing any appreciable wear , and dummy me had a real CRS moment and forgot that the way this box blade is made the whole blade can be flipped over . Doh !!! :banghead:

I only have to remove the 4 carriage bolts in the center of the blade to flip it over . :roll:

Anyway ....................Anyone buying a Brinly box blade , I would suggest these three minor modifications : Adding the 3 extra teeth ( it really does do a better job with them ) , secondly adding a hole and clip to the opposite end of the scarifying bar so it doesn't fall out and also helps support the end panels from bowing out , and lastly some kind of angle iron or heavy bar stock to stiffen the scarifying bar because it going to bow from normal use if you don't , regardless of you add extra teeth to it or not .
Attachments
Brinly scarifier bar 001.JPG
Brinly scarifier bar 001.JPG (810.32 KiB) Viewed 12072 times
Brinly scarifier bar 002.JPG
Brinly scarifier bar 002.JPG (850.01 KiB) Viewed 12072 times
I see a lot of cub cadets while going down the tracks , its a shame I can't pull over and ask about them .

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Jess - This was really an excellent thread, I am glad you posted it. I had looked at these Brinly box blades online and thought they might be too flimsy. Your experience shows that with some minor mods they really are a decent attachment. Thanks for being our test lab on these!
:beer:
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

A.W.Gonya
Posts: 157
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:12 am
First and Last Name: Aaron W. Gonya
Location: Arcadia, Ohio

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by A.W.Gonya »

Jess,

Bring this thing to plow day, the drive at the farm is a real mess and is driving me nuts. :beer:

I know there is plenty of gravel down there, the grass has just covered it up.
Can you buy WD40 by the tank car?

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Ok, Jess pushed me over the edge with his Brinly box scraper. I take care of my neighbors snow and his drive is long and all stone. Recent storms have beat it up and I have been concerned that I would have a hard time with snow removal with all the ruts and potholes.

We haven't had many posts lately, so I will torture you all with my overly detailed take on this. Jess did such a great job with the topic I figured it is more useful for later if I glommed on to the same thread. Jess, hopefully you don't mind. :D

I agree with Jess's analysis, the Brinly is just a better choice than the Agri-Fab. I started my CL watch, and sure enough found one for reasonable a few weeks ago. Shown below, the day I started working on it. It had been left outside for dead by the PO; must have been on its back for a while, mud packed into the drawbar (hitch-beam), the green is mildew of some sort growing on the blade, the blue is my chalk line for starting work. This is after some initial clean-up of the chunky stuff and a new 1/4" quick pin to replace the rusty 3/16" that it came with on the scarifier bar:
Box Sraper, day 1.JPG
Box Sraper, day 1.JPG (500.28 KiB) Viewed 12009 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

I agreed with all Jess's mods, and proceeded down the same path. I didn't have any suitable steel in stock for the strongback or the teeth, so I had to go shopping. The scarifier flat-bar from Brinly is pretty stout to start with at 3/8" x 1-1/2", but just not strong enough for real serious use, especially with almost double the teeth.

I decided to match the width with an angle, 1-1/2" legs x 1/4" thick installed as a strongback. The angle will provide a huge amount of support against both the horizontal and vertical forces. A chart would have been good on this... :lol:
Scarifier bar, strongback installed.JPG
Scarifier bar, strongback installed.JPG (498.98 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
I've been anxious for some welding practice with my new (to me...) Lincoln AC/DC tombstone welder. I went crazy and 100% welded the entire length of the angle, both sides. :lol: Almost six linear feet of weld there! Since this was an "edge weld" with the angle directly over the same width bar, I skip welded about 50% with 6011 on DC+ to get good penetration rather than spend time beveling the edges for a "proper" joint. For the rest of it I played around with 7018 and 7014 to get a feel for these different rods. (My previous machine was a low open-circuit voltage, AC only Craftsman, had been limited to 6013.) I even went back over some of the 6011, so it wasn't as pretty as it could have been, but I wanted the welding time.
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Just as Jess did, I cut three extra teeth to match the existing and installed evenly. Although it is only three more, it just ends up looking so much more aggressive. It just looks right for the intended purpose now.
Scarifier bar, extra teeth installed.JPG
Scarifier bar, extra teeth installed.JPG (458.83 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

So, here is where I did the next "extra beefing". Since I bought a used one I had the advantage of seeing some typical wear. I can tell from the teeth it had some moderate but not excessive use. The teeth only had minor wear and the main blade had almost no wear, but... the rectangular "windows" in the side plates that support the scarifier bar were showing pretty good signs of being pounded out and getting rolled edges. Remember, all the force the ground is putting on those teeth is transmitted to those thin sheet metal side plates. They just had to be reinforced, so made some brackets from 3/16" flat bar.

Started with the typical redneck machine shop way, clamp in a vice and whale on it with a maul:
Side plate brackets, initial bend.JPG
Side plate brackets, initial bend.JPG (491.04 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
The problem is you end up with a hockey stick bend. When bending metal with the vice-maul method, the free end not in the vice takes the longer radius. I next trapped that between two plates on the press to flatten out the hockey stick portion. When this gets flattened, the angle opens up and you lose your 90* bend. So, one more beating while still in the press:
Bracket, final bend in press.JPG
Bracket, final bend in press.JPG (406.54 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
This shows the difference in the bends. The left side is after vice bending but before the press. The right side is after the press work.
Brackets, initial vs final bend.JPG
Brackets, initial vs final bend.JPG (469.46 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Next was the hard part, the rectangular window for the scarifier bar. I simply used my "mill" for that; I have an older mill, it looks a lot like a DeWalt jigsaw... :lol:
Bracket, square hole cutting.JPG
Bracket, square hole cutting.JPG (496.7 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
After some test fitting, one drilled hole in the short leg to match a factory hole in the main blade and two holes in the long leg and side plate. Finished brackets:
Side plate brackets, completed.JPG
Side plate brackets, completed.JPG (633.59 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Here it is assembled. I was too busy to get pics during the day, so this is after it has been successfully used for many hours. A bunch of rock dust makes for bland pictures, but it is what I have...
Side plate bracket installed.JPG
Side plate bracket installed.JPG (531.91 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
Scarifier bar installed, inside view.JPG
Scarifier bar installed, inside view.JPG (476.51 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
3/8" Grade 5 hardware for the thru bolting with interference/deformed thread/top-lock locknuts. I really prefer these heavy duty locknuts to split lockwashers.
Scarifier bar installed, outside view.JPG
Scarifier bar installed, outside view.JPG (509 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
I used 1/4" quick pins; plenty heavy enough and Brinly didn't give me any extra bar length so I needed to keep the hole size down for the mandatory second pin at the other end of the scarifier bar. I removed the roll pin that originally tied it to just one side plate; the roll pin interfered with my new brackets but isn't needed with a quick pin at each end.
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

First use, Friday evening. Removed the side plates to use as a back blade only initially. Started by just grooming the edges to reclaim stone from the grass with the blade angled. This was part was a bit difficult, with the blade several feet behind the tractor it can swing out of line pretty quick as you steer; I had to concentrate a bit to just scrape the edge.
Start of driveway, pulling rock from grass.JPG
Start of driveway, pulling rock from grass.JPG (831.07 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
Side plates removed, pulling rock from grass.JPG
Side plates removed, pulling rock from grass.JPG (903.05 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

Put the side plates and scarifier bar back on and just went to town tearing that thing up the entire length. I just couldn't believe how well this thing works! Within about four feet of moving forward, the box is full. Initially I just wanted to tear up all the surface compaction. Here is what it looks like pretty much the whole time:
Working driveway with box and scarifiers.JPG
Working driveway with box and scarifiers.JPG (965.12 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
Tom Scott
Chief Moderator
Posts: 1762
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by Tom Scott »

After ripping the entire length everywhere with the scarifier bar engaged, the drive looked much better and had already filled in much of the damage. While ripping I hadn't tried to redistribute the stone where it was needed, so that was next. Flipped the scarifier bar upside down to just use the box. Keeping the bar on upside down helps support the side plates.
Scarifier teeth up for final grading.JPG
Scarifier teeth up for final grading.JPG (901 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
Final picture after finished grading. I really should of gotten a better shot of the before and after of the driveway, but I was more focused on the actual job at that time. It takes a bit of concentration feathering the lift to deposit stone evenly in low areas.
Finishing driveway.JPG
Finishing driveway.JPG (934.04 KiB) Viewed 12008 times
Also, I didn't get a picture of it, but I ended up angling the box for the final grading even with the side plates on it. So, although this thing might be considered a toy compared to traditional, large box blades, they don't usually have a way to angle. Angling the box was a huge help to move excessive stone from the crown to the wheel tracks and from the edge.

Again, really surprised at how well this Brinly worked and how stout it is with just a few mods.

A final big thanks to Jess for being the site pioneer with these box scrapers! This was a fun project that took care of a big problem in about four hours of use.
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
<><

User avatar
BigMike
Posts: 1351
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 8:45 pm
First and Last Name: Mike Andrews
Location: Niles,Michigan

Re: Agri-Fab or Brinly ?? ( opinions please )

Post by BigMike »

Uh Tom?.....that's not a drive way, that is a country road! :lol:
Nice job!

Post Reply