Three point hitches and PTOs are marvelous things. Some tractors can put to good use a wider array of implements than I have changes of clothing. I know almost nothing about high fashion, but my impression is that some outfits cost as much as farm implements do, which is to say, a lot. As with apparel, the fancier ag machinery brands command higher prices - perhaps a reader can tell me about which fashion company one could make an analogous statement to this - "Deeres (as in John Deere) are the color of money for a reason." Maybe it's Filson? Since we're still very much in start-up phase at Cairncrest my tractor only has a few changes of clothing. Here it is all decked out in full chipping dress.
I wish I could say I built the implement on the three point hitch, but alas, my metal working skills are not that honed. I did fabricate the box on the front, in all its rustic, scrap yard glory. The tractor can carry the box with pallet forks and then put it down and reorient to throw the chips into the box. Simply chip, scoop, carry, dump. It can concentrate several trees worth of branches into one pile right where I want it, 2.5 cubic yards at a time.
Note the hinge point on the door. Important to hinge at the top so the door doesn't get squashed in the pile or ripped off as they cascade out. I also hooked the box to the pallet forks so as to not drop it as I pour.
I'm not self-concious about the cheapo woodchip box because it does what I need it to do. The same goes for my clothing choices. My preferred work pants these days come from thrift stores. I find that I wear out the knees and thigh material more slowly on dress pants than I do on blue jeans. I don't know whether to attribute the longer life to the higher percentage of polyester or the lightness of the material that allows it to slide on my legs when I squat rather grip my thigh and develop a little friction the way jeans always do.
At some point in the indefinite future I would like to change up the machinery around here for a number of reasons I'll enumerate them in another post, but for now I see no reason to mix up my wardrobe. I can withstand the occasional odd look from a neighbor when they see me walking around in stained and dirt encrusted khakis.
-Edmund