Western UniMount

[Honest Mike]

OK, Im gonna try and explain this the best I could. On the UniMount, when you hook it up to the truck bracket, there is 4 places to pin up. The bottom 2, the big pins, and the 2 top ones for the headgear/lights. Now on mine, the way they did it, they attached the black floppy thingy, the part that swings up to hold up the headgear, they attached that to the plow. Isnt that piece supposed to be attached to the truck, hanging off the truck mounted bracket? It can be either way, and it hooks up fine either way, but I think it would be easier to hook and unhook if it was attached to the truck and not the plow. I have seen it both ways. Most trucks I see have that black floppy thing attached to the truck, but a few I see are set up like mine. Now, on the trucks I see with it attached to the truck, that black floppy thing has a handle welded into it, which is a good idea, and it also is spring loaded so you have to pull it back and swing it up to line it up with the headgear. The spring wants to push it towards the headgear to help you attach it and put the hairpin cotter in. What I want to know is, can I buy the parts to set mine up this way? I think all I would need is a new black floppy thing with a handle on it, and the spring. Right now mine has no handle, its just a flat piece of metal painted black with a hole on each end. Id really like to set mine up this way, the correct way, it would make it easier on me when attaching and detaching. When I met Chuck Smith, I remember him seeing the black floppy thing attached to my plow and him saying that it was weird to see it that way. Even he said its supposed to be on the truck, not the plow. So, I know what I need, but its gonna be hard to explain to try and order. Maybe John, GarageKeeper49, will know what Im talking about and can sell me the parts to do this switch. Let me hear what you guys have to say on this. :) Mike :)

[wyldman]

Mike

I know exactly what you mean.My older Westerns have no handle,the newer ones do.

I think the link arms are supposed to stay on the truck,but i hate the look of them,so i leave mine on the plow.The springs don't really help much,so they wouldn't be a neccesity,but the handles are nice.

[Lawngodfather]

63940 - LINK ARM SERVICE KIT

ITEM PART QTY. DESCRIPTION

6------63497 1 LINK ARM
18----91147 1 3/4 FLAT WASHER
19---- 91911 1 5/32 x 1-1/2 COTTER PIN ZYC
20----63354 1 CLEVIS PIN 3/4 X 6.00 HT ZYC
21---- 63356 1 SPRING 3/4 ID X 3.00 LG

[Honest Mike]

Chris, I know what you mean. I think it would just be a drop easier for me to put the plow on and take it off with it being attached to the truck. I think the correct way is for it to be with the truck. LGF, thanks alot for posting that info. Where did you get that info?? I have a Western UniMount parts guide, but I see nothing about parts that have to do with the truck side, just parts having to do with the snowplow and headgear itself. :confused: That part number for the link arm, is that the one with the handle on it?? Mike :)

[Lawngodfather]

The number on top is for the whole kit per each side. Comes with all parts listed.

[Honest Mike]

LGF, I understand, but what Im asking is, how do I know I wont end up with the same plain link arm I have now. I wanna be sure I end up with the one with the welded on handle. Was the plain link arm and the one with the handle different part numbers? Thanks for the help. Mike :)

[Lawngodfather]

http://www.westernplows.com/pdf/63358_061502.pdf

[Honest Mike]

Not to be a pain in the butt, but I cant get my computer to open that. Can you somehow post the pictures they show here in this thread? I appreciate all the help. Mike :)

[Lawngodfather]

Nope, don't know how to do a pdf file.

You need acrobat reader.

Take my word for it, it's a different part number to the one with the handle.

This is the only one that comes in a kit like this with the spring and other parts...................

[wyldman]

This is the one Mike (LGF) is talking about,it's the one you want.

If you want just the arms,it's part #63497 X 2

[Honest Mike]

OK guys, thanks alot for the help and thank you Chris for that blow up view of the parts. That definitely looks like what I need, but looking at the picture, Im trying to figure out why that link arm is shaped like a letter "h". I thought it was the same as mine, flat, with a handle welded on. Im now wondering how it attaches to my plow frame. I guess if I ordered the kit, I would understand it once I got the stuff in my hand, or match it up next to someone elses truck. On my truck now, there is 2 straight metal things sticking outwards with holes in them on each side, on the top half of the plow mount. Mike :)

[Honest Mike]

I kept looking at the diagram, and I think I get it now. Yea, I definitely want that kit! How much is that kit roughly, you guys have any idea at all? John is a Western snowplow dealer, Ill order it from him, I was just curious what that whole kit sells for. Thanks so much for the help guys. :) :) Mike :) :)

[wyldman]

The newer style link arms are "h" shaped.The extra piece is what the spring pushes against.The link still sits in the same place,in between the ears on the mount,and the extra piece wraps around the inner ears,then the spring,washer and cotter pin.

I don't have a camera,but maybe someone could post a pic,or just take a look at a newer plow.

If you decide to use the link only,the extra piece will just sit there and do nothing.The link will still work just fine.

[Honest Mike]

Thanks again. :) You know, now that I think about it some more, I have seen trucks with the link arm attached to the truck, but no spring and no handle. That must be the older kind like mine, but it was attached to the truck at the time of the plow install. Without the spring tension on the link arm to hold it still, it must rattle around just dangling there by itself between the two ears, no? Mike :cool:

[wyldman]

Yep,they do rattle around,thats why I keep them on the plow side.Looks cleaner too.

[Honest Mike]

I hate rattles! :headwall Hopefully with the spring kind, it will hold it pretty still and wont allow it to jingle around. Thanks so much, once again, for all the help and taking the time to reply to me, I really appreciate it! :nodd Goodnight pal, talk to you tomorrow. Mike :waving

[urethane dino]

while it may rattle some, I have never heard it.
Dino

[EZSnow]

mike- my chebby had a uni-mount with the sprung link arms. I NEVER heard them rattle. The springs do not push the arms IN to the headgear, they separate them OUT away from the 'gear. This does two things, keeps them clear while you raise the headgear into position (less back-and-forth than if you forget to push the un-sprung ones out) and they just about remove themselves when it's time to unhook. When I unhooked, I pulled all my hairpins and set up the jack. Then all you have to do is wiggle the headgear and the springs pop the link arms off, jack is loaded and out come the main pins!

I don't know how well I came across, but if I had the old style, I'd upgrade!

[Honest Mike]

Oh, I was under the impression that the arms were spring loaded towards the headgear, not away from it. :confused: I figured when you raised up the headgear, you would pull back on the handle, line it up and let go and it would automatically wanna stay in place, but if its spring loaded the other way, isnt it gonna wanna pop out of place while your trying to get the hairpin cotter in? I just gotta order this kit and put it on. I really thought though, that is was spring loaded towards the headgear, to kind of help you hold it up while you reach for a hairpin cotter to stick in the hole. Mike

[Dockboy]

Here you go Mike:D

[EZSnow]

once you slide the link arm onto the headgear, the weight of the headgear pulling on it keeps it from sliding out of place. That's why a wiggle lets the spring push the link free when unhooking.

[Honest Mike]

Thanks EZ for the replies. :) Greg, thanks so much for posting that picture, that truly explained it to me. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, :D, well that was definitely true here. Everyone was a great help to me here, all your replies were excellent, and the picture really helped to make me see how it works with the spring. Im gonna order it from John, he said its about $21 for the complete kit, per side. Once again, thank you all. :) Mike :)

[Dockboy]

No Problem Mike:D

Merry Christmas!!:greenange

[Honest Mike]

Happy New Year!! :D Mike :D

[capt.craig]

what's this complete upgrade kit worth?

[Honest Mike]

I posted the cost above, about $21 per side for the whole kit. Mike

[BRL]

That's the cost you posted Mike, what he asked is what is it really worth. ;) :D

[Honest Mike]

Whats it "worth"? Nothing I guess, LOL!!! Mike :D

[Lawngodfather]

Originally posted by BRL
what is it really worth. ;) :D Sanity...:headwall

[JohnnyU]

My undercarriage came with the updated arms. I think it is much easier to attach/detach than just the plain arm. If you keep the pins greased a little, they slide very easily, making it simple as pie to connect the light tower... Sure beats the conventional style, with the ugly lights and pump staying on the truck!

[Honest Mike]

John, I totally agree about the lights and pump staying on the truck being ugly. Meyers headgear stays on the truck, but can also be fully taken off, but not all as one unit?? Alot of guys with the Meyer plows ride around with the headgear still on the truck, and in my oppinion, it looks horrible, but thats just an oppinion. Im sure they dont care what it looks like, they just want it to be easy when they go to reattach. John, what year is your plow? Did you buy it new, what year was it installed? Im just wondering because mine did not come with the updated link arms. My plow was bought new and installed in 1993. Mike :)

[JohnnyU]

Ooh, tough question, let me see, I bought the undercarriage new in Dec of 2000, and the plow was (I think) two years old then, so it must be what, like 5 or 6 years old now. Still works great, been painted a few times, so electrical bug been worked out, etc, but its like my truck, worth keeping since the maintenance is still cheaper than a brand new one.

[Honest Mike]

Got my link arms in the mail today, ordered them from John! GarageKeeper49. They look cool, hehe, cant wait to hook up the plow to see how it goes. Thanks everyone for all the help you have given me in this thread. I also want to say what a pleasure it is to do business with John, I HIGHLY reccomend him to anyone who needs parts. He is a Western snowplow dealer. This was my third time ordering from him and its always a pleasure. He always throws in something for free too, but believe me when I say that is not the reason I order from him. He is just a really nice guy and really goes out of his way to get me what I need even if he doesnt have it in stock. I justed wanted to give credit where credit was due. I live in NJ and he is in Illinois! Thats pretty far away, but just goes to show that I go out of my way to get parts from him because he is that much of a pleasure to deal with. Mike :) :) :)

[90plow]

Mike if you need a close western dealer in a storm look up West Chester they're located in flanders NJ not real far from you. They are open 24 hrs during an event and regular hours all year long. Nice guys to deal with and quite a few parts thats where I would go to get my Fisher parts. Just a thought.
Eric

[Honest Mike]

Hey, thanks for the reply. Hopefully I will never need something I dont have, in an emergency, hehe. I have alot of spare hairpin cotters, lynch pins and hitch pins. I also still have a spare motor that I never did sell. Shaws Garage is a Fisher snowplow dealer in Florham Park, do you know where that is? They also sell Meyer and Western parts, so if I need something in a HURRY or a repair I cant do, I use them. If I need parts and its no rush, the order goes to John's Garage. :) Thanks for the tip though, its good to know they are open 24 hours, I dont think Shaws Garage is, but I never did ask. Mike :cool:

[Honest Mike]

OK, tried hooking the plow up for this past snowstorm with these new style link arms and it was a no go. :confused: When I go to push the headgear up into place it bumps into the new link arm and wont allow it to go up far enough to align with the hole. Me and John are both puzzled. He said it should work and I thought so too. So, I took them off and went back to my old setup for now until we can figure this out. Im thinking UniMounts that come with these new style link arms already, must have something different about the plow, where they have to hook up, allowing more room or something. I dont think its anything I did. I put them on exactly how Dockboys picture clearly shows. Mike :headwall

[Lawngodfather]

Mike::::::::::::: You had the left on the right, and the right on the left.

Turn them over.

[Lawngodfather]

Put em back on and show us a picture.

[Honest Mike]

Mike, John said it doesnt matter which one goes on which side. They both look exact, I just went and checked, so it shouldnt matter which one goes on which side. Besides, the part number for the whole kit doesnt have an L or R on it, specifying which side it is intended for. Mike :confused:

[CAMERON SERVICES]

Mike when I bought my western used it was an older unimount like yours(without the springs or handles on link arm. However the mount that came with the plow was for a Chevy so I had to buy a new mount for my truck. The mount I bought was the newer one with the srings and handles on the link arms and I've never had a problem hooking up my plow. The only thing I can think of is maybe there's a design difference on the mounts, meaning maybe the older mounts aren't ment to have the newer link arms put on them.:beatsme

[Honest Mike]

Thats exactly what Im thinking too. Im positive I didnt put them on wrong. Im kind of surprised though, that no one knew this or warned me first that they *may* not work with my older setup. Well if I cant use them for sure, I will probably end up putting them up for sale in the Wanted/For Sale section. :( Mike

[wyldman]

You must be doing something wrong Mike.I have both new and old styles,and no problem swapping between the two.I have put the newer style links on the older plows too.

I'll see if I can get some pics later.

[Honest Mike]

Chris, I wish I was doing something wrong, but I dont think I am. The only things I can come up with is that, the new link arms are longer than my old ones, Im just talking about the long black part on the new one, its longer than the original black link arm. Also, if you look at Dockboys picture, you can his top ears are, I guess, adjustable, because you can see bolt holes where you could move it up or down. My plow frame doesnt look like that, with those bolt holes, my 4 ears are welded on and not adjustable. Im just thinking when you get the newer style UniMount, you get that mount frame and the new style link arms. Chris, are you positive the new style link arms should work on the old style that originally came with the old style link arms? Mike :confused:

[Dockboy]

Mike,

The part you see with the holes is just the actual truck frame mount. On a ford mount, the truck frame is adjustable for different hieght trucks. The actual plow mount is not adjustable! You can not change the spacing between the 4 ears. You can merely move the plow mount up and down on the truck frame mount.;)

[Honest Mike]

LOL OK! Scratch that idea! I put them on just like your picture shows. The only thing I can think of, like I said above, is the length difference between the old link arms and the new ones. The new one is longer, not by much, but maybe that little bit makes a difference. I have a party to go to in a little while, but I think when I come back, Im gonna try putting them on again and study it a bit longer this time than last time. Mike :cool:

[paulsoccodato]

mike,

cant you put them next to each other, and see if the holes line up?

[wyldman]

Measure the length with a tape measure,they should be the same.

You need to lift up the link before you push up on the headgear,or the headgear will trap the link,and you won't be able to pull it up.

There is no adjustment on the truck side mount for width,only for height.


The other thing that happens on the Uni-mounts is the link ears (on the truck mount) bend a bit,and pull away from the mount.This may be causing your misalignment problem.

[JohnnyU]

Here's a closeup of my mount. Hopefully it will shed some light on this problem, since its a Chevy Mount.

http://mct.truckmoxie.com/showownerpic.ten?u=3260&n=77442&pos=5&album=6745

The control arms aren't really that steep, its just an illusion, they only drop about an inch from the outside balljoint to the inside bushings.

[Honest Mike]

OK guys, I had some more time to mess around with it last night and there is no way these are going to work with my plow. John, thanks for the picture. :) I did as the guys said above and measured the old one and the new one. The new one, measuring from hole to hole, is about 4.75". The old one measuring the same way, measures 3.50". Thats a BIG difference and its throwing everything off. :headwall Now besides the length being wrong, even if I was to make another hole in the new link arm, it still wouldnt work, because the new link arm hits the rounded part of the headgear frame when I try to lower the link arm down to where it has to go. I cant explain it any better than that. All I know is they dont work and arent going to work, its nothing Im doing wrong. I appreciate everyones help, I really do. If anyone else has anymore suggestions, please tell me, if not I guess Ill put them up for sale in the for sale section. Im guessing they would work with someone elses mount. :confused: Mike

[wyldman]

Mike and I were discussing this in IM's,and there is no way it will work.He has a different mount on his truck which requires shorter link arms.All the mounts I looked at and measured for him use the longer style arm.

If your thinking of doing this upgrade,measure first before ordering.