Compound steering mechanism with alternate chassis mounts

In a vehicle having a chassis;

• a transverse axle pivotally supported from said chassis for pivotal movement relative thereto about a steering axis, said transverse axle having a pair of steerable wheels pivotally connected by a king pin to the opposing transverse ends of said axle, each said steerable wheel having a steering arm operatively connected thereto for effecting pivotal movement of the corresponding steerable wheel about the respective king pin;
• and a steering mechanism operably connected to said steerable wheels to control the pivotal movement thereof relative to said axle for controlling the direction of travel of said vehicle, said steering mechanism including means for effecting relative pivotal movement between said axle and said chassis in response to the pivotal movement of said steerable wheels, an improved steering mechanism comprising:
• first and second tie rods, each said tie rod pivotally interconnecting a corresponding mounting plate and a corresponding said steering arm such that the operation of said steering mechanism to pivotally move said steerable wheels relative to said axle causes a corresponding pivotal movement of said axle about said steering axis, said chassis being provided with at least two chassis mounts for each of said mounting plates to provide alternate mounting positions for each of said mounting plates, said mounting plates being detachably connected to said chassis mounts.

A steering mechanism for a tractor including a chassis having mounted thereon a steering axle having a pair of steerable ground wheels rotatably mounted thereon and pivotally supported for movement about transversely-spaced, generally vertical axes relative to said steering axle, comprising:

• steering means operatively connected to said steerable ground wheels for selectively controlling the pivotal movement of said steerable wheels relative to said steering axle;
• pivot means pivotally supporting said steering axle from said chassis such that said steering axle is pivotable about a generally vertical steering axis;
• a plurality of mounts carried by said chassis, each said mount being formed by a set of a preselected number of bosses depending downwardly from said chassis, all of said bosses terminating in a common plane;
• and
• a pair of tie rods pivotally interconnecting corresponding said mounts and said steering means to effect a pivotal movement of said steering axle about said steering axis in response to the pivotal movement of said steerable wheels relative to said steering axle, said chassis carrying at least two of said mounts corresponding to each of said tie rods for the selective alternative connection thereof to said chassis, said tie rods being detachably connected to said mounts.