Newgren Lift Installation

Newgren Lift
While the Monroe system is the more well know lift, the Newgren Equipment Company lift was also available through Willys dealers. We were searching for a more common Monroe hitch, when we found a Newgren lift on e-bay. What we really purchased was "part" of a lift. We picked up a frame, ram (hydraulic cylinder), reservoir and control valve. We were missing the hydraulic pump and the implement lift arms.

Hunk o' rust
We know little history of our lift. We picked it up in northern Ohio and were told that it had been taken off a 2a parts jeep. From the rusted body piece still bolted to the front control rod (visible in the picture), we do know it was a red jeep. A PTO gear box was still attached to the frame. It was missing the rear shaft flange. It was not part of the original lift and would have been part of the original jeep's PTO package. We do believe it is an early model The reservoir and control rods vary only slightly from the 1947 instruction manual we obtained from fellow Newgren owner Daron W.

The first task was to take the components off the frame. This was straight forward, since the ram is held by a single pin and the reservoir is held on by a single strap attached with two screws. Once the ram was removed, it was clear that a complete rebuild was in order. We took the ram to a local hydraulics shop. Once we explained what we were restoring, they suggested that they restore the ram, instead of trying to substitute a new one. $350 later, we have a beautiful, like new ram.

The frame had a broken lift arm and we took it to a local welding shop for repairs. They cut the short arm from the shaft and reattached it with a stronger weld. The frame is a fairly simple form and was in good shape, except for surface rust.

The reservoir needed only a good wire brushing and cleaning. This was followed by a quick coat of paint for the frame and reservoir. In the bottom view, you can see the key components. The reservoir, attached to the frame by a short strap and two screws. The rear control rod is clearly visible, the hooked end is attached to the control valve. The ram is in the extended position. The reservoir drain plug is visible, and the pump return line fitting is shown at the top right corner of the picture.

Like a glove
Mounting of the frame is straight forward once you have rerouted the exhaust, and removed the drawbar. The frame mounts under the bed, using the same mounting holes as the drawbar. Pictured is the assembled frame, ready to roll under the jeep. We had the frame on an old mechanic's creeper and used bottle jacks to position the lift into place. Pictured is a top view of the lift. One hose goes from the control valve to the ram. The second hose goes from the bleed-down fitting on the ram to the reservoir. The pump pressure side hose attaches to the fitting on top of the valve. The connections on the top of the reservoir are difficult to reach, once the lift is installed. The shiny pipe extending from the rear of the reservoir is the filler tube.

The lift frame was engineered to fit like a glove and it does. The rear lift frame member attaches with two bolts and uses the holes in the frame cross member formerly occupied by the drawbar braces. As can be seen in the picture, the rear of the lift bolts directly to the rear frame cross member. The lift frame is a simple bolt on application.

The rear control lever (the other lever is located next to driver's seat) is visible, just to the right of the hitch. This is one of the best attributes of the Newgren design, being able to adjust the height of the arms while attaching implements is a must. Even on our Ford tractor you have to move from the back of the tractor to adjust the implement arms, the Newgren design makes attaching implements a one man operation. Having the "dual" control set up was a real plus, that unfortunately is lost when the reservoir and control valve are moved forward. The only control lever is then moved to the dash or by the drivers seat (as in the Monroe setup).

Plumbing
We continue to search for an original crank-pulley mounted pump. Later models appear to have used fan belt driven or electric pumps. These pumps may have incorporated the reservoir and control valve as a single unit. We have pictures of later model Newgren lifts that do not have the in-frame reservoir and control valve. The Monarch pump commonly used for snow plows has also been used to power the lift. We are using a compromise solution of a 12 volt electric pump, that has its own reservoir, but not a control valve.

We mounted the pump along the passenger side frame rail, underneath the air cleaner. The air cleaner is visible on the left edge of the picture. Hoses, following the installation instructions, are routed along the inside of the frame, to protect them to the extend possible.

This is not an ideal setup. The multiple reservoir arrangement has made bleeding the system problematic. We continue to search for a better pump solution.

Major missing components were the implement lift arms and the linkage parts to the short lift arms. The good news is that the arms are simple metal bars. We have drawings from the instructions and pictures of other lifts that show the design. What we haven't been able to obtain are actual dimensions. We attempted to use the drawings to calculate the dimensions and built wooden prototypes. Shown is a picture we received of a complete frame and a test fit with a mower of our wooden models.

It works!
Shown are a couple of implements - a "carry-all" and a 2-14 plow (this is not the appropriate plow, but good for showing the concept).