Tractor Bushing

It's been a while since I came across a good website, so I thought I'd mention one that I found earlier this week. The story starts with my tractor... the problem is that I've been using it to pull a variety of heavy attachments and the hole in the hitch plate is getting worn.

I inquired about this over on the My Tractor Form ("The Friendliest Tractor Forum on the web") and they quickly suggested that I needed to install a bushing to prevent further wear. That sounded like exactly what I needed, but the trouble was I didn't know where I could get such a specific part. After another post, one helpful response pointed me to the McMaster-Carr website, and this is the one that I'm impressed with.

I was searching for a specific size of flanged bushing (or bearing), and after typing "flanged bushing" into the search box I was lead to a page where I could efficiently select the dimensions I required:

The dimension most important to me was OD (Outside Diameter) as it needed to fit snugly into the hitch hole. After selecting 5/8", I was also able to select the other dimensions and type of material, etc. It felt like I was effectively "building" my specific part from scratch. I'd recommend trying it, but doubt you'll find it as impressive as I did. Anyway, I placed the order at around 10pm on Monday evening, it was shipped at 8am on Tuesday morning would have arrived on Wednesday (if I hadn't entered the wrong zip code - but that's beside the point).

I think the site is very good for a parts ordering website. It's straight to the point functionality makes searching and ordering one of almost half a million specific parts a breeze. It's one of the better designed websites that I've seen, so kudos to them, and I can't wait to order my next part. :)