No-till Drill-are they all $3000+?

   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #1  

JeffInDaUP

Bronze Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2001
Messages
69
Location
Upper Peninsula of MI.
Tractor
Kubota L4610HST
Are there any economical drills out there? I won't pretend to know much about them, but I really like the idea of using a herbicide, and then drilling seed with increased germination rates, and improved weed control.

Right now I use a 6" tiller, and a 30 gallon compactor behind an ATV. I get great seed to soil contact, good germination, but like the idea of complete weed control, with minimal soil disturbance, to plant the the seed.

I can't rent in my area, so is there any brand, even if small, that would let me plant 3-6 acres a year, be durable, and be somewhat economical?

I have a L4610(a real beauty-by the way!)
Thanks!

Jeff...U.P. of Michigan.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #2  
I use a landpride primary seeder and there overseeder for grass seed. the primary seeder would be your best bet. unless your just wanting to thicken a thin stand. A new overseeder cost about 7K the way mine is set up. there 4' primary seeder is about 3K for a new one. but you will still have to work the ground before seeding. Did I answer your questioins?
DDT
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #3  
I have never seen any. $3k is cheap for a no-till drill. The small Tye drills start around $5k-$6k for 5 foot models. If you have an ag office around your area they may have one to rent. I rent one from my ag office each year for around $50, they drop it off on a trailer and pick it up when I am done. Isn't worth buying one for their price, you might be able to find one at a auction but they don't show up too often and if they do people like to run the prices up on them. Talk to some farmers in your area and they should be able to tell you who to talk to about renting one or they might have one to rent also.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+?
  • Thread Starter
#4  
I don't have farms in my area, and it may be possible to rent, but from 100+ miles away. Is my tractor big enough to handle a smaller one?

Sounds like I might have to stick to my current methods.

Jeff...U.P. of Michigan.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #5  
Last week's Lancaster Farming newspaper lists at least six used drills for sale under $3,000. Lancaster Farming covers PA, NY, NJ, DE, and MD. The ads don't specify condition or options other than some do grain and grass. A dealer in MD has two JD 8200's. One is 10' @ $2,250 and the other is 12' @ $1,500. Another dealer located in PA has two IH 5100 drills and four JD drills ranging from $450 to $1,000.

I realize that doesn't do you any good in the UP but I wouldn't be surprised if there was a similar publication closer to you. You might try posting a request at www.agriculture.com in the talk section.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #6  
Those are regular drills, he was looking for a no-till.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #7  
I stand corrected. How about a JD 1440 4X NT, dry for $1,250 or an 8' Moore NT drill (as is) for $650?
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+?
  • Thread Starter
#8  
Darren,

How do those work? Sorry for the questions of inexperience. Those are definitely better priced. What kind of seeds will they handle?

Jeff...U.P. of Michigan.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #9  
Jeff you're asking the wrong person about drills. In my posts I'm just trying to show that what you're looking for is out there, you have to look. Then if you find something you might have to do some repair.

I do know that no till relies heavily on herbicides to kill the plants covering the area you intend to plant. It saves the time and money required to plow and perform secondary tillage to produce a seed ready surface. It also minimizes
erosion over the winter by utilizing a cover crop.

That means no till equipment has to perform well in trashy conditions. You may already know all that. For small acreage, I'm not sure it's worthwhile especially with the price of herbicides. I'm looking at a similar situation and I'm still undecided. I don't like the idea of using either herbcides or pesticides because of the potential health issues.

One of the implements I've studied is a spader. A spader doesn't stir the soil like a tiller. It acts like a multitude of shovels digging in and breaking the soil loose. It has the advantage of going deeper than an equivalent tiller. A spader that goes down 12 to 14" will virtually bury a cover crop. I've been told you can't tell anything was planted. Disadvantages are cost, No one in this country makes a spader, and you still have to perform some type of secondary tillage to prepare the surface. You also need a tractor with a super low creeper gear or a hydrostatic transmission. The primary benefit is that a spader is an excellent soil building tool and if you believe in biodynamics, it does less damage to the soil structure.

It all comes down to being able to plant something efficiently and protect and improve the soil. Simple to say. Not easy to do.
 
   / No-till Drill-are they all $3000+? #10  
Darren,

You can use a moldboard plow. They come in sizes of 12", 14" and 16". If you have a tractor with enough power, you can then get into double moldboards to get more work done in a single pass. The bigger the tractor - the bigger the plow.

There are a couple of different manufacturers. I got a Leinbach from a local dealer. Leinbach does not have a Web site which is unfortunate. Go to <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.ssbtractor.com/page12.html>SSB Tractor - Plows</A> to get an idea of what I'm suggesting.

Terry
 
 
 
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