Aerators

[94BULLITT]

It is actually a Frontier but the same as a Woods PL60. My two main concerns are the spoons and the bearings/ bushings. I have read conflicting information on whether it has bearings or bushings. Either one should last forever if they were greased. Everything else I can see looks fine. Here are some pictures of the spoons. Tell me what you guys think about the spoons.

Here is a 48" Feldman...
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/199991-feldmann-turf-vent-aerator-stand.html

ps
Leave the plugs right there, they will be gone in a couple of days anyway. Tidying them up is just taking good topsoil and putting it somewhere else...

I have looked at your thread a few times before. It looks like it does a nice job. According to Lowes those deck block weigh 42lbs so you had 168lbs of weight on it. I also looked at the trufvent website, they have really good prices on spoons. I don't know if they will fit a Woods.

 

[wcampbell47]

I read all the posts so now feel like I can respond. I purchased a core aerator that has 96 spoons and eight wheels that weigh 96 lbs each. It is a heavy duty unit in excess of 1000 lbs. I live in an area that has clay that gets hard packed. As heavy as it is I have to wait until I get a good soaking rain then a couple of days of sun before I can pull it and get 2-3 inch cores. My B7510 strains to handle it. Even with the FEL in place I have to steer it with the brakes because the front end is light when I pick the unit up. My B3200 handles it much better and the front end stays on the ground. So based on my use I'm thinking the BX will be too light to handle it with any added ballast. The unit itself is 500 lbs. If you have hard ground the extra ballast will almost certainly be needed.

So only you can make the final determination. I'm thinking it takes at least a 30hp tractor to successfully lift the unit with ballast. If your area can be aerated without ballast and your BX can handle 500 plus lbs on the 3 point you might have a viable option.

 

[94BULLITT]

I read all the posts so now feel like I can respond. I purchased a core aerator that has 96 spoons and eight wheels that weigh 96 lbs each. It is a heavy duty unit in excess of 1000 lbs. I live in an area that has clay that gets hard packed. As heavy as it is I have to wait until I get a good soaking rain then a couple of days of sun before I can pull it and get 2-3 inch cores. My B7510 strains to handle it. Even with the FEL in place I have to steer it with the brakes because the front end is light when I pick the unit up. My B3200 handles it much better and the front end stays on the ground. So based on my use I'm thinking the BX will be too light to handle it with any added ballast. The unit itself is 500 lbs. If you have hard ground the extra ballast will almost certainly be needed.

So only you can make the final determination. I'm thinking it takes at least a 30hp tractor to successfully lift the unit with ballast. If your area can be aerated without ballast and your BX can handle 500 plus lbs on the 3 point you might have a viable option.

Thanks for the reply. My BX will lift it with out a problem. I have a MMM and I will have it on at when I use it, believe it or not it really helps hold the front down. I also want to get a few weights for the front to hold it down better. I know if I tried to pick a heavy one like your up the front would come off the ground. I am hoping that it will not require to much ballast but I don't know. I guess as a last resort I could use the 4240 on the hilly portion of the yard but it is a heavy tractor to be running on a yard. So basically it does not take much to pull a aerator you just have to have a tractor that can lift it?

 

[jenkinsph]

Roger,
Aerating is such a quick process I would think if your tractor has a hard time pulling it up hill them just pull it down hill instead. Might make a few more passes but still quick anyway.

 

[94BULLITT]

Roger,
Aerating is such a quick process I would think if your tractor has a hard time pulling it up hill them just pull it down hill instead. Might make a few more passes but still quick anyway.

I have thought about that too. I know 1 spot will be that way for sure because that is how I mow it. I guess my biggest concern right now is if the spoons are any good.

 

[DJ54]

Like another poster said, I have no idea how big you BX is. My little IH 240 weighs in at about 3600 lbs., according to Tractor Data. Maybe a little more, as the rear tires are loaded. None the less, it is approx. 28 hp. There is no front ballast, and it has no problem handling the 6 footer with additional weight. Being it does not have power steering, it just makes it steer nice. It only has a 4-speed trans., and I pull it easily in 3rd gear, about 3/4 throttle.

I only use it in the pasture's and hay field. The hay field I prefer to do in late fall, and pasture's in the spring. A couple good rains, and the plugs melt away. The faster you run, within reason, the more they break up.

I found a spec sheet on mine online, and posted below. Looking at prices on them online, can't believe how much they have gone up. Although, at the time I got a bit of a deal on mine, as he was wanting to clear inventory in Feb. so as not to pay inventory tax. At the time I bought my NOS plugger for $850.00 out the door.

 

[94BULLITT]

Like another poster said, I have no idea how big you BX is. My little IH 240 weighs in at about 3600 lbs., according to Tractor Data. Maybe a little more, as the rear tires are loaded. None the less, it is approx. 28 hp. There is no front ballast, and it has no problem handling the 6 footer with additional weight. Being it does not have power steering, it just makes it steer nice. It only has a 4-speed trans., and I pull it easily in 3rd gear, about 3/4 throttle.

I only use it in the pasture's and hay field. The hay field I prefer to do in late fall, and pasture's in the spring. A couple good rains, and the plugs melt away. The faster you run, within reason, the more they break up.

I found a spec sheet on mine online, and posted below. Looking at prices on them online, can't believe how much they have gone up. Although, at the time I got a bit of a deal on mine, as he was wanting to clear inventory in Feb. so as not to pay inventory tax. At the time I bought my NOS plugger for $850.00 out the door.

<img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=297101"/>

Wow that was a good deal. It makes sense that the faster you go the better they bust up

 

[wcampbell47]

Thanks for the reply. My BX will lift it with out a problem. ... So basically it does not take much to pull a aerator you just have to have a tractor that can lift it?

According to my experience that is a valid assumption. I'm on the Gulf Coast of Texas where the clay gumbo can get as hard as concrete. I have had the aerator just bounce over a dry yard. If your soil is not as compacted then just the unit alone will probably work for you. I am a believer in aeration. Every thing I read on it prior to acquiring the unit was that it is very beneficial for your yard.

 

[94BULLITT]

According to my experience that is a valid assumption. I'm on the Gulf Coast of Texas where the clay gumbo can get as hard as concrete. I have had the aerator just bounce over a dry yard. If your soil is not as compacted then just the unit alone will probably work for you. I am a believer in aeration. Every thing I read on it prior to acquiring the unit was that it is very beneficial for your yard.

My soil is not that hard. Aeration does help.

 

[94BULLITT]

Well I did not get it. It brought $700. You have to pay a 10% buyers fee on top of that and VA sales tax which is 5%. So in reality it brought $805. It was pretty far away, I would have had $80 in gas to get it. It was too risky for me to go that much without being able to see it in person.