arena groomer - home made?

[rmroper]

I have an outdoor arena (250 ft x 130 ft) that gets really packed hard in the summer heat. In the past I have hauled in some sand, but at $300 a dump truck load it doesn't go far.
I have tried a disc harrow (leave big grooves), chain harrow (glides on the top of the hard pack), and most recently a rototiller. The ground is so hard the
rototiller kind of bounces as I pull it around the arena.

I know there are some great arena groomers for thousands of dollars, but I would like something much cheaper or home made.

Any ideas or pictures?

Thanks

 

[oosik]

I would continue to use the disc harrow - break it up to the point where the chain harrow does some good. I've made a drag harrow out of five 4x4's. One long down each side and three across. All held together with large bolts/nuts. Obtain large nails, spikes etc and predrill the three cross members and drive the spikes completely thru. I put spikes across on one foot centers. Hook up with heavy rope and drag behind tractor or ATV. I used a disc harrow and this contraption on my land and it finally softened up. The only thing harder than what little dirt I have is the basaltic lava right under it.

 

[jenkinsph]

I have an outdoor arena (250 ft x 130 ft) that gets really packed hard in the summer heat. In the past I have hauled in some sand, but at $300 a dump truck load it doesn't go far.
I have tried a disc harrow (leave big grooves), chain harrow (glides on the top of the hard pack), and most recently a rototiller. The ground is so hard the
rototiller kind of bounces as I pull it around the arena.

I know there are some great arena groomers for thousands of dollars, but I would like something much cheaper or home made.

Any ideas or pictures?

Thanks

I would take the time to loosen it up with what you have, rototiller and or disc then dress it up with the chain harrow frequently. Might want to copy an arena rake that works well if you like to weld and have the time to do it.

 

[kennyd]

Jake's Implements - Home

Jake is a member here...

 

[rd_macgregor]

Since we have horses, I guess it would be redundant to say that we have more money than brains. Accordingly, we went ahead and had 4 or 5 inches of quarter-minus in as footing in the new arena built last year. We also bought one of these System Fence groomers Track& Ring Conditioner — System Fencing which works really well.
Having said that, it sounds like your base is not loose enough to use this type of groomer effectively; you need something more aggressive. Once you get it worked up, it might help to keep it worked so it doesn't get a chance to become so compacted again. Or, you can keep moving in sand until enough gets mixed in to keep the surface from packing quite so hard.
BOB