Disc harrow-3pt type vs drawbar type

[flusher]

I'm really happy with the performance of my 3 point disc. It's an 8' and I'm pulling it very easy with my 45hp kubota.

I'm sure it wouldn't work very good on dry packed soil, but if you can wait for some moisture it works really well.

FWIW, Nathan

Thanks for the input.
That's the plan. Wait until the rainy season starts in Nov and then get to work on the pasture with the disc and the drag harrow.
The soil is like a brick now.
Don't have gov't subsidized irrigation on my place, so have to schedule tilling and planting around the weather forecast.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I'm really happy with the performance of my 3 point disc. It's an 8' and I'm pulling it very easy with my 45hp kubota.

I'm sure it wouldn't work very good on dry packed soil, but if you can wait for some moisture it works really well.

FWIW, Nathan

A GOOD 3-point disc will get the job done. Just far too many "not so good" versions on the market for my liking. That one of yours looks to be stout enough to handle being used hard, even having extra weight hung on the frame. It helps that you're in flat country too. A disc just works better on flat ground.

Here's my 3-pointer. (Massey Ferguson #25. 9'er.) I spent a LONG day dragging it around this past wed. Very pleased with the results.

 

[dieselsmoke1]

Looks like a good old disc, but what impressed me in the photos was that pretty 150 it was hanging on. The paint on the spin out rails ain't even scratched Do you have a full set of pic's posted anywhere?

Yes 150's are great pieces. About the only place a 135 could edge it out was turning radius due the the 150's straight front axle. The extra weight and creature comforts were a big improvement.

Next time out at the farm I'll take a shot of my old 3pt King disc. She was a brute in her day, with worm geared gang adjustments front and rear and boxed beam frames.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Looks like a good old disc, but what impressed me in the photos was that pretty 150 it was hanging on. The paint on the spin out rails ain't even scratched Do you have a full set of pic's posted anywhere?

Yes 150's are great pieces. About the only place a 135 could edge it out was turning radius due the the 150's straight front axle. The extra weight and creature comforts were a big improvement.

Next time out at the farm I'll take a shot of my old 3pt King disc. She was a brute in her day, with worm geared gang adjustments front and rear and boxed beam frames.

I've posted a few pictures of the 150 on here, but I can't begin to tell you what the thread title was. I'm about to take it all apart and do a "premium" paint job on it this winter. I keep the rims touched up as best I can to avoid rust. That tractor has had Calc/chlor in the rear tires since new. Same rims. So much for the "quick to rust" theory, huh? With the front and rear wheels set out wide, the 150 turns better. Set in narrow, it has a tendency to "push" the front wheels when you turn. With them spaced like I have them, a tap of the turning brakes, and she'll pivot on the inside rear wheel. I'm starting to gather up parts and pieces to restore another 150 along with a Ferguson F-40 and a Massey Ferguson 50. Maybe even a Massey Harris 50 at some point. The MF 50 was dads. The F-40 was my uncles. I've just about got all the major work done on our new place. At that stage I won't need all my tractors anymore (as WORKING tractors) I'm going to sell the 3000 Ford and 2440 Deere to my son and take care of this place with my Masseys. (Just a garden and some bush hogging) I'm wanting to find a complete "set" of Massey implements to match up with the 150. I have the disc. Looking for a model #66 plow, maybe a model #41 Dynabalance mower, and if I can find one, a #39 2-row planter. I grew up on these tractors, guess I'll fade away on them too.

 

[dieselsmoke1]

Dad's first tractor was an "M". We restored it 4 yrs. ago. Still have the disc, bottoms, mowing machine and cultivators complete with tire sweeps, ridging blades and scratchers. We hitch her to a trailer now and then and she still putt putt's around the farm as proud as ever.

After that came a used redbelly, then another used redbelly because we needed at least one of them running.

When the new MF35 rode up with 3 14's and a new King disc I thought I had died and gone to heaven. We traded work and equipment with a cousin across the road and between us many more red pieces came and went over the years. An MH50, MF50, 135, 150, 165, 165 hi clearance, 180, 1080, 285, 1105 and 1135. Neighbor down the road had an 1155. What a sweet sound.

We had the 4 row Ferguson planters, the 2 rows were Coles.

 

[flusher]

There bis the big rub with a pulltype and a SMALLER tractor. Not a lot of options on wheel disc's in smaller sizes. A 135 would handle a 6' or 7' wheel disc just fine.....IF THERE WAS SUCH A THING. 8' or bigger and a 135 runs out of weight/traction. My 150 Massey handles my 8'-6" IH #350 disc, but it pulls harder (because of the disc's built in weight) than my 9'-8" Massey Ferguson #25 pick-up disc.(which needs suitcase weights to get enough bite to do the same job the IH disc does without added weight) Put either behind my 2440 Deere, and I can hardly tell they're back there. That's what 20 more HP and 2700 lbs will do.

All in all, if I have the tractor to pull either, the wheel disc does a much better job.

The fellow who sold me the 1966 MF-135 diesel used a 7-ft pick up disc to till his olive orchard. Said it worked fine during the rainy season (Nov-May) when the discs sunk to the level of the bearings while tilling. He had more trouble discing the weeds during the hot months prior to harvest in Sep when the ground gets harder (even with irrigation in the orchards keeping the ground softer).

I'm confident that I can lay my hands on a 7-ft tandem pick-up disc pretty easily around here. Question: is there any fundamental reason why that type of disc can't be converted to a pull type (minus the wheels)? Sounds like a good project for me and my trusty Hobart Stickmate welder.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Some will depend on WHICH 3-point disc you end up with. Generally, they have front and rear gangs closer together than wheel disc's. That would be to your benifit if you don't intend to add a transport axle. By having the gangs closer together, you'll be able to turn somewhat easier.

The OLD pull-type "drag disc's" that didn't have transport axles usually had a "steering" capability of some description. The front and rear gangs would change orientation as the tractor made it's turn. Otherwise, you would be trying to drag it sideways, pulling against the disc blades as they dug in. More than likely, that would result in something breaking.

My first inclination would be to get a pick-up disc and try it out without making any major changes. See how it works. We might just be trying to re-invent the wheel here. If you can make a 3-point disc work, it's extremely handy to have the manuverability they offer.

Something else I'm wondering about. I've seen a good many pictures of California vineyards where they have what I call a "bog disc". It's a single gang disc with a LOT of built-in weight. It's made for cutting through roots and sod. I'd try looking around in a few used implement dealers to see if one of them might be found. Because of it being relatively short compared to a tandem disc, you could pile on the weight and still be able to lift it with your 135.

 

[flusher]

Some will depend on WHICH 3-point disc you end up with. Generally, they have front and rear gangs closer together than wheel disc's. That would be to your benifit if you don't intend to add a transport axle. By having the gangs closer together, you'll be able to turn somewhat easier.

The OLD pull-type "drag disc's" that didn't have transport axles usually had a "steering" capability of some description. The front and rear gangs would change orientation as the tractor made it's turn. Otherwise, you would be trying to drag it sideways, pulling against the disc blades as they dug in. More than likely, that would result in something breaking.

My first inclination would be to get a pick-up disc and try it out without making any major changes. See how it works. We might just be trying to re-invent the wheel here. If you can make a 3-point disc work, it's extremely handy to have the manuverability they offer.

Something else I'm wondering about. I've seen a good many pictures of California vineyards where they have what I call a "bog disc". It's a single gang disc with a LOT of built-in weight. It's made for cutting through roots and sod. I'd try looking around in a few used implement dealers to see if one of them might be found. Because of it being relatively short compared to a tandem disc, you could pile on the weight and still be able to lift it with your 135.

Thanks for the info. I'll check with my neighbors regarding the bog disc.