Buying Advice Deer 290 planter

   / Deer 290 planter #1  

mike clarke

New member
Joined
Apr 28, 2010
Messages
4
Location
Illinois
Tractor
Kubota L3400
I read that the 290 planters are good units. Would you save your money and move up to a plateless.

Thanks in Advance

Mike Clakre
 
   / Deer 290 planter #2  
How much are you planting? Plateless units start at 4 rows and go up. And the $$$ go up.
 
   / Deer 290 planter #3  
I have owned a 290 and currently have a 246, which shares many parts but is a 3-pt model. These planters are a simple, durable design and although they have not been built in many years, it is relatively easy to find them in decent condition and to find parts. Seed plates are still manufactured today (exact same part as on newer model 71's) and are available for most any seed type. Sometimes the fertilizer parts are a little difficult to locate, but at least they almost always have dry-fertilizer attachments (or at least did when new) which, in my opinion, make them a much better choice for most 2-row applications than a cut-down model 71. Larger model 71's were mostly set up for liquid fertilizer which is not practical for most gardeners, foodplotters, etc. Dry fertlizer, available almost anywhere and not requiring any fancy PPE, is the way to go. Spreading it only next to the rows allows for far more efficient use of this increasingly expensive product as can be achieved with a broadcast spreader. They say a modern, plateless planter will give you more uniform seed depth and spacing but I never had any trouble with those things in many years with my model 290 and 246.
 
   / Deer 290 planter
  • Thread Starter
#4  
Thanks for the info. I purchased the 290 for 300 bucks. It is in really good shape it even has the original lids. I am not planting much, just making food plots.

Thanks for your help.

Mike Clakre
 
   / Deer 290 planter #5  
I think you are really going to like that planter. Where I am, in upstate NY, the weather is finaly breaking this week and I hope to get my first planting of sweetcorn in within the next couple days. All the folks around here who jumped the gun and got their corn in early got burned by the hard frosts we have had over the past week.
 
 
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