hilling potatoes

   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#11  
Wayne,

Last week, I placed an order with that cnplough.com company. Hope it will work out.

I'll report and post pictures once I get the stuff.

I went with 2 row planter and harverster.

Can't wait until I get that stuff,
Peter
 
   / hilling potatoes #12  
Not sure who you are working with there, but the girl I deal with is Lauren and I also just ordered a few more things. I did buy a two row planter and also a different digger. At the same time I ordered a tiller from them so we will see what happens.

Hope you have good luck with the shipments and customs.

Wayne
 
   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#13  
Wayne,

I placed order with Lauren as well. I'll post pics once I get the stuff: planter, harvester, disc, sickle bar and a ridging plow. Plan to work 2 rows with my JD5083E. Probably too big, but that is the only tractor I have. I'd love B2x20 series, but that is another 6-10K for slightly used.

Peter
 
   / hilling potatoes #14  
Hello Peter,

Wow, looks like you will be all set for the potato season.

This is a picture of the ridger I purchased last year. I used it to make the hills for our winter squash rows this year and worked fine for that. I did have some problems with the plow points (hit a major rock and broke one, so had to do some welding to fix it.

It is a nice tool, but won't work with a single row planting of potatoes. I think it will work better next year when I have the two row planter. I actually, sold the single row planter after planting this year.

3z-4.jpg


I also purchased this hiller / cultivator which I am working with right now and it will be okay once I get my head space figured out and get it set up properly for single row hilling.

ridger.jpg


And this is the picture of the digger that I just ordered. I like the belt on the back end for the potatoes to ride up onto and then out the back. The last one I had was a shuttle type and it worked, but not as good as I desired. Just too many big rocks here in New Hamshire. LOL. It is being built right now and should ship this month.

4ud-1-1.jpg


The prices were right and we are having fun right now, once it gets to being just work I am not too sure what we will do.

Wayne
 
   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#15  
Hello Peter,

Wow, looks like you will be all set for the potato season.

This is a picture of the ridger I purchased last year. I used it to make the hills for our winter squash rows this year and worked fine for that. I did have some problems with the plow points (hit a major rock and broke one, so had to do some welding to fix it.

It is a nice tool, but won't work with a single row planting of potatoes. I think it will work better next year when I have the two row planter. I actually, sold the single row planter after planting this year.

3z-4.jpg


I also purchased this hiller / cultivator which I am working with right now and it will be okay once I get my head space figured out and get it set up properly for single row hilling.

ridger.jpg


And this is the picture of the digger that I just ordered. I like the belt on the back end for the potatoes to ride up onto and then out the back. The last one I had was a shuttle type and it worked, but not as good as I desired. Just too many big rocks here in New Hamshire. LOL. It is being built right now and should ship this month.

4ud-1-1.jpg


The prices were right and we are having fun right now, once it gets to being just work I am not too sure what we will do.

Wayne

Wayne,

Do you remember how long did it take for the shipment to arrive in the US?

My order has been processed, my new toys are being sent right now.
I was wondering how long did it take for your stuff to arrive here in the US, last time you ordered from them?

Thanks,
Peter
 
   / hilling potatoes #16  
Peter did you get your equipment yet. My new order is on it's way and will arrive in NYC next month, I think.

Sorry about the pictures I messed up my photobucket!

Wayne
 
   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#17  
Hi Wayne,

I got my stuff to the farm yesterday.

Panda charged me $270 for customs exam and some admin fee. The customs clearance was quick, 2 day affair. $208 in taxes on $4000 worth of equipment.

In Canada, we don't pay duties on ag equipment. That was nice.

I rented F550 flatbed to move that stuff. The truck was $79/day but with all the taxes, insurance and gas I paid $250 to move this equipment to my farm.

This weekend I'll be assembling it. I'll let you know if I experience any problems with the harvester or planter. We still have some throw away potatoes from last year, so I'll play with those.


Peter
 

Attachments

  • IMG00041-20100816-1327.JPG
    IMG00041-20100816-1327.JPG
    975.6 KB · Views: 256
  • IMG00042-20100816-1327.jpg
    IMG00042-20100816-1327.jpg
    168 KB · Views: 229
   / hilling potatoes #18  
Hello Peter,

Sounds like a fun weekend ahead of you. I also got my shipment in last week. No pictures though. Had a bit of a problem with customs, but worked it out some of them can be a bit of a headache from time to time.

Got things home and we have a bit of a problem with the digger, but will get it fixed this week or next I hope. Again I will explain later.

Looking at your creates I do not see your name written on the angle iron. On ours my name was written on all sides and that seemed to be the only markings. One has to wonder how they can get stuff from China to here and not lose some of it?

Wayne
 
   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#19  
Finally, I have assembled the potatoes digger. Wow, what an experience that was.

For anybody thinking about ordering from cnplough.com (or from China in general) be prepared to have a full metal shop ready: grinders, saws, welders, joists, presses etc. You'll work overtime to make your equipment work.

I got all the equipment as spare parts bundle. Bolts and screws were missing. No manual or one page assembly instructions of any kind. I had to beg cnplough.com to send me pictures of an assembled digger.

Anyway we worked from the pictures. Assembled the unit. Got it to "work" on our driveway. When we took it to the field, the rear of the digger went up 5-6' in the air after about 2ft in the ground, PTO cross was broken as a result.

The machine was unstable. The 3 pt hitch is too low, the back is too high.

The wheels had to come off. We had to weld two 1/2"x6" plates to the top link on the machine to have the top link hook up about 6" higher and back. Also we had to change the angle of the gearbox, it was dangerously wide. The PTO shaft still has an unsafe angle even after all the modifications. But it works for now so I'll leave it as a "winter project" for now.

Some of the rollers on the shafts were not key locked with the shaft so they are wearing off the shaft. Error in manufacturing.

Here is the video of the digger "running" on our driveway.

Anyway, after replacing PTO shaft with EuroCardan with shear pin yoke AND making all of the above modifications we were able to "plow" through some 100 ft of test strip. We have to weld one of the arms as it appears to be cracking :) If you think you can buy PTO cross replacement for these Chinese PTO shafts, think again. They manufacture non-standard yokes, crosses and shafts. So if something breaks, you've got to replace the whole shaft assembly.

Would I order from cnplough.com again? Not sure. When you order from them you are not getting products, you are getting parts for prototypes :) BTW, they have sent me their sickle bar 9GB-2.1 model without bottom links. I sent them emails, they said I should order other stuff from them and they will add those to the new shipment. Nice.

I guess you get what you paid for.

I just hope this digger can survive 1 acre of potatoes that we still have to dig.

Be warned.

Peter
 

Attachments

  • IMG00055-20100827-1427.jpg
    IMG00055-20100827-1427.jpg
    541.9 KB · Views: 294
  • IMG00064-20100828-1936.jpg
    IMG00064-20100828-1936.jpg
    443.4 KB · Views: 216
  • IMG00065-20100828-1936.jpg
    IMG00065-20100828-1936.jpg
    446.7 KB · Views: 188
  • IMG00066-20100828-1936.jpg
    IMG00066-20100828-1936.jpg
    467.1 KB · Views: 186
Last edited:
   / hilling potatoes
  • Thread Starter
#20  
Hello Peter,

Looking at your creates I do not see your name written on the angle iron. On ours my name was written on all sides and that seemed to be the only markings. One has to wonder how they can get stuff from China to here and not lose some of it?

Wayne

They wrote "Peter" on it. I guess there is only one Peter in Canada, who orders from them.

I just hope I got all the parts for the big items: disc and potatoes cultivator.

Peter
 
 
Top