Building a drag/harrow and comments welcome

[Rford]

I'm copying another TBNer's design for a drag - 6 foot angle iron and chains. I've picked up most of the items I need and I'll have about $250 in materials when I'm done....sure, I could have gone to TSC and bought one for that but where's the sport in that?

The original builder was kind enough to share some tips with me, one of which was the "cross chains" don't seem to add much so I'm not going to use those. I'll just have 3 iron pieces chained in series. Going to use it to smooth the soil after using my latest purchase, an old Fred Cain cultivator. The ground has been worked with a tiller, so its not like virgin pasture. In the past, I'd rototiller and cultipack. Now I'm planning to use the cultivator followed by the drag to level out the furrows created by the points.

Here's the basic design I'm copying. The maker said it works good and the size is right for me. I might shorten the distance between the irons to make it more user friendly to me. Any other ideas are appreciated.

 

[fried1765]

I'm copying another TBNer's design for a drag - 6 foot angle iron and chains. I've picked up most of the items I need and I'll have about $250 in materials when I'm done....sure, I could have gone to TSC and bought one for that but where's the sport in that?

The original builder was kind enough to share some tips with me, one of which was the "cross chains" don't seem to add much so I'm not going to use those. I'll just have 3 iron pieces chained in series. Going to use it to smooth the soil after using my latest purchase, an old Fred Cain cultivator. The ground has been worked with a tiller, so its not like virgin pasture. In the past, I'd rototiller and cultipack. Now I'm planning to use the cultivator followed by the drag to level out the furrows created by the points.

Here's the basic design I'm copying. The maker said it works good and the size is right for me. I might shorten the distance between the irons to make it more user friendly to me. Any other ideas are appreciated.

Can't upsize the photo!

 

[fried1765]

View attachment 503078

LLet's see if this one is bigger.

YUP !!

 

[Rford]

I'll try this again with a picture you can enlarge.

 

[TheDevilYouLove]

$250 seems like a lot for that. What are the expensive parts?

 

[Rford]

$250 seems like a lot for that. What are the expensive parts?

4x4 steel angles, 6 feet long x 1/4 in. ($120). 2 Harbor Freight chains, ($40). 14 Shoulder 1/2 inch x 1 1/2 eyebolts ($45), 12 HF chain connectors ($12.)

That adds up to $220. There were a few nuts and washers from Tractor supply. I had one old chain I used and didn't count that in the cost. I felt lucky to get the shoulder eyebolts and connectors for no more than I did.

 

[Rford]

Took it out today for a test run. At first I thought this was a bust, but after using it a while I figured out a few tricks and it worked good on nicely tilled ground. The first food plot had a some surface debris -- old weeds. The chains, particularly the middle connection, would grab and clump up the grass and then a build-up of grass and dirt would start forming and pretty soon I was pulling a big dirt ball. Then the angle would flip or I'd hit something and the big dirt ball would drop off leaving a wheel-barrow sized obstacle. The "fix" for that was to make a turn at each end of the plot onto unplowed, uneven, fescue pasture which would cause the angles to bounce just enough to clean them. Running over a small cedar sapling with it really did the trick too and I'd start the next pass with clean iron. On the next food plot it was cleaner and it took a lot longer to see any buildup and then it was a matter of making a turn in the grass to clean it up.

The angle iron pulls straight and square with the world. I'm going to shorten one side a couple chain links to give it an angle like a road grader - I think that might help in keeping the build up to a minimum. Even straight on, it smoothed the dirt and made a nice seed bed.

The Harbor Freight chain and connectors all held up fine. Even with a load of dirt/grass being scarfed along nothing seemed strained. It bounced over stumps and rocks. I had a couple tight spots but it was easy to jump off and move on angle to avoid tangling up into a tree.

I've got some pictures I'll post tomorrow I took as I was figuring out how to make this work.

 

[crankshaft21]

I think $250 is a little much for that. I bought a 7 ft. spike tooth harrow off craigslist for $200. It has 3 pt hitch as well. It was used, but in like new condition.

 

[Rford]

I think $250 is a little much for that. I bought a 7 ft. spike tooth harrow off craigslist for $200. It has 3 pt hitch as well. It was used, but in like new condition.

Was looking on Cl for a while - bought most of my food plot equipment there -- tractor, cultipacker, golf cart, chainsaw, splitter, and most recently a field cultivator. Good deals on all of them. Got tired of waiting on a 6 foot drag/harrow and needed to get some stuff planted. Buying everything new and at retail isn't the cheapest route that's for sure.

 

[Rford]

Here's some photos. When I first put this to work it grabbed a bunch of dirt and grass so I flipped it over thinking I might have it "upside down." I see the original builder had it this way but for me it picked too much trash. When I have a cleaner plot I'll try it the other way. Don't know how many photos I can load.

 

[Rford]

Here's a couple showing it working on less trashy ground after I'd flipped it over. Much nicer.

 

[Egon]

Center picture; what's the purpose of dragging?

 

[Rford]

These are food plots that are old pasture originally tilled using a 3 pt tiller. I am trying to use the field cultivator now instead. That leaves the surface too rough, furrowed, for planting clover, alfalfa, turnips etc. that are supposed to be planted on a smooth, clean surface and then cultipacked. The dragging gives me that surface.

If I was planting corn or beans by broadcasting I think it would work to use the field cultivator, broadcast, and then drag to cover.

I think I'll be able to use the cultivator and the drag at the same time rather than separately. Or the tiller and the drag although the tiller leaves a better surface. With the tiller I would till with the packer attached, then seed, then roll it again. Works great on small seeds.

 

[Egon]

Go get a diamond harrow. It'll do what you want.

 

[HCJtractor]

Here's some photos. When I first put this to work it grabbed a bunch of dirt and grass so I flipped it over thinking I might have it "upside down." I see the original builder had it this way but for me it picked too much trash. When I have a cleaner plot I'll try it the other way. Don't know how many photos I can load.

I find that sometimes going faster works better, as it collects less trash. It tends to bounce more which drops the collected trash. So often I pull mine with a truck, going faster than i go in a tractor, circling the food plot making multiple passes. Often i have a buddy follow me pulling the drag as I'm disking ahead of him. I even tow it around the property with my truck smoothing the roads. Try it with a vehicle.

Sent from my iPad using TractorByNet

 

[Rford]

I'll give it a try...makes sense. Since this was the first outing and I was using the least expensive chains and connectors I could buy, I was being careful lest something gave way. But it all seemed solid. I used my Jeep to pull the cultipacker so this would be similar. Although I think using the tractor/cultivator/drag combo will work good too.