CHAIN DRAG HARROW

[MtnViewRanch]

Looking forward to hearing about it. One of my concerns with the Martens (which may indeed be totally unfounded) is that since I will be using it for 90% field/pasture manicuring and breaking up and spreading horse manure, are the teeth too far apart? Will it require me to make several passes over the same peice of property in order to sufficiently spread the material? Again this may not be true but its hard to tell from the pictures on the Martens webiste.

Mark, if you are looking at a 3 pt harrow, think about getting an 8 bar harrow instead of the 5 bar. It will work 60% better for just a little more $$ and should take care of your needs.

Just my opinion.

 

[mark.r]

Mark, if you are looking at a 3 pt harrow, think about getting an 8 bar harrow instead of the 5 bar. It will work 60% better for just a little more $$ and should take care of your needs.

Just my opinion.

Any recommendations? It doesn't look like Marten's makes one in 3pt. mount, only in pull type and much wider widths.

 

[ScottOkla]

Darn rain!

It's too wet to get the tractor out until until at least Saturday. Just too much rain and too wet topsoil (excellent water-holding topsoil by the way). I would end up causing more problems than I would be helping with the harrow.

This is the story of much of our summer. We had one 6-week stretch where it was dry enough to rough cut my 5-acre "yard" with the tractor, but the rest of the time, I had to use a riding mower. Good problem to have I guess.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Any recommendations? It doesn't look like Marten's makes one in 3pt. mount, only in pull type and much wider widths.

Call and talk to them. I bought an 8 bar 15'er with 3ph earlier this year. He will still make them, just have to ask. I believe that all the 5 bar 3ph harrows can also be had in an 8 bar as well, just not as popular I guess.

 

[mark.r]

Call and talk to them. I bought an 8 bar 15'er with 3ph earlier this year. He will still make them, just have to ask. I believe that all the 5 bar 3ph harrows can also be had in an 8 bar as well, just not as popular I guess.

Thanks I will do that. If I could get a 7.5ft. in an 8 bar 3pt. for a couple hundred bucks more that would make me happy.

 

[mark.r]

My fields are so bad now that I had to make a move so I ended up ordering the Martens 3pt. harrow. I asked Mr. Marten (who was very accomodating) about an 8 bar unit and he said that they used to offer that model but there was not enough interest in it and the shipping on it was as much as the unit itself due to weight. All said and done I made a decision and when with it. It will ship Tuesday. With the weather in VA at near August temps I should be able to get out and use it in my fields to break up and spread some of the horse manure I have out there. I will report back.

 

[ScottOkla]

I finally tried mine for about 1 hour today. I probably need to wait another two or three days in order for the top to dry out enough to break up the ground better, instead if making nice smooth cuts in the wet soil.

I also had problems with the unit digging in only in the front or back of the unit (first two or last two bars only) depending on how high I had the 3ph set. I will experiment with added weight when the ground dries a bit.

I do think it will have some trouble doing much in sod. Where the soil was exposed a bit, it did OK.

 

[mark.r]

I also had problems with the unit digging in only in the front or back of the unit (first two or last two bars only) depending on how high I had the 3ph set. I will experiment with added weight when the ground dries a bit.

Can this be adjusted out using the top link?

 

[ScottOkla]

Chains are used as the method of lifting the rear of the harrow, so adjusting the top link helped me to some extent, but there is no extra force applied to the rear to keep it in contact with the ground.

 

[mark.r]

Chains are used as the method of lifting the rear of the harrow, so adjusting the top link helped me to some extent, but there is no extra force applied to the rear to keep it in contact with the ground.

Right. Hmmm, anyway to add some weight? I hope this is not a serious problem since I just ordered mine.

 

[LoneCowboy]

I remove my recomendation of the Delta Tooth harrow
go with something else.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

I remove my recomendation of the Delta Tooth harrow
go with something else.

What happened to change your mind?

 

[SCDolphin]

LoneCowboy:

I was going to ask you how wide and how much was your drag harrow but read your last post. Are you dissatisfied with the one from Hi Valley?? I am pulling a 10 foot run of the mill tractor supply one but I am constantly flipping it over and getting crap out of it. The one you listed "Hi Valley" looked good. Clarify...what changed your mind?

 

[Glowplug]

What happened to change your mind?

Ditto!

 

[flINTLOCK]

Wingfields recommended putting a large truck tire on top of drag. It's kept in place by 3-pt frame and works well.

 

[Redbug]

LoneCowboy...Enquiring minds need to know...

 

[LoneCowboy]

I should be a product tester, if it survives 4 weeks with me, it's good. (and I used to be a software tester, I could break anything)

Got it, did one 2 acre job with it, worked fine.
Did a 8 acre job with it, started to bend bolts on it.
did a 3rd job, within 5 acres it started losing pieces, breaking bolts. I still didn't finish (which made me not happy, having to drive another 2 hours round trip to finish it with my old harrow) and basically the entire first row came apart, pretty much every bolt is bent.

I called them up said "I'm not happy"
They are bringing me a new one later this week, so we shall see.
I think most of it is caused by not having a bar to pull from, which causes it to pull at an odd angle and then bend bolts (which then break, as they are apparantly made in Chinese lead toy factories). I told the guy that, my wife agrees, the guy is going to bring a bar, and throw that in for free. (he told me to go with no bar originally, wasn't my idea).

so, currently doing 70+ acres this week with the old style harrow (which works fine, just tangles when loading and unloading), and the new harrow will come and I shall report back.

 

[Soundguy]

LC.. take this following comment with a smile.. it is meant as humor and certaintly not to criticize or offend you in any way. i enjoy reading about your plights with machinery and am always very thankfull at the end of the day that i don't experience 1% of the problems you do!.. now that said.. you must be related in some way to my wife. I swear she could break a 600# anvil with a rolled up newspaper in about 5 minutes. how she does it.. i don't know.. she calls it 'her gift'.



Good luck on the next one!

Soundguy

 

[LoneCowboy]

LC.. take this following comment with a smile.. it is meant as humor and certaintly not to criticize or offend you in any way. i enjoy reading about your plights with machinery and am always very thankfull at the end of the day that i don't experience 1% of the problems you do!.. now that said.. you must be related in some way to my wife. I swear she could break a 600# anvil with a rolled up newspaper in about 5 minutes. how she does it.. i don't know.. she calls it 'her gift'.

Trust me, i was a great software tester. really great. I could break anything. (heck, I play this trukz online game and I found a bug that a whole bunch of people were cheating with and they got banned. Just by me fidding around.)

But trucks, cars motorcycles I rarely break, I can't figure out why some of this stuff hates me.

update, they brought a new one.
Thsi one is heavy duty (and it weighs a flipping ton, had to buy chains to move it around with). I said "can my ATV pull it?" She kinda looks at it and goes "well, maybe, if it doesn't, give us a call adn we'll try again"

This one has a bar to pull from (which it totally needs, I'm sure the lack of a bar caused this whole thing), tomorrow, 12 acre job, harrow 2 times. (24 total). I'll report back. I'm bringing the old style one too, just in case. Place is "an hour away". (i think everything is an hour away, unless it's two hours away )

 

[ScottOkla]

I used my Martens spike tooth harrow again today for about 2 hours. Overall, it worked well.

I used it on three types of surfaces:

First, I ran it on thick sod around a 1/4 mile "track" trying to get rid of years of bumps due to gophers, etc. It took about 20 trips around to get it in shape. I also put about 70lbs on the back of the harrow to keep it down better. Still a few rough spots (going to be a go-cart track for the kids). I just need a few more rows of spikes, and I need the spikes spaced better.

Second, I ran it on 1/2 acre that was fairly rough, but that was lacking as much sod. This area I had planted in clover last winter, and then mowed it regularly this summer. I went round and round for about an hour and I am happy with how smooth it is now. Again, just need more rows of spike and better spacing (two pairs of bars have the spikes in almost the same alignment).

Third, I ran it on a 1/4 acre area that I tilled this summer to get rid of construction ruts and compaction, and which bermuda has started filling in. It was fairly sandy and a half hour was more than enough to get rid of the places where my tilling caused ridges or holes. It is very nice now, but again, it was rather sandy.

As a whole, I think it won't work for about half the things I was going to use it for, but works well at the other half. I've never used the standard chain drag harrow, so I can't really do a pro/con analysis.