Clearing rocks off surface... recommendations?

[civesnedfield]

You guys are thinking too small. What ya need is one of these-------


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMw_xWKXW9s]The RP1000 Rock Picker - YouTube[/ame]

 

[PatasColo]

You guys are thinking too small. What ya need is one of these-------


The RP1000 Rock Picker - YouTube

Ha! A Rock "Washing Machine"! If they just add a crusher onto the back end of that, you could instead cover the whole field in a nice layer of pea gravel rather than stacking the 1500 yards of rocks. :laughing:

Only problem with that machine on my field: it wouldn't be able to even turn around, and it's looks to be about 1/3 the length of my field. :laughing:

To respond to a previous post, I sure like the idea of contributing to the boy scouts and having the troop out.. may have to look into that idea (they usually put up quite a scary "Walk in the Fields" Halloween event not far from me... they have a number of scary looking scarecrows/mannequins as well as some shacks that give you the heebie-jeebies!
-Mitch

 

[magicheater]

Ours is about an acre.
We did a lot last year by hand, and it really was a lot of fun with the family. They even took a lot of rock home to make an outdoor turtle enclosure. :laughing:

But given the nature of our land, we will have rock arising every year. I like the "idea" of a rock bucket or harley rake, but the idea is "free". Plus, I like the challenge of applying a bit of good ol' farmer ingenuity to solve an ongoing task... it feels so much more rewarding to me!
-Mitch

P.S. Along those lines, here's a brainstorm that just occurred to me: What would happen if I put the rippers down 1-inch in my boxblade, with the teeth facing backwards. Then, lower it to the ground (let it float on ground) and drive forward. Seems like if should float on top of the rippers (not digging in; about a half inch space or so between blade and ground). I wonder if this would manage to collect the rocks that are greater in size and loose on top of the soil (there are plenty of those)? If I needed more space, drop the rippers to 2 inches down...

Just adjust the top-link if you don't have a hydraulic one so the leading edge blade on the box blade is barely touching the surface of the ground. This is why I am a proponent of a hydraulic top link as a must have feature on any tractor I own. To be able to adjust on the fly is imperative to maximum usefullness.

 

[savageactor7]

PatasColo I've seen York rakes handle rocks that size but your rocks are embedded. York rakes work best on surfaces that have already worked up and loosened.

btw that's pretty rocky.

 

[jenkinsph]

Jenkinsph, have you looked at this rock bucket?

Rock Buckets and Grapple Forks

I haven't called to get a price yet, but your criteria is close to what I want and this is the best I've found.

I have looked at rock buckets with closer spacings than three inches the problem is it is difficult to get the dirt to sift thru. I have considered and still plan to build up a rock bucket with closer spacings that would have a vibratory shaker that is powered by a hydraulic motor.

My rock bucket pictured below has bar shaped tines to allow the dirt to fall through yet it still can require lots of shaking to work. I wouldn't wan't to use one with round bars and small spacings unless the ground was just powder or sand.

The second picture shows the size of rocks that I removed from land away from the stream bed using the rock bucket. This was done just north of Durango on property bordering the Animas in CO. For this work the rock bucket was pretty efficient.

To be clear about this I should mention that a landscape rake with heavy round tines would allow a higher percentage of open space to allow the dirt to pass through than the typical 1" flat tines with 1" spaces. I have tried using a landscape rake with every other tine removed and the spaces were too wide. My pinestraw rake does a good job of gathering trash and rocks but the tines are not ridgid enough to carry rocks very far. So a heavy duty tine of 1/2 to 3/4" on about 2" centers seems like it would be best.

 

[Alien]

Mitch, They are sandstone rocks? Look just like the ones we have here in Queensland. I would love to be able to pick mine up too but as the area has buried/concealed tree stumps and roots I think a machine would probably not work. I do love the look of the that Haybuster rockpicker though.

 

[jenkinsph]

As an example of cleaning up a lawn area with alot of rock below the surface here is a project currently in progress. Had to smooth the area up with the landplanes then till it about 6 inches deep then rake up the surface rocks.

Used the pinestraw rake to cover and rake in the seeds followed by a small roller which pushes the smaller rock down enough to get by. Next step is to get enough water on it to sprout the fescue seed.

 

[nybirdman]

Good luck with the rocks,I am in the North-east(NY),I have been picking rocks for ten years out of my garden.I get a new crop every year.This farm is at least 150 years old,I have miles of rock fences and lots of large piles that were harvested over the years.

 

[jenkinsph]

Good luck with the rocks,I am in the North-east(NY),I have been picking rocks for ten years out of my garden.I get a new crop every year.This farm is at least 150 years old,I have miles of rock fences and lots of large piles that were harvested over the years.

Very familiar with the frost heave in the northeast, lots of new surface rocks each year. In Colorado and New Mexico the rocks don't move upwards near as much. As an example I haven't seen any new rocks move up on my lawns in the last five years or so.

 

[PatasColo]

Mitch, They are sandstone rocks? Look just like the ones we have here in Queensland. I would love to be able to pick mine up too but as the area has buried/concealed tree stumps and roots I think a machine would probably not work. I do love the look of the that Haybuster rockpicker though.

Yep, sandstone. My valley is famous for the multiple colors/types of sandstone. In fact, we own part of a foothill, and the next 5 foothills in the series have been rock quarries since the late 1800's. Before cement came into wide use, the sandstone from these quarries was shipped all over the U.S. for making buildings, sidewalks, etc. It's really a fascinating & detailed history.

Here's a couple pictures... First shows a few of the walls created using the sandstone right there on property (stuff built since 1947 onwards). The whole area is an ancient seabed (millions of years old) that's been uplifted to create foothills. Second is a picture of our small butte, about halfway through the property - buff sandstone. Third is the large red cliffs at the end of the property - Colorado famous red sandstone.

It all makes for some great hiking!
-Mitch
P.S. Our field full of rocks is at the base of the foothill (right behind the red shed in the first photo); You can understand why it's full of broken and scattered sandstone and other rock!