Convert mule drawn to 3 point?

JBGOATS · May 11, 2016

Hello all. I have a mule drawn Cole planter, one row, that I would like to convert to three point hitch. The old planter is in very good condition and has a separate fertilizer hopper as well. I have found a few pictures of such a conversion, but could not actually tell how they were mated up to a cultivator frame. Have any of you ever attempted this? Thanks.....

davesl708 · May 11, 2016

Hi. Welcome to TBN.

There are a lot of folks on here who can help.

bcp · May 11, 2016

TBN has lots of mechanical geniuses, but without photos of the actual machine, someone will tell you to weld the framis to the doodad, when you should have welded it to the doohickey.

Bruce

stuckmotor · May 11, 2016

I used to attach a Cole one row mule drawn planter to the lift mechanism of a John Deere M with a bolt or two through the frame. It worked just fine. The M had no 3pt hitch. The images from a google search should give you lots of ideas.
one row planter - Google Search

stuckmotor · May 11, 2016

Some of the Google immages will show a plow foot ahead of the planter to open the furrow. I didn't have one of those. To open the furrows I used the middle busters that were a part of the mounted cultivaror setup on the tractor. They followed exactly in the center of the wheels. I took off all the other cultivator feet and used the middle busters to lay off all of my rows. I then straddled the furrow and planted my corn with the planter. This was one of the most satisfactory tractor attachments I ever had.

JBGOATS · May 11, 2016

Thanks Bruce... I'll see if SWMBO will assist in getting some pic's.....

stuckmoter, that's what's kickin my mule.. I cannot find anything which shows how to mount it to a 3 pnt cultivator..

Jb - Up Low Country, SC

stuckmotor · May 11, 2016

JBGOATS.
From the Google and Yahoo image searches I've done, I suspect that the frames of the mule drawn and 3pt hitch planters varied slightly in addition to having different adapters according to what pulled them. Those searhes gave one or two photos of a planter mounted on a rear mounted cultivator. The places where they hook together are difficult to see though. I used the Cole planter in the late 60's to early 70's and never welded any of my mods. They were cobbled togather from odds and ends part being wooden. The planter belonged to my grandfather and he wanted it left original so he could pull it behind his tractor with a chain and hired man. He'd sold his mule at the time. I still miss that mule.

muddstopper · May 11, 2016

I have a factory made Cole one row 3pt planter. I havent used it in a few years. Not looking straight at it right now, but memory tells me it is just bolted to the top of the cultivators. You adjust the cultipacker wheels by adjusting the top link. The layoff plow on the front of the planter is adjustable. Set the cultipacker right and then adjust the layoff plow for right depth and start planting. While mine also has the fertilizer box, I never put fertilizer in it, saves on cleanup not having to wash out fert residue and puts a stop to rusting issues as well. I also remove the cultivator feet since I till the soil before planting. I also broadcast the fert before tilling.