Cultipacker/Box Blade Combo

[jwrambo]

Considering putting together a cultipacker for food plots instead of buying new.

Wondering if I could fabricate trailing arms (possibly detachable) that attach to the sides of the box blade, extend beyond the rear of the blade, then mount pillow blocks on those trailing arms. Then put together the cultipacker between the trailing arms. This would be a 5 foot blade/packer. Could have pinned positions for the trailing arms that would utilize the box blade weight to help the cultipacker.

Wheels look tougher to find other than the 9.5 inch versions at Agrisupply. Anyone with experience with single row, 9.5 inch cultipackers for food plot use? I am in the Florida Panhandle with sandy soils. Also open to concrete filling a 15 inch plastic culvert if I can find a smaller piece than 20 feet?

Does this sound viable?

 

[skipperbrown]

I had a 60" King Cutter cultipacker we used on food plots in south AL about 90 miles north of you that were somewhat sandy. If the soil was damp, I found the tractor's R4's compacted the soil more than the cultipacker leaving me with tractor tracks lower than the cultipacker wheels. If the soil was dry, the cultipacker didn't pack at all and only the top edge of the wheel touched the ground rendering the cultipacker useless. If the soil was perfect, the cultipacker worked as it was designed. We hardly ever planted during perfect conditions and ended up parking the cultipacker and pulling a disk harrow with the pans set straight to cover larger seeds. Small seeds were broadcast on top and we hoped the next rain would cover them. Finally, you need really flat, even ground so you get an even distribution of weight across the span of the wheels. High spots will cause the tool to lift off the soil.

I think your idea would work, but be cumbersome if you needed to detach the cultipacker addition very often. It will be heavy.

 

[jwrambo]

I had a 60" King Cutter cultipacker we used on food plots in south AL about 90 miles north of you that were somewhat sandy. If the soil was damp, I found the tractor's R4's compacted the soil more than the cultipacker leaving me with tractor tracks lower than the cultipacker wheels. If the soil was dry, the cultipacker didn't pack at all and only the top edge of the wheel touched the ground rendering the cultipacker useless. If the soil was perfect, the cultipacker worked as it was designed. We hardly ever planted during perfect conditions and ended up parking the cultipacker and pulling a disk harrow with the pans set straight to cover larger seeds. Small seeds were broadcast on top and we hoped the next rain would cover them. Finally, you need really flat, even ground so you get an even distribution of weight across the span of the wheels. High spots will cause the tool to lift off the soil.

I think your idea would work, but be cumbersome if you needed to detach the cultipacker addition very often. It will be heavy.

Thank you for the detailed reply. I can see everything youæ±*e saying being true for me as well. I知 establishing new plots, which in most places will most likely have to be tilled, then I hope to convert to no till methods after this first planting. So the cultipacker would only be used once conventionally, then as a roller crimper for knocking down the current planting after broadcasting the next plantings seeds. Then followed up with glyphosate. My reasoning for going to this is to help build a soil where only really ****** ones exist. We don稚 have any clay like y誕ll at least have some.

What痴 your thoughts on that since you致e done what I知 attempting?

In my mind I have a seemingly simple way of detachment, and I was hoping the extra weight would help the functionality since it would be a 3pt attachment vs a pull behind???

 

[i7win7]

Sounds like you are making a DIY version of this


Hoelscher Commercial Products - RB Scraper

 

[jwrambo]

Sounds like you are making a DIY version of this
View attachment 666066

Hoelscher Commercial Products - RB Scraper

Definitely! That痴 about the gist, albeit a little less heavy duty. Hoping pillow block bearings mounted on 2x2x1/4 thick tubing, removable trailing arms can handle a 400lb. packer.

 

[skipperbrown]

Thank you for the detailed reply. I can see everything youæ±*e saying being true for me as well. I知 establishing new plots, which in most places will most likely have to be tilled, then I hope to convert to no till methods after this first planting. So the cultipacker would only be used once conventionally, then as a roller crimper for knocking down the current planting after broadcasting the next plantings seeds. Then followed up with glyphosate. My reasoning for going to this is to help build a soil where only really ****** ones exist. We don稚 have any clay like y誕ll at least have some.

What痴 your thoughts on that since you致e done what I知 attempting?

In my mind I have a seemingly simple way of detachment, and I was hoping the extra weight would help the functionality since it would be a 3pt attachment vs a pull behind???

I would plow with a field plow/chisel plow, harrow disk, drag until smooth and a good seed bed, broadcast lime, seed, and fertilizer, run over with disk harrow with pans set straight as possible, then put out your small seed on top. The boys up here are having good success planting perennial clover/chicory plots, keeping the weeds out (spraying) in summer, and dressing with new seed/fertilizer and maybe some wheat in the fall. Then you have browse year round except for the hottest months. If it doesn't work out, you are still ready to nuc it, mow, and drill with the traditional wheat/oats. We rented a no till drill several times and it was tough to reserve it when needed, it took a while to get it calibrated, and if the guy who had it before you broke something, we were the ones that had to drag it back to the farm center for repair.