DISC HARROW "PRIMER" AND HOWSE DISC HARROW REVIEW / PHOTOS

[FredH]

If You have a Ritchie Brothers or other type auction around your area , You may be able to find actual Tractor weights there . I've seen wheel type and also front bumper mount type at several auctions going for dirt cheap . I have 5 100 lb. bumper mount weights on my King Kutter angle frame 6' disk . Depending on soil moisture , several times , I have had to lift / carry disk so it would not sink to the axles , especially going uphill .

Fred H.

 

[jeff9366]

Yesterday I used the Howse to aerate my Saint Augustine lawn with moderate success. St. Augustine is a tough, spreading perennial turf, native to Florida, now cross-bred and marketed in several types.

Adjusted the disc gangs "straight" so that notched discs would slice turf/thatch aggressively. In most areas discs only penetrated about 1", though soil was moist. One inch did not seem enough cut to penetrate thatch and encourage new growth. However, time will tell. Had a good rain last night so improvement may be evident during the next week.

Perhaps another 100 pounds of implement weight would have made a difference in penetration. Perhaps. Likely more a factor of how tough St. Augustine is than a reflection of 587 pound weight of implement. At any rate, just 1/5 acre of turf to aerate in front of the house. I may try de-thatching with my Landscape Rake, depending on how turf looks in 7-10 days.

Disc gangs remain easy to adjust, if not particularly fast to adjust. I could adjust by wiggling gangs by hand after loosening/removing clamp bolts. Clamp bolts and nuts remain rust free due to application of anti-seize compound. Sprayed frame where gangs slide with Fluid Film to prevent rust and provide lubrication.

Howse Disc Harrow is stored outside, under an 18 ounce canvas tarp.

Four axle nuts remain tight.

 

[classacthollow]

Thanks for your posting, I'm new to farming and it seems to me, from your writings, that the disc harrow might be a better choice for planting crops than a roto-tiller. I have about 20 acres of pasture that for now I just mow (my front lawn) and am getting ready to work it into a garden. It looks like the disks lift the grass out of the dirt where-as the roto-tiller does loosen the soil but a lot of the time it just buries the Bermuda back in the ground. Very informative.

 

[jeff9366]

Thanks for the compliment.

My experience in harrowing Bahia pasture grass, which has roots 6"-8" deep, has been that it takes multiple passes, at ten day intervals, to get ahead of it. (I am trying to eliminate the Bahia in a two acre "safe zone" surrounding the community burn pile.) In the process, I have chopped Florida sandy-loam finer and finer as the early cut Bahia decays but new growth occurs, in decreasing stands. At first the disc only penetrated 2"-3" into the tough Bahia root zone. Now the discs are going down 7" in 90% clear soil and I have to set the throttle at 2,000 rpm in HST/MED/4-WD to keep moving at a brisk pace and not stall.

I would not describe harrow action as lifting the Bahia. The discs cut, chop and throw the grass. The "throw" is two parts, first out, then in. Perhaps a fine distinction. When working the Bahia, harrow is adjusted "half-way" in terms of adjustment holes available.

A 14" turning plow, which I have, would have cut, lifted and turned the grass 7" deep but the harrow was new and I wanted to let it teach me.

For 'Stage 2' vegetation control at the burn pile I will use my Landscape Rake.

Bahia should be much less next year as there will be no seed this year.

An irony: By September most years standing Bahia would be golden, dry and flammable. Atypically, we have had frequent rain this summer so the Bahia is still green and lusty, which is why I have had to harrow it repeatedly.

Nature's way.

 

[Utopia Texas]

Schaeffer Rail Products in Brookshire, Texas has acres of used rail, rail plates, spikes, switches etc. They buy used rail products from the main lines and re-sell to private companies that need side tracks for warehouse loading to main tracks. I do not know if they sell small pieces to individuals but it may be worth a try. I would copy and paste the web address but I am on a new pad and can't figure it out yet!

 

[jeff9366]

THANKS. 'Been waiting five months for you to write.

TEXAS? I shudder as I consider freight to Florida.

I will contact, though, Schaeffer may have a depot in north Florida or south Georgia.


http://www.rascorail.com/RA_Schaeffer_Co_Inc_-_March_201/RAS_Products.html

I am sure a new Pad is a greater challenge than a new Harrow.