Disc Purchase Question

[Gizmo36]

You don't have to add weight to them.

 

[Glowplug]

You don't have to add weight to them.

Yeah, no kidding! They're already "too heavy" for my tractor. But I want one!

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Yeah, no kidding! They're already "too heavy" for my tractor. But I want one!

Ah come on now, as we all know, any 50 hp tractor will pull those. As I have said over and over, all disks are not created equal and those are a great example of some disks that are not all that wide and you have to have some serious weight and power to pull them.

After looking at those heavy duty disks, does anybody still wonder why their 1400lb set only digs in a couple of inches? You get what you pay for and if you want a good set of disks that work when you go to use them, it's going to cost some $$$$. Of course you need a capable tractor to go along with those heavy duty disks.

 

[Riddler]

Thanks for all of the great feedback. For those still wondering, there was no mistake about the $4,500 pice tag on the 4' tandem disc that I took for a test spin. It looked and weighed in the range of the units that Gizmo references in his posts. The unit weighed over 2,000 pds, I'm sure. I believe it had 20" or larger discs, all sort of adjustments and an unlimited life span. A superb unit but overkill for me.

Dixie, I am giving alot of thought to your suggestion about using a tiller for weed suppression between the vine rows. As it turns out, I have the opportunity to purchase a small (18HP) used (100 hours) CUT (NH TC18) with a 4' brush hog and 3' tiller for $8K. When I saw that the tiller came with the deal, I thought about setting the thing for a shallow cut and knocking down the emerging grass/weeds that way. It is also possible to offset the tiller, so I can get closer to the vine rows. If I buy the thing, I'll will experiment with the tiller before I consider investing in a disc harrow. I need the tractor and mower anyway (my NH TC45DA and 6' rotary cutter are too wide for vine rows), so getting the tiller also makes the deal too timely to pass up.

 

[N80]

I would think that those heavy multi-thousand pound disks serve almost as plows. For most of us, that is not what we need or want a disk for. We use them as harrows, not plows.

And the ironic thing is that I don't think a 2000 pound 6' disk is going to be anymore effective on unprepped soil in my area than an 800 pound 6' disk. In fact, I know this for sure. Watched a 2000 pound Tufline with 22 inch notched disks skid along like it was on concrete. It worked great after the field was plowed.....with a plow.

And if you have a plow, you probably don't need a super heavy, super expenisive, hard to transport, hard to pull disk.

Regardless, I don't think the OP needs a $4500 disk and that for his purposes a $600 one would probably function just fine. And as mentioned, a tiller would probably be even better.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

I would think that those heavy multi-thousand pound disks serve almost as plows. For most of us, that is not what we need or want a disk for. We use them as harrows, not plows.

And the ironic thing is that I don't think a 2000 pound 6' disk is going to be anymore effective on unprepped soil in my area than an 800 pound 6' disk. In fact, I know this for sure. Watched a 2000 pound Tufline with 22 inch notched disks skid along like it was on concrete. It worked great after the field was plowed.....with a plow.

And if you have a plow, you probably don't need a super heavy, super expenisive, hard to transport, hard to pull disk.

Regardless, I don't think the OP needs a $4500 disk and that for his purposes a $600 one would probably function just fine. And as mentioned, a tiller would probably be even better.

Every tool has its intended purpose, sometimes we stretch their use into many purposes, but that doesn't change what their intended use is.

 

[Gizmo36]

N80 I have a 7200 pound Taylor-way disc harrow that will plow up a paved road if you want to. And you don't have to use a plow first.

 

[N80]

N80 I have a 7200 pound Taylor-way disc harrow that will plow up a paved road if you want to. And you don't have to use a plow first.

That's exactly what I would expect a 3 1/2 ton disk to do. What's your point?

 

[bjr]

I'm not tryin' to be a smart A--, but if your doin' grape vines check with a expert to see what they use. A friend told me grapes are fussy about their roots. I mean don't destroy your vineyard by not using good tilling. bjr

 

[Riddler]

Good suggestion BJR. As it turns out, I have a good deal of expert support for the vineyard operation.

Between the rows of a new planting, the goal is simply to knock down emerging annuals a few times a year. The ground is relatively soft and usually has some (or alot) of moisture in it, so it doesn't take much to do the job. A light duty disc, a tiller at a very shallow setting, or even drag harrow works fine. No need to get anywhere close to the vine roots.