Do you hardface your ground contact skids and shoes on your implements?

[Gord Baker]

I do, always, Any implement I own, if it has ground contact shoes or skids, they get hardfaced, no exception and that includes my 'brush hog / slasher' as well as my discbine and the bottom feet on my stump grinder, any metal to ground contact gets hard faced. reason is, renewing worn skids today is an expensive ordeal, especially in the case of my discbine where each skid shoe (I have 10 on it), is expensive, like in the 200 dollar range. All 3 of my FEL buckets are also hard faced on the bottom and lower sides as well.

Because I farm on mostly sandy loam, skid wear is fast and hardfacing them slows down or stops that from happening, plus you can build up the hard facing when it gets worn down, for me it's just proactive, common sense.

I hard face in the shop using my high amperage MIG welder and solid core or flux cored hardfacing wire with inert shielding gas. Hardfacing wire isn't a cheap date but in the long run, less expensive than skid shoe replacement, especially on the disc mower. I have also hard faced the leading endes on my rototiller for the same reason as replacement tines are expensive and hard to replace.

I use Generic had facing wire but you can also hard face with rods in a SMAW machine as well but hard facing rods require a pre heat to around 350 degrees prior to use.

Stody sells hard facing wires and Air Products stocks HF wires as well as rods.

Your Bushhog should not be running on the ground continually. Level it front to back and side to side and about 4+" above grade. I always hardfaced my Snowmobile runners.

 

[Drstrangeglove]

Your Bushhog should not be running on the ground continually. Level it front to back and side to side and about 4+" above grade. I always hardfaced my Snowmobile runners.

Don't know about his, but my bush hog and tractor are 33ft from back tire to front bumper and 10ft wide. I cut on uneven ground. One side always seems to be dragging. I always have a hand on the hydraulic level to lift it up.

 

[aircommuter]

Yes. But for me it’s all industrial.

 

[5030]

Your Bushhog should not be running on the ground continually. Level it front to back and side to side and about 4+" above grade. I always hardfaced my Snowmobile runners.

It don't but sometims does as the ground undulates. Never did my sled runners, just bought hard faced rods as the front ski's on my sleds were plastic anyway.