One tooth ripper

[BukitCase]

Phil, you're entirely welcome - yes, it looks like a fairly simple task to build one of these - here's a pic I found (don't remember where) of a basic subsoiler, looks home made but stout - all you'd need to add would be the pipe laying part, and as I mentioned an electrical conduit "sweep" would make that part pretty easy.

150 meters on a spool might be a bit more of a challenge - you'd want to set up an axle with vertical supports probably using the two lower hitch pins, not sure just how yet - I would start with the spool your pipe comes on and work from there, setting the spool position over your "conduit sweep" so that the pipe feeds straight down into the inlet of the pipe layer part.

With a small tractor, you might need more front counterweights for this because I'm envisioning the spool with the pipe feeding off the FRONT of the spool (closest to the tractor seat) and down. This would put the bulk of the pipe spool behind the subsoil chisel, so your weight balance might be off (although poly pipe isn't REALLY heavy)

Just some thoughts; I've considered building something like this myself, but it hasn't made it to the top of a VERY long list of projects yet

If you're serious about building your own, feel free to run your ideas out so we can pick them apart ...Steve

 

[zonta223]

Steve, you are a great guy !

I have been looking several hours on the web for such an implement with no result.
This one is simple and seems effective but.......New Zealand made !
Very few chance to find it in EC....
But as you said maybe I can try to weld such a device myself as the concept appears simple.
I have only a doubt about the pipe suplying. Here I have 150 meters polyethylen pipe crowns.
Maybe it needs a kind of reel up to support the pipe. The "sled runners" appears very useflul too to avoid the deep diving of the ripper in the soil.
A great implement ,

Thanks a lot for the link and suggestions.

Phil

What we normally do when we are doing long runs in the vineyard is to lay the pipe out in its desired location
. Line the tractor up at the start of its run. Pass the pipe over the cabin or ROPS of the tractor ( the pipe has to enter the ripper at just about 90 deg to the ground) and just start driving. This way you don't have problems jamming on its self on the roll and the tractor pulling the pipe through the ground etc.

 

[sixdogs]

...
...
On my ground I don't have major problems of hardpan because I use a japanese Yanmar rotary tiller. The tines are crescent shape. One of the huge advantages of japanese rotary tillers is they don't make plow-hardpan.
....

Phil

I bet Japanese tillers will create a hardpan layer in our Midwest clay.

Aren't you dealing mostly with sandy silt loam soil? I always thought it was similar to our Great Lakes soil that is a somewhat gravelly, sand silt loam down to the subsoil layer. Good natural drainage for excellent grape growing conditions.

 

[EuroYanmar]

What we normally do when we are doing long runs in the vineyard is to lay the pipe out in its desired location
. Line the tractor up at the start of its run. Pass the pipe over the cabin or ROPS of the tractor ( the pipe has to enter the ripper at just about 90 deg to the ground) and just start driving. This way you don't have problems jamming on its self on the roll and the tractor pulling the pipe through the ground etc.

Zonta223, thanks for info. I understand the process. Do you use an ordinary ripper or the one new Zealand made with the pipe device ?

Phil

 

[EuroYanmar]

I bet Japanese tillers will create a hardpan layer in our Midwest clay.

Aren't you dealing mostly with sandy silt loam soil? I always thought it was similar to our Great Lakes soil that is a somewhat gravelly, sand silt loam down to the subsoil layer. Good natural drainage for excellent grape growing conditions.

Sixdogs,

Here the soil is not sandy.
It maybe loamy and sometimes we have hardclay too.
But the hard clay is mostly located down, at a level the tiller does not reach.
In winter our soil maybe saturated with water too.
In summer it is dry and no way to work it with a CUT until heavy rains of november.
Maybe it looks like some Californian soils.
What is sure is japanese tiller make plow hardpan a thousand times less than ordinary tiller.
That's why I really like these devices.
If I have the choice between a japanese tiller and a standard one, I'd choose the jap without any hesitation.

Phil

 

[EuroYanmar]

Phil, you're entirely welcome - yes, it looks like a fairly simple task to build one of these - here's a pic I found (don't remember where) of a basic subsoiler, looks home made but stout - all you'd need to add would be the pipe laying part, and as I mentioned an electrical conduit "sweep" would make that part pretty easy.

150 meters on a spool might be a bit more of a challenge - you'd want to set up an axle with vertical supports probably using the two lower hitch pins, not sure just how yet - I would start with the spool your pipe comes on and work from there, setting the spool position over your "conduit sweep" so that the pipe feeds straight down into the inlet of the pipe layer part.

With a small tractor, you might need more front counterweights for this because I'm envisioning the spool with the pipe feeding off the FRONT of the spool (closest to the tractor seat) and down. This would put the bulk of the pipe spool behind the subsoil chisel, so your weight balance might be off (although poly pipe isn't REALLY heavy)

Just some thoughts; I've considered building something like this myself, but it hasn't made it to the top of a VERY long list of projects yet

If you're serious about building your own, feel free to run your ideas out so we can pick them apart ...Steve

Steve,

I am thinking of welding such a pipe-subsoiler but I think there are some security devices like shear bolts or pins difficult to appreciate.
About the regulation of the depth of ripping I thought about a kind of sled runners first.
After I found this idea :

Location decompacteur testas Matériel Agricole Gironde - leboncoin.fr

Clever this reel system ? Don't you think so ?

Phil

 

[bcp]

Some pipe laying videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5JvJWIZhGI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiuwmMTMevg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWhqlxpbc2k

 

[EuroYanmar]

Some pipe laying videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5JvJWIZhGI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiuwmMTMevg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWhqlxpbc2k

Great Videos BCP. Thanks a lot.
I notice the device is home made.
They use the reel only for small pipes (one inch).
For the big one (63 mm) the make it lay n the ground before burrying it.
On the last video one can see they have the reel axle ready to use but here they don't use it as the pipe diameter is to big.

Phil

 

[BukitCase]

Phil, I agree that is a clever method of depth control - although it would be a bit more involved to fabricate, I can see at least two advantages over the sled runner idea - one, it wouldn't tear up the surrounding soil as much as runners, and two, it looks like it would tend to "self heal" the "mini-trench" which would also lessen any tendency of the pipe to rise back up before you could tamp or roll the installation.

I liked it well enough to add the pic to my files for my own (eventual) build... Steve

 

[BukitCase]

Phil, I agree that is a clever method of depth control - although it would be a bit more involved to fabricate, I can see at least two advantages over the sled runner idea - one, it wouldn't tear up the surrounding soil as much as runners, and two, it looks like it would tend to "self heal" the "mini-trench" which would also lessen any tendency of the pipe to rise back up before you could tamp or roll the installation.

I liked it well enough to add the pic to my files for my own (eventual) build... Steve

 

[EuroYanmar]

one, it wouldn't tear up the surrounding soil as much as runners, and two, it looks like it would tend to "self heal" the "mini-trench" which would also lessen any tendency of the pipe to rise back up before you could tamp or roll the installation.

Steve

Yes Steve I did'nt realize the self healing power of the device, but you are right it is a very good system.
My main concern with a self made implement is the risk if it encounters a stump or a big rock.
Dimensioning and locating shear bolts is a difficult task.
I think the best way is to buy an affordable one tooth ripper with those bolts and operate modifications on it.

Phil

PS : Steve, I see the way you analyze the advantages and functions of technical mechanisms. I think there is an engineer eye here. Do I mistake ?

 

[zonta223]

Zonta223, thanks for info. I understand the process. Do you use an ordinary ripper or the one new Zealand made with the pipe device ?

Phil

We have 2. One is a cheap Chinese ripper with inbuilt attachment the other is a converted single Tyne ripper modified with some steel tubing as the pipe guide this being welded to the rear of the ripper.......Both work very well.

 

[BukitCase]

"PS : Steve, I see the way you analyze the advantages and functions of technical mechanisms. I think there is an engineer eye here. Do I mistake ?"

Never officially schooled as an engineer, just did half of their jobs and all of mine for most of my working life - taught electronics in military schools in the '60's, Engineering Tech for major hard/software companies including training of incoming techs in the '70's, Industrial instrumentation/control tech for rare metals manufacturers (2) for the next 30 years, ran a maintenance crew with ALL trades for the last 5, then finally escaped :cool2:

Now scheming on keeping my 10 acres under control with minimum effort on my part - I've often heard that "lazy people make the best inventors" and I believe it - I'd MUCH rather spend days designing (if necessary) and building a "widget" to do some repetitive (or back-breaking) task using air, electric or hydraulic power than doing it the hard way over and over.

My current project in that vein -

Our place has a lot of hedges, trees, etc, around the house and shop that are constantly in need of trimming, pruning, etc - I'm nearly finished building a "brush bucket" for my full size Case backhoe - it's 6 x 8 x 2 feet deep, built of 2 inch square tube, and will hold nearly two full-size pick-up loads of brush at a time. Once it's loaded (by whatever means, including wife I just drive to either the shredder area or the burn pile, dump it (with a hydraulic lever, NOT my back :thumbsup: ) and go back for another load. I've been taking a few pix and will start a separate thread when I'm done.

A second facet of the "brush with death" project - hydraulic sickle bar cutter

Sabre Samurai | Features

I spent the better part of a year looking for an older, longer sickle bar mower to modify - just missed out on one for $400, every other one must have been made of platinum (or at least its owner THOUGHT so) because they wanted anywhere from $1000 up to $1500

Anyway, I'm getting ready to cut pieces of square tubing, etc, and mount small hydraulic cylinders and a second set of trailer hitch receivers on the front bucket of the backhoe so I can drive along a hedge, trim the face of it and have (hopefully) all the trimmings fall into the large bucket, go dump it, repeat as necessary, all without leaving the seat of the tractor.

Trimming the TOP of a hedge will be just as easy, but clearing the trimmings will likely require the NEXT little project - a set of long brush forks so I can drive them into the hedge, lift, and "comb" the trimmings out of the hedge and dump them into the brush bucket (brush bucket is designed so it takes maybe 2 minutes to attach/remove, all from the seat of the tractor)

There are several more projects on my list, but I've already hijacked your thread for too long :ashamed: I'll try to keep taking pix and share some of this later... Steve