Roll-over plows

[candersen10]

I am purchasing a John Deere 6430 Premium right now and need to buy a three bottom roll-over plow for it.

One dealer I spoke to was selling a Kuhn 3 bottom rollover plow for 17k.

Another dealer is selling an International 145 rollover plow for around 4500.

I just found a John Deere 845 rollover plow with coulters selling for 1650. Is it possible that this could be a legitimate piece of equipment given how little they are asking for it? Is anyone familiar with the John Deere 845 roll-over plow?

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I am purchasing a John Deere 6430 Premium right now and need to buy a three bottom roll-over plow for it.

One dealer I spoke to was selling a Kuhn 3 bottom rollover plow for 17k.

Another dealer is selling an International 145 rollover plow for around 4500.

I just found a John Deere 845 rollover plow with coulters selling for 1650. Is it possible that this could be a legitimate piece of equipment given how little they are asking for it? Is anyone familiar with the John Deere 845 roll-over plow?

Legit? Yes. (Probably). Older? yes. With age, possibly considerable wear. May need work/parts replacement.

 

[JiminGa]

that tractor ought to pull a 4 bottom rollover, BTW congrats on a very nice machine.
my uncle pulls 4 with a 4020, has for 30 years, or at least as long as I can remember.

 

[EFC]

How many acres are you plowing?

Buck

 

[candersen10]

No more than 30 or so but we are doing it in small sections and time for us is really of the essence. I also really want to try to move soil uphill while plowing rather than downhill and we will be plowing through very thick cover crops (hairy vetch etc) so having a big heavy plow with coulters that can still be pulled very quickly (around 5 or 6 mph) is important to us. The organic aspect of our operation is really the reason why we are looking at a moldboard plow. I have a chisel plow but it just won't plow through thick vegetation.

 

[Harold_J]

that tractor ought to pull a 4 bottom rollover, BTW congrats on a very nice machine.
my uncle pulls 4 with a 4020, has for 30 years, or at least as long as I can remember.

Is that a rollover your uncle is pulling with the 4020, or a straight plow? A 4X rollover is a very heavy plow, I have only seen them pulled with large framed JD's and other 115+HP tractors in our area. A heavy plow like that requires the front end to be heavily weighted. If you get any bounce from the front end being light it won't plow properly.

A 6430 probably runs around 7500-8500 lbs, depending if cab, 4wd, etc, he doesn't say what he's getting. I've used a 2X rollover on a 2WD White that weighs about 7,500# and it will bounce it around. Even with the 2X I need 600 lbs on the front for it to plow correctly. I would say the 3X will be a good match for the 6430, especially if 18" bottoms.

canderson: I would keep looking for a used plow. They are out there and you will save a bundle. I would think ~$2-3K for one in average to good condition. If you're only plowing 30 acres a year the wear parts will last a long time once you get them in shape. With 6 bottoms each one will only be plowing 5 acres/year.

 

[candersen10]

Harold J, thank you for the response. The 6430 premium weighs 10,200 roughly and we have 200 pounds per axel in the back and 1,000 pounds up front so I think it will be adequate for a 3 bottom plow.

I've been looking into older plows but can't seem to find anything that looks sturdy enough for what we want. We will be plowing through 4-5 foot tall sorgum-sudan grass and hairy vetch and really need something that has enough clearance and the older plows from what I have seen just don't. Unfortunately, it appears that plow manufacturing in this country has switched almost exclusively to chisel plows and switch plows as opposed to roll-over plows. This means that we will have to look at Kuhn or Overum equipment which from what I've seen runs upwards of 12-15k for a three bottom model.

 

[candersen10]

Here's the new 6430 premium.

 

[Harold_J]

...We will be plowing through 4-5 foot tall sorgum-sudan grass and hairy vetch and really need something that has enough clearance and the older plows from what I have seen just don't. Unfortunately, it appears that plow manufacturing in this country has switched almost exclusively to chisel plows and switch plows as opposed to roll-over plows. This means that we will have to look at Kuhn or Overum equipment which from what I've seen runs upwards of 12-15k for a three bottom model.

Have you seen the Kuhn or Overum plows being used to plow down the type of cover you're talking about (hairy vetch and tall sorghum-sudan)? I'd like to know how they work out since I believe your're correct, the older plows wouldn't have enough clearance to handle that stuff. And with the vetch you'll be relying on the coulters to slice it so as to be able to turn it under. I just picture the vetch getting tangled around the coulter arms, jointers if any, or even the plow beams. Can you tolerate any of the sudan or vetch sticking out or will you need a perfectly clean soil surface for you seedbed?

Good luck in your search/purchase; let us know how it works out.

 

[Oleozz]

You definitely want a high clearance plow, nothing worse than constantly having to get off the tractor to unplug the darn thing.
Have you looked at the old IH or White plows? Lots out there for decent prices since many folks no-till.