Archive through June 08, 2009

[aethompson]

I just rebuilt (new seals) the hydro pump on my 1450 and can't get the thing to prime after putting it all back in place. Anyone done this and have any tips?

 

[bjohnson]

Wayne. Holy smokes! Sounds likes someone had a real beef with the hydrostats. My hydro/tiller combination does a great job. I can control the speed very well, it does not lurch and my garden is a smooth, consistent level with no waves.

 

[jmuncie]

Richard P.,

I'm in heavy clay--a mold board plow creates a hard pan that nothing but alfalfa, dock, and dandelions can penetrate. I'm already fighting a hard pan at about 10" that was established by 25+ years of moldboard plowing. I need to finish the engine for my Cub tractor and get a good field cultivator for it.

Jerry

 

[lbaker]

Jerry- We have a little red clay here also.. Throw the lime to it before fall plowing and again in the spring. My garden is 120X60 and I use a ton of lime. Really makes a difference!!

 

[dfrisk]

SCOTT T. - You can still see the cooling fins on that hydro unit, that tractor has been cleaned off at least once. With that stupid cork gasket and the cooling fan blowing all that dirty air from underneath the tractor they get dirty in a REAL hurry.

JERRY M . - Plowing does make a really HARD barrier in the ground that's tough for roots to penetrate, Frost & time eventually break it up also. Unless Your garden is big enough to get a BIG farm tractor with a deep V-Ripper in to rip the ground this fall. Couple passes with the ripper shanks 20-24 inches deep makes short work of the hardpan. Takes 100+ HP per shank plus the traction to put it to good use.

 

[snicklas]

Beth,

Also, be sure to get tire chains and additional weight. A Cub does not like slippery winter condtions and will just spin the tires. I have just chains, however, with me sitting in the seat, I have more weight on the back tires that some guys do adding weight and sitting on the tractor...

 

[snicklas]

Tilling with a Hydro, We have always tilled with a hydro (30+ years). I also like the speed control and have just crawled along in the garden, almost to the point you couldn't really tell you were moving. I agree that in hard ground... they can push you quite well, hydro or gear drive. The brakes don't even help!! (Don't ask how I know.) I am partial to the hydros, we have only HAD one gear drive and currently have 5 hydros. I have tilled in several gardens that are in a really tight spot, and shifting a geardrive would have becom tiresome very quickly.

 

[pdorow]

Andy-- is the charge pump mounted 180 degrees off when you bolted in back on. I THINK I remember someone mentioning this problem some time ago.

 

[jmuncie]

Dennis & Lyle,

Total garden area is about 1/2 acre, but it's too tight to get a 100 hp tractor in to do any work. It's made up of several patches interspersed between rows of fruit trees. I also have some permanent trellis to work around. I leave some fallow and rotate in cover crops. The vegetable area shrinks and grows from year to year. This year we're growing vegetables in a 32'x135' area that just came off 6 years of alfalfa to break the hard pan. I fall tilled and then added 12 pick-up loads of composted straw & goat manure along with 1-1/2 tons of lime. That area is in pretty good shape now, but the hard-pan is still there to some degree. I'm anxious to see how this years sweet potatoes turn out. Last fall I planted a 65'x120' area in alfalfa to replace what I tilled under. I grow the alfalfa to break the hard pan and to cut for mulch in the vegetable area. I cultivate in mid-June and then lay down about a 4"-6" deep layer of alfalfa. The vegetable crops are finished before any significant weeds are able to penetrate the mulch. I was hoping to use the 2B to till & level ground for cover crops, but so far it's not working out so well.

Jason,

I'll bet you're on the right track with the bolts in that bracket because it seems like a lot of the side-to-side movement is in that area. I haven't really given the tiller much attention because it too so long for me to get the tractor running. Had an ignition problem that turned out to be a bad contact in only the start position of the key switch--that had me scratching my head for a while.

Thanks,
Jerry

 

[aethompson]

Paul - Not sure what the charge pump is or how to check, can you offer some more insight on that?