Foggy's Deertopia Proving Grounds - Happenings

[Foggy47]

Had a little work to get done at my land yesterday......and did a quick survey of my plots. We got a 1/4" of rain on Friday night.....but the ground is pretty dry.....with very little rain over the last month. I did use a spade to have a look at my soil and plant roots.......and while it's dry.....some moisture retention is in the soil due to root matter. The rye seedbeds are forming....but I think it will be some time before they make a viable seed. Random plot shots follow. Rye is a bit more sparse than past years....but it does help shade the clover.

 

[Foggy47]

I made this sign a few years ago.....after telling a story of "POOR FARMS" to my grandkids........who had never heard of such thnngs or knew they exist4d. Up until bout 1960 the county where I lived (Brown County) in southern MN would operate a poor farm where old folks would go after they could no longer hold a regular job as a hired man or other such things. These were quite prevalent in many counties as compared to assisted living or a retirement home today. Folks would go here and work on the farm for room and board. They had a few cows and some gardens and chickens and such. They lived in a three story brick building that looked like a hotel. The older women did house cleaning, prepared food and chores. Men worked according to their ability with farm related stuff. Most of these folks had little means and nowhere else to go. I had a pretty bad road.....so I called the road as shown above. I like my kids / grandkids to know about "the way things were" back in time. The end.

 

[Tree Spud]

View attachment 53504

I made this sign a few years ago.....after telling a story of "POOR FARMS" to my grandkids........who had never heard of such thnngs or knew they exist4d. Up until bout 1960 the county where I lived (Brown County) in southern MN would operate a poor farm where old folks would go after they could no longer hold a regular job as a hired man or other such things. These were quite prevalent in many counties as compared to assisted living or a retirement home today. Folks would go here and work on the farm for room and board. They had a few cows and some gardens and chickens and such. They lived in a three story brick building that looked like a hotel. The older women did house cleaning, prepared food and chores. Men worked according to their ability with farm related stuff. Most of these folks had little means and nowhere else to go. I had a pretty bad road.....so I called the road as shown above. I like my kids / grandkids to know about "the way things were" back in time. The end.

It's sad that Gov't entitlements erode and eventually destroy one's soul. The "poor farms" approach provides a level of dignity and a sense of contribution to those in tough times.

I came across an older gentleman who was cutting up for firewood a tree that had fallen on our property just off the road. I approached him and could sense a lot of tension. I simply asked him what he was doing and did he know he was trespassing? He said that he had lost his job and could not afford propane and the only way to heat the house was with wood. He couldn't afford to buy wood so he had to scrounge. After I told him we had problems with trespassers and all he had to do was stop by the house and let us know he wanted to cut some wood, we would be okay with that. The mood immediately lightened. I then grabbed $60 out of my wallet and handed it to him. He initially refused as he said he did not accept charity. I told him that the money was not charity, it was payment for removing a tree. He agreed and accepted.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Not gonna lose sleep over it. Next week is a colonoscopy, followed by a cystocopy a week later, followed by a dentist, and then cadiologist. Grin. They inspecting every orifice in this body. Wut?.....Me Worry

When the Dr.'s wheel in a tool cart that looks like it should be at the race track .......... and gloves that go up their shoulders like Sandbur uses - that gets the blood pumping!!

At my age, I don't worry about hair - or lack of it - either. Have to say though ........... those are some SILKY legs!!!

 

[Foggy47]

On Tuesday......I nuked about 1/2 of my clover with 2 Qt / Acre Glyphosate and 1 pint / acre 24-d. Saw some effects on the weeds and clover in the treated plots today......but my mission today was to add some "summer release" type of seed and some seed to gain some vertical cover in my non-treated clover plots. I basically wanted to use up some seeds on hand so I devised a mix of Chicory/ GH Radish/ Egyptian Wheat/ Sorghum Sudan Grass for my small seed box......and made a mix of soybeans/Sunflowers/ and a little AW Peas to round out the big box.

All was set up to deliver the large seed box at about 1 1/4" deep. I did a hasty calibration.....and had some issues getting enough seed in the ground. Also, found that my settings had changed to a lower level after some time operating. Not too happy with my first experience drilling seeds with the new drill....but it was not a huge thing as I hit a few areas with a second pass....and bobbed and weaved to get it done. I dont think it's a critical seeding.....and I learned allot about the drill.

I do like some of the features on my prior drill (Tar River Saya) over the Great Plains.....but I suppose it's all a learning curve. Getting excess seed OUT of this drill is a PITA. Connecting and removing the hoses from the seed cups to the openers is another PITA. Never had to do this stuff with the old Tar River. Gotta buy a few accessories to make these tasked easier.....and I'm sure I can get along with the drill. Essentially, I am using a "minimum till drill" as a no-till drill due to my light soils. Works fine in that respect. A few pics.....
This last pic shows my step ladder bungee corded to my walk boards. Too hard to leap up on the walk boards with the provided step of me. Getting old aint for sissies. Grin.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

I do like some of the features on my prior drill over the Great Plains.....but I suppose it's all a learning curve. Getting excess seed OUT of this drill is a PITA. Connecting and removing the hoses from the seed cups to the openers is another PITA. Never had to do this stuff with the old Tar River. Gotta buy a few accessories to make these tasked easier.....and I'm sure I can get along with the drill. A few pics.....This last pic shows my step ladder bungee corded to my walk boards. Too hard to leap up on the walk boards with the provided step of me. Getting old aint for sissies. Grin.

Curious why getting seed out of the drill is a PITA? Are you disconnecting the hoses from the seed cups to get the seed out because there is no way to turn the drive wheel when you're done?

 

[SD51555]

That rye ended up stretching out really nicely.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Foggy47]

Curious why getting seed out of the drill is a PITA? Are you disconnecting the hoses from the seed cups to get the seed out because there is no way to turn the drive wheel when you're done?

OH....there is a way (by turning that crank) but that is a bigger PITA and you still need to open the seed cups. What I did not plan for.....was the plugging of those hoses when I opened the seed cups to release the seed. They all plugged.....thus making me remove the drop hoses......PITA. If the drill would have put out the seed I had calibrated....this should not have been an issue. I considered vacuuming the seeds out.......but do not have a filter on my shop vac.....and the seeds fly all over the place.

Removing and re-attaching those hoses is a PITA. I think the sunflower seeds may have caused some plugging issues. I need a better spring clamp pliers......and some filters for my shop vac. Tho.....I had way too much seed to empty to make the shop vac a reality. It was hot and humid.....I was not a happy camper.

Mixing seeds takes allot of time., as does calibrating from scratch.....and it's hot in my pole shed today. I need to go to more pre-mixed seeds in the future.....and perhaps add a little seed (as needed) to the mix.

I do think my old Tar River was a bit more user friendly in some of these areas. But the Great Plains has a superior seed delivery system.....if I get thru the white-water time with this drill.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

OH....there is a way (by turning that crank) but that is a bigger PITA and you still need to open the seed cups. What I did not plan for.....was the plugging of those hoses when I opened the seed cups to release the seed. They all plugged.....thus making me remove the drop hoses......PITA. If the drill would have put out the seed I had calibrated....this should not have been an issue. I considered vacuuming the seeds out.......but do not have a filter on my shop vac.....and the seeds fly all over the place.

Removing and re-attaching those hoses is a PITA. I think the sunflower seeds may have caused some plugging issues. I need a better spring clamp pliers......and some filters for my shop vac. Tho.....I had way too much seed to empty to make the shop vac a reality. It was hot and humid.....I was not a happy camper.

Mixing seeds takes allot of time., as does calibrating from scratch.....and it's hot in my pole shed today. I need to go to more pre-mixed seeds in the future.....and perhaps add a little seed (as needed) to the mix.

I do think my old Tar River was a bit more user friendly in some of these areas. But the Great Plains has a superior seed delivery system.....if I get thru the white-water time with this drill.

Gotcha. All I've ever done is shop vac the seed out of the hopper and then hand crank out whatever seed was half metered and ready to be dropped. If I didn't have a shop vac ready to go it would be a major pain in the ass. Only time I've ever unhooked hoses was for winter storage.

 

[Brian662]

Milwaukee makes an awesome battery powered shop vac that I plan to purchase for being able to remove seed in remote areas. For instance I travel a few miles of road way between my properties and there isn't any electricity at my one property, will save me time and fuel driving back home to switch plantings.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

All was set up to deliver the large seed box at about 1 1/4" deep. I did a hasty calibration.....and had some issues getting enough seed in the ground. Also, found that my settings had changed to a lower level after some time operating. Not too happy with my first experience drilling seeds with the new drill....but it was not a huge thing as I hit a few areas with a second pass....and bobbed and weaved to get it done. I dont think it's a critical seeding.....and I learned allot about the drill.

I thought about this some more, do you think the lower seed rate is primarily due to your settings changing on the drill, calibration being off, or drive wheel skipping? Was going to give that weighing a cup of seed mix and converting to bushel weight method a try for quick and easy calibration but if it isn't particularly accurate I might avoid it.

Do you have a solution to make sure the settings don't change again?

 

[Foggy47]

I thought about this some more, do you think the lower seed rate is primarily due to your settings changing on the drill, calibration being off, or drive wheel skipping? Was going to give that weighing a cup of seed mix and converting to bushel weight method a try for quick and easy calibration but if it isn't particularly accurate I might avoid it.

Do you have a solution to make sure the settings don't change again?

Good points. I do not think my drive wheel was skipping.....and will definatrly give another look at my calibration. I did paint some black and white "spots" on the hex-drive shaft.....in order to keep an eye on the seed cup operation. Never skipped a beat. May drill some more seeds tommorow.....to check it out. I beleive my calibration to be correct......so at this point I think it boils down to getting that rate lever secured.

I thought it "odd" that the seed rate lever worked its way to a lower setting with time. I did tighten it with a pliers......but have been looking for a better means to tighten that (wing nut) setting. I did remove the bracket and compartment that holds the rate manual.....As it really just gets in the way of this setting lever for me. I'd like to have. larger diameter "wheel" or a wing nut with bigger wings to tighten that setting - without tools.

Working on it. (I did buy vacuum bags and have a better pliers on the way - to allow those freaking clamps to go on and off easier. PITA to get at.

 

[Foggy47]

^ OK.....so here is the deal on that seed rate lever working loose to a lower setting. I removed the container that holds a rate manual.....which is mounted to the frame. Now I got some access to that rate lever and can see what is going on.

So it turns out....that a metal strip that holds the setting was turned 90 degrees and regardless of how much I tightened the wing nut.....it had NO effect on securing the lever. Duh! Re-installed it correctly and it works like a champ. My calibration came out perfectly......but I still got a relatively low rate of seed out of the machine. Checked all the drive chains and everything appears to be in order. But I am getting about 1/2 of the calibrated amount of seed mix. Strange. Maybe my math is goofy.

Here is a pic of that bracket under the wing nut after it is correctly installed. If it rotates 90 degrees it will not lock anything in place.



I did buy a pliers from Amazon that arrived today. It's spring loaded and has some grooves in two directions that can better catch those hose clamp "ears". Wish it would have showed up sooner as I had a heck of a time re-installing those hose clamps that are attached to the drop tubes. Thanks for the tip Omni.

 

[Wild Thing]

Foggy - Remove the wing nut....and toss it in the trash barrel. Get a hex lock nut and use a socket wrench to tighten the seed rate lever. - a 3/4" socket works well. I did that the first time I used my drill over 7 years ago and I haven't looked back.



Set your shop vac on the drill and suck up the seed from inside the boxes, and maybe a little from the seed cups if you find it necessary. Easy Peasy. There is no way in Hell I am ever going to be removing the seed hoses unless it is absolutely necessary. I agree those spring clips are a complete PITA to remove or get back on especially.

 

[Tree Spud]

^ OK.....so here is the deal on that seed rate lever working loose to a lower setting. I removed the container that holds a rate manual.....which is mounted to the frame. Now I got some access to that rate lever and can see what is going on.

So it turns out....that a metal strip that holds the setting was turned 90 degrees and regardless of how much I tightened the wing nut.....it had NO effect on securing the lever. Duh! Re-installed it correctly and it works like a champ. My calibration came out perfectly......but I still got a relatively low rate of seed out of the machine. Checked all the drive chains and everything appears to be in order. But I am getting about 1/2 of the calibrated amount of seed mix. Strange. Maybe my math is goofy.

Here is a pic of that bracket under the wing nut after it is correctly installed. If it rotates 90 degrees it will not lock anything in place.

View attachment 54209

I did buy a pliers from Amazon that arrived today. It's spring loaded and has some grooves in two directions that can better catch those hose clamp "ears". Wish it would have showed up sooner as I had a heck of a time re-installing those hose clamps that are attached to the drop tubes. Thanks for the tip Omni.
View attachment 54211

Surprised there is nt a lock washer or spring washer in there.

 

[Bill]

I’ve thought about tossing those snap rings that hold the seed tubes in the trash and using zip ties. Easier to just cut off. But I haven’t done it, I’m still arguing with those damn snap rings when I have to remove them.

 

[Foggy47]

Surprised there is nt a lock washer or spring washer in there.

When the iron clip is installed correctly.....the wing nut actually works pretty well. It stayed put yesterday. I almost put a lock washer under it.....but it really is not needed. I did replace some of the small hose clamps with the gear type clamps. Those pinch clamps are really hard to get to and an exercise in frustration.

I have two of those shop vacs.....and neither has a bag that fits.....lol. Both are a PITA. Time to start a new thread...."SHOP VACS THAT DON"T SUCK!". Grin.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

My shop vacs dont have bags, just an air filter?

 

[Foggy47]

My shop vacs dont have bags, just an air filter?

Yep.....mine can use bags or a foam filter too. The foam filter is better is using for wet materials. Yesterday I got by without a filter.....but I had seed spread all over the place when I was done.....and had to sweep up. I need to make a trip to Menards.

 

[Wild Thing]

My shop vacs dont have bags, just an air filter?

Mine also - no bag to contend with.