GP/LP 3P600 or 3P606NT user thread

[Wind Gypsy]

Looks like your plenty deep to me. What are you planting?

Looks deeper than it was due to the duff on the surface. Large Box: Winter Peas, Oats, Beans (because the SWCD had free beans when i picked up trees), Small Box: Radish, fixation clover, med red clover, PTT, Rape, chicory.

I agree with moving the drive wheel to a different hole.....not an easy task as those idlers are a pistol for me. I finally figured a way to use leverage on them to loosen and tighten the idlers......but I wonder if I could repeat my efforts.....lol. Also, doing this while mounted on the 3 point makes access to the bolts difficult. Good way to practice my foul language.

There was some cussing alright!

 

[Foggy47]

When the chain comes off the sprockets....the cussing begins. I'd like to try a different setting.....but it's too difficult of a project to simply "try" something else and move it back again if it does not work as planned. I'd rather tweak the closing wheel set-up or adjust my top link a bit. I did find that keeping the idlers a bit snug thus preventing "over-loosening" was helpful when making a change. I used a floor jack under the drive wheel to regulate the movement. I found that getting the idlers to take up the slack in the chain was the most difficult function. Should be an easier means....IMO.

 

[omicron1792]

The tubes from the small seed box started facing the "wrong" way (IMO), pointed towards the openers. I flipped them around last week so they are facing the closing wheels.

I have no concerns with the small seeds. My main area of desired improvement is getting seeds (particularly peas/beans) from the main box covered.

Mine have always faced closing wheels. I think y’all have been planting small seeds too deep.

 

[omicron1792]

I'll have to set my drive wheel down a couple holes like you guys.. Maybe that will help a bit.

You think it helped with this last planting? I made that change after my first planting after buying and it’s been pretty dialed in since. My big seeds all her planted between 3/4-1”. And my small seeds barely get covered. If I look I usually find some small seed exposed (a good thing) and I find no big seeds exposed, all being in the trenches.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Also, i've experienced two of the Habitat-talk "dont do that, dummy" talking points in the last week:
1. didn't get all of the small seeds vacuumed out before storage. talk about a PITA getting the seed cups cleaned up.
2. Flip the big seed cups closed before dumping seed in. I was vacuuming seed out of the grass yesterday.

 

[omicron1792]

Also, i've experienced two of the Habitat-talk "dont do that, dummy" talking points in the last week:
1. didn't get all of the small seeds vacuumed out before storage. talk about a PITA getting the seed cups cleaned up.
2. Flip the big seed cups closed before dumping seed in. I was vacuuming seed out of the grass yesterday.

Been there on both! Sadly more than one time

 

[Wind Gypsy]

You think it helped with this last planting? I made that change after my first planting after buying and it’s been pretty dialed in since. My big seeds all her planted between 3/4-1”. And my small seeds barely get covered. If I look I usually find some small seed exposed (a good thing) and I find no big seeds exposed, all being in the trenches.

I do think the lower drive wheel position helped. I assume the additional 450# of weight on the platform helped as well though.

 

[swat1018]

Moved the drive wheel and planted with the 3p600 yesterday. Moving the drive wheel was a cun+. I couldn't get the idlers relaxed enough to get the chain low enough to get in the #6 position so I moved it down 1 slot into #5. That and over 400# of weight added to the back platform seemed to get the openers in the ground much better and keep weight on the closing wheels. Field was also wetter than I should be planting in but a guy has to plant when he can. Supposed to rain again Weds/Thurs.

View attachment 67233

Your openers look plenty deep, not sure what you planted.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Your openers look plenty deep, not sure what you planted.

Realistically most seeds were planted less than 1" deep. The fluffy mat of recently mowed rye/balansa clover makes it look like they were deeper.

 

[Foggy47]

Interesting drill events today at Deertopia Proving Grounds. I got all my seeds mixed and put enough in the small seed box to calibrate it. I have a mix of several clovers and several brassicas and chicory to put down. Anyway.....I put my collection pans under the seed drop tubes and started turning the crank to calibrate. Nothing! Tried a few more revolutions before investigating the issue. I had broken a chain on the drive to the seed gates. Lucky the chain was still hanging there and in tact. It was just missing a connection link.

Evidently I lost the chain on some relatively rough ground I finished up on earlier in the week. Never noticed anything unusual......so it had to have happened real late in my day. Did not have the right size chain links to do the repair.....so a trip to NAPA got me the needed connection links. Got back and installed the chain.

Later when operating.....I think I see what caused the chain to break. (see pics). The spring tension rod that keeps the press wheels pushing down can hit that chain on mine if you are on some real rough ground. After buying my (used) machine.....I saw that the rod was bent and I straightened it out somewhat. Also was missing a small bolt at the top of this rod that serves to keep it from falling out of it's location with the spring (unlikely but possible). I gotta wonder if the previous owner didn't shear that little bolt off and bend the rod when it hit that chain or sprocket.

I need to spend more time with it......but I think I can relocated the drive and idler a bit further from this rod to lessen the chance for a re-occurance. This set me back a few hours today and was kinda frustrating when TSC did not have the parts.......and it was raining (yadda yadda). I think I can move that chain and sprocket affiair about 3/4" inch to the right....and avoid future issues. This drill sure has thrown me a few curve balls. Also, it's difficult to straighten that rod once it's bent......and I think I will replace that bent rod with a new one. See the grease on the end of that rod?.....that comes from contact with that chain!

Anyway....I got it fixed and planted a few acres today in the rain. Nice.

 

[Foggy47]

^ I wonder if this is why the previous owner traded this drill off? Maybe he was having lots of issues with this machine? He sure had it set-up strange and I've had some quirky issues with the drill to figure out. I have slowly figured out the solutions to these issues.....but it's not been a love at first date kinda affair. I keep finding little quirky things this guy had wrong. Makes me wish I had just bought a new drill.....though....this drill has met it's challenger. Grin. I'm not gonna let a little adversity slow me down (much). Grin.

Tho.....I had more calibration issues today with that small seedbox.....and I do not understand why. grrrrrrrr

 

[Foggy47]

After my suspicions of the 1/4" x 1" bar interfering with the drive chain.....I took a closer look in operation today. Sure enough when the right side of the machine goes over a small bump.....it pushes that rod up against the sprocket hub and the chain. See the last of three pics below to see the interference situation. Not good!

I could see where I may lose another chain due to this situation......and not having a better remedy I decided to shorten the bar and placed a keeper bolt on the next lowest hole (so it does not get too short and disconnect - unlikely but possible). I cut the rod with my reciprocating saw and was back in operation in about 10 minutes. Grid power baby!!! I put a 4x4 block under the disk openers on the row unit so I could get my saw blade to reach the rod. Easy / Peasy.

I will need to buy a new bar as the one I have has a somewhat permanent "set" to it now. So does the bar on the oposite side of the drill.....but it does not affect any operation. Not sure how these bars get bent? (Mine came that way.....and I never noticed it until after I bought it.).

I cannot reposition the sprockets as there is not enough shaft to move the drive shaft on the seed box. I think I will call the engineers at Great Plains and talk with them. I wonder if they have changed this over the years......or if this same situation is present on other drills??

Something to be aware of if your having chain issues.

 

[T-Max]

After my suspicions of the 1/4" x 1" bar interfering with the drive chain.....I took a closer look in operation today. Sure enough when the right side of the machine goes over a small bump.....it pushes that rod up against the sprocket hub and the chain. See the last of three pics below to see the interference situation. Not good!

I could see where I may lose another chain due to this situation......and not having a better remedy I decided to shorten the bar and placed a keeper bolt on the next lowest hole (so it does not get too short and disconnect - unlikely but possible). I cut the rod with my reciprocating saw and was back in operation in about 10 minutes. Grid power baby!!! I put a 4x4 block under the disk openers on the row unit so I could get my saw blade to reach the rod. Easy / Peasy.

I will need to buy a new bar as the one I have has a somewhat permanent "set" to it now. So does the bar on the oposite side of the drill.....but it does not affect any operation. Not sure how these bars get bent? (Mine came that way.....and I never noticed it until after I bought it.).

I cannot reposition the sprockets as there is not enough shaft to move the drive shaft on the seed box. I think I will call the engineers at Great Plains and talk with them. I wonder if they have changed this over the years......or if this same situation is present on other drills??

Something to be aware of if your having chain issues.

View attachment 67384
View attachment 67385
View attachment 67386

Can you flip it around so it bends to the inside? May be even better?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Bill]

Also, i've experienced two of the Habitat-talk "dont do that, dummy" talking points in the last week:
1. didn't get all of the small seeds vacuumed out before storage. talk about a PITA getting the seed cups cleaned up.
2. Flip the big seed cups closed before dumping seed in. I was vacuuming seed out of the grass yesterday.

#2 has bit my A$$ on several occasions!

 

[Foggy47]

Can you flip it around so it bends to the inside? May be even better?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Maybe.......but they are a bit of a PITA to remove/replace. I'm going to first have a talk with an engineer at Great Plains to determine if they have made a change or if others have had an issue with this. I may replace the rod.....but will cut it shorter at a minimum. Shorter has no effect on the operation that I can see. I think once you bend one.....even if you pound it flat again....it will likely bend once more. Not sure if anyone else has any bent rods like this?

 

[Wind Gypsy]

After my suspicions of the 1/4" x 1" bar interfering with the drive chain.....I took a closer look in operation today. Sure enough when the right side of the machine goes over a small bump.....it pushes that rod up against the sprocket hub and the chain. See the last of three pics below to see the interference situation. Not good!

I could see where I may lose another chain due to this situation......and not having a better remedy I decided to shorten the bar and placed a keeper bolt on the next lowest hole (so it does not get too short and disconnect - unlikely but possible). I cut the rod with my reciprocating saw and was back in operation in about 10 minutes. Grid power baby!!! I put a 4x4 block under the disk openers on the row unit so I could get my saw blade to reach the rod. Easy / Peasy.

I will need to buy a new bar as the one I have has a somewhat permanent "set" to it now. So does the bar on the oposite side of the drill.....but it does not affect any operation. Not sure how these bars get bent? (Mine came that way.....and I never noticed it until after I bought it.).

I cannot reposition the sprockets as there is not enough shaft to move the drive shaft on the seed box. I think I will call the engineers at Great Plains and talk with them. I wonder if they have changed this over the years......or if this same situation is present on other drills??

Something to be aware of if your having chain issues.

View attachment 67384
View attachment 67385
View attachment 67386

Dang, going to have to look at mine now. Seems like if the row unit was just moved a bit left it would clear?

 

[Foggy47]

There is a clamp on the row unit......and it's empty now and a bit bent. I got a hunch at one time it was holding that seed drop tube and that rod was either hitting the drop tube or the clamp. Not too much real estate remains for all the stuff to do their thing. I think I should re-locate that clamp on the other side of its mount....and re-attach the seed drop tube. May save a torn tube.

 

[Brian662]

With life and everything else we have going on this year, I'm embarrassed to say that I'm just now getting my drill rolling for the first time.

How did you guys go about the depth settings when you first got your drills?

I moved the drive wheel to slot 6 and adjust the down tension springs on the two outside row units to the middle slots to help with wheel compaction. Where do you guys start out with your "t handles"?

I have pretty moderate loam soils with CEC between 11 and 18.
We had rain on Saturday and the soil is finally dried out enough that the packing wheels should close the trench, I'm planning to put some seed in the ground tonight.

 

[Brian662]

I found this page of the manual to be pretty interesting as it talks about seed depth and the different factors that influence the depth.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

With life and everything else we have going on this year, I'm embarrassed to say that I'm just now getting my drill rolling for the first time.

How did you guys go about the depth settings when you first got your drills?

I moved the drive wheel to slot 6 and adjust the down tension springs on the two outside row units to the middle slots to help with wheel compaction. Where do you guys start out with your "t handles"?

I have pretty moderate loam soils with CEC between 11 and 18.
We had rain on Saturday and the soil is finally dried out enough that the packing wheels should close the trench, I'm planning to put some seed in the ground tonight.

I set the t-handles to the third or fourth slot on the shallow end this year. Seemed to be about right.

How’d it go?

Edit to add, I leave all down pressure springs to factory settings. My logic being that if you set any to be stiffer, that reduces the down pressure available to all other rows and down pressure seems to be a limiting factor for me with these drills.