Advice on plough shares

[Petetheploughman]

Hello Everybody,
I'm interested in some advice on the following plough shares:
YL 40 No idea
YL 42 I have a feeling is for hard ground
YL 44 I see used a lot
YL 50 No idea
YL 52 No idea but interested to know what its good for because of the shape
YL 57 I have a feeling is for soft ground
YL 61 I see used a lot

The reason behind this is because I have used the YL 42 on hard ground and YL 57 on soft ground for years
and I've got on very well with them both but they are getting thin and I've been having to weld them up a lot in the recent years. So I very stupidly made a change to genuine YL 40's that have never been used as this is all I could find at farm sales for the least amount of money. But now I can see why they were so cheap.
I've tried them on every ground you can think of but I can't get on with them at all. I've found some genuine YL 42's on Ebay for a reasonable price. But it looks like I will have to carry on looking for YL 57's.
But I wish I looked on Ebay a bit sooner.
Also what are your opinions on Henderson plough shares?

 

[Fergie Ploughman]

I'd be really interested to the answer to this....

I thought YL57 were for hard ground, less share to hit stones and doesn't shear all the soil underneath to make the soil 'hinge' over. Most folk use YL44 as these seem to be a general purpose share. I do wonder why people cut an inch or so off the wing, as that in effect turns them into something more like the YL57. I have some YL42's, aren't these for grass? I also have a YL50 that I tried for finishing, but doesn't seem to do anything more than my normal 44's...

Some of the shares are explained in the ransome bible, but I don't think it takes you through them all...

 

[Petetheploughman]

I'd be really interested to the answer to this....

I thought YL57 were for hard ground, less share to hit stones and doesn't shear all the soil underneath to make the soil 'hinge' over. Most folk use YL44 as these seem to be a general purpose share. I do wonder why people cut an inch or so off the wing, as that in effect turns them into something more like the YL57. I have some YL42's, aren't these for grass? I also have a YL50 that I tried for finishing, but doesn't seem to do anything more than my normal 44's...

Some of the shares are explained in the ransome bible, but I don't think it takes you through them all...

Thanks for that. We will have to wait and see what others have to say. I must admit I see a lot YL 42's being used on grassland so your probably right.

 

[Ley253]

YL 42 for stony ground, the long point can get between the stones and move them to one side, rather than try to push them through the furrow slice. I do have a book somewhere that gives you all the info, but I cant find it. Wing is removed to provide a hinge which helps the slice to maintain its shape, and also make the board work harder.( the last info came from the world champion in 1960, the late and much missed John Gwilliam)

 

[arcobob]

YL44 and 61 are the same shape but the later are thinner. I cut the width down to 6" to retain the hinge. Hendersons are very hard wearing and I have done about 20 matches on a pair without touching but sadly I tried to weld them, even with plenty of pre-heat and they tend to crack.