Conventional Ploughing Help

[Grandad Pig]

My college is in shutdown at the moment. We have been told to teach remotely. Easier said than done as my courses are practical ones mainly.

At home I have my hobby tractor (MF65) and an old Ferguson three furrow plough.

I have finished a 1/2 hour video on pre start checks. Am doing another on conventional ploughs.

Mine, like most, is just used for ploughing matches, but there must still be a role for conventional ploughs because several makers still produce them.

I could use some help here.
1- Where would you use conventional over reversible?
2- Why?
3- Any other thoughts on conventional advantages vs. disadvantages.

Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you

steve

 

[7610 super q]

Advice ? Keep er lit. ?

 

[M-J-G]

Advantages.
You'll get a plough for next to nothing.
You can lift it with a tractor with a small lift capacity.
A better man on a plough than I will have a better idea, but the above spring to mind.

 

[MrNoo]

With the advent of GPS, no real reason not to plough with a conventional plough, I do know a couple who do with big semi mounted conventionals. As above, lighter to cart about but I am unsure re timeliness and also the fact that you potentially would be running around empty for a lot longer (not ploughing), the starts and the finishes across the fields can be a pain, as they tend to stay despite what people say.
Had a ploughing match here and I went through with a big plough at 90 degrees to match plots, deep, then power harrowed/drilled and I can still see some finishes/starts, also feel them when spraying.

 

[Red Fred]

Reversibles last twice as long between replacing your wearing parts but cost more in the first place.
The student can use a reversible, just set him off at one side of a field and all the wiggles sort themselves out at the end.
Reversibles are heavier so dig better with all that surplus ironmongery on top.
We used to have a 5 furrow conv on one 7700 but a 4 furrow rev on its identical brother.
The head ploughman who used to go to matches said it was easier to set up a conv. as you didn't have 2 sides to match up.

 

[deleted user 837354]

In the circumstances can you get a neighbour or someone who knows their onions to stand in the field and watch you plough and give you tuition for beer money?

 

[Derrick Hughes]

We ploughed round and round so makes no odds . With the massey though we used to fit spacers in the frame as furrow width is to narrow on the standard plough .
Cant beat them on grassland as the plough shallow , these semi digger ploughs should be banned

 

[windymiller]

A lot of 3/4 fur conventionals still used round this area, cheaper to buy, lighter on a small tractor when hanging on to some steep side, handier in small fields, but also soul destroying when you do eventually get in to that one reasonably big flat field you have.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

I could never understand one way ploughing
If you dont like round and round then do bouts,
The only reason i think it could be is they use the empty run to light up their fag

 

[Derrick Hughes]

.

 

[TripleSix]

In the circumstances can you get a neighbour or someone who knows their onions to stand in the field and watch you plough and give you tuition for beer money?

I think he knows how to plough if he does matches...

 

[MrNoo]

I think he knows how to plough if he does matches...

No guarantee at all if you've ever been to a match, you'll see some right old messes on occasion!!

 

[Grandad Pig]

Well, thank you everyone. This remote working malarkey is proving to be a pain. (Did strip my steering box today though?)

I have done a bit of match ploughing and a bit of commercial years ago. Done a nice video for students to watch and just a bit stuck with thinking up worthwhile questions for them. With your help I think I can put something together now.

much appreciated. Thank you all

 

[SRRC]

Get them to do a costings exercise, viz:
Inexpensive conventional on modest tractor with less fuel vs more expensive turnover on a much bigger tractor.
It'll be an interesting one, at what acres does a turnover make sense?

 

[deleted user 837354]

I think he knows how to plough if he does matches...

I read the post wrong and thought he wanted advice?

 

[76masseyman]

When playing with these two, we have very similar output. With the conventional I can turn quicker around the ends, even though I end up running about a bit, but the reversible does take a bit of shunting about, and has to be gentle turning it over.
You don’t see these type of tractor with reversibles on in their prairie land homes, and when
Mr Dowdeswell started building these, he also had to come up with a way of strengthening the three point linkage.
Obviously, as others have said, the reversible penetrates better, and can do a tidier job on the headlands, but they did cause premature failures on these tractors. 9 furrow reversible, 10 on the conventional.

 

[Grandad Pig]

Get them to do a costings exercise, viz:
Inexpensive conventional on modest tractor with less fuel vs more expensive turnover on a much bigger tractor.
It'll be an interesting one, at what acres does a turnover make sense?

That is a good idea, thank you.

 

[Crowfarm]

On the subject of ploughing, I am looking for some advice on establishing a herbal sward over some extremely heavy pure Denchworth clay which has been fallowed for the last 7 years and currently grows a good crop of BG/thistles/other weeds. We are soon to glypho it off and need to establish the GS4 ley in September.

the fields are flat and large and we are hoping to get it done with our Kuhn Multimaster 5fr reversible pulled by a 6215R, work it down with a Joker, stale seed beds, then drill.
Any pointers/what to watch with ploughing real heavy ground, would be much appreciated.

NB. We are used to boys ground

 

[Bury the Trash]

On the subject of ploughing, I am looking for some advice on establishing a herbal sward over some extremely heavy pure Denchworth clay which has been fallowed for the last 7 years and currently grows a good crop of BG/thistles/other weeds. We are soon to glypho it off and need to establish the GS4 ley in September.

the fields are flat and large and we are hoping to get it done with our Kuhn Multimaster 5fr reversible pulled by a 6215R, work it down with a Joker, stale seed beds, then drill.
Any pointers/what to watch with ploughing real heavy ground, would be much appreciated.

NB. We are used to boys ground

That sounds like a good plan with the false seedbeds.

A few showers to soak in will help.

When ploughed pressing as soon as will be a good idea then dont work it too deep or leave it too open .

All in all it Sounds like a nice opportunity.

 

[Crowfarm]

Thanks - The ground goes from being to soaking wet to hard as nails in seconds. Do people ever need to loosen heavy clays with a subsoiler prior to ploughing?

I can see it being hard work getting the plough through the ground when its that tough.