MF 30 drill width?

[Penmoel]

Blimey, nothing more to say, we had a 550 years ago and it couldn't pull a clocker off its nest. A souped up grey fergie?

About sums it up,too true, not a patch on a 135 though, the 550 now is on scraper duty only

 

[multi power]

About sums it up,too true, not a patch on a 135 though, the 550 now is on scraper duty only

But a 135 is the most successful tractor ever, as far as I'm aware only a grey Fergie was built in greater numbers than the 135

 

[Drillman]

Well if it can pull a set of 6m rolls what weigh more than what a loaded drill will, which also dont put much weight on the drawbar.....why shouldnt it pull the drill

you have a serious case of underestimation i think

in your part of the world maybe but in mine your in Lala land. I think you underestimate how power and traction sapping hills can be.

Anyway we have moved on and can now cover as many if not more acres in a day with the 3 metre combi as we could with a 3 metre MF30 with half the staff and less overall HP in the field. And have the added bonus of better seedbeds and timeliness.

 

[multi power]

I'm starting to wonder how anything got drilled back in the days of 60 hp being a big tractor !

 

[Drillman]

I'm starting to wonder how anything got drilled back in the days of 60 hp being a big tractor !

everyone got there it just took longer with more staff. For example when the old fella and me had a DB1690 ploughing with 4 furrows and p harrowing with 3 metres followed by the 885nash on the mf30 it was usually the second half of October before we got our 200 acres done. Nowadays with my TM155 with 5 furrow plough and 3 metre combi I get all ours done in sept then go on and do another 150 acres drilling for a neighbour rarely getting done much later than 1st week in October.

 

[Exfarmer]

Here's a nice photo from my MF book...
View attachment 250831
but... why all the weights, especially on the front, on a flat field?
And no duals, and only 80-odd hp...

(By the way, according to this book, there's half a tonne on the tractor drawbar)

The weights were probably on there if they were using pressure control on the drill as it certainly made steering very light.
The larger Massey drills came with a Pressure controller bracket on standard I think. certainly my 4 metre had it and we occasionally used it when we only had a 990 to pull it with. We thought we had moved to big time with a Nash 785 4WD

 

[bobk]

I love using my 30 , it'll pi55 8 acres an hour in our smallish fields .
But nobody has mentioned how utterly crap they are if it's a bit sticky , heaven forbid if it's wet.

 

[cfr1964]

everyone got there it just took longer with more staff. For example when the old fella and me had a DB1690 ploughing with 4 furrows and p harrowing with 3 metres followed by the 885nash on the mf30 it was usually the second half of October before we got our 200 acres done. Nowadays with my TM155 with 5 furrow plough and 3 metre combi I get all ours done in sept then go on and do another 150 acres drilling for a neighbour rarely getting done much later than 1st week in October.

Ah but you had to do all the ploughing downhill with the broon
Seriously though the climate must be changing as I doubt if many crops would get established round here without the powerharrow/drill

 

[Drillman]

I love using my 30 , it'll pi55 8 acres an hour in our smallish fields .
But nobody has mentioned how utterly crap they are if it's a bit sticky , heaven forbid if it's wet.

If it's wet speed is your friend we discovered. I remember one year we were still drilling in November and soil/mud from the mf30 tyres being thrown as high as the tractor cab. Never had that issue with combi as we are always done before it gets that bad. I think the demise of the fergie drill was a direct result of the accord air seeder being mounted on a p Harrow.

 

[Drillman]

Ah but you had to do all the ploughing downhill with the broon
Seriously though the climate must be changing as I doubt if many crops would get established round here without the powerharrow/drill

Nah she would pull it uphill but 4x14 takes a lot less pulling than 5x18 and we are going at least 2k faster now as well.

Not sure about climate but 25 years ago it took 2 of us a lot longer to get ploughed and drilled than can do it myself now. But then a TM155 is in a completely different league to a DB1690. And at 5 times the purchase price ( both bought used) it bloody well should be.

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

I'm starting to wonder how anything got drilled back in the days of 60 hp being a big tractor !

I dunno Sam. We still"bugger about" with 60hp.

(just to drag it a bit further off topic.. )

Bit of blue for a red thread....

 

[multi power]

I dunno Sam. We still"bugger about" with 60hp.

(just to drag it a bit further off topic.. )
View attachment 250964
Bit of blue for a red thread....

Not that I'm an expert but from your photos on here your crops do well
What would you gain from a fancy power Harrow drill? Extra tonne an acre? Extra £100 a tonne for the grain?

 

[Flat 10]

Not that I'm an expert but from your photos on here your crops do well
What would you gain from a fancy power Harrow drill? Extra tonne an acre? Extra £100 a tonne for the grain?

Nothing on a nice day like that, you can't justify it, in fact @carbonfibre farmer will be making more money. However on heavier land or in wetter or drier conditions could be the difference between having a crop or not.

 

[John 1594]

wouldnt fancy unblocking those cage wheels on wet going though

have memories of grandfather blocking a set up once, he undone the clamps, reversed out of them as left them standing on the headland all winter, then the next spring spent a morning poking them out with a spud before hooking them back on and bringing them home!!!!

 

[Mursal]

Just a pity the grain we sell is so cheap, when you see how much kit has moved on ................

 

[fermec860]

You misunderstand the problem.
The 30 had very limited travel for individual coulters, unlike most amazone type drills which can probably lift up a foot in work.
Due to the power down on the Rams the coulters would double as a direct drill in good co nditions. But if you wanted to set seed 1 inch deep and there was a 2 inch furrow below it laid on top.
Hell of a good drill for nearly all work.

Just a pity the grain we sell is so cheap, when you see how much kit has moved on ................

first drill I used was amf 30 with hestair tramliner on behind a 60 up renault seemed a lot less stressful than today's air drills you could see all the meters running more so in the dark whith only one plough light

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

Not that I'm an expert but from your photos on here your crops do well
What would you gain from a fancy power Harrow drill? Extra tonne an acre? Extra £100 a tonne for the grain?

As with all photos,don't "necessarily" show the worst bits...editing

We're not high input high output.

Nothing on a nice day like that, you can't justify it, in fact @carbonfibre farmer will be making more money. However on heavier land or in wetter or drier conditions could be the difference between having a crop or not.

You should see some of the conditions the old bus has drilled into.... If it'll cover,it'll grow.

wouldnt fancy unblocking those cage wheels on wet going though

have memories of grandfather blocking a set up once, he undone the clamps, reversed out of them as left them standing on the headland all winter, then the next spring spent a morning poking them out with a spud before hooking them back on and bringing them home!!!!

My view on cage wheels
But when it's wet about here cage wheels tend to block up later than duals.



And to drag myself back on topic.

One of my best friends uses a mf drill behind a Massey 3060 2wd.
He does regularly put a 3mtr maschio ph on it with a fabricated bridge link to the drill. Seems to pull well (dualed of course)

 

[John 1594]

As with all photos,don't "necessarily" show the worst bits...editing

We're not high input high output.



You should see some of the conditions the old bus has drilled into.... If it'll cover,it'll grow.



My view on cage wheels
But when it's wet about here cage wheels tend to block up later than duals.



And to drag myself back on topic.

One of my best friends uses a mf drill behind a Massey 3060 2wd.
He does regularly put a 3mtr maschio ph on it with a fabricated bridge link to the drill. Seems to pull well (dualed of course)

shhhhh...dont tell those yorkshire hill dwellers that, they wont believe you

Aparently to farm in yorkshire you need a 4wd and it nees to be blue

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

shhhhh...dont tell those yorkshire hill dwellers that, they wont believe you

Aparently to farm in yorkshire you need a 4wd and it nees to be blue

What like one of these quality 3 cylinder's......know how much you love them!

 

[John 1594]

Mark-stig cultivator on the back?

dont see many of those nowdays