Proper ploughing

[Dave W]

Don't know how these boys managed to pull 4 and 5 furrow ploughs. Not a 100hp tractor in sight

https://www.facebook.com/244689842274586/posts/1792464580830430

 

[Pennine Ploughing]

I ploughed in the 80"s and 90s with a 4 furrow reversible with 4wd sub 100 hp, and in the 90s pulled a double ring press as well,

 

[puma power]

Always makes me laugh how many hp we put on ploughs!
Dad used to put a 5 furrow Ransome conventional plough on a IH hydro 84 (784) his friend who used to help out a 590 both 2wd. Pulled it no problem. Keeping noses down was a bit harder! They used to reverse up the hill out the yard! Image telling someone to do that now!!! The 784 did it all till about 2000 the guy who did most of ploughing said the 956 was to big for a plough!!

 

[Strungup52]

As a student on my sandwich farm over the winter 1972/73 I ploughed just over 900 acres with a County 1004 and Lemken 4 furrow reversible, mostly on moss soils adjacent to the runways at Blackpool airport. On that ground no problem, but stiffer orangey clay ground near the home farm was a different story. Used a JD 3120 also on some other ground but with a conventional 4 furrow Lemken - it would not pick up the reversible.
The County was reckoned to be 100horse, the JD only 86, but if I could grip (those old typical Goodyear crossply 14x34s) it managed 4 furrows fine, but I think they were only a 14inch cut.
Incidentally, that JD4430 with the 5 furrow in the video was 139horse.

 

[76masseyman]

MF 595 2wd at 88hp on four furrows, and 1155 at 150hp on 6

furrows.

 

[mixed breed]

23hp per furrow Ahh the good old days..

3 years ago

 

[bluepower]

When

23hp per furrow Ahh the good old days..

3 years ago

I moved to Devon in 1990 I used to pull 4 furrow Dowdeswell DP8 and a double ring Dowdeswell press up hill and down dale all with a John DEERE 2850 4 WD, sorry no pictures.That was when JD used to make proper tractors that us mere mortals could afford to buy. No finance back then either! When did it all go so wrong?

 

[mixed breed]

When

I moved to Devon in 1990 I used to pull 4 furrow Dowdeswell DP8 and a double ring Dowdeswell press up hill and down dale all with a John DEERE 2850 4 WD, sorry no pictures.That was when JD used to make proper tractors that us mere mortals could afford to buy. No finance back then either! When did it all go so wrong?

How did we manage?
Early 90s that plough was pulled by a 390 2wd followed by a 3mtre lely power harrow with up n over linkage and nordsten drill. Pulled by a 90hp 390T 4wd. She was light on the front, but headland turns were easy
Major lack of horsepower by todays standards but oddly enough the corn always grew.

 

[yellowbelly]

Ford 6700 Ransome TSR108 3x14" furrows

Ford 6700 and 7700 - same ploughs. Sadly, no pics on any strong land, but the 7700 would pull it anywhere.

Ford TW20 and Ransome TSR300 5x14" furrows.

 

[Lowland1]

We have used a 5 furrow Crawford trailed reversible on a Roadless 94T and 3 furrow Ransome reversibles on Ford 4600's on black fen with no problems although ploughing headlands with the Crawford were a challenge. This year at Christmas i had two tractors with 360 hp total pulling 4 furrows.

 

[Flat 10]

We have used a 5 furrow Crawford trailed reversible on a Roadless 94T and 3 furrow Ransome reversibles on Ford 4600's on black fen with no problems although ploughing headlands with the Crawford were a challenge. This year at Christmas i had two tractors with 360 hp total pulling 4 furrows.

I'm impressed the 4600's lifted 3 furrows- lemkens? I don't think ours would have lifted a 3 furrow ransomes. I started my ploughing career on a 46 Ford with 2 furrows and 64HP?. Progressed to a 956 4wd which started with 3 furrows, then gained a 4th and a press over time. Lovely outfit 95HP. Next came a JD 6810 125HP which had 5 furrows and a press. Now have 160HP on same outfit and make a fair bit higher forward speed. Lacking photos sorry, but some of the ones above are awesome. Like the 595 on the heavy ground and the 7700's are just . I'd love one for beet drilling.

 

[betweenthelines]

Why do you need 4WD to plough with? A properly set up plough will aid traction.

 

[yellowbelly]

Why do you need 4WD to plough with? A properly set up plough will aid traction.

Up until probably the late 70's virtually everything was 2wd (except for the odd Muir Hill/Roadless/ County) round here. Everything got ploughed, every year, without too much hassle - although I remember one year when all our strong land was ploughed with a MF35 which was towed over every acre by a Fordson Super Major

 

[farmerm]

not a hill in any of those photos!! we used to run 26hp per furrow when we had a 4 furrow and now run 26hp per furrow to pull 5.

 

[Chae1]

Ah the good old days.

Now where did i leave my rose tinted spectacles.

 

[Boohoo]

What are these things? 65 or 70hp? Would pull 5 no problem

 

[Flat 10]

What are these things? 65 or 70hp? Would pull 5 no problem

@carbonfibre farmer

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

What are these things? 65 or 70hp? Would pull 5 no problem

70hp (when new!)

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

Up until 2013 we didn't have 4wd.

 

[Boohoo]

70hp (when new!)

Was probably about 60hp when that photo was taken..