Hobby Farms Forums / Tools and Equipment / HobbyFarms.com Forum Topics

Transmission oil

kmw — Wed, 02 May 2012 15:27:47 GMT

I'm trying to get an old JD mod. 5 cycle bar mower going. It's been sitting for years. The book calls for SAE 140 transmission oil in the chain drive. The 2 places I have access to have SAE 85-140 gear lube. Is this the same thing?

Also the hydraulic cylinder on top (raises and lowers the cutting bar?) is froze up. Is there a way to unstick it? Thanks

Measure Areas/acreage Using Google Maps

vtp — Sun, 06 May 2012 16:08:12 GMT

For those who are interested in acreage measurements, it might be a useful tool for irregular shape fields size estimation:

http://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vistechprojects.planimeter

Would this be too far-fetched?

flaja — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 05:13:38 GMT

An adult sized tricycle with a platform on the back large enough to carry a person and say a 25 gallon pump sprayer. The tricycle has gears so you can either pedal the tricycle to make it move or you can pedal to pump up the sprayer. Then as one person pedals the tricycle up and down your garden paths another person sprays pesticide or fertilizer. Take the sprayer off the platform and you have a cart for carrying tools, supplies or harvested produce.

You don't need a GPS anymore use your iPhone instead

mppl — Tue, 01 May 2012 05:46:01 GMT

So you use a GPS device to measure your planted area, or your property's area,or you never used but you need to measure it now...thats for you:
I'm here to present you iAreaCalc ( http://itunes.com/apps/iareacalc ).

iAreaCalc is the new way of calculating areas and perimeters using GPS location available on your iPhone.

All you have to do is to walk along the border of the area you want to measure and iAreaCalc calculates the area and perimeter and you can visualize it on a map to be sure that the area edges were correctly set.

For more information see us on itunes: ( http://itunes.com/apps/iareacalc )

,contact us from our website: www.iareacalc.webs.com

or you can follow us on twitter ( http://twitter.com/iareacalc )

Thank you.

compressed air tractor?

flaja — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 07:18:12 GMT

I know that there is such a thing as a car that runs on compressed air. And as long as the air compressor is powered by the sun, wind or hydroelectric power the car is pollution free. So would a tractor or other farm machinery powered by compressed air be feasible? If a farmer could use photovoltaic solar panels, a windmill, biodiesel or bio-methane (or maybe a Minto wheel?) to power an air compressor and then he have a tractor whose fuel is essentially free so the farmer wouldn’t be dependent on the oil companies.

where to buy horse-powered machinery

flaja — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 06:57:05 GMT

Does anyone know of any company that sells horse-powered farm machinery- things like plows, reapers, hay rakes?

horses or tractors

flaja — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 06:54:30 GMT

Does anyone here use horses or other draft animals instead of tractors or other engine-powered equipment? Someday I’d like to own a CSA farm (Georgia or South Carolina), but I don’t want the expense of engine-powered machinery, and I want to be as self-sufficient as possible if I ever get cut off from outside supplies of fuel and spare parts. I realize that draft animals have to be fed meaning some of your land will have to be used to raise feed and hay crops. But at what point land-wise do you have enough land to make using animal power worthwhile instead of simply hiring outside labor that has the necessary equipment?

Favorite spring farm machine?

HFfriend — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 09:02:41 GMT

What's your favorite farm machine to use when completing spring farm chores and why?

Economy of scale?

Wichman — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 08:02:00 GMT

Plowpoint,
You keep referring to the "economy of scale" in your posts, but I'm not sure you get the whole picture. I would like to point out that there are at least three aspects to this "picture"

Economy of scale:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economies_of_scale

Diseconomy of scale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diseconomies_of_scale

and
Ideal firm size:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideal_firm_size

In my opinion you must tailor your equipment and workers to your individual operation.

I could put in 50 acres of winter squash. Using traditional planting I should get a yield of 1125 TONS of squash. Using over planting techniques I know work, I could increase that to 11,000 (rounding down) TONS of squash; but how would I ever sell that much, let alone harvest and transport it before it spoiled?

Equipment Dreams

HFfriend — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:28:20 GMT

Is there a piece of equipment you've been saving up for? Maybe your old tractor is on its last leg and you've got your eye on something better. Or maybe you're just waiting for your farm to grow a little bit before investing in expensive machinery.

Whatever the piece of equipment and whatever the reason, what is the piece of equipment you're dreaming of? Tell us about it and how you'd put it to use on your farm.

Snow blower

kmw — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 08:21:40 GMT

Although we haven't had much snow here this year, I can remember last winter with drifts so high I couldn't use the rear snow blade on my tractor. Would really like to get a snow blower for it. I've seen plenty of blowers that are 3 pt. and run off the pto.

I want a blower up front. Any body ever see or build a snow blower that will mount onto the loader?

Not sure how to set up

MrsKK — Sat, 21 May 2011 07:59:26 GMT

I'm posting this on every forum I'm on, in the hopes we can get this figured out and running while I'm off work over the next week. We still need to build a shed for it, but until I know the dimensions of it all, I don't even want to get started with that.

This is the milker was given to me recently and has been checked out and is working fine. I just don't know what gets hooked up to the opening on the lower pipe (to the lower left of the machine).

I know the pipe sticking up gets attached to the pressure bucket, then the gauge, then the pipe with the stall cocks on it. Any input is appreciated.

This is a Delaval 75.

ATV/UTV Mowers

nailbender — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 06:39:26 GMT

I am considering purchasing a tow behind mower to pull with my 3010 mule 4WD TSC offers a Swisher rough cut that is $1000 less than a DR mower. Has anyone used a swisher rough cut and how well does it perform. The Swisher does not have a electric clutch but the other features are similar. The material I will be cutting should not be a problem for either unit.

I would appreciate any input from owners/operators of either unit

The best tool you ever used?

Loretta — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 03:48:17 GMT

Hello, Have you ever found something to make your life easier, I know it doesn't happen very often for me either, but I did find a very usefull tool to make my life easier, No I am not a tool seller, just hoping this might make someone else's life easier. We dicided to grow 2000 tomatoe plants this year, man was I ever dreading it. We bought a plastic laying machine, finally figured out how to work it, I was so dreading planting all those plants by hand, I searched on the internet for a planter they were all pto planters that cost alot, just starting out we couldn't afford that so I looked and looked and looked somemore,I finally found the best affordable transplanter, it is called a Hatfield transplanter it saved us alot of backaches, it kinda works like a post hole digger it has to handle bars with a plastic tube in the middle and a metal four sided tube on the bottom which opens and closes when you pull the handle bars open, you jab it in the ground open it drop the plant down the tube, pull it out of the ground, tamp the dirt around the plant with your foot, then move on to the next plant.It worked great, If you plan on planting alot of plants you should give it a try, you can find it by searching for hatfield transplanter, it can also be found in one of your favorite seed catalogs, but only one of them, no one else has them,that I can find and believe me I looked, They are a little over 100 dollars but worth every penny,I searched for a cheaper version but couldn't find one, I would tell you which seed catalog but I would't want you to think I am a seller. So I will let you find it ,Hatfield transplanter it works planting in plastic or not. I hope to hear of usefull tools you have found, maybe you can help make my work easier.

Buying a new tractor

Colinmarke — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 00:44:32 GMT

I will be purchasing a new tractor in the next couple of weeks, I have looked at John Deere, New Holland, Kubota is buying a tractor like buying a car. Are you expected to negotiate the price or are they set prices from a dealer.
If they are negotiable what is the appropriate discount from the dealer quoted price

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Seed drill

Debbi — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:11:01 GMT

How does a seed drill work? I've never seen one. We have a lot of drying winds; just broadcasting grass seed is a no go. I want to try Dry Land Pasture Mix on about 5 acres to start, see how it goes.

Agricultural Machinery

kaier — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 00:00:13 GMT

Dear All,

This is Mandy , the sales manager from Jiangxi kaier Agricultural Machinery Co., Ltd .we are the professional manufacturer in china

and also the agency of Kubota, our products:walking tractor, power tiller , water pump, brush cutter , spray and other agro-

machinery.If any questions, please feel free to contact me.It is our honour to serve for you .

Best regards
Mandy
sales2@jxkaier.com

What garden tool can you NOT live without?

Community Moderator — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:47:15 GMT

What garden tool can you NOT live without?

larger fuel tank for trash pump

Colinmarke — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 18:34:14 GMT

Greetings from the natural state!
Other than filling the 1 gallon gas tank every few hours, is there a way to keep an accessory fuel tank feeding into a small engine (honda 5.5) or increasing the size of the fuel tank?

Which tractor attachments to buy first?

ClayFarmer — Wed, 04 May 2011 16:23:21 GMT

Hi, I would like to start farming with about an acre of my land and I would love some advice as to which attachments would be most useful to me. I have a 34 horse Kubota with a backhoe which I have used to begin clearing the area of stumps and large rocks. My ground is very rocky and very clay and wet poorly drained soil. So my concern is that I need to improve the soil immediately by working in compost or manure. The 2 local equipment dealers are conflicted between advising toward a single bottom plow and disk harrow while the other is recommending a york rake and scarifier. So I consulted a local farmer and he recommended a rototiller for its versitility. Through researching online, in my head I was sort of thinking along the lines of a cultivator and liked the idea of the soil perfecta which i thing may handle the rocks a little better and sounds like may be better for the soil. At least it is believed in some circles. Anyway, I'm really afraid to buy something completely inappropriate for my conditions. Any input from folks with similar conditions or lots of experience would be much appreciated. Again, a lot of rocks.

Walking Tractors

Colinmarke — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 18:11:09 GMT

I got my latest issue and it was discussing the walk behind tractos and hay equipment so I went on line to do some research and found the Ferrarri company in Ca. They are pricey but if they work at all it would be great for me and my size; especially that the bales are 48 pounds; a size I can still lift and toss with some amount of ease.
I was talking to someone about it and they thought bob cat made a walk behind tractor also (but perhaps they just meant heavy duty mower). Anyone heard of main line companies who make them? Mary Ann__________________________
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Questions on a BF 180 (AG Maxx or Rossi)

CoxFamily farm — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 09:31:53 GMT

I found out my AG Maxx BF 180 is more than likely a Rossi renamed. I am having a problem with it and was wondering if anybody had suggestion on a cure. I keep breaking the blade teeth head it is the part that attaches to the arms that actually move the blade guards. Both blades and guards move on a separate bar. When it is running it is great have used old john Deere sickle bars that are single acting and this beats them hands down. Had this since brand new for 4 years first two no problems but last year it broke the teeth head the first cutting and replaced it cut the rest of that cutting and the second cutting and the first cutting on the normal fields this year went to cut neighbors for him and it broke. Trying to figure out if I am not setting it right or something needs adjusted or something is bent or miss aligned really need to figure this out it is $125 for the blade head $30 for the teeth bar and 4-5 hours of drilling out all the rivets and putting them back in to get it back to work. Breaking between first and second blade guard set breaks the head and the bar the teeth are attached to. Any body has a suggestion on what to look for I would love to hear it? Great mower does not clump cuts like a champ usually do 1200 to 1500 square bails a cutting so around 3000 a year but something is not right and need to get it fixed there is nothing any more madding in having less then an hour to go and something break and have to wait on a part to come in.

JD #5 sickle bar mower

kmw — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 20:14:32 GMT

I have an old JD #5 sickle bar mower sitting on my property that I want to try to restore but I know nothing about them. Anyone know of a web site that will give me parts ID's, fix-it info, general maintenance. I think most of the parts are there except the wooden pitman(?). That is the breakaway piece correct?

Don't even know if this is worth the restore effort. I can turn the pto shaft by hand, but I don't know if the parts in the sickle section work, the whole thing looks awful rusty.

Turbo Turf seeder

Debbi — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 16:43:29 GMT

Has anyone had any experience with a seeder like this? I have seen the Highway Dept, use them to seed grass, for erosion control. I'm wondering how difficult they would be to use.

Wagon

Ejacob — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 06:17:20 GMT

I have 5 acres of farm land that i need to remove some dead trees from. I was looking round for wagons that i can pull with my ATV to pick up the wood. If anyone can give me some input on the following website http://store.wiker.net that would be great.

Thank you for your help!

Jacob

blades for pull behind mower?

Chickwitch — Sun, 22 May 2011 06:22:00 GMT

We have no idea where to get new blades for this pull behind mower. The current blades are about 18" by 3". There are no identifying marks on the mower telling us who made it. Tractor pulling it is a Farmall H. Any idea what or where to get blades for this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!

chicken litter spreader ideas

Colinmarke — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 21:34:12 GMT

Was wondering if anyone had any ideas on how to make an effective chicken litter spreader. Definatly small scale, I currently only have about 15 birds. Just can't justify $1,000 for a commercial unit. Have thought about modifying a 3 point seed/fertilizer spreader. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Automated Feeders

DanielCraig — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 12:27:01 GMT

This idea has been in the back of my head for some time. Web-enabled pet feeders have been on the market for some time, including a “Remote Pet Feeding & Viewing Camera Kit” from smarthome.com, featuring a large pet feeder from Ergo Systems, various INSTEON devices to control automation (INSTEON USB PowerLinc, INSTEON ApplianceLinc), and a webcam. Link: http://www.smarthome.com/6184CK/Remote- ... der/p.aspx

But what if I wanted to apply such a technology to outdoor animals such as horses, sheep, and goats? One can substitute an Agpro Pro Feeder for the Ergo AutoPetFeeder, use the INSTEON Outdoor ApplianceLinc in place of the indoor model, and use an outdoor webcam to achieve greater results. I might use Perceptive Automation's Indigo application to control the INSTEON devices using an iPhone or iPad. Granted, I assume I would have to add either loads of internet cable or a WiFi hotspot, to account for the larger areas involved.

Has anyone else tried something similar?

Truck bed liner

Wichman — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 06:32:08 GMT

I've had my truck for several years now. It came with a truck bed liner installed. Now that the snow has melted and the stuff in the back is no longer frozen to the bed its all sliding around, badly. I don't recall the bed being this slick before.
Have any of you had this happen?
Were you able to fix it?
How?

Thanks
Wich

rhino utv

Colinmarke — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 18:01:44 GMT

our local dealer is getting a used rhino (yahama's utv) this week and we are going to look at it - however I'm SURE I read a decent review of it - I thought in HF... but danged if I can find the thing
any reviews of UTVs or pointers to the article I'm thinking of would be much appreciated

any rhino specific comments even more appreciated

we are trying to decide between atvs and golf cart, utv and atv, small tractor and atv... all used ... budget certainly needs to be considered but so does useage
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we may have found an atv

Colinmarke — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 03:25:14 GMT

john deere buck 2006 extendedwith a little dump trailer right on the back of it
we have no where to keep the thing though ... which kind of sucks in our Ontario winters we can't really leave it out - the person selling it isn't in a huge rush to have it move though so perhaps we can work something out!

cool eh?__________________________
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Walking Tractors

Colinmarke — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 00:27:15 GMT

got my latest issue and it was discussing the walk behind tractos and hay equipment so I went on line to do some research and found the Ferrarri company in Ca. They are pricey but if they work at all it would be great for me and my size; especially that the bales are 48 pounds; a size I can still lift and toss with some amount of ease.
I was talking to someone about it and they thought bob cat made a walk behind tractor also (but perhaps they just meant heavy duty mower). Anyone heard of main line companies who make them? Mary Ann__________________________
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mother of the groom dresses

Baler compatibility on utility tractor

Colinmarke — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 16:56:04 GMT

Will I be able to use a John Deere 24T baler on my Kubota 4740 (49 hp)?

compact backhoes

ValerieJean — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 16:02:17 GMT

We've been throwing around the idea of getting a small backhoe/front-end loader/etc. We're just in the beginning stages so haven't really gotten very far. Basically, there are old tree stumps to come out, piles of earth to move etc. The bigger stuff, like the pond, I know we'll have to get a bigger machine.
Anyone have experience with this type of equipment? Any brands that are more reliable? Any easier to use? Suggestions on getting used?

I know HF has articles on the machines. I want the experience from the people who use them.

rhino utv

Colinmarke — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 17:17:20 GMT

our local dealer is getting a used rhino (yahama's utv) this week and we are going to look at it - however I'm SURE I read a decent review of it - I thought in HF... but danged if I can find the thing
any reviews of UTVs or pointers to the article I'm thinking of would be much appreciated

any rhino specific comments even more appreciated

we are trying to decide between atvs and golf cart, utv and atv, small tractor and atv... all used ... budget certainly needs to be considered but so does useage__________________________
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mowers for atv?

Colinmarke — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 22:57:24 GMT

anybody using one?
any recommendations out there?

we have a lead on a john deere 2006 atv with 12 hours of running time on it ... trying to figure out if it can do all of what we need for the short term ...
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UTV's

Colinmarke — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 17:49:06 GMT

I'm looking to buy a UTV/quad for use around our rather hilly 20 acres. It needs to be diesel, and just simple, reliable and tough, no bells and whistles. Any recommendations from anyone out there?

Equine Motorcoach

Colinmarke — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 17:24:37 GMT

Equine Motorcoach has announced the the first unit to arrive from europe. This Motorcoach RV will be capable of hauling up to nine horses. We are excited to be the first ever Equine Motorcoach RV for the United States. We are now taking reservations for viewing. This Horse Transporter will be on the USEF-sanctioned events starting in December and throughout the entire 2008 season

Feed Grinders!

Colinmarke — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 16:34:13 GMT

I have a terrible time keeping organic feed on hand and would like to consider a small (read cheapest version and easy to operate and maintain) grinder for corn/small grain for poultry and goats. I'm sure this will be more work than I want but it feels like I could buy organic grains in bulk and go from there. I found a couple on a site for aaoobfoods.com that seem reasonable. Thoughts, please. Mary Ann__________________________

Upgrade, Repair, or Replace?

JohnnyAd — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 05:02:28 GMT

I have 3 Simplicity garden tractors. Old school, late 60's. They support most farm type implements on a smaller scale and I have had them for years. I like them, and they do a good job.

Problem is my main machine, a hydro lift 2210 has died on me. I think the motor needs to be rebuilt. One other machine is a manual lift and the third is for parts.

Right now I am up in the air. Should I just fix the motor? Replace with a bigger 16HP and add some AG tires? (Will run me around $750 - $1000)

On the other hand I have a nice line on a decent running MF TO-35 with FEL for only $1k!

I like the idea of a full size tractor with real 3 point hitch, PTO, and loader. BUT I am concerned about stepping away from (relatively) inexpensive garden tractors to something that gets REAL expensive real fast for attachments and repairs.

For the most part the garden tractors handle what I throw at them, plowing, tilling, mowing, etc. There are a handful of times a year I need more power and have to get outside help from a neighbor which is where having my own full size FEL would come in handy.

The other thing is I already have a bunch of attachments for the garden tractors but nothing for a full size CAT 1 type hitch. The MF only comes with the loader, no mower, no tiller, no plow...

So what say ye, anyone have any input or suggestions?