3 Point Cultivator Help

[Devron30]

I just picked this 3 Point Pittsburgh Cultivator up for $200 and have no clue how to adjust it or how it should be adjusted to help till up for food plots etc....

 

[SVcummins]

Right now it?s setup for cultivating between two rows of a crop like corn or potatoes . You don?t want the spaces between the shanks because you want it to work like a field cultivator it looks to me like you should be able to space the shanks to be spread evenly across the width of the frame . If you have a lot of old growth or old crop residue you?ll find it will want to plug up a lot

 

[Leroy]

SV is correct. But there is different ways it can be set for that but what he says is what is in the operators manual. You will get about a 7" shank spacing. Mine I added 2 extra shanks and is on a 6" spacing.

 

[Tony in SD]

As SVC said it is a 2 row cultivator. Works well in tilled soil but will plug up in trashy fields. Also it has spikes rather than shovels so tilling will be minimal as configured. You could improve tilling and reduce trash build up by respacing/removing the shanks and replacing the spikes with shovels.

 

[Mike(NEOhio)]

Same thing here with a Ford tag. It was used on a golf course for preparing soil.

 

[paul]

You want it set up like this, some shanks back and some front, with even spacing. This will give the most trash flow so it doesn?t plug up so bad, and works up the ground the best.

Paul

 

[Traditional Farmer]

That would be useless in my area to tear up ground, as it is for soil that is already loose.To tear up ground you need a ripper type implement with solid shanks that are spring loaded.They are built on basically the same frame and will dig into the ground.Like your post said you have a cultivator which is built to get the weeds out of row crops.

 

[hd6gtom]

I had to use 1 of those behind a 8n Ford years ago. It was a row crop cultivator only. It will be very difficult to do what you want. You are missing the shields.

 

[Leroy]

What makes the difference between it being a row crop cultivator and a field cultivator is just how you bolt the shanks on. and you only use the shields (fenders, correct term) if the crop is under 10"-12" tall. Taller than that you take them off as they will dammage the plant.

 

[paul]

It depends on the dirt. Loose lighter soil, sand, it will work fine. I?m assuming he doesn?t want to try to grow perfect 260 bu corn and his life?s savings are dependent on it working up 300 acres..... in heavy clayish ground it will be a tougher go of things.

Set the spacing and stagger right and have at it. In tall grass or other plant trash it might easily plug up until you pull your hair out, but can chop that up small with a mower or burn or rake out of the way.

The skinny shovels it has will go deeper, with 4-7 inch duck shovels will work up across the full width but won?t want to go as deep in hard dirt.

If the shovels are rounded off new ones, or turning them if they still have a new point on top, will help wonders.

Paul

 

[Leroy]

Not for primary tilage but in preveiously worked ground like fall plowed and weeds just starting to grow the sweeps will work fine. If soil gets harder than what it will be after planting for cultivating forget it as if you do get it in hard ground with either type of shovel you can and very likely will break a spring shank and as far as I know they are no longer avaible. Have had one for 40 years but not used the last few years.

 

[Adirondack case guy]

Pretty much guaranteed to plug up in the first 50 feet of operation if the ground has not been plowed or disced.
Loren

 

[Ultradog MN]

As said, set the spacing of the shovels so they are evenly spaced.
I would remove the center wheel too.
I dont know why others here say it won't work for you.
They are popular here for deer plots and work good. Sometimes they will plug as stated but you can just lift them and bounce them on the ground a couple of times and they'll usually unplug themselves.
You do need position control on your 3 point or else the shovels will bury themselves and STOP your tractor.
Set the depth so it just scratches the surface and make a couple of rounds. Then set it a little deeper and go round again.
Repeat. For deer plots it is a very handy tool.

 

[hd6gtom]

It's pretty obvious Leroy doesn't know the difference between a row crop cultivator and a field cultivator. Good luck with your row crop cultivator.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

You could drag that cultivator around on my sod ground all day and probably never kill the Fescue much less tear the ground up.Red Clay land takes a serious implement and
a lot of HP to work up.

 

[jamstra]

It's what I would call a spring-tine cultivator, used either for cultivating between rows of potatoes or root crops such as turnips, OR, with the units spaced evenly on the frame, for working up a good tilth on ground already ploughed and disced. If you have stones, the action of the springy tines will ping every stone onto the surface, just nice and handy for you to pick up! To change the spacing, looks like a lot of kroil and heat will be needed to free up the bolts holding the unit to the frame. As others have said, not for primary cultivation - there lies a road to breakage and frustration!

 

[Russ from MN]

We have 2 of them just like it, but one of ours says Ferguson and the other Dearborn! A very versatile little cultivator that can be used for many things, but it's not a chisel plow. By adjusting the top link shorter you can make it dig in a little more, in real hard ground it will just skip along on top. There is a guy in Wisconsin that has a lot of parts, he advertises on Wausau craigslist.

 

[Devron30]

(quoted from post at 00:03:14 03/08/19) You want it set up like this, some shanks back and some front, with even spacing. This will give the most trash flow so it doesn?t plug up so bad, and works up the ground the best.

Paul
<img src="https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cvphotos/cvphoto15686.jpg">

Any idea where I can get a couple more shanks for this cultivator to fill the gaps? I also seen a tag saying it’s a Dearborn model.

 

[LarryH]

I have extra shanks and points let me know

 

[Devron30]

I think I would need 2 more to fill that gap. Are you wanting to sell? You can PM if need.

 

[Leroy]

I think I seem to know more about them than you do. Or the tractor company that sold them new after having them made to put their name on them.

 

[SVcummins]

You have enough shanks already you just need to
fan them out so they cover the entire width of the
cultivator

 

[paul]

No, you may want less shanks to start!

Space out what you have evenly, as my picture shows below. More shanks will not be a good idea!

You need space between the shanks for the trash (plants and roots) to flow between them.

Those really close spaced shanks only work in plant free worked dirt.

Your only hope to work up ground that hasn?t been touched is to have wide, even spacing between your shanks. You need to move what you have, not add more!

As others mention, do be careful trying to work up hard ground, your cultivator is a little weak for that work, don?t try to go too deep, etc.

Wish you had someone experienced to help,you,out there for an hour. It?s really easy, but it all probably sounds odd to you with no experience at it. Hands on would be
a lot easier to show you.

Paul