961 pull 10 ft disk

[21kmgre]

Will a ford 961 172 ci ford engine approx 62 engine hp (if I remember correctly) pull a 10 ft disk?
I have the chance to purchase the disk but tractor isn't running currently to test. Just wondering what everyone's experience is.

 

[Ultradog MN]

A 961 weighs about 3300 lbs and is rated
about 43 hp at the drawbar.
I have a 3000 which is about 38 hp and weighs
about 3500 lbs.
I bought a 10' Ford 201 3 pt disk = 4 gangs
x 8 discs per gang.
It was too much disc - tractor barely lifted
it and barely pulled it.
I cut the disc down to 8' = 4 gangs x 6 discs
per gang.
It is a nice match for my tractor.

 

[showcrop]

I have been using two 961s for over twenty years. It will pull a ten foot disc easily provided the ground is hard enough to keep it from cutting in. If it does, and you have the tractor well ballasted, you will be in first gear and soon overheating.

 

[JMOR]

I guess those IH-Farmall horses are a bit stronger than those Ford horses, as my Farmall 44hp has been pull 10+ for the last 35 years.

 

[Tom in Mo.]

JMOR is correct but it's not HP it's about ballast and delivering the HP to the ground. Those Farmalls outweigh the Fords by 30%.
My 1956 Farmall 300 weighs in at 5500 and the 961 is closer to 3500.

This post was edited by Tom in Mo. on 08/10/2023 at 06:33 am.

 

[Ultradog MN]

We need to define what type of 10' disc we're
using.
Are you guys using a 2 gang pull behind disc
or a 4 gang 3 point disc?
A 10' 2 gang pull behind is gonna have about
16 disc wheels on it and the tractor doesn't
carry it.
A 10' four gang three point type will have 32
disc wheels and you do carry it

 

[JMOR]

4 gang, 9 per, 12 ft IH-Model 37

 

[Keith Williams]

21kmgre,
I can only speak of my experience.
I purchased an IH 350 10 ft disk, almost identical to JMOR's in 1979.
I pulled it with a Farmall H. Lacked a bit of power but I could raise the transport disk a little and do a great job.
I had a 1964 4000. It has 28 inch wheels, the H had 38's.
I went to a lot of trouble to add Hydraulics to the 4000 thinking it would pull that disk much better.
Boy was I wrong!
The 4000 just spun and jumped and made a mess.
I purchased a Ford 7000 Rowcrop (7200) shortly after that. It played with that disk, but I could cover a lot of ground in a hurry.
The 7000 had 18.4 by 34 tires, much more tread on the ground. It also had the weight to keep the wheels on the ground.

So more info needed as others have said.
Type of disk - Transport or 3 PH?
Tire size on 961?
Weight added to 961?
HTH
Keith

 

[21kmgre]

The disk I'm looking at is a 4 gang transport style like the photo posted above . On the tractor itself no weight has been added and I'm not sure about the tires but I can look soon and get back with it.

 

[showcrop]

Yrs ago I pulled an IH 37 as in the pic with a 70 HP Case. This was on corn ground. First pass it pulled it easily. second pass it was sinking in and it pulled much harder. What you want to do with your ground matters just as much as HP, weight and size of disc.

 

[JMOR]

When new ground or real dry I added this 400# flywheel assy to make it cut deeper.

 

[Check Break]

(quoted from post at 06:47:36 08/11/23) When new ground or real dry I added this 400# flywheel assy to make it cut deeper.

In addition to the IH's weight and ability to transfer power to the ground, those disc blades are worn out and don't offer much resistance even though they do what you need done.

 

[JMOR]

That one on outside rear sure is!
....and I believe you on all.

 

[NY 986]

Condition of tires and anticipated working depth are as important as anything as to whether the 961 will pull that disk. Also,
it matters whether it is an offset (plowing) disk or finishing.

 

[WayneIA]

In the late 70s and early 80sI had roughly 100 acres of row crops(corn & beans),Me biggest tractor was a 1955 960 pulling a 12 foot Krause tandem wheel disc.did
it approximately 10 years Seldom carried the disc Granted it was a load at times, but I farmed on the contour so seldom saw anything but 3rd gear.The tractor
wheels were 2/3 full of fluid and we used duals with 14.9-28 tires. All I could afford at the tine.

 

[RodinNS]

In plowed ground... not unless it's dualed or has very large tires and a lot of ballast, then only slowly. 8' would be plenty from
what I remember of our 860.
Forget about any type of offset behind that tractor. It just doesn't have the power or weight.

Rod

 

[paul]

There are big heavy disks where 10 feet of disk will make 200hp tractor work hard.

On the other hand when I was a kid the Ford 960 was one of the big tractors it would be pulling the 13 foot disk in
fall cornstalks, and the 10 foot disk in spring on loose dirt. Both disks were some worn and light weight models.
Worked well, we often used the 40hp ihc 300 on them. Less hp but bigger wheels on the IHC, was a trade off on
traction vs hp depended on conditions.

So, it could work. But depends on the disk design.

Paul