IH 720 Plow

[Don656]

I recently bought an IH 720 4 X 18 Plow. I noticed that the plow shares are 16" instead of 18". Is this common for someone to put smaller shares on the plow? What would be the reason for doing this? To make the plow pull easier?

 

[Dave H (MI)]

What makes you think it was a 4-18? It came in a 4-16 also with the in furrow hitch. Maybe there was a miscommunication here somewhere?

 

[DeltaRed]

Some guys would put narrower shares on because they think it will pull easier.That is "false economy" in my opinion.And maybe 16" are cheaper to replace.But the only difference between is 18" has a longer 'tail'.The bolt pattern is the same.It could be either 16 or 18. measure to find out.I trust you know the 'proper' way to measure a plow(no offence intended).A more common thing to do is to put 18" shares on a 16" plow.The 'overcut' will do a much better/more complete job of cutting off hay roots and better rolling of soil.

 

[Don656]

It measures 18" from a point on one bottom to the corresponding point on the next bottom.

 

[Don656]

I was able to read the part number stamped on the shares. I checked the part number on partstore.caseih.com which showed them to be 16".

I'm not sure that I do know the proper way to measure a plow. I just assume you would measure from a spot on one bottom to the corresponding part on the next bottom. I measured from the landside on one bottom to the landside on the next bottom and it measured 18". Is there a better/more proper way to measure the plow?

 

[JCCWI]

18" plow...16 18 will fit. Possibly share source had 16 but not18 at the time shares were purchased.

 

[paul]

Perpendicular across, not diagonally from one bottom to the next?

The holes are the same, some folk are cheap and the 16 cost less, some want to plow and all that was in stock that day were 16 inch, etc.

Paul

 

[Leroy]

It was common for to have what was called full cut shares that would cut everything but then there was what was called short cut shares that were shorter and left a 2" uncut area and the Idea was that in hard to turn over soil that 2" would hold that side of the piece of sod that you were trying to turn over so the moldboard could flip the piece of sod instead of the bottom just lifting and moving the strip of sod over to the side and still have the green side up, some conditions the moldboard would just turn the slice up at a 90* angle instead of rolling it completely over. The shorter the moldboard the more likely it would not flip the sod, the longer the better it would turn sod, Shorter more for clean surface soil that was easier to turn over. Those few roots that would not get cut were less of a problem than the slab not rolled over with the sod still on top.

 

[DeltaRed]

I used to buy "overcut" shares.They were really 16" share that I would put on my 14" plow.The extra 2" would really completely cut off alfalfa roots.There was never strips of uncut roots between each furrow.When I plowed grass/sod,I would bolt an extention 'wing' to the last moldboard. The little extra 'push' would completely roll the sod over.

 

[Leroy]

Some of this hard sod here in Ohio the moldboard would just push the slab to the side and not roll it over even if youput a 3' extension on that moldboard. And the moldboard extensions were standard on every plow all the time. Plow would not sell without them or coulters at any price.