Plow coulters??

[ryanwheelock]

Was wondering what others opinions are on 2 and 3 bottom plow coulters. Seems like the last three plows I got all had the coulters, (Disc that cuts trash/ sod), removed. Whats the reason to remove them beside being worn out? How hard is it to find them new or used, I know it depends on the make and model of plow.
Thanks
Ryan

 

[Dave_from_Texas]

Mine were gone from my JD 55ABH also. I have not been able to find any.

 

[Deere Scotty]

I have noticed a lot for sale that dont have them; but going through an owners manuals for JD 55ABH, F620H, & Oliver 4340. They dont list them as being options. Almost every picture shows colters. Specifications dont list them as options either. Most of the plow shows I have gone to typically bushhog debris, & maybe disk it once before the plowing begins. I wonder if this is part of the reason?

Scotty

 

[Flat47]

Neither our IH 2 bottom Little Genius #8 nor 3 bottom #15 had coulters when we purchased them last year. I just assumed that since we live in potato country, the coulters were removed because potato fields aound here were/are never allowed to seed over. The fields around here are heavily cultivated, so there's usually no sod or trash to plow under.

But, I could be wrong...I've done that plenty!

 

[Mike Aylward]

I figure the reason many plows for sale now don't have coulters is because the machinery jockeys selling them take them off and sell the remaining plow to the unsuspecting for the same money as a plow WITH coulters. They then sell the coulters to people replacing theirs for additional money. A plow should have coulters. Mike

 

[Stanhoist]

Most of the times that we took colters off was so it was easier to clean out once it became plugged with corn stalks

 

[Fred Hart]

Ryan,

This fall I was trying to break my truck patch with a set of MF-62 (3-12"). I would go about 20ft and it would collect a large ball of trash between plow beam and coulter. Have to drag it out of the field and kick it off. Over and over I did this,

That afternoon I would have given you the coulters off that old plow.

Most times they do a good job. Have bought a disc plow will try it and see if it can turn over ground with heavy trash. Corn stalks and weeds.

All plows we have ever owned had coulters.

 

[Anonymous-0]

I can't plow here without coulters, we turn sod or wheat-rye cover crop every year. You may be running the coulters too shallow Most problems I have is going in the ground when starting the furrow,

 

[Leroy]

They are either lost laying burried in a field someplace or sold to somebody to replace the ones that are lost and burried and several years ago you could hardly give away the old plows that now you people are paying a good price for so at that time they could get more for the coulters than for a whole plow so they sold them off what they were planning to send to the junk but never got around to doing and now that there are hardly any of those plows around anymore people are looking for them and buying them out of junk yards. And as the coulters were the most valueable part they were sold off.

 

[fixerupper]

Sometimes coulters are removed to help the plow clear more trash. In our heavy corn trash we would sometimes remove the coulters when the trash was dry and fluffy because the coulters were impeding the flow of trash through the plow. Then a rain would come along, making the stalks tough so we'd have to put the coulters back on to cut the trash so it wouldn't hang up on the cutting edge of the moldboards.

Properly adjusted coulters do help make a nice sharp looking furrow wall for those who have a lot of pride in their plowing job, and the moldboards don't wear quite as fast if the ground has been sliced ahead of the moldboard.Jim

 

[Anonymous-0]

Mine plug up in corn trash but they cut sod very nicely.

 

[Moonlite37]

Many removed them because they did not know how to make proper adjustments. Perhaps some knew how to but did not adjust them properly because of the amount of effort required. I think all modern plows had coulters when they were sold but there were some optioal coulters and jointers.

 

[Tony in Mass.]

Some of these comments have to make you smile or nod! From my miserable experience, coulters are fine for vegetable fields or small grains, or something plowed twice a year. Old fields with thick grass roots- the corn stalks guys mention, you will be out there with wrenchs trying to get the coulter back off as soon as your nerves had enough of it. Yes, they will help the shin of the mouldboard last longer, but those are usually cheaper and easier to find than coulters. As for where the old coulters are- as you plow old ground with you old plow and new coulters, you will eventually hear a loud clunk. Then you found you old coulter. As soon as you remove that one, you will remove you new one, and then have lots of coulters in the shed. Human beings plowed ground without coulters for some 4000 years, only used coulters the last 100 or so. and most of those are still in the field someplace, waiting for a scientist to dig it up 4000 years from now..... keep a set around for looks or special jobs, don't worry about them.

 

[Mike Aylward]

The coulters on most plows are never adjusted right. I'll take a plow with coulters every time. We used to plow routinely with No. 55 John Deere plows in standing, 130 bushel corn stalks and very, very seldom had any trouble. Mike

 

[Moonlite37]

That was what I was saying! Very few people know how to set coulters, even the guys at the dealers who set up new plows. The operator manual tells you some good information but like all machinery sdjustments the operator must make some adjustments for conditions. Yes, the three thousand years people plowed without coulters they were using wooden plows. Do you want to work under those primitive conditions? A plow is incomplete without coulters.

 

[RodinNS]

By the sounds of thing, most coulters are removed because people are too lazy to set them right or read the operators manual for a few minutes.
I've never plowed without coulters and with our sod it would be difficult.
A lot of the pluging problems are sypmtomatic of US designed plow bottoms, or generally ancient plow bottoms. Modern, long beam european plows generally do not plug unless you start plowing down fields overgrown in alders...
I've plowed down standing corn that was lost to the snow and mold. With the coulters set correctly, the plow never plugs. Ever. They must be set to a depth where they cut and they need to lead the shin where the shin is going to cut anyway. If set there, they cut, they save wear on the shins and landsides and reduce the power requirement. They more than save their cost in shin replacements too.

Rod

 

[Anonymous-0]

To each there own, but I wouldn't own a plow WITHOUT coulters. NO coulters might work better than with poorly adjusted ones, but get them right and trash isn't an issue. I also use coverboards. Coulters need to be set ever-so-slightly further to the land side with coverboards to make them work properly.

I try to set the axle centerline directly over the point of the plow, run the coulter about 3/8" to the left, 3/4" to the left with coverboards, and roughly 3" deep. That works best in the soil conditions I usually encounter around these parts. YMMV.

 

[Anonymous-0]

These two guys speak the truth form first hnad knowledge. They got this exactly right. Tom

 

[MPK]

They work fine in grain stubble, but when plowing much trash, I always end up taking them off because all they do is keep the trash from flowing through. By the way, I do know how to set them by the book.

 

[ET]

Two reasons not to run coulters are gravely soil with lots of stone an very hard dry soil. In both cases the coulter will tend to lift the plow out of the ground and in the stony conditions you break or ben shanks. Proper setting of coulters is key to not plugging. One ajustment no one has mentioned is moving the coulter ahead to provide more trash clearance. Not all plows have this ajustment.

 

[Leroy]

You would have to prove it for us to believe you as we know that is not true.

 

[RodinNS]

Rock? This is what spring loaded coulters are for...
I've never seen a coulter hold a modern plow out of the ground tho.

Rod