Homemade harrow on a walk-behind tractor with your own hands

Configuration errors

As Alexander Ladygin notes, a correctly selected disc harrow does not need adjustments (except for setting the working depth and leveling the horizon with a tractor hitch or with a hydraulic drawbar of the implement itself).

At the same time, the Rostselmash company notes that one of the typical errors in the operation of disc harrows, especially two-row ones, is the unevenness of the depth of the working bodies of the machine. Namely, an excessive deepening of the front row of the disc battery.

According to the observations of Vasily Lebed, many agronomists insist on such an adjustment, arguing that the front row of discs works with a denser layer of soil than the rear one.

However, if you adjust the disc harrow in this way (the front row is lower), then, given that the front discs already work in denser soil, it will turn out that the machine will "steer" at an angle to the line of movement either to the right or to the left, depending on in which direction the front row of discs is directed, explains Vyacheslav Veklenko.

In addition, the frame itself suffers, and the bearings on the front row of the disk battery, which fail faster, add a representative of the Rostselmash company. And the quick and frequent failure of the bearings in the first row of the battery indicates that it was too deeply and unevenly deepened relative to the rear row and took all the load on itself.

Here, rather, the opposite is recommended: to shave out the front row of discs a little in order to equalize the soil resistance to cultivation for the front and rear row of discs, which goes along the already "opened" layer, says Vyacheslav Veklenko. But what should be the difference in the depth of travel of disk batteries, it is impossible to rigidly determine the "tabular method", this is just the case for fine adjustment in the field.

Design features of a homemade harrow

The best and easiest option for making with your own hands is a tooth harrow. To create it, you will need to carefully study the drawings, which should indicate the sequence of actions when assembling equipment

It is also very important that the diagrams indicate the dimensions of all parts used for the manufacture of the harrow.

The design itself in its appearance resembles a cage from a frame, to which the teeth are attached by means of bolts. The front of the structure should be equipped with a hitch, which in most cases is in the form of a hitch with holes. When installed on a walk-behind tractor, the hitch will need to be inserted into the towbar pipe, and then fix both elements with a finger

It is extremely important to weld a special chain between the towbar and the hitch, which will make it easier to work with the equipment

The cage of the tooth harrow should be as strong as possible, therefore, for its manufacture, you should use square or water pipes, as well as corners to strengthen the joints of the structure. Each part must be made of steel, at least 5 mm thick, otherwise the soil will pull out the teeth along with the pieces of metal.

The design of the lattice to be produced must consist of transverse and longitudinal parts. At the same time, the best option would be a cage, in which the rods are welded together at an angle of 45 ⁰ in relation to the direction of movement of the walk-behind tractor. Such a homemade harrow will be much less bending stress.

To determine the size of the cells, you will need to first determine how the teeth will be placed on the harrow. To do this, the teeth need to be drawn on the drawing, and on top of them draw the lattice on which they should be attached.The frame itself must be of such dimensions that later it does not interfere with working with the walk-behind tractor

It is also extremely important to take into account the dimensions of the coupling in a timely manner. It must be remembered that many walk-behind tractors simply will not pull a harrow more than 1 m wide

Corrugated reinforcing steel is the best choice for making teeth. Its diameter should be at least 18 mm, and the length of each tooth being produced should be about 15 cm. The height of the tooth does not depend on the height of the hitch, since the homemade harrow will be attached to the walk-behind tractor by means of a chain. In this case, the thickness of the latter must be increased if thick tines are attached to the harrow.

The benefits of loosening

In the year before last and the beginning of the last century, people already knew about the benefits of spring and autumn loosening. Then the soil was cultivated with a wooden tool - a knotted harrow. It was made from pieces of thin spruce logs connected to each other and having a common base. Now such harrows can be seen only in the halls of local history museums. Now in the agricultural industry, rotary tines or harrows are used for loosening. In addition to the destruction of the soil crust, the following occurs:

• thickened seedlings of crops are thinned out;
• weed seedlings die;
• the surface of the site is leveled;
• earth clods break;
• the plowed field is being prepared for sowing seeds;
• the soil in the pasture is loosened, which ensures friendly germination of fodder plants.

Loosening can be carried out immediately after plowing, and after that the area is rolled up. It also happens that these activities are performed with an interval of 2-3 days. This is not critical if the weather is not hot and dry. As a result of rolling and harrowing, the surface layer of the soil becomes even, which makes it easier to plant seeds.

Loam is considered the easiest to cultivate. It is a fertile, lightweight and at the same time porous soil, capable of retaining a lot of moisture. Sandy loam and sandy soil, on the contrary, dry out quickly and are characterized by low fertility. On such soils, a slight delay in loosening, which is sometimes incorrectly called booking, contributes to a decrease in yield. Harrowing is divided into several types:

• Early spring. They are carried out on black fallow and plow immediately, as soon as the physical ripeness of the soil sets in. In arid zones, needle harrows are used, in areas with normal moisture - tooth harrows.
• Presowing. Heavy disc harrows are used. This agrotechnical technique is practiced in the southern regions to prepare the soil for sowing cereals. It is practiced in a cultivated field, often combined with cultivation. Loosening with simultaneous sowing is possible, while a seeder is attached to the tractor.
• Processing of winter crops, shrubs and fruit trees. Hoes, small and medium harrows are used. Loosening stimulates microbiological processes.
• Post-sowing. Two harrows are carried out: before and after germination. The first one destroys 85–95% of weed seedlings. During the second, the soil is loosened, which provides free access of oxygen to the roots of cereals. Weeding, rotary, mesh and tooth tools are used.
• Summer. Harrow the wings and clean pairs. Task: to loosen the soil, remove grass shoots.
• Semi-steam. Performed across rows or plowed, using tonal or diagonal implements. Often they are harrowed together with cultivation, stubble cultivation or plowing. Small areas are processed in a circular motion around the perimeter.

When harrowing, the most important thing is to meet the deadlines. If you are late, the soil will dry out, and there will be no pronounced effect from the treatment.

The yields in the fields that were not planted in a timely manner or did it wrong are usually lower. It is also important that the harrow is suitable for the characteristics of the soil. Couplings must be universal or have a working width of at least 21 m.

Features of harrowing

Harrowing is considered the most important stage of soil cultivation, on which the state of crops and the yield of crops grown depend.This agrotechnical measure solves several problems at once, the main of which are the destruction of weeds and loosening of the soil. In addition, harrowing effectively levels the ground and significantly reduces moisture loss. The loosening effect is achieved due to the action on the soil of working elements fixed on a common frame and in the form of discs, tines or hoes.

Such a device is called a harrow and has been known to mankind for a long time. It used to be the lot of working horses to carry a harrow, but today, thanks to the mechanization of the process, this role is assigned to agricultural machinery.

The harrowing process is carried out twice a year. The first time - in early spring, immediately after the soil thawed, and the second - after the last harvest, shortly before the first frost.

Specifications by model

All-frame disc harrows, mounted

Semi-trailed modular and all-frame

Semi-trailed, sectional

Semi-trailer type "Butterfly"

PLEASE NOTE: When choosing a discator for an MTZ or UMZ tractor, it is necessary to compare the tractor power with the characteristics given in the table

Manufacturing methods

Having learned what types of plowing products are, you can make them yourself. True, you have to assemble it manually.

As a rule, factory harrows for a walk-behind tractor are made of special steel that can withstand high loads. The design of the product looks like a zigzag frame that you can make yourself, having with you drawings and diagrams, as well as the necessary materials. To make a homemade harrow for a walk-behind tractor, you will need the following tools:

• steel strip:
• racks for coupling with a walk-behind tractor;
• and, of course, the teeth themselves.

Secure the teeth by welding. This can be done in another way: weld the pins, cut a thread on them, then fix the teeth on them with nuts.

Study the diagrams and drawings to make a great device for your site. A special bushing must be attached to the drawbar of the equipment, with the help of which it is connected to a small tractor. Make a stand with a screw so that in the future it is possible to adjust the height level - this is a guarantee of even immersion of parts in the ground.

We can say that the most practical and lightweight device attached to the walk-behind tractor with your own hands is a mesh harrow. However, farmers and gardeners alike are opting for a rotary harrow. Carefully study the diagrams and drawings that will help you make an excellent addition to the mini tractor.

DIY tooth harrow

This device is easiest to make yourself. If you have metal materials, a grinder and a welding machine, then the process will not cause much difficulty.

To produce a harrow for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands, you need to understand the drawings and determine the required dimensions.

The design looks like a lattice with teeth welded to it. If possible, they are recommended to be bolted to ensure replacement in the event of a breakdown. A hitch to the walk-behind tractor should be provided in front.To facilitate work, a chain is welded between the two units.

The grill is made of durable materials. Mostly they use pipes for water supply and corners with a thickness of more than 4 millimeters so that the teeth do not come off the thin-walled base. A more reliable design involves welding the rods at a 45-degree angle to the movement, which ensures less stress.

The mesh size of the lattice should correspond to the size of the teeth. The size of the frame is designed in such a way as not to interfere with the control of the walk-behind tractor.

For the manufacture of teeth, corrugated reinforcing steel with a diameter of about 15 millimeters and a length of up to 200 is usually used. The smaller the tooth, the thinner it is. They are hardened before being used for strength. When harrowing with a walk-behind tractor is carried out, for efficiency, the elements entering the soil are positioned after a maximum of 1 centimeter. A slight offset is allowed to ensure greater intensity and quality of work. The build process looks like this:

1. First you need to assemble and weld the grate.
2. Then attach the teeth with welding or bolts. You need to accurately measure and do it at an angle of 90 degrees.
3. In the place of the approximate location of the center of forces, it is necessary to weld a chain, one of the links of which to the lattice, the other to the hitch.
4. The final step will be to check the attachment during work, and when the harrow is displaced in any direction, the target is digested.

Regardless of whether the finished product was purchased, or it was built independently, there is an accumulation of wet earth and residues of organic crops on the working elements. Therefore, you should periodically clean the teeth with metal objects or an appropriate scraper.

Harrow varieties

Harrows for agricultural work are divided into types:

• dental;
• disk;
• rotary.

A tine harrow is a simple mechanism, which is a metal frame with teeth of the required length attached to it. The power of the walk-behind tractor affects their number and frame size. The teeth are placed in the form of a zigzag or rectangle and are attached to the frame rigidly, pivotally or on a spring stand.

The harrowing depth depends on the setting of the tines. When they are installed with a sharp edge forward in the direction of travel, the depth of loosening increases, when installed backwards, it decreases.

A disc harrow differs from a tooth harrow with a processing tool. Instead of teeth, spherical discs with a smooth or notched cutting edge are attached to the frame and placed at an angle called the angle of attack. It changes and is 10-25 °. In the process of cultivation, each disc cuts off the surface layer of the earth, intensively breaks the roots of weeds, mixes them with the ground and compacts the soil. When harrowing, agronomists recommend using a needle harrow. The needles pierce the soil and loosen it.

Disc mechanisms are aggregated with a walk-behind tractor using a front or rear suspension.

The rotary harrow is better than other mechanisms for initial tillage. The depth of penetration into the ground is 7 cm, but this factor does not prevent it from being used for loosening virgin lands. It resembles in appearance a cultivator and a disc device.

The rotary tool for the walk-behind tractor consists of 6 edges, a disc and a sleeve. Its working elements are pointed plates, which are located at different angles.

The power harrow is mounted on shafts instead of wheels or a tiller, which greatly increases its productivity, especially on virgin and heavy soils. For high-quality work, it is better to aggregate to high-power walk-behind tractors with gearboxes.

Conclusion

Of all the listed types, the simplest and easiest for self-production is a tooth harrow, however, according to most farmers, rotary attachments are still considered the most effective. On the Internet, you can find drawings and videos on this topic.The work of the rotary harrow in conjunction with the walk-behind tractor should be carried out at a speed of about 4 km / h. The fact is that only in this operating mode, the motor-block engine will not be overloaded, and the device will qualitatively loosen the soil, preparing a favorable soil for the future harvest.

If you buy equipment from the manufacturer, then the most profitable, financially, is to buy a classic harrow, which costs much less than other types. However, having made a useful device for your walk-behind tractor with your own hands, you will receive not only moral satisfaction, but also an irreplaceable assistant for carrying out agricultural work, which will save time, effort and money.