Life on the Farm

[M2A]

Bow looks good so far. Been trying to keep up on your thread here.

Just found out late last week that the crew we use for pruning will not be coming this year. Spent a few hours late last week with the pole saw. I'll be out all this week to try and get some big stuff cut out of the apples. Labor seems to be an issue no matter what you do. Looks like the ground will be frozen in the mornings but going to be in the mud after that. Going to be a long few weeks, Im getting too old for this stuff

Mike

[bjrogg]

Yes labor sure does seem to be everyone’s problem Mike. Good luck with your apples.

Had a little birthday party for my daughter yesterday. Was fun seeing the grandkids to.

This morning I started spreading Biosolids and then my brother traded me off. I went to FSA office and reported my cover crops and planting dates. Then I had some tax stuff to do. Then I headed back to the shop.

My nephew replumbed  the variable rate hydraulic motor we added to the planter and we tested it out. It worked. Everything is turning that supposed to be turning. In the direction and speed their supposed to be turning. I think it’s all going to work now. That’s a great feeling. We still have to plumb all the new hoses for the fertilizer system. Install the meters on the hoppers and test them on the planter, but I’m thinking they should work and hopefully I don’t run into any problems.

Then my son asked if I could help him clean the cattle pins. I spread three loads of manure and then the loader tractor had a leaking tire. We managed to drive it to the air compressor and then to town and the tire shop. It was closed but at least it’s there and there won’t be a service call.

I have to get my propane tank tested tomorrow before I can get it refilled. Sure hope it passes. I’m down to 10% and it’s still pretty cold.

Then I’m hoping to work on planter again.

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

Well my tank passed inspection and so did everything else.

As often happens my day went quite differently than I was planning.

It was a nice day . Temp somewhere in the high 30’s to maybe even 40 with hardly any wind. I washed my son’s combine. I had it blown off with the leaf blower already but it has been to cold to get it washed. My old arms are sore from running the power washer. My brother lifted me up with the loader and we got it pretty darn good. Somebody else can wax it.

In like a lamb out like a lion. Guess we’ll find out, but it is March now and anything can happen around here.

Bjrogg

[chamookman]

Nice  ! Bob

[Buckskinner]

Combine looks like well taken care of for being in its teen years!  I bet you could probably sell now for more than you bought it for, although about $400k to replace new...  How much grain do you run compared to beets?

[bjrogg]

Yes we are shop people. It’s been passed through generations. We maintain our equipment the best we can. Much of it is very seasonal and when you need it to work, you need it to work. Next week isn’t going to be good enough. Down time is very expensive when you have a crop to bring in.

Here’s our 1985 Kenworth. My favorite of our trucks. We have a 1991 Mac and a 1995 Mac. Our newest truck is 2005 IH

I’m working on the planter again today and hoping to actually put some seed in it and test it out. That might be a little optimistic though.

Buckskinner we really aren’t that big for our neighborhood. We were up to about 2,200 acres before we sold land and my brother got out. Since then we have also had landlords pass and the next generation sold . We weren’t in a position to buy.

We planted more grain when we had more cattle and land.

Now we plant around 440 acres of beets. 470 acres of white wheat. 70 acres of corn. 50 acres of soybeans mostly on sugar beet fields headlands and wedge rows. 10 acres of rye for cover crop seed. About 500 acres of edible beans.

My son has about 200 head of cattle and farms about 300 acres. We work together planting and harvesting. He grows about 40 acres white wheat. 40 acres of edible beans. 30 acres of hay and the rest is corn

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

1985 Kenworth

[chamookman]

What Transmission is in the K Whopper ? I drove Big Trucks for a living - Bob.

[bjrogg]

A Eaton 13 speed Bob. She spent the first part of her life fueling planes at Metro airport. 400 hp Cat 3406. She’s a nice truck. I use to transfer sugar beets from the piling grounds to the factories. Ran doubles. Before her I had a IH cab over with a 400 Cumins.  I couldn’t believe how much nicer this KW rode. She only had about 70,000 miles when we bought her. Spend a lot of time pumping fuel though.

I didn’t actually put seed in the planter, but I think I have everything ready to give it a try. I put the meters on the hoppers and put the hoppers on the planter. I removed the rest of old wiring harness we don’t need and I tidied up and secured to the harness’s, hoses and air lines trying to make sure they were safe for folding and unfolding and also operations. Then it was time to get to Ash Wednesday mass.

I’m pretty sure it’s going to work now, but I really want to run some seed through her to see if all the systems work.

I have a couple meetings this morning. Still hoping to try her out today if possible, but I get my plans changed all the time so won’t know till it happens.

Bjrogg

[Marc St Louis]

Yes March and -24C last night and +9C with rain on Sunday.  Weather like a Yo-Yo.

I can remember 30 years ago getting weeks of -40C to -45C in Feb. and having to get up to go feed the cows.  That was a bit brutal.  Don't miss those days

[bjrogg]

Yes definitely yo-yo weather. I really don’t care for our spring weather. Normally it’s cold, damp and muddy. With a lot of icing wind right off the big lake. My back is getting stiff and sore just thinking about it.

Well I got done with our meetings and tried the planter. 2/3rds of it seemed to be working but one of our existing motors wasn’t turning. I’m hoping it just needs some calibration or a button push but nobody I can talk to now.

Looks like some more trouble shooting

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

I got my planter working. The seed star needed to calibrate its third drive position. I was thinking I could do this by running one of the system test designed to work with planter in up position but I couldn’t. I actually had to put it down and drive about 200’. The ground is a mix of mud and frozen. I had to remove the fertilizer knives we just put on or they would probably have gotten damaged. Then I put the planter down turn everything on and drove. The third motor speed up and slowed down several times until it ran its calibration and then it ran at the proper speed.

The monitor was seeing each rows seed drop and counting population. I didn’t want to run the planter through the mud and frozen gravel any more than I had to. I did the rest of the test I could with planter in up position. Seems like it’s going to work.

Next I have to get the other systems working. My Air Force system uses air bags to either put more or less down pressure on the planter units to insure the seed disks can cut into the dirt properly. I tried the test for the Air Force system but it failed . I found a couple leaks I fixed and one of the air bags that came with the used rows units we added had a leak . I went to my precision dealer and got two new ones. Didn’t get them replaced yet, but hopefully tomorrow and hopefully it passes the tests then.


It’s sure a good feeling to have the planter and monitor working. I still have to put the new hoses on the fertilizer system.

Also have to put my spray pump, tanks and controller.

It should be just my normal familiar problems now. Hopefully not to many of them either.

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

Starting to look a little more like spring.

Got air bags changed and air leaks fixed.

Next step is fertilizer system.

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

Been working at plumbing the new fertilizer hoses. I changed the 1 1/2” from the tank to the pump. Then I changed the 1” one from pump to manifold. Now I’m running individual rows to the new redball monitor. This is for one half of the planter. There are two of these. There will be 18 hoses going to each of them when I’m done. 9 from the manifold to red ball monitor. And 9 from monitor to each row.

Coming along nicely.

Bjrogg

[bjrogg]

Put in a couple night overtime and did this.

Snapped my perform a couple nights ago.

Then I changed course and came up with this

We got our snow back, but the days are getting longer. Eventually it will thaw out.

Bjrogg