What Air Drill works best in rocks?

[silverback]

Just wondering also.

[silverback]

What about heavy trash? Heavy Clay/gumbo? Hard dry soils? We run an older orange colored machine that needs updating soon so would appreciate any thoughts. Might go double shoot to get rid of MRB's, opener suggestions? Thanks (I know this should have gone in Machinery - sorry)

[newguy]

Have a morris maxim double shoot. Used to have the stealth openers and have put on the atom jet side band openers. Easier pull...Better seed placement...less opener breakage.. Guess I will see in the crop but has worked for me..

[BreadWinner]

We used morris maxim I and II since 95 till last year and they were really good in all these situations, very dependable machine without mrbs. We used the paired row boot with double shoot and it did a great job. They are very resonably priced at auctions if you dont want new.Try to stick with a later 7000series cart and the 8000s are even better. We have rocky land and the picking is only 10% of what we used to pick.

[ado089]

press drill

[mcfarms]

chicago pnuematic?

[cottonpicken]

Heavy trip flexi/red/blue/purple machines with
atom jets

-second biggest mistake i made steath/dutch deep
till openers-bring up every rock there is,fractures
sub soil

-first bggest mistake ever mid row granular
fertilizer

-waiting to hear bad stories about the the light
shank system of the masters and hawks but have
not although they are supiore in many ways they
have a problem with trash.

[dave4441]

Why did you not like mid row granular?

[wmoebis]

Been farming hills and rocks all my life. The absolute best way to make ANY drill work is a two wheeled wagon and strong back, get real close to nature. Second is a rock picker.

[Braveheart]

We have some land that is verrry stoney (in ground hard heads). We have tried them all, literally. All drills are reasonable although the orange ones have a bit more breakage. The biggest enemy is speed. Slow seeding like 3.5 where it's really bad to 4-4.5 mph where a little better keeps breakdowns to a minimum.

We currently use a Seed Hawk and it surprised us at how well it handled the rocks. Zero breakdown. Trash with it though has to be very well managed.

[Hopperbin]

I would say go with the bourgault 5710 with mid row coulters, the coulters will not bring up rocks. Next thing you want is the 220 trip system with 3/4 carbide knives for the seed runs. The trip will stand up forever giving very little wear or trouble and used machines are availlable. The 220 light trip will dig out much less rocks. If there are cracks on the frame bourgault will weld it up free of charge on older machines. I use the seed master now for a couple years and notice more rocks coming up and on occation notice a nasty trip over a rock. But no damage surprisingly. I hope to have a trash advantage when I get the smart hitch working next year, needed to get my rows straighter this year. Don't think it would work around corners.

[fjlip]

I agree the Bourgault single spring 230 trip has virtually retired our rock picker to part of a day per season. The only issues are soil type, opener size and penetration. 230 might not be enough. Have an 8810 with that trip and NEVER bent a shank in 12 years. We did rebuild the pins last year, about $700 and one day.