They Say Planter-Mounted Sweeps "Work Better Than Trash Wheels"

They Say Planter-Mounted Sweeps "Work Better Than Trash Wheels" PLANTERS Planters 24-3-19 Trash-clearing wheels for planters caught on big time over the past decade, but at least a couple of Iowa farmers think they've got a better idea. Shawn and Todd Flynn of Nevada, Iowa, use ordinary 8-in. cultivator sweeps to clear a path ahead of the disc openers on their Deere 1770 24-row, 30-in. planter. The Flynns don't like trash wheels. They think they disturb the soil too much and that they throw dirt which catches on row units and affects seed depth, especially under wet conditions. They simply mount field cultivator sweeps on specially-designed brackets bolted to the planter frame just ahead of each row unit. The sweeps are set to just skim the ground and knock debris out of the way. "That keeps the planter row units running smooth without bouncing up and down," notes Shawn. Each sweep bolts to a square steel shaft that slides inside a larger steel bracket which fastens in place with four bolts, using existing holes in the planter frame. Sweep height can be adjusted quickly by pulling a pin. Holes along the side are spaced 1/4 in. apart. "We've used this idea for about eight years now with no problems," says Shawn. "Some of our neighbors have also borrowed the idea on their own planters. We had been using the sweeps on two 12-row planters until we recently bought the 24-row model. We use the idea both to plant beans into corn stubble and to plant corn into bean stubble. The sweeps are just standard field cultivator sweeps. A local machine shop made the shafts and brackets that support the sweeps." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Shawn Flynn, 65019 210th St., Nevada, Iowa 50201 (ph 515 382-5838) or Todd Flynn, 21617 650th Ave., Nevada, Iowa 50201 (ph 515 382-4129).

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