He Made His own Aeration Tillage Tool

He Made His own Aeration Tillage Tool TILLAGE EUIPMENT Miscellaneous 21-1-7 An Iowa farmer who didn't want to spend the money for a commercially-built aerator built his own 15-ft. tillage tool from scratch. Lynn Petersen, of Elk Horn, used the springs off old semi trucks to make 8-in. long triangular-shaped teeth that he welded onto a series of steel rotors. "It works as good as commercial models that sell for $8,000 to $10,000. I spent less than $2,000," says Petersen, who built the rig four years ago with help from his son Kevin and neighbor Eric Juelsgaard. He used 4-in. sq. steel tubing to build the frame, rectangular steel tubing to build the front hitch, and steel pipe to build a rear hitch so he can pull a harrow behind it in the spring. There are four 8-in. dia., 1/2-in. thick steel drums that mount on two gangs. Each drum is supported by a pair of 1 1/2-in. dia. steel shafts that rotate on heavy-duty greasable bearings mounted on vertical steel bars. The outside end of each gang is supported by a vertical steel plate that's free to slide forward or backward at the end of the frame. The plate is held in place by a hitch pin that mounts in one of four holes at the top of the frame. To ad-just the angle of each gang Petersen simply pulls the pin out and slides the plate forward or backward. To make the teeth he cut the suspension springs off old semi trucks and sharpened them to a point, then made a jig to weld them onto the rotor at an angle. There are four rows of teeth arranged in spiral fashion. He bolted a pair of 1,150-lb. weights on top of the frame. The rig's lift assist wheels and 5-in. dia. hydraulic cylinder are off an old Deere disk. "It works better than the disk I had been using and is much more versatile because I can also use it to aerate my alfalfa fields," says Petersen. "It leaves more residue on top of the soil than a disk and doesn't compact the soil which helps with water intake. It also works more oxygen into the soil than a disk. It's painted Caterpillar yellow and has black weights so it looks like it was factory-made. The teeth are very hard and wear good. I use an International 1066 150-hp tractor to pull it, and it has all it can handle. I go at about 6 to 7 mph. "I use it mostly in the fall on corn stalks or soybean stubble. I set the gangs at the maximum angle in order to stir up as much soil as possible and mix it in with the stalks. It doesn't cut up the stalks as much as a disk which is good on our steep slopes. I also use it in the spring and pull a home-built 3-section harrow behind it in order to seal up the soil and conserve moisture. On alfalfa ground I set the gangs straight so the teeth just poke holes into the soil. The teeth aren't removeable like on commercial models, but when they wear out I can simply cut them off and make new ones. "I designed the hitch with a built-in 3-pt. so I can remove the hitch and mount the unit on a 3-pt. I adjust the top link to keep the rig level. The hitch is long enough to keep the dual wheels on my tractor from interfering on turns." For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Lynn G. Petersen, 2404 St. F-58, Elk Horn, Iowa 51531 (ph 712 764-6892).

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