Custom Rut Filler Business Minimizes Crop Damage

Custom Rut Filler Business Minimizes Crop Damage 27-3-10 Robert Hittle of Liberal, Kansas, has a thriving custom business filling in center pivot wheel ruts on alfalfa and grass - using a home-built machine that lets him fill in ruts without damaging the crop. "Conventional rut fillers use discs that penetrate deep into the soil and cut off alfalfa roots, killing the plant. My machine shaves only the top 3 in. of soil without killing the plant. By the following summer the crop has grown back so much you can hardly even tell where I've gone," says Hittle. Hittle uses a Deere 8410 MFWD tractor to pull the hydraulic-operated machine, which he calls the "Gadget." It's 77 ft. long and is equipped with 17 tires and a 14,000-lb. packer on back. The machine is built around an old road grader frame. Its center section has four large tires that raise and lower and are used to pre-form the soil into a hump. A single semi-tire runs over the hump to pack it down, followed by the packer which packs the hump into a dome shape. A harrow section then smoothes out any ridges that form between the rig's dual wheels. If soil erosion is a problem, a second machine equipped with a trailer is used to bring more soil into the field and build an even bigger hump over the rut. The trailer holds 22 yards of sand and has a live floor to unload the material out a hole in the middle of the floor and another one at the back. There are two harrows under the trailer - one in the middle and one under the back end - to smooth out the dirt. A scraper blade hooked on back of the trailer then catches all the extra dirt and makes the hump. Blow sand taken from fence rows works best for fill. "Both machines are built heavy and ride on dual semi truck axles and wheels for reduced compaction," says Hittle. "I've used this equipment for seven years and have been improving on it all the time. I've worked for farmers up to 150 miles away and have done as many as 70 circles in one winter. Over the years I've put on at least 8,000 miles. I carry a 150-gal. fuel tank with a hose reel on the side of it, so when I'm on the road I can fill up with diesel in towns that I travel through. "It usually takes me 4 to 5 hours to complete an 8-tower field. I charge $110 per hour for the Gadget. I've also done several wheat fields over the years. I charge $95 per hour for the dirt trailer. I don't use the Gadget in corn or milo fields because the residue plugs the machine up. However, I'm now building a machine designed to work in corn, milo, and wheat stubble." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Robert Hittle, 1731 Road P, Liberal, Kansas 67901 (ph 620 624-3112).

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