Harrow Made From Old Railroad Track Spikes

Harrow Made From Old Railroad Track Spikes TILLAGE EUIPMENT Harrows 20-1-38 I used old railroad track spikes to make a 38-in. wide spike tooth harrow that I pull behind my Deere 112 garden tractor. I use it right after I finish plowing. It does a much better job leveling the ground than a rototiller and leaves my garden nice and smooth for planting. I used a sledge hammer to drive the spikes through slightly undersized holes spaced 4 in. apart on a pair of 3-in. angle irons. I bolted the angle irons back to back on a steel plate. A 2-in. dia., 3-ft. long steel pipe tows the harrow. A pair of wheels borrowed from an old 1-row garden cultivator are U-bolted to both angle irons. To switch from transport to use, I simply flip the unit over so the wheels stick up in the air. It's built solid and is just the right weight for my tractor to pull. My only cost was for welding rod. I generally keep the spikes on the back row halfway between the ones on the front row. The spikes penetrate about 6 in. into the ground. By using bigger spikes I think the same idea would work on a field-size unit. I also adapted an old power lift hitch off another Deere tractor to my tractor, allowing me to raise or lower trailing implements.The hitch bolts onto the back of the tractor and has a steel shaft connected to the pivot point under the tractor. A hydraulic cylinder attached to the shaft that's powered by the tractor's hydraulic pump is used to raise or lower the hitch. I intended to build a 1-row moldboard plow for the hitch but I never did. A length of square steel tubing bolts onto the back of the hitch and can be telescoped out 16 in. on each side, allowing me to pull a pair of push-type lawn mowers behind and to the side of his riding mower. A snap coupler bolts onto each end of the tubing and hooks onto an I-bolt on front of the mowers. The length of the telescoping tubing can be adjusted in 1-in. increments by inserting a pin. The riding mower is 47 in. wide and each trailing mower is 22 in. on each mower so I can cut 91 in. wide. When I built it I had to mow a 2-acre lot. However, it's cumbersome to use and I don't have to mow as much now so I don't use it often any more. Tearing down an old barn? You can use the roller track to build a mini-barn. I salvaged a section of roller track from my brother's old barn and used it when building my 12-ft. wide, 20-ft. long mini-barn. I used one section of the track and lag screwed it to a 2 by 4 board. A 4-ft. door rolls along the track. (Burney S. Jackson, 725 E. 116th St., Carmel, Ind. 46032 ph 317 846-3166)

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.