Kinze's Double Frame Planter

Kinze's Double Frame Planter PLANTING EQUIPMENT Planters 5-5-2 Kinze Manufacturing, the small Iowa firm that makes and sells a deliberate, almost identical reproduction of Deere's best-seller Max-Emerge planter unit, has engineered another "breakthrough" in its bid to market "the best corn and soybean planter money can buy". "We think it's one of the biggest engineering breakthroughs in planters since the Max-Emerge itself," says Jon Kinzenbaw, president of Kinze Manufacturing, Williamsburg, Iowa, and the designer-manufacturer of a first-of-its-kind double-frame planter. Slated for public unveiling at the upcoming 1981 Farm Progress Show (Sept. 29, 30 and Oct. 1 near Brimfield, Ill.), the new-style planter passed its initial field test last spring with flying colors when 82 prototypes went to the field. "We'd planned to produce only 25 but, when our dealers heard about the new planter, they insisted that they get several for their area so we stepped up the original production run," Kinze told FARM SHOW. Available in 4, 6 or 8 rows, the exclusive "double frame" design eliminates the need for any support wheels on the rear frame. "By clearing the rear frame of wheels and all other clutter, we're able to add interplant row units for narrow-row soybeans ù without having to slide or reposition the original row units used for corn," explains Kinzenbaw. The front bar of the double frame will accommodate dry or liquid fertilizer attachments. What's more, you can mount additional opulters on the frame to convert the conventional corn-soybean planter into a no-till unit. Another alternative is to mount some type of cultivation equipment ù Danish tines, for example ù on the front frame for once-over seedbed preparation while they plant. "If you're not carrying fertilizer or cultivation equipment on the front frame, you can load it up with weights to get extra penetration for planting no-till," explains Kinzenbaw. He notes that the double frame is built extra heavy to withstand the weight and draft of whatever you want to put on it, whether cultivation equipment, weights or fertilizer. "We use super heavy 5 by 7 in. steel tubing (1/4 in. thick walls) for the front and rear frames, and 7 in. tubing on the hitch. Total weight of the planter is more than twice the weight of a similar size conventional planter," according to Kinzenbaw. With the double frame design, there is plenty room in between the front and rear frames for extra large wheels and tires (four 11:00 by 14's). They lift and carry the planter at the end of the field. Two gauge wheels ù one at each end ù lift completely off the ground when the planter is in the "up" position. When planting, the ground-driven gauge wheels drop down and, once they hit the ground, begin driving the row units. "This design eliminates the need for the expensive clutch used on conventional planters. What's more, since there is no clutch, there are no drive chains to remove when you move at road speed from field to field, or from farm to farm," says Kinzenbaw. So what does it cost? "A lot less than you'd expect, considering that we've added twice the weight, plus no-till capability, interplant rows, and several other exclusive features," he answers. "We're offering a six row standard double-frame planter for $8,400, which is about $2,500 to $3,500 less than the conventional planter competition. One reason we can sell for less, despite having added all the extra weight and the exclusive options, is because of the double frame design which eliminates the need for a clutch. Also, most of our workers are farm backgrounded. We'll stack our workforce and production efficiency against any of the full-line farm equipment manufacturers." All three standard models of the new double-frame Kinze planter ù four, six or eight rows ù are equipped with Kinze row units, which are a deliberate, almost identical reproduction of Deere's popular Max-Emerge row unit, born out of a long-standing dispute between Kinze Manufacturing and Deere. (See "Smorgasbord Column", page 3). "We're not claiming that Kinze row units a

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