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3rd gear plowing ??? Super M and 3 x14 plow (#16)

M

mike1972chev

Well-known Member
I KNOW this is a "loaded" question,but here goes!I keep hearing/bragging about plowing in 3rd gear,and then some say NO WAY!

I am getting closer to "Plow Day " here in Indy.We will be doing a bean field that is recently cut.I am guessing it is alreadly fairly loose soil????I know soil condition is alot of it.If it had NEVER been plowed,or if it is mostly clay,I bet 3rd gear would be out of the question?

I guess I would also be setting my depth at 7" inches/(1/2 of 1 board witdth)

Is it important to go "SUPER FAST" for some reason while plowing ???????
 
it all comes down to WHAT type of soil your plowing in

at my place, i can take my W-30 with a 3-14 #8 around 8-9 inches deep in second gear. Not more than 7 miles NE of me there are some fields where the exact same setup will drop that tractor down into first gear and make her grunt. its all about the dirt
 
Just like the other guy said it can be done, depends on contitions. Example i have a Super MD, has 450D kit, with D350 injector pump, RPMs are 200 over rated. I pull 2nd gear in 75-85% with a case 4-14 plow around 6-7" deep, if I hit the right conditons i can throw it in 3rd, however when your in 3rd its so fast and combined with the soild type the furrow ends up being thrown, not a good thing. 2nd gear is the right speed to plow in. Also to if you do end up in 3rd your fuel consumption is going to be pretty steep. No need to beat your machine, a day when you bring it back home on its own power and no repairs required is a good day in my book.

Andrew
 
Here in Minnesota, we had very different soils around the farm, and that determined the gear. We were using a strong SM and a 3x14 IH plow,6 to 7 inches down. On the flat peat ground with easy going we would be in 3rd gear with no trouble, but, it sure does seem fast ! On the hills that were eroded almost to the clay, it would be down to 1st sometimes. Everywhere else was 2nd gear,which always felt to me to be the "right" gear overall for speed and power matched. The M has a nice torque curve for plowing, and sounds great under load, it was always fun for me to plow with it !
 

Here's the kicker. At an event such as a plow day, it makes no difference if your tractor can handle 2nd gear, or 3rd gear. You will be using a gear that will keep you behind the 6 or 7 tractors that are out in front of you.
 
I have both IH plows and Melroe plows. Plow with my old M and the IH 886. The ground is key - but what I watch for is speed and plow adjustment to make sure you can"t tell how many bottoms your pulling or how fast. My thing is making sure the ground is smooth as can be when your done. My grandpa always says a bad job in fall is better than a good job in spring, but take the time to adjust your plow and tractor to the conditions and it will always pull easier!
 
Something Else to remember, I'm pretty sure that in Super M's and later, the transmission is geared faster to use the power you make. I pulled 3-14's in our heavy clay with my 450D and had to touch the TA a couple times in second gear and was a little bummed out. My old M used to pull 3-14's in second, too. Untill I looked up the gear speeds. Second on the 450 is almost a match for third on the M. Second on the 450 is almost the same as third low on my 806, too. At this point, I'm more concerned about adjusting the plow properly and not killing the tractor. Yes, it's nice to make sure the Deere boys don't beat you, but they usually won't, anyway. Now, watch out for them Olivers!
 
To answer your Question, I'm sure it varies by soil type, but in my expirence, the faster you can plow, the smoother and nicer job you will do. Of course, there is a limit. Once you start to really throw the dirt, as in past the intended furrow, that's not a good thing. And I don't like to plow any faster than I can Sustain. Meaning if I can run in say 3rd for a while and have to shift down or use the TA quite often, then it is time to consider 2nd gear. I don't like to use the TA unless I have to. It's nice to have, but, I don't like running continously in TA. You don't have that problem, anyway.
 
I remember my Dad helping his cousin plow one year,my Dad on his SM with 3x14 s and the cousin witha 880 Oliver and 3 sixteens. Of course, it developed into a bit of a contest complete with boasting and kidding ! My Dad said he ended up plowing more ground cuz he went in 3rd and just let her lug and power through the tough spots, while the cousin was using the over/under (power booster I think they were called?)which slowed him down I guess.He normally wouldn t have worked the tractor that hard in 3rd, but you know how it is ! I always smile at that story,thinking of those two chasing each other around the field ! lol
 
Yea Mike SH,
I have been wating for over 15+ years to plow with this set up!The whole idea for me was to learn on how to set these"pull type" plows up.

I am ALMOST as excited about THIS as I am spending the night with my girlfriend! LMAO(No,she cant get on this forum to see this post! :)
 
Yea,if I wasnt able to own an IH ,My strong second choice would be a SUPER 88 Oliver !!!!I think they are a "bad boy" for the older antique Row Crop tractors.

I aint worried about them D@#M JD's!!!! EVERYONE I ever heard run had some "mysterious miss" in them.(POP,POP,POP) L O L :) bad tune up??? Burnt valve????? lmao
 
(quoted from post at 10:07:50 10/14/11) LOL,I never thought about that Rusty?


I hope I am NOT the guy holding everyone else up in first gear !!! lol
Click to expand...

NAH, you'll be in at least second gear, and if you're plowing in soybean stubble, I'd bet she'll handle third gear just fine. I had the opportunity one time to plow bean stubble with my 1940 M and Little Genius 2-14s. Very easy going in third, so I experimented a bit and stuck 'er in fourth. Yes, the M did handle it, actually kinda seemed to like it, but the 2-14s was simply throwing TOO much dirt, so I went back to third.
 
On my soil I'm pulling 3-14's with my regular M in 2nd gear.I plow around 5 inches deep. On the same fields you could plow in 3rd gear with a super M. My fields have too many hugh rocks to plow faster even if I could.
 
Them Olivers can be mean machines. Dad always talks about Olivers. A friend of mine rebuilt his 77 last summer, put super 77 pistons and sleeves in it, and I plowed along side of him about a month ago. Pulled his 2-14's like they weren't there, so we went and got his uncle's 3-14's. That tractor needed about 3 sets of wheel weights to do a good job with the 3 bottom, but it pulled it. My 450 was faster, but it should be. I was impressed. That's like pulling 3 with an H! Blew my mind. Made me think twich about Oliver power. Never know, might wind up with a super 88 or 880 someday. :^) -Andy
 
I dunno. I think some guys are either plowing real shallow or they're blowing smoke up your butt when they boast about how many bottoms they can pull, and how fast they can pull them.

I've read, right here on this forum, someone brag that they could, IIRC, pull 4-14's in heavy clay with their Super M in 3rd gear. It might've even been 4th gear.

On Dad's farm, the Super M has all it wants with a 3-14 IH #60 plow in 2nd gear in sod on the flat. It was 1st gear up the hills, and lifting the plow a little bit to keep from running out of power.
 
I helped a neighbor plow and he had 2 Super M TAs and pulled 3-16s with them. We plowed a flat sandy loam in 3rd direct and sometimes use the TA. On ower farm we used M pulling 2-16s in 3rd gear and 2nd in hills and in several clay spots. How fast your going to plow depends on what kind of soil your plowing. Also what kind of shape your tractor is in.
 
If you're "lucky" enough to be in line for a spot that was soft and a loaded grain cart went though, you'll notice a difference. The way I remember the old Farmall, out of 5 gears 3rd was pretty slow and 2nd was almost creeping.
 
Here in west central Ohio, Dad and I used a SM for 25 years pulling 4-14's in second gear in all ground. Occasionally, we had to go to first in sod in the damp spots.
 
Yes Sir!

The "Minnie Mo" was a strong one !!!!,but just did not get the popularity they probably deserved !!!!

One of my favorite videos on Youtube has a 5 Star Moline in it.ALL of you guys have to watch this !!!! I watch this at least once a week!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5TWb3NBqY8&list=FLJqPPxuEp7w9uV_DDRBqHjw&index=24

I wished I could have been there !!!
 
I personally dont think the Oliver Super 88s ever got the popularity they deserved.The late 50s put out ALOT of "horsepower" tractors! Just like I posted about the Molines farther up!

When it comes down to it,it always seems like the "EGO battle" comes down between IH and John Deere.We all know IH got surpassed in sales by JD in 1960,(They were best sellers in the row crop game.)But tractors like the Molines and Olivers were GREAT ones !!!,but just not as well known in all regions.(BTW,A close neighbor has an 880 Oliver.I havent seen it move in years.The other day,I saw it had been DRIVEN to a new spot in the driveway!!! Made me feel good!)
 
I totally agree with you !!!

I COULD NOT even imagine someone pulling 4-14s with MY Super m in 3rd gear!!!! Let alone i clay !!!It is in GREAT shape mechanically !!!!(ALL "stock" motor,but rebuilt,NO cam or high compression piston work!!!)
 
I have ALWAYS heard that Oliver plows were the best of the pull type plows.Just up the road from me sets a 3x16 Oliver on flat tires.
Somebody should be using that one !
 
A good Super should pull 3-14 all day long in 3rd. gear. I pulled a Case 3-14 with mine 8"-9" and only dropped to 2nd. or hit the hyd. lever on the clay points. Might add the old Case plows pulled a lot easier than a lot of the other's i've used.
 
I plowed a lot of acres with a SM & #16 3x14" plow back in the late '50s & early '60s. Never was able to plow in any gear higher than 2nd & at times had to drop to 1st. Soils were Sable & Ipava loams & plowed 10" deep. 3rd gear was discing & field cultivating gear. Tractor had 4 1/8" Firecrater pistons so tractor had plenty of pep.
 
Mike,
The most enjoyable thing at a plow day is to just drop the plow in the ground, choose a gear where the tractor doesn't have to labor, adjust the plow "deep enough", set the throttle, release the clutch and ENJOY! Keep in mind you are doing what thousands of old iron lovers would like to be doing.

I organize a plow day every year and we have 45-55 tractors (all 1959 & older) and it's just fun to watch them do their work. I tell the drivers before plowing that they should NOT tailgate; if that front driver stops then you might end up right into his plow. If I see someone hotrodding while spectators are standing close by enjoying the show, that driver will not be invited next year...one bad accident and we are done with our fun day.

If you feel you have to compete for speed, then you either are with the wrong plow day group, or
you are missing the whole point of having a nice enjoyable day.

My dad once told me "Remember that some big company built your tractor, you didn't. Why feel that you have to "prove" your machine is faster than another brand? That company will never pay you a reward for showing the world what your tractor can do."

Enjoy that plow day. Those days are a gift from God. You will be judged by your peers on how nice a guy you are and how good a job you did plowing.

LA in WI
 
I think you may consider using 2nd gear at first, get the plow set up correctly for the conditions, after a few rounds the bottoms will get shiny & then you might try 3rd gear, they are much easier to pull once the bottoms are shiny & slick. Good luck, I reside in Texas but was raised east of Indy, I know the area you are going to plow, you won't have any problems, that is good level sandy loam ground there, it should plow like a dream. Don't forget your camera, send us a few pics.
 
If you had to ride that thing for 10 hours a day for 6 straight days in early June heat trying to get a crop in the ground your excitement would let up just a bit. Just saying, but have fun at plow day.
 
I'll second that. I have no first hand expirence, but I have always heard that oliver plows pull eaiser, too. And I'll second your statement about Olivers and Molines, too. It's like I always tell people, the truth is, they all put out a good machine when they were used as intended. Some held up better to abuse than others, And some simply had more grunt to get the work done (Compare a Farmall to an Allis Chalmers). All fine machines! All break, all have to be fixed.
 
I'd say so, too. But, a WD45 is comparable in power to a 400 or super 88 or moline U. It's just a smaller, lighter tractor. I'd compare them to driving a ferguson. Small, peppy tractor. And if you use the mounted equipment, they'll get the work done. A D21 Allis is a fairly impressive tractor, though. Should kick a 1206 up and down.
 
My dads 1953 SM with firecraters would pull 3-14's in 3rd gear 95% of the time. I live in NE Indiana and the only tractor that you had to watch out for was a MM -UB or Oliver S-88. We ran 3 rear weights on furror wheel and dual and 4 rear weights on land wheel.
 
(reply to post at 09:44:05 10/15/11)
Click to expand...
I never had much experience with the bigger Olivers, but ran a 1650 some pulling a semi-mounted 4x16". However, I had a S-55 for several years and I count selling it among my mistakes in life.... way ahead of it's time (1955) in 3-point draft control, hydraulics and PTO. sold it to a guy at work, who then loaned it to another guy I worked with to cultivate milo with a 4 row 3-point cultivator. He came in one day and asked why I ever sold it... it was the slickest small tractor he had ever used.
 
One major thing your going to have ot do first is get your plow set CORRECTLY. if not, you may as well be pulling a boulder through the field. it will scrub off lots of horsepower and speed, not to mention do a terrible job of plowing. Get the Instruction book for your plow and set it up to what IH says behind the Super M. Also, dont be afraid to listen to some old guys around when they give you tips on small changes to help you get setup. nothing better than old time wisdom from those who have done it
 
UPDATE!: I mowed our field today.Sandblasted and painted my twisted clevis.

Come tommorow,I am practice plowing !!!! : )
 
Where I live it will be a load in this soil, southern IL. Back in the 1970's I had a SMD with a TSC 3pt hitch on it and pulled a John Deere 3-14 3pt hitch plow most of the time in 2nd gear but there were times in bottom ground it would pull it in 3rd. I always thought 3pt hitch plowes pulled easier than pull type plows off the drawbar. I had a set of 3-14's IH pull type plows and the could only pull them in 2nd gear with my SMD where in the same field I could pull the 3pt plows in 3rd.
 
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