The Fordson Tractor Pages Forum

Currently ploughing a seven acre field. Here's a short video of my efforts so far.
Best, Adrian.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxaQlWlNVTw

Great video
How many acres do you farm with that tractor? Is real farmwork to earn maney or just for fun?
I remember when I was a kid, a Dexta was our biggest tractor on a 80 Acres mixed farm.Now adays, ussually a100 hp 4wd is used on those farms.

Superb video ! Thanks for sharing

Great video well done top job!!! I'm in the process of trying a Ransomes TSR103 on my major. Where was this video taken?

Cheers

AdrianNPMajor wrote:Currently ploughing a seven acre field. Here's a short video of my efforts so far.
Best, Adrian.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxaQlWlNVTw

Hi Adrian
Nice job on the plowing, tractor looks good apart from the wrong hood . seems to run nice with the plow and not over fueling. The one i got here smokes like the 8.15 diesel express train on an up hill run if she gets a big lump of grass or a 14" high dirt pile from a gopher hole in the mower .
How many acres a day you think your doing at that pace, she's not hanging around .
Regards Robert

Hello Matthias, Matt and Stu
Thanks for your comments. I wasn't sure how the video would come out - to be fair, it's a bit wobbly. But it was a lovely day, and I'm glad I managed to record it.
Matthias, I don't have a farm. I'm lucky enough to know some farmers who allow me to indulge my hobby.
Stu, the video was recorded yesterday in Suffolk. The land is what I would call heavy, and a Major would lack both grunt and grip trying to pull three furrows on this particular field.
Had to stop today. Had a hydraulics issue - lift arms wouldn't raise the plough, though with no weight they raised and lowered as they should. Suspect problem with a leaking unload valve plug, though will need to consult experts to confirm cause.
Best, Adrian.

Hello Robert
Yes, the old girl ran well. I was experimenting with the gears. In the end she went best in 2nd gear high box. It's easy to overdo the throttle setting, isn't it? I did on occasions, but cut it back until she was pulling well whilst using the lowest amount of fuel. I can't claim to be a serious ploughman, so not sure of the rate I was achieving. The field is approx 7 acres and I reckon I completed two thirds in about 11 hours of sitting behind the wheel. I've encountered some mechanical problems with the hydraulics, plus the trip mechanism on the plough is missing a spring, which means I have to jump off the tractor at each end of the field to flip the plough. So I definitely haven't been breaking any speed records!
You're right. Wrong hood and cowl. Both off a Diesel Major that I used to own. The plan is to paint her up one day and cover up the wrong parts. Before that I wanted to tick off the mechanical issues, but I'm still hunting them down!
Hope all goes well in Canada.
Best, Adrian.

Yes i would suspect a fault there unless it's blown the piston seal... I had all mine to bits yesterday, resealed the piston although it's still dropping the plough slowly so a problem elsewhere, and gave the unload valve a thicker shim to give it 2000 psi i'm unsure if it will manage to lift the 3 furrow without fitting an assistor ram I've got just in case. I've got a slightly later engine in mine with a bit more grunt but would be lacking grip as mine has no wheel weights and little tread though it'll be ploughing a relatively light field. The unload valve is the one on the top of the valve block under a flat plate with 3 bolts retaining it L/H one of the two when your sat on the seat. (exhaust side)

Cheers Fletch

Yes i would suspect a fault there unless it's blown the piston seal... I had all mine to bits yesterday, resealed the piston although it's still dropping the plough slowly so a problem elsewhere, and gave the unload valve a thicker shim to give it 2000 psi i'm unsure if it will manage to lift the 3 furrow without fitting an assistor ram I've got just in case. I've got a slightly later engine in mine with a bit more grunt but would be lacking grip as mine has no wheel weights and little tread though it'll be ploughing a relatively light field. The unload valve is the one on the top of the valve block under a flat plate with 3 bolts retaining it L/H one of the two when your sat on the seat. (exhaust side)

Cheers Fletch

Found the problem with my hydraulics, but only with the guidance of Brian. Turned out to be a blown O ring on the Pressure Relief Valve. Thanks again, Brian.
Best, Adrian.

Hi Fletch, Hope you put the shimin the Pressure Relief Valve not the unload valve. The pressure should be 2200 to 2500 psi at 1300 rpm.

The three furrow will be loading the hydraulics not in work but traveling to and from work. Fords showed us a film of a tractor on test with all gauges on when we were having hydraulic problems with the tractors. A two furrow TS82 hits the ram cylinder at way over 10 TONS when you hit a pothole in the road when traveling at speed. Most of the hydraulic problems were caused on the way to and from the field according to them.

As far as weighting goes, weight on the rear wheels has little effect when using a mounted plough, the area to put your weight is out the front so that you get the weight of both plough and weights transferred to the rear wheels by the hydraulics.

If you have an assistor ram it would be a great addition as it would act as a shock absorber and relieve a lot of strain on the lift mechanism.

Hi brian I hope so too... it was on the top of the hydraulic block under the top l/h cover plate held down by 3bolts... it increased the pressure on the 3rd service line from 1600 to 2000 by fitting a 2.4mm shim... does that seem right? So do you think it would be safe to increase it to 2500psi? yes it'll be used very cautiously but it's just so i can get a good chance of working the tractor.

Thanks
Fletch

She really does sound good under a load. Dandy Dave!

Ok Fletch,
yours is a Major or Power Major not a Super Major and is a totally different lift. Yes you are right in the position to shim and your top pressure should be about 2200 psi.

You will need a depth wheel on your tractor and plough combination as the tractor does not have depth control and yes, you will need weights on the rear and front to pull the three furrow.

Yes it is a diesel major and it's set to 2050psi, the plough has got a depth wheel and hopefully I'll be able to carry a bit of weight onto the the point linkage if needed. I've resealed the lift piston although it didn't look bad in there I did it anyway but it's still dropping the plough over the space of 5-10 minutes any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Fletch

Finished the field today. Here's a photo of one of the headlands, taken in the misty light of early morning.
Dave, yes, the Ford 4D sounds great under load. It has that 'I love hard work' bellow to it.
By the way, we all know you can't herd cats. Today I found out that it is possible to herd partridges (no, I haven't gone mad!). On the way down this headland a slightly damp covey of partridges shook their feathers and decided they didn't want to fly away, neither did they want to climb up onto the furrows. The end result was a Major herding ten-odd partridges down the field. Have I invented a new sport?!
Best, Adrian.

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Thanks for posting the video and pics Adrian, a lovely timeless scene and in many respects far more satisfying than seeing any number of bulled up better than new idle on a rally field.

I think the 'sport' is probably as old as tractor ploughing - surprised you haven't an old bit of drainpipe wired or baler twined on to safely hold a loaded .410 or 12 bore ready for a fast draw, cock, fire & something for the pot - I don't how old my 410 is but its stock and grip are charred from where it was just rescued from an early towed Claas bagging combine afire by its then owner, it bore previous scars and 2 metal repair strips from where his father had lost it from the Fordson Standard he was ploughing with in WW1 and a wheel spud broke its stock.........

My pleasure, Rick. I've had a Major of some description for a few years and have had a lot of fun with them. It's great to discover an appreciative and knowledgeable group of people spread across the world to share that fun with. Great also to see what they do with their Majors - it could be just about anything, including, as you and I have proved, Volvo rolling and partridge herding!
Painting and polishing the tractor really appeals to me - it's just in my nature. But another part of me wants to see what the tractor can do, and the last four days have led to a couple of breakdowns, refueling by can and funnel, and dust stuck to every greased moving part. That doesn't fit with the spit-and-polish approach. The end result is that, every time I look at the old girl, I say to myself: "I'll paint you up one of these days". And I just might, but it would be on the basis that the paintwork was going to be a protective coating that was going to have to take its chances next time I find myself herding partridges!
I used to have a lovely little folding 4.10. Great for walking down a headland with on a chilly winter's afternoon as dusk was setting. Pheasants recently roosted in the hedge were sitting ducks and provided a good supper.
Best, Adrian.

Winter wheat beginning to show.
Best, Adrian.

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Well done Adrian, I use a similar plough(TSR 102) on a 5000, I think yours has bar points? Did you ever get the turnover mechanism sorted, sometimes I have to push the catch down while ploughing so that it will turnover at the headland.

Haven't fixed it yet. The spring that returns the lock mechanism is missing. This job is on my to-do list.
Yes, it has bar points. I'm pretty new to ploughs. I believe the bar points were designed for stony ground. They seem to work well in the heavy land around here. There are really easy to adjust when they wear down. What kind of soil do you have in your area? The 5000 must be the real master of the plough.
Best, Adrian.

AdrianNPMajor wrote:Haven't fixed it yet. The spring that returns the lock mechanism is missing. This job is on my to-do list.
Yes, it has bar points. I'm pretty new to ploughs. I believe the bar points were designed for stony ground. They seem to work well in the heavy land around here. There are really easy to adjust when they wear down. What kind of soil do you have in your area? The 5000 must be the real master of the plough.
Best, Adrian.

Sandy loam, what some people would call 'boys land'. Ploughed to a depth of 8 inches this year for rape/turnip mix. Mine has UCN bodies. It's a real pleasure to plough with these I reckon the plough was designed from the bottom up to be pulled by a 5000.