New plough - anybody know what it is? FR PM ?

[porteous]

I just bought this plough on E-Bay. I think it is a PM series 2 furrow designed for an E27N Major, but I could be very wrong. Anybody know what it might be?


New plough 1 by CraigWales, on Flickr


New plough 2 by CraigWales, on Flickr


New plough 6 by CraigWales, on Flickr

It was described as " Ransomes 2F plough on epic bodies " made in 1950s but I think mid to late 40s? One beam seems to have "PM33" embosssed on it. I will be picking the plough up over the next few days, so more details then

[henk]

You are right, this is a PM plough made for the E27N. It was replaced by the EP model in 1951.
I think it has been a 3 furrow before, because the frame casting say PM3B.
Looks a good plough on the picture. Pity they painted the moldboards and couter disks as well.

[porteous]

Thanks Henk, that tallies with what I suspected. The paint on the disks and mould boards should not be a problem, my next door neighbour has 1000 hectares and is keen to see me learn to plough on his fields, which should get rid of the paint! (I am treating this with caution. I seem to remember 5 hectares being a days job with a three furrow.)

How difficult would it be to restore it as a 3 furrow?

Regards;
David

[Dandy Dave]

Actually, If you get the paint off with a wire brush on an angle grinder first it will roll the ground better. A land plow really does not work right until it sparkels in the sunlight. Advice from an old plowboy. Dandy Dave!

[porteous]

Picked the plough up today. The vendor is a 3rd generation farmer with old tackle a family interest. The ploughshares were greased before spraying, so first contact with soil should see them shiny underneath. All the controls and grease points have had obvious recent attention and the tool looks as though it has done little work, and ben well looked after, all its life.

It has been sprayed Empire Blue, but I have a couple of cans of the old E27N blue which will probably be applied the first time we get any warm weather. (Does anybody know what the colour the E27N's were painted was called?)

[henk]

To make it a 3 furrow you will need the cast iron parts. They will be hard to find. Then you have to find the same plough body's.
You have enough acres to practice. Wish I had some. Good thing the grease is under the paint. As you say it will shine in a moment.
Show us some pictures while working.

[Dandy Dave]

Yes, Glad to hear they are greased. That will save you a lot of polishing. Dandy Dave!

[Matt 1944 N]

e27n blue is called oxford blue but there are heaps of different shades from different companies.

[porteous]

A while since I bought the plough, so, prompted by a visit to a local ploughing match on Sunday, decided it was high time to use it in anger. A friendly local farmer gave me a 4 acre field of very heavy clay soil to deal with and I finished it today. Marking out worked well and both plough and1953 Major diesel just fine. Took me a while to set the plough just right, but really very pleased with the end result. The last time I ploughed was 51 years ago, and it was nice to find that so much remained in the memory bank! (Photos to follow)

One thing may, or may not, be a problem. The plough was described as having "Epic bodies", I am not at all sure what this refers to. Shares are both marked as Ransomes, but no markings on the mould boards at all. What am I looking for?

An additional possible problem is the one of the mould boards had a crack near the front mounting point. It is a hairline only and the plough worked just fine all day. Should I bother? Can it be repaired???

All comments welcomed.

[porteous]

Pictures of my A1E Major and Ransomes PM plough working some heavy land near Malvern, UK.


tractor plough 006 by CraigWales, on Flickr


tractor plough 012 by CraigWales, on Flickr


tractor plough 016 by CraigWales, on Flickr


tractor plough 013 by CraigWales, on Flickr


tractor plough 018 by CraigWales, on Flickr

[Bensdexta]

Tidy work, especially for EPIC.

Your bodies, should have these part nos; if not may have some repro parts, which is not a prob.

http://www.westlakeploughparts.co.uk/16 ... parts.html

http://www.fordsontractorpages.nl/phpbb ... f=2&t=5505

[porteous]

Tidy work, especially for EPIC.

Your bodies, should have these part nos; if not may have some repro parts, which is not a prob.

http://www.westlakeploughparts.co.uk/16 ... parts.html

http://www.fordsontractorpages.nl/phpbb ... f=2&t=5505

Many thanks. I think the epic bodies may come in for a lot of criticism, but not sure they really deserve it. Anyway, I will stick with them and see if the local agricultural engineer can weld the crack before trying Westlake.

[henk]

I would try to weld them first. If it not works you can always buy new ones.

[fenhayman]

Did you get a headache from that under slung exhaust?

[porteous]

Did you get a headache from that under slung exhaust?

No, but I got a definite intention to see where all that diesel smoke is coming from (Engine rebuild kit recently, so probably time to service 50 year old injectors and pump!).

[fenhayman]

Porteous,

I didn't even notice the smoke!
Can remember in 1953? that under slung exhausts were replaced because, with a following wind, the exhaust gases made the drivers feel ill.
I was just a nine year old at the time, riding on the tractor and learning the trade.

[porteous]

I think the under-slung exhaust was standard until at least 1954. I drove an identical 54 Major towing an Allis Chalmers allcrop 60 bagger combine on harvests from 1957 (when I was 11) until 1962 (when I joined the army). I don't recall fumes being a problem, Ferguson seem to have offered an under-slung exhaust option for many years.

[tom lad]

hi
good looking ploughing sir , nice photos .

people do diss. epic bodies , I've never used them , there not supposed to 'turn ' the land properly
ure furrows look turned nicely , or 'wapped over' as my dad would say

the numbers on the mould boards 'should be' on the back of the body , above the bolt holes with the arched ransomes crest , but yls on my plough don't have the numbers and I believe them to be genuine????

is there a crest on the points ?

the bodies being clean is a BIG deal keep then greased mate , the changes as a plough becomes cleaner are mega , some take years to polish .or at least lost of acres .

all the best .

[porteous]

hi
good looking ploughing sir

TY, I take that as a compliment. I was surprise how it came back after 50 years off a tractor.

[ford5000y]

Neat and sweet ploughing out there!!!!

Looking at your pics, it looks like the ground is moist. Reminds me of the time (several months ago) when I tried to disc our field with our ford 5000 and our offset disc harrow, with the ground WET after it rained the night before.

That is why I think "wet or moist ground always makes ploughing and discing a lot more fun and interesting"

[porteous]

Neat and sweet ploughing out there!!!!

Looking at your pics, it looks like the ground is moist. Reminds me of the time (several months ago) when I tried to disc our field with our ford 5000 and our offset disc harrow, with the ground WET after it rained the night before.

That is why I think "wet or moist ground always makes ploughing and discing a lot more fun and interesting"

The ground here is heavy clay and holds water for a long time. I could only get 6" depth on most of this, and at times had to lift an inch to keep going, but I probably don't have the plough set quite right. For the life of me I cannot fathom how the "width" control works on these ploughs. The width handle partly rotates the three point linkage axle on the plough. I assume the effect is the skew the plough slightly to narrow the furrow width?

[Dandy Dave]

The plows we had on the farm you had to set them to get a furrow started, and then reset them after you have a furrow to run the wheels in. Looking at your plow, it looks like the lever on the right does this as it tilts the plow. As I remember, the idea is to get a nice furrow started, and then set the handels to have the plow points basically level as you continue to keep the depth equal. If I am seeing this right, The lever on the left is for the depth as the wheel is raised and lowered accordingly. As far as width of the furrow, that does not change as it is set when the plow is bloted together. Once you get a nice furrow, You dont need to fuss with the levers much. The different plows I used had a "sweet spot." It took a few rounds to find it at first, but once you were there you knew and felt it. Become one with the machine and everything else will fall in place. Nice Job Mate. The surroundings in your photos reminds me of the land we have around here. Our bottom land was also Clay. Dandy Dave!

[Brian]

The "Width" setting adjust the front furrow only and causes the plough to pull "into" the unploughed work or "away" by pushing the rear landslide up hard against the furrow wall. It will only need a slight adjustment to get the correct front furrow width, if the front furrow slice looks high it needs adjusting "away" but if it is low then the opposite is needed.

A lot depends on your wheel settings and where the plough is set on the cross shaft. I tend to use 56" centres with that plough on Dotty but Henrietta has wheels set at 60" but both work well. If you measure from the side of your plough point to the inside wall of your tyre that will be your front furrow width and you can slide the plough a little on the cross shaft and use the width setting to fine tune. Do not forget to also use the leveling handle on the tractor linkage for helping to get penetration for your initial furrow. If you crank it up and get the plough to lean over onto the depth wheel, then crank that up, the plough will go in to cut the first furrow. If it does not then you should stop and wait for a little rain. Once into work then wind the levelling crank to get the share running level on the furrow bottom.

As Dave says, when you get the plough right you will know, the check chains will be slack, the top link will run in the centre and you will be able to take your hands off the steering wheel and not deviate from the furrow.

Think its "snobbishness" as to why people do not like EPIC bodies. They bury the weeds and leave a nice furrow to work with afterwards. The "ploughmen" prefer "YL" bodies but these only work down to around 4" and, on wet land, tend to smear the land over because of the twisting action of the body. I much prefer the EPIC myself.

The PM plough was painted light blue not E27N Blue as far as I am aware. I have never seen a dark blue one and most of the picture seem to show them in the light blue. My own came in light blue and had not been painted since leaving the factory and two I saw at the Woods Bros. Museum in Rupanyup were also light blue. Ransomes were painting their ploughs light blue before Ford painted the tractors that colour and it is very close to Empire Blue. Strangely the EPJ's, the later plough, appeared in E27N Blue.

I shall be meeting Anthony Clare who wrote the Ransomes "bible". We have been in discussion about a proposed book on J.J.Wright and Sons Ltd and he will be coming p to meet with us in January



Just a point, the PM plough is not a true Ransomes it was possibly based on a plough designed by Sherman, it uses Ransomes bodies but castings were made by Ford at the Leamington Spar plough works as well as by Ransomes in Ipswich

[porteous]

Brian;
Many many thanks. That is really very helpful and explains the controls very well. I agree that the EPIC heads I have are certainly giving a good result. I think it is a very early PM, it is certainly carrying the FR mark on the makers plate, and I like the idea of using it near where it was actually built. All I have to do now is to sort out WHICH mouldboards I have in order to find some a little less thin.
Regards;
David