IH 1586-Help me tune-up my plowing technique

The operator mostly has done hay. The people who own those fields don't want them tore up so we don't till, just fertilize and spray and make it look nice when we leave. Plowing experience is pretty much the veggie garden.

The tractor is a good running IH 1586 with duals and I was able to scare up about 8 suitcase weights for the front. Rear inner tires are loaded and have a set of weights on them.

Plow is a really nice IH 720 6-18 with on-land hitch.

Our ground is really not ready to be plowed. Neighbor was trying to work ground and quit. Stopped by to warn me that it is not dry enough yet. Neighbor is a BTO and has worked my land in the past. I took his advice to heart but still needed to test the plow so I found a dry corner of the wheat stubble and dropped it in. I was in low-2 and I had to look back to make sure the plow was down because the tractor really did not register much change. Just pulled it thru and there was no trace of wheat stubble...just turned ground. Continued about 300 feet without trouble and then worked into an area where the ground is just naturally moister than the rest. You could see the change in the turned soil, tractor slowed and it eventually stopped and was spinning in the moist soil. Realistically, with our rolling land, we have areas that hold water longer and this will be the same in May or July. I was wondering what I can do different to work thru tougher areas without having to raise the plow. Do I need to be going faster or should I use the TA or??? From what I saw, the tractor can handle the plow and the PO used a 1466 to pull it. Seems to be a traction issue? Not sure. Any advice from more experienced people is welcome. Thanks!

It is just to wet or you would not go from moving to spinning. Of course you could be enough deeper that it wont pull it too. You need to check the depth and of course you know to check for level across the plow sideways with it in the ground.
I always liked trailer plows best. Seemed much easier to use than mounted of any version.

The proper technique in that situation, at least the way I've been taught, is to raise the front of the plow slightly to keep moving. If that doesn't help, raise the rear too.

You don't want to just bull through, and you probably can't. All you'll do is dig a hole and get the tractor stuck. It's better to leave wet patches just skimmed over, or even unplowed, than to try and plow everything to the exact same depth.

In these situations the draft control is actually fighting you. When you lose traction the draft control says, "Oh it's pulling easier, I'm going to sink 'er in deeper!" You have to make manual adjustments or the draft control is going to drop the plow like an anchor in the soft wet ground.

That tractor should be able to pull the plow in at least 3rd.

Pull the TA to slow down near the end of a row, or when the tractor starts lugging. Pulling it while the tractor is spinning just makes it spin slower, so it takes longer to get yourself stuck.

I have to check and make sure the draft control is not in use. I cannot remember how I set that. The manual for the plow simply says draft control is not recommended for the on land hitch. It's one of those situations where you THINK you have all the boxes checked but there is so much coming at you all at once that your brain gets a bit overloaded. I also think the comment about the TA is spot on. Glad to hear it as I am not a fan of excessive TA use on these older tractors. Lifting the front and skimming the wetter areas also. Although the truly wet areas I am not going into at all on a 2WD tractor, it is amazing how much moisture can be below the surface even 6-10 inches. All else seems to be in line with what you are saying. I checked the manuals and I was actually going at the extreme low end of speed and could bump it up a little, maybe some inertia will carry me thru tougher spots...maybe not or not always. Anyway, I thank you guys for taking the time and for your well thought out replies! More help than you know. Thanks!