John Deere 60 rear wheel spacing with 3X16 trailing plow

This spring I would like to do a little plowing with my 1952 John Deere 60 and my Oliver 4340 hydraulic lift trailer plow. The plow is a 3X16 and according to it's manual, the tractor pulling it should have rear wheels spaced 59 inches apart measured from "the inside wall". Does inside wall refer to the cast part of each wheel or rather to the rim? I welcome all input and any other tips as concerns proper plow adjustments. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Peter Markel

I am pretty sure it refers to the inside of the tire. The point is that the tire rides in the furrow and tends to set the position of the plow trailing behind the
tractor. The drawbar should be set to the center position when hooked to the plow. This sets the cut width of the first furrow turned.

Should be more like 56 inches between tires, I have the same plow, my 60 would never pull it. Takes my 70.

(quoted from post at 18:41:29 02/03/16) Should be more like 56 inches between tires, I have the same plow, my 60 would never pull it. Takes my 70.

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Uh oh, well that's good to know, my father has larger tractors so if the 60 cannot do it, it's not the end of the world. I'll try it in the garden first, we'll see...

Is the plough drawbar set to the middle of the draft, which is different from the middle of the plough.

Measure to the inside of the tire side-wall..

A 3x16" plow is close to the size of a 4x14" plow, but may pull somewhat easier..

IF your "60" is a Gasoline only 60, you may be able to pull that plow in 2nd gear, but I think you will need some wheel weights..

My old "All-Fuel" 60 would not pull a 3x14" (Mounted) in any gear excepting 1st (Creeper)...!!!

Good tires are necessary and hopefully they are at least 13.6x38"


Ron..
Do not plow more than 7" deep and the plow will pull easier (BUT that plow had better NOT be Rusty)..

(quoted from post at 00:01:54 02/04/16)
Measure to the inside of the tire side-wall..

A 3x16" plow is close to the size of a 4x14" plow, but may pull somewhat easier..

IF your "60" is a Gasoline only 60, you may be able to pull that plow in 2nd gear, but I think you will need some wheel weights..

My old "All-Fuel" 60 would not pull a 3x14" (Mounted) in any gear excepting 1st (Creeper)...!!!

Good tires are necessary and hopefully they are at least 13.6x38"


Ron..
Do not plow more than 7" deep and the plow will pull easier (BUT that plow had better NOT be Rusty)..

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It is a gasoline only engine, and I have cast weights available for the rear wheels. Unfortunately, the tires are only 12.4X38s in average condition. All shears, shins, and landslides will be replaced before plowing and I believe that the Oliver plow can be adjusted between 3X14, 3X16, 4X14 or 4X16.

The line of draft on a plow is figured by
dividing the total cut by 2, then moving
left one-quarter of the width of one bottom.
In this case 48?2=24. One-fourth of 16=4.
So the center of drawbar to inside of tire
measurement would be 28", or 56" inside to
inside of tires. The 59" figure given
sounds like an inaccurate figure or a
compromised one at best. Mike

There should be a slot in the back of the battery box mark "center" is was put there so you can easily hook a tape measure in there and go out to the inside edge of the tire. So by your plow book I'd go 29.5" And yes I would start where the book that came with the plow says to.
And since it is a trailer plow make sure your drawbar is locked into the set of holes for the center position. You can flip the offset up and shorten it in if your tractor needs more down force on it.
Unless you are in the hardest of plowing conditions your 60 should pull it fine as long as the plow is not goofed up somehow.

12.4x38" will be very interesting with 3x16"..!!

In the right conditions you may pull it, but if the soil is very damp, I would wait for a better day..!!!

I would say the normal MAX for those tires would be 3x14" at the most..

Where are ya located..?? I may have a set of 15.5x38" Duals that would yield 2 14" rims when the spacers are removed...

I am in Central Oh10..

Ron..

The 59" figure given
sounds like an inaccurate figure or a
compromised one at best. Mike

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Well, this formula that many guys reference is something that was cooked up by Deere. It is a great starting point, but the location of "center point of resistance" or "line of draft" is certainly not an exact science. Perhaps the Oliver engineers did testing in an easy pulling sandy field, using their short Raydex stubble bottoms, and intended for the tail wheel to carry all of the horizontal load, rather than the landsides sharing the load. Those three factors tend to shift the point of resistance to the left. Even on the same plow, the condition of the soil can have a large effect on the point of resistance.

To the OP, as others have said, the "inside wall" measurement is from the bulge of the tire.

How wore out is the tail wheel hub on the tail wheel axle? Does your 4340 have the large or small tail wheel? Something I've noticed on those Olivers, the tail wheel was probably intended to carry much of the horizontal load, but the hub can be so wore out that you can't adjust the tail wheel properly to carry that load. Make sure the hub is tight on the axle, and/or be prepared to add additional plates onto the landsides or modify them so that they can be adjusted to the left. This way you are carrying the horizontal load on the landsides rather than the tail wheel. New shares will make this problem worse-they tend to over cut the landside.

And, those Olivers have a goofy short hitch-you can get in trouble in a hurry with the wrong vertical adjustment.

Not to be disagreeable, but if the formula was so "goofy" why is it that a properly adjusted plow (using this formula) can be pulled with a chain and still run straight? Mike

(quoted from post at 13:31:19 02/04/16)
12.4x38" will be very interesting with 3x16"..!!

In the right conditions you may pull it, but if the soil is very damp, I would wait for a better day..!!!

I would say the normal MAX for those tires would be 3x14" at the most..

Where are ya located..?? I may have a set of 15.5x38" Duals that would yield 2 14" rims when the spacers are removed...

I am in Central Oh10..

Ron..

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'm located in Breinigsville Pa

I'm not criticizing the formula, I'm just saying a guy has to be careful when referring to it. It's a good starting point, but by no means an exact science. There are many, many factors that influence the location of the point of resistance.

For example, this caught me a few times until it sunk in. I would disconnect my 2-12" plow with American general purpose bottoms and hitch up my IH 8C 2-12" plow with European influenced ACE bottoms. I would start plowing and think, what in the world is wrong? It's really easy to tell when the line of draft is wrong when I have a side-hill hitch. When I grab the handle it should feel neutral, if it pulls in one direction, it's wrong. I would then adjust the plow hitch to the right and then everything would be happy. Those long ACE bottoms shift the point of resistance way to the right, toward the plowed ground, compared to American bottoms.

I was just thinking about pulling a plow with a chain the other day. I remember the JD video showing that. It's not real impressive when you think about it. A properly adjusted plow should run straight regardless, connecting the chain to the tractor in the right spot just determines the front bottom width of cut, and whether you can drive the tractor without fighting the steering wheel.

Disregarding the chain, when a drawn plow is properly adjusted (Deere plow with an angle brace on the hitch) the pin that connects the angle brace to the main hitch will be loose with no binding whatsoever. This is done when the hitch is on the line of draft. The plow will not crowd in any direction. The chain is just an exaggerated example of same. Mike

There are some obviously more experienced guys/folks in the answer pool than I. However, when I did my first whack at plowing (approx. 15 Acres) at my farm. Main elevation 3200', I drug an old horse drawn -2gang 16" plow (with my oldest pal on the seat - messing with the levers) and had success. Same type of disc and harrows. Got a nice crop of barley/wheat hay that year and the same (newer 3-point old crap) for a few years more. Didn't know squat about setting plow or any of that stuff. Filled the barn with hay (borrowed #5 sickle) and hand labour - mine. No sheep starved to death or were abused- dry country - no gumboots !