Nebraska Cowman

TuckerMac · Jul 10, 2012

I just read a really cool article in this month"s Red Power about power terracing. Some of the pictures were from our own Cowman. I read Guy Fay"s books and love Jnicholson"s advice now add Nebraska Cowman"s pictures. Who needs reality T.V.?

BillyinStoughton · Jul 10, 2012

A yes...a terrace plow...or as it's affectionately known as in Southern Wisconsin, a dirt windmill.

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TuckerMac · Jul 10, 2012

cool picture. We do not see those in eastern North Carolina.

glennster · Jul 10, 2012

hey billy, are there any terracing plows up in your neck of the woods for sale? i'd be interested in a working one, not a show piece.

sflem849 · Jul 10, 2012

(quoted from post at 15:16:30 07/10/12) hey billy, are there any terracing plows up in your neck of the woods for sale? i'd be interested in a working one, not a show piece.

And where did you snap that picture? I have never seen one in my soil sampling travels.

BillyinStoughton · Jul 11, 2012

I know where one sits. I crawled over it a few years back. It either has a bad gearbox on it or has a broken shear pin or woodruff key somewhere. (i.e. The PTO shaft spins, but no output from the gearbox.) I know the gearbox is relatively simplistic. My guess is that it could be made to work again. It sits in a fenceline south of Mt. Horeb, WI not far off of Hwy 78. I almost dropped a pheasant on it hunting a few years back.

Even if that one isn't available anymore if you know where to look you can come up with them. Any area that puts you in the Mississippi watershed used them at one point in time. Southwestern Wisconsin and Northeast Iowa can be a hot spot for finding em'. The University of Wisconsin had a terracing program they worked through back in the 50's I know.

BillyinStoughton · Jul 11, 2012

I believe I snapped that picture at the Thresherman's Park south of Edgerton about three or four years ago. They put on one heck of a show down there on Labor Day weekend. I remember that terrace plow getting a lot of looks that day. I also so lot's of head scratching too.

DC Snider · Jul 11, 2012

I haven't been a subscriber very long but that was one of the more interesting articles I've read. Never heard of such an animal, I'd love to see one in action though. Great pictures from Cowman!

Ron W · Jul 13, 2012

Ok, I'll bite....What do you do with a terrace plow and why do you use one? Never heard of them.

Jim Becker · Jul 13, 2012

You use them to build terraces. The plow bottom lifts the soil from one furrow and the auger flings it sideways. You make multiple passes to move enough dirt to form the ridge. Nebraska Cowman recently posted links to some video of terracers in action. You should be able to search and find his posts.

You can also go to redpowermagazine.com to get information to subscribe to the magazine or order that copy as a back issue. Yes, I am the author of the article.

big a · Jul 14, 2012

We had 2 of them on the farm when I was a kid. A 2 bottom Servis, and single bottom IH, which I think was just a repainted Servis.
Grandpa has worked for the ASCS, and they either loaned or rented these in the 40's and 50's. When the program ended, he bought them.
I have a really neat picture of him building the first terraces in the county, from 1945, I think, with one of these and an F30.
Never used the 2 bottom one, but used the single to repair terraces for years.
Used to be these things sold for nothing, last few I have seen brought $500+ in pretty tough shape. Pretty sure the 2 bottom went for iron when dad had the sale.

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