3 Bottom Plow Trips?

ipmaynard

New User
Good Morning. So I bought a tractor and then picked up this 3 bottom plow to turn some ground for this farming project of mine. Everything I know about tractors and implements I've learned in the last year through reading and trial and cautious error. This is about the plow.....

I do not know what kind it is but I think it is a trip plow. Two of the three bottoms have flipped up and wont stay down when plowing. I've taken apart some things and the two that are broken are def different than the one that is. I don't even know what to call the different pieces etc. So I thought I would throw a few pics out there and see if I can get some leads on what I have to fix and where to get the parts......

I am posting 4 pics...one of the plow, one of the end of the "tripped" plow and one each of the housing that the plow "sets" into. You can see clearly that the one is intact and set and the other has a piece or pieces missing.

Any help is appreciated as I try and figure out how to get this plow back into working order.

Thanks!
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That is not a trip plow. And besides the broken parts you are also missing the coulters. You may want to find another plow that is intact and
better shape,finding the missing parts and fixing what's broke with this one could cost you more than its worth. Just my 2 cents, Good luck.
 
(quoted from post at 10:13:11 11/26/17) That is not a trip plow. quote]

It most certainly is a trip beam plow. As to the manufacturer, I have no idea. Someone will surely recognize it though.
 
Looks like a Massey plow with spring trip bottoms. Springs,pins,catches can be found at a MF/Agco dealer. Hopefully they are not 'obsolete'/NLA.Some of those can be pinned,or a bolt stuck in a spot to hold it solid.However you loose the safty effect of the trip.However,millions of acres have been plowed with rigid beam plows. As was said,it may be cheaper to buy another plow than try to buy parts.
 
Coulters are nice but not necessary for small scale farming. That plow looks to have plenty of clearance for trash flow.
Sorry, No idea how to reset the plow bottoms on that one. I would be tempted to permanently make it so they couldn't trip unless
you are in an area with a lot of big rocks to deal with.
 
In my area of western Colorado,we don't use colters.Once in a while someone will have on on the back bottom. As was saidfor a garden,etc,you don't need em.So unless you are plowing an area with heave corn stalks,you can do without. If there are corn stalks,a couple of passes at diagonals with a good tandem disk will chop the stalks
 
What you're looking at in the first two pictures is a spring loaded roller. It locks in the notch in the top of the beam when it's reset. The way those are reset is to back up with the plow still in the ground. It's possible,maybe even probable that the roller is rusted in place and won't come back down in to the notch. Could be that the spring is broken,but most likely rust is the culprit.

I lost partial loss of my right thumb when that happened to a plow that I had just bought going on 40 years ago. Yours doesn't have them,but mine had cover boards on it and they were worn razor sharp. I put a bar between the moldboard and moldboard brace and was working it back and forth trying to get some oil worked in to it so it would reset. The bar slipped and my hand went between the moldboard and cover board. It cut me to the bone and severed the tendons that pull my thumb back.
 
A trip plow would be one that you pull a rope to raise and lower and it would ride on threes wheels but a non trip plow would have a remote hydrolic cylinder to raise and lower it. What you have is a mounted plow not a trip plow. The only thing you have that is trip is that the beams the bottoms mount on will trip up to save dammage if hitting a large rock, the not trip of your plow will just make the tractor stop and set spinning a tire. So what you have is called a 3 point mounted trip beam plow. The rope lift can also be a trip beam plow. And without the pictures a lot of people when you say trip plow would think of the version you pull a rope to raise or lower and not the bean triping to let the bottom come out of the ground. And in my part of the country you could not plow without coulters.
 

Would be best to drop the pivot bolt out and drop them..

There will be old packed-in dirt, HARD Grease and dirt packed into the Pivot that makes them stiff..

Not a big job..

Better start looking for coulters and cover-boards if you want to do a clean job of plowing..
 
good morning ipmaynard, just my poinion maynard but the plow definatly looks worth saving, talk to massey agcro and see if parts are still available, tear down the plow and clean and take stock of what you need. the other source for parts is farm equipment wreckers. as others have said here the main cause of your problems here is rust and lack of grease, another handy item you should have is a manual for the plow, save you a lot of time and head scratching, most manuals are on line or here once you have the make and model pinned down.
 
found a co. online maynard called "reliable aftermarket parts" I had googled up a manual for my mm af 2/3 plow and amazon came up with the manual I need for my plow. when you get a positive id on your plow give them a call their # is 888-672-7876. they say they have manuals and parts
 
All of that gives me a much better idea what I have here. Thanks so much for the replies, they are all helpful towards getting this thing working properly again. It was working great, until it wasn't so I'd like to see where your leads go. Next I am going to scope out the MF dealer and a manual and follow up here.
 
Here is a parts break down of the MF 43 mounted plow you have, even with the spring broken I've been able to reset them by pushing the bottom to about mid point then set my foot on top of the share point and give it a good shove and most of the time they will reset even thought it won't when backing up the tractor and lowering the plow to the ground, only problem the way I mentioned can be a shin shiner try at your on risk!! that model plow has worked well for us with the exception of a broken spring or 2, sorry about the double picture
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thanks you gbs for your pinpoint accuracy. I have reset the two broken plows by hand/foot and they sound as if they have snapped back in. but soon after test plow they rotate back up and out of the ground. I am pretty sure that little spring and the part to the right of it in the picture is missing. Perhaps they broke and fell out when the plow tripped. Two of the pics in the original post show the one working plow and one of the broken ones. The shear bolt in both is present but it looks like other material is missing in the broken one. This is my best guess as of now based somewhat on your diagram post which is excellent!
 
good afternoon maynard, I was just checking online and googled up mf model 43 plow manual and there is a one for sale on e bite for 24.95 cover pic looks exactly like yours. now you have a winter project, the make, model and a pretty good understanding of where your going. I started the winter overhaul of my ih-100 sickle mower today, pulling the pto shaft, needs 3 new u joints, this will keep us both off the streets and outa jail :lol: I'm a big believer in going through my equipment in the winter and fixing any problems before they really become a problem, just when you need it.
 
I agree. Maintenance is key. I bought this plow off a guy that picked it up at an auction. Clearly it has not been serviced for a long time. And I stupidly just hooked it up and started pulling it. But I am learning which is fun. The tractor I am using is a late 1970s Ford 6600 2wd diesel. 70 hp. Not a lot to look at but it has a lot of power. Its the first tractor I have ever had so I am learning about that one too. I will say I did a better job on the basic maintenance on the tractor out of the gate than I did the plow. But I like the Ford, its simple and strong.
 
right on maynard, the older (experienced) tractors have a lot going for them over the new computerized equipment on the lots today! they where built simpler more reliable, easer to work on, not to mention price. I believe a computer belongs on your desk, not on a piece of equipment. I got 2 mm m-5's this summer 60 plus horse power, built in 1961. the one I got running has impressed me with how smooth it is, the torgue and power. don't worry about making mistakes maynard that's how we learn! my dad used to have a saying that covered these situations, "the man who has never made a mistake hasn't done much" you have a great evening and keep us posted on the plow overhaul.
 
carvel minne farmer, right on about computer beloning on a desk and not on a piece of machinery. But I also think it should be on that desk and not in a pocket.
 
amen to that Leroy, watching friends and family on their I phones and the hours each day they spend with their eyes glued to that tiny screen just boogles my mind! i'll keep with my old flip phone that's just a phone, I turn it on when I leave home so it's there if I need it, otherwise it's in my coat pocket shutoff. I have far too much to do each day to be texting, tweeting, and facebooking.
 
Morning! So I picked up the manual and I am a little stumped form the pics in the manual which is the shear bolt. GPS, in the pic you posted I believe its #39 but its blurry and I cannot make out the numbers. The manual 2 pics, one that doesnt indicate the shear bolt and one that does but does not show the rest of the hardware. any thoughts out there?
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