Grove or Orchard Disc Identification

Hello,

Long time lurker of the page, first time register/poster.

My father-in-law recently passed (too early in life), and as with all passing he took a great deal of knowledge with him. This disc was his and is now mine. He would use it every year on his coastal fields here in central Texas with a large heavy gate behind it in late winter/early spring after last freeze. It did wonders smoothing out his sandy fields that get hammered by moles every year. And if you pulled it north south, then east west it would pulverize the runners and really invigorate the growth.

I used it in a train setup behind my 966 IH pulling a renovator w/culters, then the disc, followed by length of rail track and finally a 8'x8' chain harrow on my tifton fields in the black dirt. Smooths and renovates beautifully.

The disc is a bit of a mystery, I have never seen one for sale or even in pictures on-line. My father-in-law grew up in Florida and that is where the disc came from. He worked in a orange grove and cut hay prior to serving a career in the army ultimately ending up in central Texas. He then brought this disc, his ford 3000, cutter and several other items here.

The disc has about a 7' working with when in offset position and can be expanded or contracted from the tractor with a length of baling string tied to the latch bar. It has a pin for setting maximum offset and if you look at pictures these drum sort of depth limiters. I will be replacing the severely worn 16" discs on it and over the years a drum or two has become damaged and not placed back on when a bearing or single disc was replaced. There are 26 discs having 13 on each section giving it about 6-7" between discs.

My father-in-law told me it was designed to run in the orange groves and would not cut too deep and damage roots. I have no idea who makes it and not a idea where to start looking for some replacement drums. if I cant find any I will try to even out the ones on it.

Figured the combined knowledge of the forum might be able to help.

Thanks

I have never seen a disk with depth bands. Must be a regional thing. Pretty cool anyway.cant help on the brand. can you find any logos on the cast iron parts? A major manufacturer would have their logo in the castings. Shortlines usually dont,so IDing is more difficult.

I have not gone over with fine tooth comb, but there are no markings or riveted tags on it. Of course it is from Florida....so odds it been painted a few times since 70s is pretty good.

Same, I’ve never seen depth bands on a disk. Man my clay packs from a disk bad enough, can’t imagine how that setup would fail in my wet clay and muck..... here we put extra weight on a disk to get it to penetrate in fall, in spring thry cut in good enough.

Would it be from a sandy region to prevent digging too deep in the sand?

Paul

I have a pull disk from an orchard in Michigan like this. It was called a 'sand' disk. It would not let the disk cut to deep in the sandy soil of an orchard and harm the roots. It works good on Indiana sand behind my Farmall A. Disk was originally pulled by a Farmall Cub, is 4 ft closed up and 5 and 1/2 ft flared out. It is in their literature.

I shall never pull a disc across clay again the longest day i live!

Contact and send those pics to Curtis Wager at Glade and Grove Supply Co.
In Belle Glade, FL.

He should be able to identify brand and model.

http://www.farm-tractors.com

See above link for contact info, email, etc.

There are six or so makers of the Florida grove disc harrows.

Orange groves are located in course sand, well drained areas.
Quite course like unrefined sugar, very poor ground.