gravity wagons

FarmerZeb · Jan 12, 2013

I'm thinking about adding a gravity wagon to my fleet to keep the combine going while the grain truck is dumping. I found several 250 bushes wagons in the $500 - $700 range.

How can I tell what the capacity of the running gear is on a wagon.

Any other things to check on a gravity wagon before purchasing?

thanks,

paul

johnwayne360 · Jan 12, 2013

if you cant find a model # on the gear, check the number of bolts on the rims. Not always correct but 6 bolt will be 10 ton or less, 8 bolt will be more, probably up to 12 ton. Im not sure how heavy you can get in a five bolt, but probably not enough for a 250 bu gravity box.

Piddletime_SC · Jan 12, 2013

I would check the tie rods, steering mechanism, etc real carefully and make sure you are aware of what it needs or doesn't need. It is a miserable day when you have a crappy pulling wagon that you can't drive over 10mph.

The other thing I would do is check it over for cracks, fatigue. I found a real pretty one at a sale one time that had been painted. Paint don't weld cracks!! Luckily I found them, for the price it sold I don't think some other people found those cracks!!

Dalet · Jan 12, 2013

One thing that helps on a wagon that likes looking around when you are pulling it is
1. Make sure the tongue is nice and tight.
2. Toe in the wheels just a little so they are both steering to the center, just a touch. (Think slightly crosseyed)

My dad always did this with the wandering hayracks and wagons and some of them would go 55 mph if we were in a hurry. :shock:

jon f mn · Jan 12, 2013

250 bu. makes me think of minnesota 250's. Oofda!! We had some of them, anything wetter than dry grain won't come out and you had to shovel them empty. We always called them flatbeds. lol

fixerupper · Jan 12, 2013

Johnwayne has it pegged pretty well. That's a good general guide to go by. A 250 bushel wagon is pretty small, but I don't know what size our combine is. If you get anything over 350-375 bushels you'll have trouble getting the unloading auger over it if you have an old combine. Jim

paul · Jan 13, 2013

Here's a way to calculate the capacity of the wagon itself.

http://grapevine.abe.msstate.edu/~fto/tools/vol/gravitywagon.html

250 bu is about the limit for a 6 bolt wheel in my mind. Heavy corn like this year, I was getting 300 bu on my Minnesota 250 boxes...... That's a load on a 6 bolt gear.

And yea, mn gears they built shallower and advertised the painted them with slip plate paint so they worked good.

Well, maybe for a year or so. Maybe.

My Bradford is more of a 230bu wagon, but much easier to unload, and the old Parker's aren't so bad.

Paul

FarmerZeb · Jan 14, 2013

thanks for the replies

i'm going to look at on later this week.

-paul

gravity wagons

FarmerZeb

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johnwayne360

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Piddletime_SC

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Dalet

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jon f mn

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fixerupper

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paul

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FarmerZeb

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