Is this a harrow?

[lesged]

Please help a city raised guy to learn the name of this farm implement. I'm guessing it's a harrow.  

But I see it through the eyes of another city guy, i.e. Kafka's harrow in his wonderful book "The Trial"











Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA 9.30.09

[Todd G]

Now what I'd call a harrow, at least not in the mid-West term of the word.  Never have seen anything quite like it, but I'm thinking maybe a potato digger of some kind, perhaps.  The tined arms are on a crank shaft and would dig backwards to the direction of travel, sort of like a dog digging in the dirt.  Except it wouldn't be a real hard tillage, but more gentle.  Just enough to loosen the soil up and toss it up lightly so harvesters could come along and pick up the potatoes by hand.

[martolod]

the tines are not strong enough for digging.
also from the angle that i can see they do not move much beyond the rim of the wheel
they are used for turning or flicking up mown hay
so that it can dry thoroughly before it is bundled and stored.





that is my guess......but i could be wrong

[LarryD]

[lesged]

Thanks Todd , Kalle and Larry for responding.

I did question the tines for their thinness and being outboard rather than behind the implement (must be a better word , please help me!)

My ignorance covers many fields: computer is a huge one, but anything pertaining to farming tools is a big one.

The hay gathering sounds good to me, but I welcome info from anyone who can nail down its function and name.

Larry,

What in the world is that contraption you displayed in glorious fisheye? Does it also have thin tines? I can't see the forest for the trees.

[Todd G]

Looking at it more closely this morning (instead of at midnight) I'm thinking the tine arms are mounted backwards to what they were when it was used.  Would make it easier to mow around as a yard ornament.  They're spring loaded so if one of the tines gets caught, the coil spring will allow the tine head to flip back rather than break off, but then snap back in position.

Even though the tine heads do look like pitchforks, I don't think this was any kind of hay rake.  Those generally are either "dump" rakes that look lik a large curved hair comb which drags a bunch of hay across the ground, then dumps it into a row, or else "side delivery" rakes that would have thin tines that moved sideways to the direction of travel and would shuffle the hay to the side into a row.  These tines would simply drag along and have an upward/downward movement of a couple of inches.

So I'm still thinking a potato digger which would only need to break the soil crust on top of the potato rows and maybe stir it around a little since potatoes will be bulging the soil up as they reach maturity.  The tines are in evenly space rows, about the width of potato plantings.

Other option could be just a cultivator to break the crust of soil between rows of a crop.  After a crop is first planted in a cleanly tilled field, normally the crop itself is the first thing to emerge.  Then smaller weeds start coming between rows.  After a rain or two the soil will crust over, and when the weeds are really small, just stirring this crust around will be enough to disrupt the weed growth.

Larry's implement is a two-row planter.  The two cans on front are where the seeds, like corn, were filled to drop down.  This type of planter has a turning "planter plate" that looks sort of like a gear in the bottom of the seed box that only allows one seed, or maybe two, to fit into each cell.  As it turns, from linkage driven from the ground wheels, each cell moves over a hole to drop the seed down a tub that ends right behind a furrow opener of some kind.  Could be a shovel or a pair of disks to open the furrow, then the seed drops in and another drag or shovel behind and to the sides covers the furrow back up.  Seeding rate is determined by how many and how far apart the cells are in the planter plate, or how fast it turns, depending on the gear ratio that drives it.

[edthened]

Och a feel so edumacated noo rat av red dis thred  :cool:

[Glenn Thoreson]

I can't see enough details to tell for sure. I suspect it's a spring tooth harrow. In any event, a harrowing experience. :rolleyes:  :rolleyes:

[LarryD]

I can't see enough details to tell for sure. I suspect it's a spring tooth harrow. In any event, a harrowing experience. :rolleyes:  :rolleyes:

Glad you said that because I have been avoiding saying that since this morning.  :rolleyes:

[martolod]

it is called a Hay Tedder
after mowing  it is used to flick the hay before windrowing the hay for bailing
the tines are correctly mounted

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tedder_(machine)

[lesged]

Thanks Todd and Larry for encore resposes and Edwin and Glenn for your comments.

Todd,

Thanks for taking the time to study carefully the subject elegant farm machine. We got to Drumlin Farm just before it closed and took the photos on the way out. I can call them Monday and ask what is the name of the farm monument that is so well displayed at their grassy entrance 

It looks like piece of metal sculpture used as an ornamental decoration and/or a symbol  for history of farm machinery


Glenn,

Looks like there still is hope of it being some sort of a harrow. Right? How
How unobservant I've become! I only talked about the tines being thin and only outboard of the frame. Now, I clearly see in two of the three photos, there are  2 sets of tines, both inboard and outboard of the farm machinery's frame--on both sides, plus another two sets behind the the apparatus.

Och Edwin!

Your statement is terse with lyrical verse; shades of Bobby Burns.

[lesged]

Kalle,

You and your Teddy bear, Oops! I meant your Teddy Hedder, no!no! your
Hay Tedder.

I'm a bit mixed up, but it sure looks like you and your wicked friends, I mean.. you and your Wiki friends have come up with the correct address.

Your prize will be shipped to you by Spanish galleon or pony express with water wings.  It will be in the 9th geneation of boxes, each smaller than the former. Be patient extracting your prize it is rather tiny. Close windows and get a sharp pair of forceps. Don't sneeze either.

Got to run! guy with white suit anf large butterfly net is heading my way.

[martolod]

Got to run! guy with white suit anf large butterfly net is heading my way.

been sipping too much cough medicine again........ :eek: 

[Ronald Bishop]

This machine must have been built for the 'easterners'. Out west we used a 'bull rake'. They were used to windrow hay so that it could dry. After it was dry enough it had to be 'shocked'{in earlier times} into mini haystacks.{about 4 to 6ft. high} Then it was hand loaded unto a wagon and then stacked into a larger stack outside or in a hay barn,where it stayed until used. In later days it was baled right from the wind rows.
   We used a hay tongs to move the hay from the wagon into the barn or unto the stack. We had a gin pole and used a horse hooked to the cross haul cable. The stack had to be topped out right to make it somewhat water proof, yet enough air in to keep it from molding. I have seen a couple of stacks burn because the owner used a canvas tarp, no air meant it would mold, the heat and you know the rest.

This is the bed {hay rack} off the hay wagon, in the summer we used the same wagon to haul logs to the mill. In the meantime the bed was used as a 'gossip' platform. {my mother in the foreground}
Note- the sled runner to the left. We believed in multi purpose vehicles back then----mid 40s

 

[Todd G]

Agreed, a hay tedder it is.  But I'm with you Ron, around here "tedding" was never a step in haying.  In this part of the country mown hay can go from too wet to bone dry within a couple of hours.