Seeders John Deere 71 seeder

[napabavarian]

I started thinking of a seeder and soon enough found some old JD 71s for $200 a pop, not pretty, but with a parts diagram I'm sure that I could put 3 or 4 together, they didn't look beat, just used. How does that price sound? Some searching indicated that they were a high end seeder when they were produced, I just have an acre for now, but as the rocks get tossed I might have more area.

Also, what is the common spacing between seeders?

 

[Bob_Skurka]

The JD 71 Flexi Planter is an excellent seeder! I paid more for mine, but mine were totally restored and mounted to a custom 3pt hitch to make a 2 row planter unit. I'd say $200 per head is a good (not great, not bad) price for working units with all the parts.

As for spacing, that varies with the crop.

I've been using mine for sunflower, corn and bush type green beans.

BTW, the JD Model 71 Flexi Planter is still in production, in a modified form, by Yetter under a different model designation. It is known around the world as among the best mechanical planters ever produced.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I started thinking of a seeder and soon enough found some old JD 71s for $200 a pop, not pretty, but with a parts diagram I'm sure that I could put 3 or 4 together, they didn't look beat, just used. How does that price sound? Some searching indicated that they were a high end seeder when they were produced, I just have an acre for now, but as the rocks get tossed I might have more area.

Also, what is the common spacing between seeders?

Like Mr. Skurka said, the #71 flex planter units are about as good as plate planter technology ever got. They were the planter of choice for most seed corn growers for years because of their gentle touch with seed, as well as incredably accurate seed spacing. They proved the fact that sometimes SIMPLE is better. The #71 reduced the number of moving parts from any previous unit planters Deere produced. I used a 4-row toolbar with 4 #71 units for 18 years. (Planted anywhere from 25 to 100 acres of corn and some soybeans with mine each season) Recently I cut it down to a 2-row planter. (I have 2 rows and my son has the other pair) Deere still has MOST of the parts, but, again refering back to Mr. Skurka's post, Yetter sells a #71 planter to this day. (They built the ORIGINAL DEERE planters under contract for Deere during its production run) A few years back, you could buy all the row units you wanted for $100 to $150 per row. Deer hunters planting food plots has created a market for 2-row planters like never before. They didn't sell this good back when a 2 row planter was a big planter! Prices have risen to well over $250 per row for un-reconditioned units. Good rebuilt ones can sell for upwards of $300 per row. A "complete" 2-row planter, hitch and all, frequently sells on ebay for $750 on up. I've passed on offers of $1000 for my 2 row planter.

Planting corn, row spacings now are most likely 30". Some feed corn is grown in 20" rows. Years ago, everyone grew in 40" rows. (Arrived at because horses needed 40" to walk between rows while cultivating) The narrower the rows, the sooner the crop creates a "canopy" where the ground is shaded. That conserves moisture in hot summer and reduces the ammount of sun that reaches emerging weeds. If you're planting garden crops, 30" is a good width. It allows you to walk between rows, as well as getting through with a walk-behind tiller. As the rows get narrower, the seed needs to be spaced farther apart in the individual rows though. Most seed corn will have a "plants per acre" recomendation on the bag.

 

[redlevel]

I use a set of JD 71's mounted on a Pittsburgh cultivator, and a set of 50+ year old Covingtons, also on a Pittsburgh cultivator. The only problem with planting a garden with either of these is that sometimes it is hard to get the planters to handle the small amount of seed that is used when just planting a few rows. I usually make the rows with the planters with empty seed hoppers, then come back with a push planter like a Planet JR or an Earthway. When planting corn or peanuts, which I plant on a much larger scale than a garden, I use either the 71's or the Covingtons. I remember in the middle 70's when most people around here were planting soybeans and peanuts, most farmers went to the 71's. Many, however, would continue to use the Covingtons to plant their peanuts because, they said, they could get more seed down with the Covingtons. I never could tell that much difference.

Thirty-six inch rows were always pretty much the norm around here. As FWJ said, that was to accomodate a mule. When tractors came along, it also worked pretty well with a two row set-up. I now plant everything in 30" rows, because I don't want to have to continuously be changing the wheel spacing on my tractors. I like to break land with a bottom plow, and the wheels set on 60" centers works well for planting two 30" rows and pulling the bottom plow.

Two hundred dollars per unit for working planters with a few plates is probably about the going rate. Because of Ebay, there ain't no bargains no more.