3-Point Hitch Tiller on MF 245 beating itself to pieces

[Elkins45]

I'm running a 70" Agric tiller on a MF 245 and I'm getting a ridiculous amount of bounce. As long as it encounters only a little bit of resistance it seems to run fine but as soon as it hits a hard patch it bounces up and down violently. The rear door flops around and I'm having to frequently tighten the bolts holding the attachment/mounting section together or the mounts will separate from the unit. Could this be a problem with the draft control? I will confess that I have no idea how the two levers are supposed to work: I just lift them both to raise the unit and drop them both to lower it?

Any tips on how to set up a tiller or use the Massey draft control when running one? TIA for any help.

 

[whis]

how fast are you going, how hard is the ground? I don't think draft will matter

 

[pmsmechanic]

I have a lot of experience rototilling gardens. I'm on the 4th set of tines on a 660 JD tiller. I used to have so much trouble with customers packing their gardens by driving through then with their tractors etc. I've slowly been able to get people to stay out of their gardens with anything heavy. Bouncing is also a lot worse with dry soil so I started asking customers to not clean up their cucumber vines, corn stalks etc. They catch the snow in winter and that keeps the soil more moist which in turn makes rototilling easier. I've also had customers water their garden and I'll come back a few days later to rototill. I also made a ripper that fits easily on my quick hitch and I'll rip the garden before I rototill. The biggest thing is soil moisture.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I would think that excess bouncing is because of moving too fast. Slow down a bit more and even in hard soil, it should limit the bouncing action. Bouncing with exception of hitting roots, rocks, etc would be caused by the tines trying to take too big of a bite. Also make sure your PTO speed is at 540, turning too slow would also make for more bouncing.

 

[Elkins45]

I would think that excess bouncing is because of moving too fast. Slow down a bit more and even in hard soil, it should limit the bouncing action. Bouncing with exception of hitting roots, rocks, etc would be caused by the tines trying to take too big of a bite. Also make sure your PTO speed is at 540, turning too slow would also make for more bouncing.

I'm in 1L, so I can't slow down any more without dropping the PTO speed. I wasn't running all the way up to 540 so on my next pass I will turn up the throttle a bit. So that means the PTO speed will be higher, but so will my ground speed.

Guess I should have posted this in attachments, not Massey, since nobody seems to think its caused by the draft control.

 

[Gary Fowler]

The draft control shouldn't have any effect on a tiller. It isn't that hard to pull which is how the draft works. As the implement pushes the toplink harder and harder, a valve connected to the tractors top link attachment point will automatically direct some fluid to the lift to raise the implement. No way will the tiller push hard enough to make the draft control work.
You can adjust the 3 PH so that it isn't dropping down so low, thus limiting the depth of cut on the tiller. The shoe skids on each side should limit the depth also, but not so much as the 3 PH position control lever. Try raising the lift a bit so it isn't cutting so much in the first pass and see how that works.

 

[WayneJessie]

Sounds like you need to turn it with a turning plow first. We have hard red clay here and turning it is a must before trying to till it. I had the same problem trying to till here before using a turning plow.

 

[Travis_R]

Shorten the toplink and raise the skids all the way up

 

[jeepcj7]

I agree with the comment about speed being too fast - optimal tilling speed is 1 to 1 1/2 miles per hour. You can certainly till faster than that but if you look at all the regions and countries that use tillers for rice paddies, vegaetable fields, etc.... they all go very slow. Turning the ground over with a plow first might help you out as previously suggested.

 

[zimbo]

If you go back over ground you've already worked does the tiller still bounce around?
Check the blades on the tiller, a couple of them may be bent, Or the main shaft may be bent, check the bearings etc on the tiller.
Go as slow as you can, it doesn't have to be at 540 rpm, as long as the tractors isn't labouring too much you'll be ok. I've been through heavy dry clay with a tiller, if its too dry you just end up with dust that clumps as soon as it gets a little water.