Availability walk-behind tractor in personal farming you won’t surprise anyone. This is very valuable unit in operation allows for cultivation and plowing of land plots of various lengths.
However, if we apply additional attachments, then you can significantly expand the potential range of work of your walk-behind tractor.
It is not surprising that after spending a certain amount Money to purchase a walk-behind tractor, many people want to make additional equipment with their own hands, thus wanting to save on their purchase.
Of course, no one talks about making exact copy equipment that is sold in specialized stores, but the principle of operation and common features the designs will be the same.
Most people in our country use their own gardens to plant potatoes, which are no less popular in our country than in Belarus. Therefore, the requirements for the walk-behind tractor must be appropriate - it must plow the ground for planting, and also help plant and care for potato bushes.
By courting we mean hilling, which is why potato hillers have become very popular, the methods of making which we will talk about.
About the device of the hiller
The design features of the hiller directly depend on the type of device, of which there are several.
- Disc hiller. Already from the name itself it is clear that the design of this hiller uses disks, or rather two disks, located to each other at a certain angle. In addition, these discs are attached to a special frame, which is directly coupled to the walk-behind tractor via a hitch.
For more information about the disc hiller, watch the video:
- Active hiller. This type the hiller is also called a propeller hiller, because its work uses forward and rotational movement. Such hillers are installed on walk-behind tractors that have two forward gears.
- This is necessary so that in second gear it is possible not only to loosen the surface, but also to transfer soil from the inter-row spaces.
- This is the simplest type of hiller, which is gradually losing its popularity due to its lower efficiency compared to the two previous types of devices. Structurally, they are two sheets connected to each other; their shape is similar to something like wings.
Using these tools, you can form furrows, and then plant the potatoes themselves. In the future, when the bushes have formed to optimal sizes, you can perform hilling with the same tools.
Thus, the rows turn out to be very even and neat, which not only improves visual perception, but also helps potato tubers form better and ripen faster in the bush.
The second most important tool for a walk-behind tractor or agricultural winch after a plow is, of course, a hiller. In the spring, I had a motorized winch for plowing and a plow; after planting the potatoes, hilling was approaching, but there was little time to make a hiller. The idea arose to buy a hiller in a store. Having visited all the places in the city of Smolensk where you can buy a hiller, I was once again convinced that it would seem that with a developed trading system, choosing something good is very difficult (or rather impossible).
That year I decided to use my neighbor's hand hiller. My neighbor has already offered me his tool several times, noting that everyone really praises the virtues of his hiller.
Time passed and I started making my own homemade hiller. I again had to take the template from my uncle. He bought his hiller in a store several years ago; at the moment, he could not find such a model for sale. A complex element is the front part of the hiller - a curved corner.
Modern manufacturers, simplifying the design and trying to save on equipment, solved the problem of a curved corner simply - they made a break by welding two corners at a certain angle. You see such a hiller in the photo on the left. Since in a garage it is a difficult task to bend a corner along a radius, so it was decided to remove the template from the halves, bend them until the radii coincide, then weld the resulting one weld process with a grinder, selectively cook if necessary and clean again. I welded it twice and got an even, perfect layer of metal. With the remaining elements, everything is quite simple and clear. Everyone determines the assembly sequence for themselves.
The width of the hilling can be adjusted by turning the wings, and the depth can be changed by raising or lowering the children. 2. Plus, you can play along with everything during hilling due to manual control. The handle is made of water pipes, I bent them in the garage, warming them up blowtorch (gas burner) places of bends until red, while sand was poured into the pipe. The result is a bend of excellent quality, without fractures. Two handles are welded to a plate that has holes for attaching the hiller (the plow also has similar holes, because earlier these same handles were used for the plow), at the moment they are not used to control the plow, the plow plows itself without the participation of a plowman. The first impression was excellent; after hilling my plot, my neighbor dragged my hiller and motorized winch to his garden.
Hiller drawings
The figure below shows a drawing of the front part of the hiller, which is welded from two identical halves. It is necessary to make a template according to this drawing, then the two resulting halves are bent until the radii match and are welded in 2-3 passes. Download the hiller drawing in PDF format
Below is a drawing of a hiller wing; it can be cut from metal 2mm thick.
The wing bends something like this.
Below are all the main dimensions of the hiller base, the thicknesses of the elements that make up my homemade hiller are indicated.
Okuchnik photo
A walk-behind tractor is truly an indispensable unit when cultivating land before planting it. Okuchnik - species additional equipment, used on walk-behind tractors, which will speed up and improve the process of planting potatoes and pre-planting work in general.
Types of hillers, their characteristics
With the help of this unit, the process of making furrows on the soil surface and filling them with planting material is carried out.
If you use a hiller, the rows of planted potatoes will be even and located at an equal distance from each other. Several main types of hillers can be listed.
To choose the right hiller for a walk-behind tractor, you need to note their main features and characteristics. There are many models of hillers, but the most common are the following:
- lister;
- disc hillers;
- propeller type;
- with varying working width.
Lister
This type is the simplest. They differ in that they have a strictly set width of the furrow that will be covered by the device, and it cannot be changed; it does not depend on the distance between the rows. Typically, the reach of such a hiller is no more than thirty centimeters. Characteristic– the hiller is equipped with installed racks that prevent the walk-behind tractor from being overloaded during operation.
This type is more effective. The lower the operating speed of the cultivating unit, the more power the hiller himself. This helps to significantly extend the service life. In addition, disk devices are easier to handle and require less effort when working with them. And the most important advantage of this type is its versatility. The unit can be used both before planting and at a time when the part located above the soil increases.
With variable working width
If we talk about hillers, the width of which can be changed, it should be noted that they are used to work with powerful units weighing more than thirty kilograms.
Propeller type
Propeller hillers are used on those walk-behind tractors that are equipped with two forward gears.
When choosing potato hillers for a walk-behind tractor, you should consider a few more points. It is better to use streamlined equipment (a plow-shaped hiller works well) because they turn the soil up less intensely, which prevents it from losing moisture.
In addition, preference should be given to steel tools with a wider sheet and bearings. The dimensions of the hiller correspond to the size of the walk-behind tractor and the length of the cultivated strip of land.
How to make a hiller for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands? There are many drawings and diagrams for this. In general, there is no difficulty in making a hiller with your own hands. Having selected the right hiller, select a scheme and get to work.
Below is an example of a lister type hiller.
Take a metal layer two millimeters thick. Then cut out the halves of the part according to the proposed template (taking into account the dimensions). Important! The halves must be symmetrical, otherwise this will affect the operation of the device in the future. Then you bend both halves until the radii match, after which you weld them, making two or three passes. Next, process the welding seams.
It is very important to choose correct drawing for the future product, in order to avoid any discrepancies (during operation, the structure will begin to move to the side, etc.). With high quality and careful manufacturing homemade equipment does not create any difficulties or interference during hilling.
You can also easily design a disk hiller for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands.
To create such a device, you can take shares (disks) from a seeder that has already served its useful life. Or they can be made directly from sheets of metal (no more than 2 mm thick), then bend the edge of the lower edge. The distance maintained between the points of the lower supports corresponds to the width of the track itself. Then the disks are fastened to each other, but with the discretion that the connecting elements can be adjusted.
In addition, for disk hillers for a walk-behind tractor, screw lanyards, stands (which have already been mentioned) and a T-shaped leash are required. The lanyards are attached directly to the walk-behind tractor. For cutting furrows, the above type is better suited than others.
Do-it-yourself hillers on a walk-behind tractor are always pleasing to the eye, and working with them is much more pleasant and faster.
It’s not difficult to make a disk hiller for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands. This is a multifunctional device that helps change the condition of the soil, make furrows and form ridges during hilling potatoes or other vegetable crops.
A walk-behind tractor or cultivator will help make planting and caring for potatoes easier. When working in the garden or garden, they are considered indispensable assistants. An integral part of the walk-behind tractor is the plow. It can be revolving and disk. Additional accessory One of the equipment is the hiller, which can be of several types.
It will not be possible to immediately determine which hiller is better. The choice of hillers is influenced by many factors, including soil characteristics, the size of the land plot, and the financial part of the issue plays not the least role. Therefore, to do right choice, you need to get acquainted with the description of the most common hillers for walk-behind tractors:
- Hillers who don't assume self-adjustment width between metal wings. The furrow for all crops will be the same distance, which is not very convenient. These types of structures are convenient to use for a motor cultivator weighing no more than 30 kg. In addition, the device’s stands are thin and not suitable for cultivating hard soil.
- Equipment that involves changing the width between the wings, so the distance between the furrows can be made different. You can also use two units at the same time on one hitch. It is recommended to install it on a walk-behind tractor weighing more than 30 kg.
- Most popular look- This is a single-row hiller. The device is designed to work with light soil pre-treated with a cultivator. If a single-row plow is used, the lugs are installed close to each other. This is necessary because hilling is carried out one row at a time. There is a more modern two-row hiller for a walk-behind tractor.
- Another device for hilling vegetables is the Dutch hiller. It allows you to adjust the wings not only horizontally, but also vertically.
- The active hiller (rotary) of the propeller version is easy to use. It has a completely different operating principle. The rotary hiller has rotors with parallel teeth instead of wheels. The device can be installed on a walk-behind tractor and cultivator with two forward gears. Propellers mounted on the crossbar are convenient for crushing and loosening the soil, removing weeds with roots and hilling plants.
- The best, judging by the reviews of owners of walk-behind tractors with an additional device, is considered to be a disk hiller for a walk-behind tractor. It consists of a T-shaped leader, screw adjusters, two stands and two disks. The working elements do not look like wings, but like disks. You can change not only the width, but also the angle of inclination. The result is ridges on the treated area of the required height and width.
Before you start working on your plot of land, you need to know about the settings of the selected attachment. Misuse or installation of equipment may result in crop loss and other adverse results.
The preparatory stage is to cultivate the desired area, it is better to loosen the soil. At the same time, you can add organic or mineral fertilizers. The looser the soil, the easier it will be to make furrows.
Before planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor, you need to set marks at a distance of about 65 cm. Then, using a walk-behind tractor with a hiller, make furrows and lay them out planting material. After this, the wheels are changed to rubberized ones, and the wings of the potato hiller to the walk-behind tractor are set to the maximum width. The walk-behind tractor is installed between the rows and the plow is driven along the furrow, covering the planted potatoes.
How to make a hiller?
A potato hiller made for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands will be no different in functionality from a unit produced in production. It's easy to do. To work you will need welding machine, Bulgarian and a metal sheet thickness no more than 3 mm. It is imperative to take into account the attachments designed for the walk-behind tractor or cultivator. The cultivator has less power than the walk-behind tractor.
For a lister-type hiller on a cultivator, you will need metal 2 mm thick, from which the working material - half-wings - will be cut. After the parts have been cut out, they need to be bent to the required radius. Subsequently, the parts are welded at the fixation points. The edges are processed with a grinder.
The distance between the two half-wings is fixed with a steel crossbar. WITH inside devices are welded metal pipe with several holes that allow you to install the required depth in the soil. Another pipe is bolted to the stand, which goes to the walk-behind tractor.
You can also make disc hillers for a walk-behind tractor with your own hands. Making them is a little more difficult than the lister type, but if you have the drawings at hand you can try.
To make a homemade disk hiller, you will need to purchase two concave disks (discs from an old seeder will do). You can cut metal plates 2 mm wide yourself. The diameter of the disc hiller circles must be at least 40 cm. You will also need two stands and lanyards, and a leash in the shape of the letter “T”.
At the required distance, the disks are fixed at an angle on the stand using adjustable adapters using welding or bolts. Lanyards make it possible to adjust the disks vertically. When making a hiller yourself, you must ensure that the discs are installed symmetrically. Otherwise, the walk-behind tractor will skid to the side. The edges of the discs are processed with a grinder and sharpened well. The finished plow is attached to the beam, and then, using a T-shaped device, attached to the walk-behind tractor itself.
A self-made disk hiller has many advantages. Anyone can make it, you just need to find available drawings and diagrams (you can find them in special gardening magazines or on the Internet). Do-it-yourself potato hillers will require little expense, but the efficiency is no different from a ready-made device.
How to set up a disk hiller?
Adjusting the equipment involves its correct direction relative to the furrow. It must be parallel to the beds on the land with a certain angle of inclination and width of the furrow. Good setup technology, will allow you to avoid mistakes and achieve good results while working.
To set the angle, the unit has a special screw adjustment, which tilts the entire device relative to the walk-behind tractor. The depth of the furrow depends on the part being adjusted. In addition, adjustment is carried out when installing the hiller to the walk-behind tractor. This is done using holes made in the rack for fasteners. If moving hillers are installed, you can adjust the width and height of the ridge produced.
The disk hiller has more high quality than a plow, despite the fact that it takes more time to cultivate the land. The work is carried out not on two furrows, as is the case with a two-row hiller, but on one.
The disk weeder is easy to set up. The lower points of the disks are spread apart by approximately 40–70 cm (it all depends on the distance between the rows; the recommended width between furrows for potatoes is 60–65 cm). When setting up the equipment, you need to remember about the angle of inclination and be sure to ensure that the disks are symmetrical to each other.
The walk-behind tractor is placed in the furrows so that the furrow to be processed is between the working discs. They lead exactly along the rows without touching vegetable crop. The discs pick up the soil, forming a ridge, and at the same time loosen and crush large clods of soil.
During the entire period of growing potatoes, three hillings of potatoes are done. The first time the work is carried out when the height of the bushes is approximately 16 cm, the second time when their height is approximately 23 cm and last time after flowering is completed.
Anyone who uses walk-behind tractors knows that it is not always possible to purchase the necessary attachments for the unit. Many of them are expensive, and some are not very convenient to use in the country house or garden. It is often important here individual approach. Therefore, do-it-yourself disk hillers for a walk-behind tractor, drawings and videos of which are in large quantities on the Internet, will help those wishing to implement individually, in their own way, the problem of mechanizing the hilling of their plantings.
To make it easier to understand how to make a mounted hiller on a unit, let’s first look at how to make manual hiller for potatoes.
As can be seen from the drawing, to make work easier without a motor, you also need to try. But not as much as it seems. First of all, you need tools for work:
- hammer;
- vice;
- welding machines, preferably electric type, and autogenous;
- calipers;
- taps for cutting internal threads;
- tap driver;
- grinding machine with replaceable discs;
- gas burner for heating the metal when it needs to be bent;
- Workbench;
- all kinds of auxiliary tools.
Disc hiller
Let's get started on how to make a potato hiller with your own hands. The drawing shows that the main tool is moldboard discs. They must be within 400 mm. This is optimal. Because we usually plant potatoes at a depth of 60-80 mm, and the roots then grow approximately 200 mm. It turns out that by walking between the rows with inclined disks of the specified size, we completely hill up the row of potatoes.
So, we make 2 disks from steel sheet 2 mm thick, 400 in diameter. Some are made from old pot lids. Let be. But it is advisable to make high-quality disks that will last a long time. Can be taken from scrapped agricultural machinery. But best of all is alloyed stainless steel. The edges of the disks, where they will be cutting edges, sharpen. Now we are making a bridge with racks on which the disks will be attached. We calculate the sizes. We put a connecting fastener for pipes on both sides of a strong steel pipe (sold everywhere). The free ends of the fasteners are directed downwards. From above we drill the pipe through the holes in the mount. We drill each fastener from both sides. Secure with bolts and nuts.
If you want to make grabs different widths, then drill two more holes on both sides. To change the grip width, simply move the posts further or closer to the ends of the bridge and secure them through the holes. Then we insert the tubes - racks - into the fastenings from below. We also drill and fasten in the joint. Two bolts with nuts for each rack. Then at the bottom of each rack we make a mechanism for inclined movable disks. First we attach the bracket for the disk. Moreover, we also do 2–3 pipe drilling positions. To be able to change the inclination of the disks.
On the other side of the bracket we weld a short thick steel rod. At its other end - in the bushing ring - press the sliding bearing closed type. Pre-weld a wide washer with holes for fastening the disk to the inside of the bushing. Weld the same wide washers with holes in the center of each disk. We secure the disks with bolts and nuts. We ended up with two movable disks tilted at a certain angle, attached to racks on one bridge. You can come up with an additional device for tilting the disks to the right - to the left. To do this, you need to select a hinged mounting mechanism for the bracket. These are also on sale. Yes, you can find it in old parts of agricultural machinery.
Attaching the hiller
Hiller for walk-behind tractor must be connected and hung to the unit in such a way as shown in this drawing:
From the drawing you can see that we need to connect the device to the walk-behind tractor to the bridge through brackets and strong steel tubes. Reinforce the connection with a crossbar. Turn on the engine. The wheels are moving. You hold on to the handles of the walk-behind tractor. Carried away by the movement, the created one comes into action with my own hands planting tool. The discs just need to be made at symmetrical angles so that they don’t lead in one direction when hilling. The considered tool option is not the only one. There are others too. Let's look at them one by one.
Lister model
This homemade hiller for a walk-behind tractor is interesting because in a hard, not sliding version it's easy to do. Here is a photo of such a hiller:
In order to do this, you need little time and material. Cut from 2
millimeter steel blank according to the drawing, a certain configuration. Let's sharpen the future bottom edge. Let's bend it in the middle. How to bend? Through a fixed pipe. Complete the fold by punching the leading edge with a hammer. Then we spread the wings of the hiller. Fixing the width between the wings steel cross member, welded between them at the back. We punch through the bottom of the product so that the wings turn out to be ploughshare-like. From the inside in front of the hiller, we weld a stand with several holes drilled so that you can adjust the depth (higher, lower) of the hiller’s immersion in the soil. We bolt the rod going to the walk-behind tractor to the stand. We attach the bar to the walk-behind tractor.
The same list model, made in a sliding version:
The hiller lies bottom up, so its structure is visible. Apparently, the hiller is factory-made. You can do exactly the same thing manually. Instead of a cross member tightly connecting the wings, three connection elements are used here: in the middle, welded in front, a rod with holes; two cross members from the wings, overlapping onto the middle rod. The connection point is secured with a bolt and nut. The diagonal cross members are attached to the fenders using a welded eye, so the cross members can be moved. By moving the bolt closer or further along the rod, you can adjust the width of the wings. Everything else with a sliding lister hiller is done in the same way as with a non-sliding one. Of course, a sliding one is better. It turns out that you can adjust not only the depth, but also the width of the hilling.
There is another option. For processing two rows at once. This improvement speeds up the work process. The walk-behind tractor saves time, effort and fuel. A dual device is made in this way. Two homemade hillers with stands are attached to a square horizontal rod. Such metal products complete. You can always find suitable thing. We attach the hiller stands to the rod like this. We cut out (or saw out) a strip of two-millimeter steel. At the ends of the strip we make long rectangular slits.
We bend the metal in the middle, so that the middle goes around the square bar at a right angle from behind. We thread the hiller stand into the resulting double eyelet at the front. A hole for the bolt is pre-drilled in the mount. We make holes on the rod on the right and left, at the same distance from each other. We manually cut the threads for the bolt in the holes using a tap with a crank. By screwing the bolt into the rear part of the mount through the thread in the rod, we tighten the hiller stand inserted into the lugs of the mount. Because the bolt will rest against the front of the bar and begin to move the bar forward, pulling on the bent mount, securing the rack.
Double lister hiller