[Donn Hewes]

I think charging for our information is sometimes a harder question to answer than it might appear. I would think the starting point is something for transportation. After that what is your motivation for the demo? Building a business for yourself, encouraging others to use draft power in their woods, or just sharing the animals with the public. How much of your time can you afford to give? If I wanted to build a logging business, I think I would start with some free demos, otherwise, just ask for what will make you happy to be there. My two cents. Donn

[Donn Hewes]

tongue slap is almost non existent with a turning tongue. I would build a three wheeled cart for that. Even in the woods where tongue slap is at it’s worst, it is much preferable to have the smaller more compact two wheeled cart.

[Donn Hewes]

hi Roscoe, I have used a couple different third wheel set ups and i prefer two wheels over three. If you can get it close to balanced the two wheel is much more maneuverable. these carts can be balanced very light on the tongue as the engaged PTO will also push down on the tongue when working.

For third wheels I much prefer a dolly wheel with a straight tongue like on a mower(crazy wheel), versus a turning tongue. I have a gas powered PTO cart with a third wheel attached to a turning tongue. This cart is hard to back up, and becomes impossible when backing with anything hooked behind.

[Donn Hewes]

Jay, Looks great – and your views on marriage are much like my own. Congratulations to you both on a fine day of plowing. Hoping to hook Zeke to a spring tooth tomorrow.

[Donn Hewes]

I like the idea, but my wife won’t have it! I can’t cook.

[Donn Hewes]

I have one of these rakes and your looks newer and in better condition. I had to weld the clutch shut on mine to keep it running on rough ground, but that was because I couldn’t get it apart to replace worn parts. It is a little heavy on the tongue which is no problem once it is hooked to a cart, but a pain to move around or hook up to. For me the best thing is having a lot of cheap forecarts so I don’t unhook from a rake. Nice.

[Donn Hewes]

No, I think you are right in that they were pretty common and easy to find. With the right one it would be pretty easy to fix it up and make it work good. It might be slightly less powerful, (efficient) than a regular horse mower. This could be made up for by using a shorter bar, doing less hay, or using more horses on the PTO cart.

[Donn Hewes]

Hey, Don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting you shouldn’t do it. That picture (video?) shows a brush hog mowing something easily cut with a mower. I know if I had a brush hog it would live on brambles and small trees and brush, much harder stuff to cut. My wife constantly asks for a DR mower. I am getting four goats instead! I have some experience with PTO carts, and I have found that the key to success is carefully matching the power required for the equipment pulled, with the weight (and gearing) of the PTO cart, with the size and number of horses. Anything under powered and the equipment doesn’t run well (plugging a baler is not acceptable to me), over weight and a lot of horse power can be wasted. Carl runs a small brush mower like that with his fore cart. I think that works for him.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 8 months ago by Donn Hewes.

[Donn Hewes]

I think ground driven Brush hogs have been a little tricky. I will be interested to see how well it works. The power demand for a brush hog goes up and down so much when it hits the brush. That is what makes it hard to match to a PTO cart.

[Donn Hewes]

In the front side strap the belt is doubled and 1 1/2 nylon will work fine. When you said belt buckle I asssume you are talking about a proper quality harness buckle. I would much prefer a buckle to a conway in this location as you can adjust it. Also conways with nylon can be a problem. They won’t always, but it is easy for the harness maker to make holes a little big or a little loose and the conways will not stay were you put them. Conways do work in nylon, but they can also be a problem. Look at some britchens made of nylon and conways and you may find the buckle slowly slipping down the strap. Carl must type faster than me! His comments are similar to mine.

[Donn Hewes]

Tom, I think the I & j mowers are fantastic. I think they did a great job of taking the basic cutting system and adapting it to different mowers; motorized, PTO trailer, and horse drawn. The only question I have is how to pay for it. Having said that, if a person really was in the hay business I think the horse drawn version would lay out more hay than the trailer version, unless it was two horses versus three on the PTO cart. I do think the home made PTO cart is with reach of most people. Mine was easy to build. The trick is to find the right tractor to start with.

[Donn Hewes]

Carl, I think you and I are a lot a like! I often lament that I don’t have someone following me with a camera because I could publish a ton of good how to; and How NOT to photos and videos! The day after your FB post with the tree that didn’t come I went out and hooked to stuck one just for you.

Honestly, this is one of the reasons I prefer working with someone over a period of weeks or months rather than just a day or a few. I don’t mind someone seeing me struggle or mess up, but over time they can put that into context that I have also persevered and succeeded in equal parts. Even before I taught folks about working with draft animals, I taught ropes, rescue, and firefighting skills. In all these settings I have used spur of the moment training and examples. This often left the instructor no smarter than the students. I have never liked the sort of instruction that seemed rehearsed to insure that the instructor seemed infallible. I would rather have students see good examples of problem solving in real time.

Glad you are OK. It is very important to remind folks the risks are real. We can and should reduce risks. Think clearly about what the risks we can control are, but I certainly am not looking for zero risk. Life not worth living for me.

[Donn Hewes]

I start by threading them in till they are flush on the end of the hinge. that is just a starting point. Everyone has their own method of proceeding from there, but mine relies on carefully keeping the pitman stick square to the flywheel each time I put it together if I take it out to turn the threads. Tom, feel free to give me a call if it starts giving you trouble. D

[Donn Hewes]

I wrote a nice reply earlier today, but I must have missed the “submit” button! Mark, let me know what you want before the 1 of April. Folks at Master Equipment are great. They don’t answer the phone but will call you back. 330-695-2603

[Donn Hewes]

Here is a link to a few photos from the weekend. https://picasaweb.google.com/104553934853439556912/2016MowerRendezvous

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