[Hopewell Farm]

I have a ground drive drill that I was going to sell this spring. It is a McCormick or International, can’t remember as I sit here. It would take a little bit of work to get it up and running, but it is complete. It just hasn’t been used in a number of years, but has been stored inside since I’ve owned it. Feel free to email me if you are interested, hopewellfarmvt@gmail.com.

[Hopewell Farm]

Jared, short answer is absolutely I extended the pto shaft on my I&J cart. I added an additional pillow block at the back of the platform and had the stock cart pto shaft extended at a local machine shop. Only guessing but I would assume they terminated it under the platform for safety, so the joint of the implement shaft would be somewhat protected when in operation. Or rather you would be protected from it. But I found on hilly ground it didn’t take much for the implements pto shaft to hit the back of the platform. I am sure that the original design works great on flat ground, but since I don’t have flat ground on our farm it basically was useless to me without extending the cart pto shaft. I will try to post a few pictures this weekend if I have time.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Brad,

We were selling our harwood pulp to Limlaw last year. I haven’t checked pricing recently but it’s worth checking out.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

George,

I don’t have any recent experience with Stihl saws. I run Husky’s because the shops that are closest to me only sell that brand. If I do need parts, I don’t want to burn half a day or more chasing after them. Probably not the best reason to choose a brand, but that’s my current rational. Let us know if you decide to choose a Stihl saw, I would be interested in your thoughts after some use.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

George,

Like Brad, I am using the 562xp for commercial work. I also like the weight and power of these saws, though I do go back to my 576xp at times for projects with larger hardwood. One of my 562s has worked well with very few issues. The other has had the carb replaced, which did not fix the issue. Husky ultimately resolved the issue by replacing my saw with an entirely new one. This all transpired during mud season so it wasn’t a big issue. But I would agree with Brad I have broken some little bits and pieces off these saws after limited usage that make me somewhat suspect of the overall quality of newer saws. I will stick with them for now, I am not sure what I would get in the future should the 562s become maintenance nightmares. I have also been told that using non-ethanol gas (not treated ethanol gas, but actually non-ethanol gas) is important for the newer autotune saws. I luckily have a couple of stations that are fairly local to get non-enthanol gas.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Broken record, but Farm Family insures our farm and logging endeavors with our horses. We do a bunch of work off farm on neighbor properties (hay production, grazing, etc.) and are fully covered for a variety of issues. I like the company, but our agent is the one that knocks it out of the park and makes sure we are covered. We are located in VT.

[Hopewell Farm]

The forwarder has been sold.

[Hopewell Farm]

Brad,

I have not used Banixx, but have had good success with Ichthammol and soaking the foot once a day in epsom salts. It is helpful to use a baby diaper, vet wrap, and duct tape to keep the Ichthammol in place and the wound track clean. Sounds funny but, the diaper adds a bit of cushion and also fits the hoof size wise very well, which helps keep everything in place during the day while the horse is out walking around.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Brad,

I know of an outlet for hemlock as well, I can get you details if your interested. Local buyer to me just started buying hemlock for export to China. I haven’t received pricing yet, but I can get more details and a contact if needed.

I have noticed log prices increasing as well.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Hey Donn,

I am sure you are knee deep in hay at this point, but just wondering if you had an update on the hooks?

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Like others, I use 5/16″ grade 70 chain for my chokers and would agree that 3/8″ chain is overkill for horses. I would be tempted to keep the slots at 3/8″ though, then it would work for both 3/8″ and 5/16″ chokers. The grab hook I currently use is sized for 3/8″ chain, but has never slipped on my 5/16″ chokers. I actually like a little bit of slope so it’s easier to get the chain set and removed from the hook.

I would also agree with Carl and Mark, make one well made product suitable for logging.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Cindy,

I routinely chain harrow our pastures along the contour with our team to avoid having them going up and down steep sections of the field. While the harrow does drift down the hill some, most of this can be managed by driving such that you account for the drift. Chain harrows can have a fair amount of draft depending on the length of grass, the newness of the tines, and the direction it’s pulled. Just be mindful of your girls level of fitness as you are working.

John

[Hopewell Farm]

Gabe,

The last two days (Thursday & Friday) the forums have generally not been functional for me. I could see the main pages of the different forums, but when I tried to view a specific post I received an error message. I noticed new posts during those days so I just figured it was me. Seems to be working fine today (Saturday).

John

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Hopewell Farm.

[Hopewell Farm]

Thank you for the info Michael. I always like to use local folks if possible, but had not heard of the Langdell’s shop before seeing the advertisement.

[Hopewell Farm]

Hello George,

I did originally get the hold back strap lazy straps long enough to use as check rains based on Les’s video. I have only tried to use them in this capacity once with no success really. For me, with them adjusted long enough to not restrict the horses head during typical working movements they were too long to restrict the horse from lower it’s head. I haven’t experimented much further then this initial try, but I suspect I would either need to shorten them some and/or hook them higher on the hame. I am sure it is an adjustment failure on my part as Les indicates in his video that he has had good success with them, I will have to play with them more.

I have not had a bit get hooked by the snaps yet.

John

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