A very rookie plowing question

I have a small 1 acre food plot that I plow about every other year with a Super C and a fast hitch 2 bottom plow. This year I would like to plow it with my H and an old #8 plow on steel that I have. Waiting on some parts at this time to get it up and running. My rookie question is this. When I go to make my first pass with the plow and there is no furrow for the tractor tire or plow wheel to ride in. Is there an approximate setting on the handles of the plow to make it plow right on the first pass? And once I have the first furrow what would be the approximate place to set the handles. I realize that there will be some trial and error involved. I would just like to be somewhere in the ball park.

A lot depends on soil and on condition of points,but for the first pass the right (furrow side) lever will need to be raised quite a bit, fairly close to top, and the left lever a good 2/3 of the way or more up. Adjust from there. Do not forget when attaching the trip rope to your tractor that the plow has a break-a-way hitch, and if it catches on a rock or root it will stop immediately, and that rope has to be attached so it will release from the tractor. If you happen to be pulling it to raise the plow at the time, it is amazing how far your arm will stretch before you manage to let go. :lol:

I just drop the plow as normal and go.turn around drop the tire in trhe furrow straddleing the previous pass and throw it back.You have no 'unplowed' ground and there is no ridge left.

I cant exactly answer that great question, every plow I owned acted different. Very generally speaking, on the first pass Id set the handles down deeper or however required to get a decent first furrow.

AS far as the field layout, if you had the "ideal" rectangular field (yeah right), one year Id start a headland in the middle, start down the middle, turn right at end of row, and on the next pass back, throw the dirt back in against/over itself which developed a slight high ridge, and the next year Id start plowing on the outsides with the intent of ending up with a dead furrow in the middle where the hump was the year prior......Reverse each year so you don't end up with a hump in or outside.

On the handle settings, the method/adjustment is so each plow plows the same depth, i.e. a level field when done NOT one furrow higher then the other.

On the drawbar adjustment, the left/right, location where plow is hitched, set it so the distance from the inside of the tractors furrow wheel is the same as the distance from plow to plow IE if you have a 14 inch plow, the plow should be hitched (left to right) so its around 14 inches from the first plow shares tip to the inside of the furrow. I think I got that right lol hope you get the idea even if I messed up the explanation.

Plowing used to be fun in the old days if done right and you ended up with a level even field.

John T

When I plow with my H on the first pass I drop the plow down then level it side to side by adjusting the lever. You will need to readjust on 2nd pass when the tire is in the furrow again you want the plow level side to side.

IMHO it's easier if you think about it this way:

The land wheel lever sets depth.
The furrow wheel lever levels the plow.

I say this because hydraulic lift plows do not have a land wheel lever as a general rule, and you use the hydraulic cylinder to set the depth of the plow.

So, you set your depth with the land wheel lever, and then adjust the furrow wheel to cut a level furrow. On the first pass it's a guessing game. You can go a little ways, check your progress, and make adjustments.

Dad taught us to sit on the rope, under the right
cheek, never in the middle

On about 3/18/14 I posted a publication on plow adjustment. It should be in tractor Talk as, O/T Plowing Adjustment Publicaton (long). Look it up in the archives it has all kinds of good information on plow set up. Mike

You need to raise the lever that runs in the furrow to let the front bottom go into the ground land lever will be ok where it sets now as it controls the depth of both bottoms.