Ear corn auger

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

Has anybody ever seen,or have an idea of how to make some kind of auger that would pull itself into the bottom of a round corn crib to pull the corn out into an elevator or the feed grinder auger? There used to be an old guy around here who hauled ear corn to Maumee all winter. I never saw the outfit that he used,but folks who shipped with him at the time,claimed he'd bring a thing with him that would work it's way back into the crib and pretty well empty it out with very little shoveling. I took it that it worked about like a bin sweep. I'd heard tell that it would never be OSHA approved,but worked like a dream. I grind about 2 1/2 tons every 3 days,and while it's the most exercise that I get anymore and is probably good for me,I don't know what's worse,sweating in a cold wind this time of year or shoveling in the summer heat. I know,another silo and high moisture corn,but I'm not up to spending that kind of money when it wouldn't take much for me to get out of the cattle business anyway.

J.C.in AZ. · Jan 24, 2009

If you have 12" drag access poured into your concrete floor you could take a section of 10' Auger,cut the top 1/2 off of the tube ,weld on 3" straight sections of steel to bring the sidewall up to the correct height to match the drag cover flange if one is used or the Crib Floor and weld on angle Iron to this pc. to act as a guide and slide for the auger to rest on. We used a large come along to slide it back several feet at a time into the Ear Corn mass. We used it with our Arts Way feed Mill and powered it with an 5HP Electric Gearmotor,I don't remember what the gear speed or ratio were . Dad rigged up 3 covers for the auger which was about 15' long which were the Cut off top Pc's,an angle iron attached to the bottom of these pc's,4 Holes in this Angle Iron which fit over vertical 3/8" bolts about 1 1/2" long. It had adjustable Legs [1]on each side of the Head with Wheel Barrow Wheels attached to stabalize it. It was not real safe but what was on a Farm of 50 years ago?

ejr-IA · Jan 24, 2009

You need a ear corn drag with paddles like the ones they used on corn shellers with the incline to dump in the grinder.Or a large trough auger turning at a slow speed.

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

It wouldn't pull itself back under the corn. Even if it did,the chain wouldn't take the stress.

the tractor vet · Jan 24, 2009

The way that the round corn cribs are set up at my buddys place is there is a tough that we slide a drag into and when the corn get down to where we can get into the grib we start removing slats out of the bottom of the floor and this will allow about 2/3rds of the corn to slide into the drag . The cribs are up above the ground level about two foot on a concert slab . Now this does not eliminate all the shoveling but it sure does help. Ya just have to get the corn to slide and that does take some poking with a pole . Makes grinding feed a lot easier . Getting to old for this mexican dragline work.

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

I don't want to have to move all the cribs off the slab and start over. I sure wish I'd have seen that thing back when Al had it. He could move it from farm to farm and use it in anybodys crib. I've got a big steel auger here out of a mixer wagon. To lay flat in the crib,it would have to flip the corn over into another short slant auger to get it up into the auger on the grinder. Something on wheels with adjustable bars to brace against the front of the crib to keep it from pulling all the way in to start. I've got a couple of 3 horse electric motors,so I could run it with one of those if I could just come up with a simple idea to build something.

Anonymous-0 · Jan 24, 2009

someone used to make a power rake for ear orn, but I dont know who.

bellyacre · Jan 24, 2009

The auger style power rakes I've seen had two augers (6-8") side by side, one right hand, one left hand screw, pulling corn down and between powered by a gas engine.
We had a chain type, Somewhat like a cross conveyer on a feeder wagon. It was about 12" wide and 12' long. Top of chain was exposed as well as bottom so if it got covered in an avalanche it would push itself back out. This was also powered by a gas engine with a belt tightener for a clutch. A small set of wheels were mounted on adjustable hight legs.

paul · Jan 24, 2009

I've seen them on auctions - 2 augers powered by a B&S engine - at auctions from time to time, but really haven't figured out how they work. Never saw one in operation. Can't remember who made them.

Think you stll want a trench in your floor tho, to put the drag in.

--->Paul

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

Too many cribs to rework and too much arthritis to start busting cement.

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

I'm serious as a heart attack,if anybody comes across one of those "power rakes",let me know. I'd pay good money for one.

Princeton Bill · Jan 24, 2009

I have a brother that has one of the "power rakes." Don't know if he would sell it, but I'll ask, he is in Iowa. He does some custom shelling so he may want to keep it.

In years gone past they had wire "tunnels" you would put in round wire cribs if there was not a space in the cement floor for a drag feed off of a cornsheller. If you could find some of those and a few sections of drag feed you could work out something that would probably make your grinding a lot easier. The brother with the power rake might also have some drag he would sell.

Dave Sherburne NY · Jan 24, 2009

Back when I lived in Wi. I worked for a Feed Mill that had a truck with a conveyor mounted on it that was up on top of the truck over the cab and moved with hydraulics to the front and down. Then drove the truck forward into the door of the corn crib. Most of the time it wasn't to much physical labor until it got to the point where the crib was almost empty and I had to shovel to clean it out. Think it was called a "Shovel-veyor".
Shovelveyor Story

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

You know,I've got some of those tunnels. I don't have enough,and I don't know if they're wide enough for a drag to fit in or not,but I suppose if old age and despiration got to be enough incentive,I could make some kind of short triangular wooden tunnels. It would be an improvement from shoveling all the corn after it got too low to rake down into the grinder auger. Check with your brother though. He'd be nuts to sell it if he has any use for it.

glennster · Jan 24, 2009

way back when we still picked corn, the guy with the sheller had an auger mounted on a set of wheels with a gas engine, prolly 5 or 8 hp. it drove a gear reduction box that was hooked to the auger. auger was prolly 6 feet long or so. iit had a couple bars on it to stop it against the crib, far enough out so the drag would lay under it. you'd pull 8- 10 crib boards out, then the auger would run itself in and pull the ears out into the drag. kinda looked like a hand truck, two wheels on the back with handles on top.

armand tatro · Jan 24, 2009

I have a double augor and a chain type (both made by Pusey Bros."sp?" at Fairmount, Il. I think). I will try to take pictures this weekend and post the. Some companey in Io. also made ear corn augors. All of these we called power corn rakes. I will try to get back to you maby sunday. Armand

armand tatro · Jan 24, 2009

I have a double augor and a chain type (both made by Pusey Bros."sp?" at Fairmount, Il. I think). I will try to take pictures this weekend and post the. Some companey in Io. also made ear corn augors. All of these we called power corn rakes. I will try to get back to you maby sunday. Armand

rrlund · Jan 24, 2009

Thanks,I'd appreciate it. I've got plenty of junk around here to work with if I just knew what I was building.

Anonymous-0 · Jan 24, 2009

rrlund, I have a corn rake that you are talking about. I do not know where you are,but it works great in any round crib or wood crib. I have an extra gas motor for it and would sell it if interested. 712 882 2258

RickL · Jan 24, 2009

I used to run a unit just like glenstar described. they were two augers beside each other completely in the open throwing toward center bring the ears out. It stood above the conveyorof the sheller and dropped the eaars into it. It was not something fun to run,and very dangerous. we used it on cribs that had drive thru alleys. you layed converyor in the alley along crib side open doors alon wall as you worked into the crib,when it would no longer come out any where then we would lift, pull shove and even stand on this thing to get it to bring the ears out. i was never so glad to see that job leave. did it for think about eight years for a fellow who own the shellerI basically maintained it a nd ran it. He passed away.Best cribs were the ones that you could slide sheller drag chain under the floor and pull out center bioards as you went back. I hated that auger unit. You will niot move this unit by jourself very easy. they were top heavy at times good luck

glennster · Jan 24, 2009

rrlund, i been thinking about that powered auger taht we used. ours was a single auger, not a double. i remember running it, had a centrifugal belt clutch on the engine to a gear reduction box. the auger turned real slow, tires were about the size of a riding mower back tire, you roll up to the crib, start er up, throttle up, the auger would pull itself into the crib, hit the two iron stops, and then start pulling ears out. auger was pinned to the gearbox with a shear bolt in case it hung up. if my memory still serves, seemed like the gearbox shaft was about a foot long, betwen 7/8 to an inch in diameter. the auger slid on to the shaft and you pinned it with a bolt. hope that helps.

Ear corn auger

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