Chisel plow shovel direction

We recently purchased a white 435, 9 shank 3 bar, disc chisel. We dropped 2 shanks to make it a 7. I believe the previous owner mixed and matched the right and left hand shovels and now i do not know how it should be set-up. I know i need 4 right hand shovels and three left hand shovels.

The front bar has two shanks, the middle bar has two shanks, and the back bar has three shanks.

Can anyone tell me where the left and right hand shovels should go?

Thanks.

Don't they go on the ends of the shanks?

You're a disgrace.

Are you talking about shovels, also known as sweeps, or twisted spikes ? What do your shovels look like ? If you are talking about shovels or sweeps there is no left or right. If you are talking about twisted spikes there are several theories about how to install them.

They are 3" twisted shovels.

Scott in SF. Could you elaborate on the theories? Maybe one of them will work for us.
Thanks.

I'd guess you could go several ways, depending on how many are twisted each way.

You could have them go outward from center, inward toward the center, all one way or all the other, etc.

The chisels I've used have always just had the flat, untwisted points, but I'd say it's probably just a matter of trial and error and personal preference.

here is a pic of a white 435 at tractor house. you can see some of the set up.
poke here

Here is a diagram from the setup manual of a LANDOLL/CASE SOIL CONTROLLER. Hope you can make it out. If not I will draw it by hand so you can.
Let me know.

What's wrong with being "twisted"?

i don't think there is a right or wrong way to put chisel points.
when i worked for a dealer some farmers wanted points set to throw dirt to middle some to outside.
one guy wanted to throw dirt to one side.

Experimentation is the answer. I run 4" twisted chisels on my 9 shank Unverferth. The two front ones are 30" apart. If you turn them towards the center, they can actually ball up a wad of tough residue in the right conditions. If you turn them out, they are throwing dirt right on the tires/rims. They will build a big cone of dirt right out on the wheel, then dump it right where you don't want it- like in the road or driveway. The two outboard rear ones are shown turned out. But I turn them in because I don't want to be throwing dirt off the edge of a field onto a lane, into a ditch, etc. But I still get ribbons of sod thown out here and there along grassy edges. To me the biggest issue is trash. The coulters behind the tractor tires are useless as all those tires do a better job of crushing and breaking up stalks, etc. than anything. So the machine ought to be made with all the chopping action concentrated in the middle.
Good luck.

We use to have them throwing outward. Half digger was turned to the right and the other half to the left, unless it was next to a wheel, then we would have the twist turned away from the wheel. One of the chisels we bought had the front row throwing right, second row left and 3rd row right. It really doesent seem to make a lot of difference, because we always used mulchers on the back.

Hi Virgil If you were chisling in the fall you would want to form high ridges and furrows parallel to the slope. these alternating furrows and ridges would control wind and water erosion until spring, and promote soil warming in the spring sun. If you were spring chiseling your main goal would be shattering the plow sole, and soil and organic mater mixing and leaving the ground as smoth as poaible, to reduce wear and tear on tractor, operator, and equipment. Shank tillage was developed to (1) reduce erosion, (2) break plow pan, improve water and root development (3) reduce soil compaction such as the trowling effect that a moldboard plow creats,and (4)improve tillage efficiency. 3" curved shovels improve soil/matter mixing plus they build bigger ridges and shatter more soil than straight points.Parabolic points are the best for breaking hard pan.They shatter the plow sole but don't bring up less fertil soil and mix it with the richer top soil. The speed that a shank tillage implement is pulled also affects sub soil shatter and soil tilth. If you are underpowered the shanks pull back and don't shatter the soil, too much speed and the points ride out and throw soil rather than mix it. 5MPH is a good speed in our soils. There is a lot more to working your soil properly than hooking on to your chisel and draging it through the ground.

If you point twisted shanks all one way, the machine will not track straight. If you turn them all to the outside, there will be an untilled bare strip in the middle. That"s why I turn them to the center. Also leaves a cleaner track on the outside, easier to follow without skipping. Depending on the machine, shanks may toss into the wheel and plug. Those I reverse.

i last worked for a dealer longer ago than i thought maybe 35 years? chisel plows were just starting to be used around here. we couldn't get them fast enough the demand was that big.
so this was during a learning process for all involved.
we used to send truck loads of moldboard plows to auctions and used machinery dealers at least once a month.