Winter Pasture - buy drill or custom hire?

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Conagher

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Well, the only hope I have to survive is to try to put in a significant winter pasture – early grazing with wheat and cereal rye, later with rye grass and clover. Hoping for a little moisture before it gets too cool to stockpile some pasture.

Does anyone know of someone who custom hires to put out winter pasture in Van Zandt county area – the grains that require a drill? Or would I be money ahead to purchase a used no-till drill? What should I expect to pay for a decent no-till drill – like a 10' haybuster 107?

Thanks.
 
Two years ago I bought a used 107 with the WSG and small seed set ups for 6K but it needed a little TLC to get it running right
 
There was a Haybuster 107 advertised in Tyler Craigslist a week or so back, may want to search that and see if it sold. If you have never run one then may be better off hiring it done. Check with Co-op in Canton, they may know someone to custom plant it for you.
 
If you have a pasture renovator that will lossen the soil, then you maybe pull a disc drill behind it.
 
surprised you are not considering oats. You will get more quanity this fall and probable some in the spring as well if it is not an abnormally cold winter. Very good stockpile here
 
Planted 40acres DH3 ryegrass and the rent on a Haybuster 107 was around $300. Over all it was a $600 + endeavor.
 
you can hire it done cheaper than you can buy a no till drill.unless your going to drill in 200 or 300 acs.we hired a no till 30yrs ago an he charged $15 ac to drill it in.so id say $15 to $25 an ac now.
 
Pros and cons of owning vs renting: If you own it you have a pretty big chunk of change tied up that you will ony use a few times a year and you;re responsible for all othe workings of it to make sure nothing is broekn/wore out, etc. But you have the flexibiliyt to use it whenever you want and you don;t have to aworry about if having been put a way broken and needing fixing before you cna start. Renting it someone else should be responsible for the maintnance so it should be ready to go, the probem is trying to get it exactly when you need/want it and it not necessarrily in the best of shape. You also have the hauling it to and from the rental place to consider.
 
Thanks for everyone's input. Found one guy that will do it custom for $30/ac. I provide the seed. I was looking to do about 130 ac. If I could find a used on for 6K then I could probably pay for it in two yrs figuring this custom rate. Wish I could find one to rent - I think I could pull it for less than $30/ac.

Thanks again everyone.
 
if you was going to use a no till drill every yr on 130acs you can pay for a new drill in 6yrs.plus you might get some custom jobs.
 
dun":3hvgl2q4 said:
Pros and cons of owning vs renting: If you own it you have a pretty big chunk of change tied up that you will ony use a few times a year and you;re responsible for all othe workings of it to make sure nothing is broekn/wore out, etc. But you have the flexibiliyt to use it whenever you want and you don;t have to aworry about if having been put a way broken and needing fixing before you cna start. Renting it someone else should be responsible for the maintnance so it should be ready to go, the probem is trying to get it exactly when you need/want it and it not necessarrily in the best of shape. You also have the hauling it to and from the rental place to consider.

Exactly as Dun says. Expensive to own, agrivating not to own. Be very sure u are going to use it a lot before spending if you can rent or hire it done.
 
I've seen several 8 to 10 foot on tractor house for 4500 to 6 k .. I m thinking you could make your money back in a couple years working for others I wish we had someone in my area I'd like to put in 70 acres of wheat and oats ....
 
I don't know how things work in texas but we have a soil conservation office in my county that has a no-till drill that they will furnish a tractor,driver and the drill for $10.00 per acre.I supply the seed and labor to load the seed in the drill.Pretty hard to beat that deal. :clap:
 
beefmasters":1y0trzuc said:
I don't know how things work in texas but we have a soil conservation office in my county that has a no-till drill that they will furnish a tractor,driver and the drill for $10.00 per acre.I supply the seed and labor to load the seed in the drill.Pretty hard to beat that deal. :clap:
That is a good deaL wish we had something like that here.
 
BC":e6oa3tbd said:
beefmasters":e6oa3tbd said:
I don't know how things work in texas but we have a soil conservation office in my county that has a no-till drill that they will furnish a tractor,driver and the drill for $10.00 per acre.I supply the seed and labor to load the seed in the drill.Pretty hard to beat that deal. :clap:
That is a good deaL wish we had something like that here.

How do they fund that deal? Taxes? :???:
 
Brute 23":21cifplu said:
BC":21cifplu said:
beefmasters":21cifplu said:
I don't know how things work in texas but we have a soil conservation office in my county that has a no-till drill that they will furnish a tractor,driver and the drill for $10.00 per acre.I supply the seed and labor to load the seed in the drill.Pretty hard to beat that deal. :clap:
That is a good deaL wish we had something like that here.

How do they fund that deal? Taxes? :???:

I don't know for sure but i have been told the drill is funded by state money(taxes).I do know it has certainly helped a lot of folks in the past to be able to make use of this. :D
 

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