Helping a friend pick corn

[nepoweshiekfarmalls]

One week ago today, Dt Fan and I drove down to Lacona, IA to help a good friend pick his 10 acres of ear corn on his small farm.  He has 3 picking rigs:  706 LP wheatland on a 2 PR, Famall H on a 1PR and a 234 on a 400.

His fleet is mosty IH wagons.

He sells the ear corn to a neighbor, who hauls it home with a truck or 2 big wagons.  So, the small wagons are dumped into them with an IH elevator ran by a 606 utility.

We used his Grandfather's 706 to dump the ear corn into the elevator 

 

Gene used the 234 to open the field for the pull pickers.

I ran the 706 Wheatland and 2PR for 4 1/2 hours.

Mike wore his butt off dumping wagons as Gene and I picked!

With our efforts, we picked enough corn that He finished on Monday.

 

[iowaboy1965]

Looks like fun.

[Wes806]

Thanks for sharing. Was nice to see the old pickers still in operation. Looks to be a good setup for what he's doing.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

I think this is great. My dad has wanted for years to get a tractor mounted picker to pick some ear corn for fun. We have not had a corn picker in my lifetime. My grandfather had a few over the course of his farming career, but all are long gone now. My dad is getting up there and I need to just do it before it’s too late. 

[Chester5732]

3 minutes ago, Dirt_Floor_Poor said:

I think this is great. My dad has wanted for years to get a tractor mounted picker to pick some ear corn for fun. We have not had a corn picker in my lifetime. My grandfather had a few over the course of his farming career, but all are long gone now. My dad is getting up there and I need to just do it before it’s too late. 

Absolutely!  After loosing my Mom last winter I am trying to do as much as possible with my Dad. 

[iowaboy1965]

2 hours ago, Dirt_Floor_Poor said:

I think this is great. My dad has wanted for years to get a tractor mounted picker to pick some ear corn for fun. We have not had a corn picker in my lifetime. My grandfather had a few over the course of his farming career, but all are long gone now. My dad is getting up there and I need to just do it before it’s too late. 

Here ya go. Couple of allegedly working 234s

https://www.facebook.com/share/17rpPd9krx/

 

[Gearclash]

How does the 400 handle the 234?  We had a 234 on a 686 diesel; no shortage of power but a 400 is a fair step down.  Just curious.

If I was independently wealthy I would have me some ear corn harvesting equipment. 

[Alan Dinan]

Great pictures Aaron!! Looked like a fun day!
Grandpa had an Oliver 1 row pull type, only one I ever remember him having. 1986 was the last year he used it, and dad sold it for grandma in 87-88. I don’t remember him using it, just hooked up to the Ford 6600, with the Oliver flair bed wagon.  I do remember being there while grandpa was dumping a load into the crib. The wagon’s cylinder had blown apart so grandpa had a wagon jack to dump it.

[lorenzo]

Very cool. 

[Rawleigh99]

I like picking corn!  Neat pics.  Thanks 

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

3 hours ago, iowaboy1965 said:

Here ya go. Couple of allegedly working 234s

https://www.facebook.com/share/17rpPd9krx/

 

We went to an auction a few years ago to buy a 560 IH tractor with a mounted Deere 237 picker on it. It was an interesting combination I had never seen before. Both the tractor and picker were in very good condition and had been used recently. We decided it brought too much and haven’t been very serious about it for a while. There always seems to be a good supply in Iowa. I need to get one. 

[dale560]

We went to Minneapolis this weekend to visit son at college there. Between Alexandria and St. Cloud . There is a farm on the north side of I 94. They have two round corn cribs. Maybe 2000 bushel bin size. They had one full on Friday and some in the other. Today both were full and conveyor let down. I have watched them the last twenty years driving by. They have filled them with ear corn every year since I first drove by in sept of 2002. Two cribs somewhat the same as this one off the web.

[IH Forever]

5 hours ago, Gearclash said:

How does the 400 handle the 234?  We had a 234 on a 686 diesel; no shortage of power but a 400 is a fair step down.  Just curious.

If I was independently wealthy I would have me some ear corn harvesting equipment. 

I assume to mount the 234 you needed to remove fenders in the 686? I’ve thought it would be fun to get a 234 for my 656 hydro. But not sure I want to mess with removing fenders and disconnecting wiring for the lights.

[Gearclash]

52 minutes ago, IH Forever said:

I assume to mount the 234 you needed to remove fenders in the 686? I’ve thought it would be fun to get a 234 for my 656 hydro. But not sure I want to mess with removing fenders and disconnecting wiring for the lights.

Fenders have to come off.  I cannot remember if we moved the wheels out also to accommodate the picker and back in afterwards.  I do know we lost a tire on the way home, first time the picker was mounted.  Tire was too close the picker and rubbed through.  We were towing the rig with a front end cart thus didn't notice the interference. 

[John Rowehl]

That two row corn planter in the last photo looks just like the one my father started out with.

[DT Fan]

15 hours ago, Gearclash said:

How does the 400 handle the 234?  We had a 234 on a 686 diesel; no shortage of power but a 400 is a fair step down.  Just curious.

If I was independently wealthy I would have me some ear corn harvesting equipment. 

Seemed to work just fine. He was running in low gear. Wagons aren't that big and the hills aren't that steep.

[ny bill o]

Picking ear corn, for me, is the single most satisfying tractor job on a farm. Like payday after payday going up the elevator to the wagon with a pretty yellow load. Dad bought a brand new New Idea 325 2 row picker when I was in high school. He had a 1950 L180 truck with a 15' platform dump that was an old GLF store truck. 4' side racks, BD 269 ex- school bus engine. Only one of the 2 windows in the back of the cab, and no heater that worked. I picked and hauled ear corn home from my grandmother's farm 7 miles away for a good 10 years. Corn stored in a 100' long crib and then in 4 more round wire cribs. Good times.

[Sledgehammer]

Nice pics. Looks like fun!