A 1. Residue Management - The harrow works well in heavy, damp residue without plugging or bunching, leaving the residue spread evenly, allowing it to dry, and the soil beneath to warm up. Quite often used as a pre-plant preparation or no-till bean stubble, cornstalks, and heavy wet wheat stubble. Also used in fall to fluff ric residue for a complete burn.

2. Leveling Lumps and Ridges - The harrow can be used to level lumps and ridges on chiseled and cultivated ground. Leveling ridges before the application of anhydrous ammonia is a very common. There is a limit, of course, to how large a ridge we can knock down, or how deep a furrow we can fill, especially with a single pass. Because the harrow is so easy to pull, and you can cover so many acres in a hour, many people make two passes when necessary.

3. Incorporating Chemicals - The harrow can be used to incorporate chemicals to get excellent chemical to soil contact, this occurs even in heavy residue. The reason the harrow works so well is that it does three dimensional mixing, the depth that works.

4. Crust buster - The harrow can also be used as a crust buster in clay and gumbo type soils. In firm soil the harrow doesn't penetrate deep enough to pick any of the seed out of the ground, just enough to loosen some soil and spread it over the surface. This will stop the formation of a crust or soften one that may have already formed, thus enabling seedlings to come through. Please keep in mind that the Phillips Rotary Harrow can also be used in rocky soil conditions without any problems.

5. Seed Tool - In some areas it is used as a seeding tool, incorporating small seeds shallow (1/2 - 1 inch) such as alfalfa, grass, canola, mustard, etc.

Q. How Long Will It Last?

A. The frame is very strong, and the ground-engaging tines are hardened to last a long, long time, thousands of acres. We have plenty of units that have covered 60,000 - 70, 000 acres, same teeth and bearings. Some rental units have covered more than 100,000 acres with the teeth being worn down only about 1". The teeth are made from 1060 heat-treated steel not like our competitors, who use lower grade cold-formed steel. Our bearing assembly lasts exceptionally well with proper maintenance. It utilizes a 2' tapered greasable bearing, which we recommend being greased once per day or at least every 500 acres.

Q. What are the differences between the Phillips Rotary Harrow and other Harrows?

A. Although we both use the patented interlocking tool our machines are quite different.

The Frame:   Our frame is a V-Design and theirs is an A-Design. The real benefit to this is our ability to hold better on hillsides. The Phillips Rotary Harrow is heavier than other harrows.
Fixed 45 degrees angle:   We firmly believe that a 45-degree attack angle is correct. In fact we used to build the Phillips Rotary Harrow fixed at 40 degrees with the option to adjust to 45 degrees but because it works better at 45 degrees we have now fixed it at 45. Other harrows are adjustable from 30 to 45 degrees. When comparing price be certain to compare each machine when set at 45 degrees.
Transport Positioning:   The Phillips goes into transport position and lays down for field position easier and faster than other harrows.
Tooling:   We offset our tooling so our tooling hits the ground every 3.25" rather than every 7". Our exclusive staggered tool design produces a different pattern on the soil surface. It's our opinion that our pattern disturbs a much higher percentage of the ground surface, leaving a smoother finish.

Q. How does it work in wet conditions? Will it plug?

A. This is where the Phillips Rotary Harrow really excels. The patented flexible interlocking tooth design allows the teeth to move or wiggle as you are moving. A combination of this movement and centrifugal force keeps the harrow cleaning itself out, as you are moving down the field, by continually picking up residue and immediately unloading it. This leaves an even distribution of all types of heavy wet residue.

Q. What are the H.P. requirements?

A. The harrow is rated at approximately 3 H.P. per foot. We recommend slightly more if working in wet or hilly conditions. The 30 ft. - 80 H.P., and with the 43 ft. - 100 H.P. to 150 H.P. and that is pulling the units fast (8-10 mph or faster). In general the softer the ground, the faster you pull, and the more hills, the more horsepower you need.

Q. What is the cable down the middle for?

A. The 2' cable is used strictly for weigh to help the harrow get more penetration on hard ground, it does not hold anything together. The cable is used so we have flexibility in our interlocking tool design.

Q. What if I break a tooth?

A. This has never happened, but if it should, the teeth must be reassembled from the end. This is not a hard job as the teeth simply hook over each other. Cost is only about $6.00 per tooth.

Q. What are some other uses for the harrow?

A. Leveling molehills, aerating grasslands, seeding broadcast soybeans, shattering cornstalks or sunflower stalks, burying weed seeds and volunteer grains, drying out slough bottoms and wet lands, and grooming drainage ditches and terraces.

Makes an excellent rental unit for soil groups and commercial dealers because of ease of operation and the excellent durability and low maintenance. With regular lubrication and periodical tightening of the teeth the unit should run up towards 100,000 acres with very little repairs.