[Donn Hewes]

hi Ethan, There is a link right in my post “web album” but it is a little hard to see. Perhaps our web guy can make them easier to see?

*****Here’s the link to Donn’s web album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/mulemandonn

[Donn Hewes]

You could try adding drop rings to your harness. By adding rings lower on the side of the hames you will find less of an upward pull on the horses mouths and more of a lateral pull. The lateral pull is the signal we want to send to steer horses. Use a large ring (like from an old bit) and a small lock link to add the ring were the harness back straps are coming off. You may need to decrease the off set between your lines to keep the horses spaced right. While the drop ring is a subtle change for most teams, it would work really well for tall horses. All my horses and mules work with these rings. You can look at my web album to find a picture. The pictures call face net show it well. Donn

[Donn Hewes]

John, Have you considered adding a motor with a PTO shaft? Then there are lots of mowers you could pull, as well as other things as well. Just a thought. You will probably want a separate cart, so you will still have a forecart with out a motor. If it gets any hotter you will need to start breeding those Clydes to a jack!

[Donn Hewes]

Hey Karl, You just wait; we will be working on the classic black Percheron mule real soon! I have seen some that were bay, man were they nice. I wanted a big mule and it is all ways hard to find a Jack with the right size to make a big mule. Eddie came from Kentucky and he is about 15.1 hands and at least 800#. I expect him to fill out over 15.2 and 1000#, he could even be a little heavier than that. he is a red donkey with white points, but a little darker than they sometimes want to make the light colored Belgian mules. My Suffolk is very broad horse, about 16.2 and maybe 1800# to 2000#. They should make a really good, big mule.

[Donn Hewes]

Hi Lane, Home now, In my parts manual that piece is called the fly wheel shield – MA 1401, and the threaded rod is called the coupling bar brace – M 1433. Being able to turn this thread and have it hold is critical to a well set up mower. I have seen holes drilled and bolts put in, but this will seldom lead to perfect lead and timing. I have used one of the after market parts and they work great. They have a different lock nut set up. You need to tighten it to the knife side so the lock nut will support the strain on it. I ran one with the lock nut tightened wrong and almost ruined the brace when I wanted to adjusted. Again the after market set up will include both parts as the bolt and thread set up is not the same.

Try googling Macknair, you can send Norm an email; or try Master Equipment in Apple Creek, OH. 9108 Mount Hope Road, Apple Creek, OH 44606

[Donn Hewes]

Lane, I call that a timing bar, some call it a lead bar. They do make an after market replacement for that. I think it would replace the whole bar. Check with BW Macknair. Definitely let me know if you can’t find one. I am not at home right now, but I will try to look up a part number just out of curiosity. Donn

[Donn Hewes]

Goeff, It is a real score. Ten miles away, and parked inside since 75′. I bougth it from the original owner, manuals and all. A PTO combine I will pull with a team of four and my gas powered cart. I want to find a pick up head for it, but they don’t seem to be that common.

[Donn Hewes]

I know there are some loggers here that use vegetable oil ever day. I have used it for the last couple years. It is probably not as tacky, and I don’t quite fill the fuel tank to keep form running out of bar oil. Just think of all the gallons of petroleum I haven’t poured all over my place.

[Donn Hewes]

Hi John, I just bought a combine. A Allis Chalmers All crop 72. It was built in 68 and it is like new condition!

[Donn Hewes]

I think their regular ground drive PTO (the video was of the heavy duty) cart will run their mower. The regular would also be good for a rake. The heavy duty did work well with the rotary tedder. The secret to a ground drive pto cart is matching the weight and traction of the cart with the job you want to do. Not enough and the machine quickly doesn’t operate as it should. Too much and you are wasting horse power. That is why baling or other things like it is hard to do. The job is hard enough that you don’t want to waste a bunch of horse power pulling an oversized cart, but make it a little lighter and it will not operate well as soon as the conditions aren’t perfect. Just hard to do.

[Donn Hewes]

Although the video doesn’t show it we did plug that baler a couple of times. Just something to consider. You would need to make perfect hay with perfect windrows ever time. imagine plugging when you are out there by your self. just my two cents. Donn

[Donn Hewes]

Just some thoughts. In my limited experience with breaking sod; it is hard work. Not just physically hard, but also hard to make it go well and turn out half way decent. Grazing off short and giving the roots a chance to die back will help a lot. A rolling coulter (hard to find on a walking plow, but they are there) will help cut the sod, but not good if there are too many rocks. A sulky plow will do a better job if the plow really wants to jump all over. I have done very little plowing here on our farm, but most of it has been breaking sod, Maybe three acres in three years. The work I just finished a few weeks ago wasn’t something I would want to sell anyone. Of course I have a disc for four or five horses and we just broke that ground up and planted it to a cover for the winter. good luck.

[Donn Hewes]

Hi Wes and Mike, I am about to go home and rake and bale second cutting. Perhaps the last hay of the year, unless I get motivated to cutting a little patch of first cutting that was ignored all summer (too wet). I made about 2000 square bales of first cutting, but it took me to the middle of July to do it. Work and rain made it hard to keep up a good rhythm. Made about 500 second cutting so far, but the yields are getting lower as I getting into fields that were cut so late for first. I mowed all my hay (and clipped all my pastures) with two 7′ sickle bar mowers; one #7 and one #9. These mowers worked great this year. With two teamsters and four horses we could mow six acres in an hour and a half or two hours. I would not trade back to mowing with a haybine for anything.

The PTO cart worked alright this week in tedding second cutting. One hour to ted six acres. I just got a 14′ rotorary rake. I will really appreciate that today as I have to ted, rake, and bale, six acres and be back to work by 5:30 tonight. Usually I could use two rakes, but one blew up last week, when a wheel fell off.

I am still very happy with my Gas powered PTO cart for baling. I have a little better team of horses (younger) right now and they baled 500 in a day without a problem. I know that I went to fill the 5 gallon tank on the cart after the first 1200 bales. I have used less than 15 so far. I am sure some of the custom manufactured carts might be better / lighter than mine, but for home made it has worked really well.

George, how did the mowers work out? Just talked to an Amish man yesterday that bought an easy cut set up mower at auction. Not mowing very well. That may not be as a result of the easy cut because I think there is a lot of drag on the set up some were. I will have to get a look at the mower this week.

There aren’t really many new pictures from this year. but there are a lot of pictures on my web album. picasaweb.google.com/mulemandonn

[Donn Hewes]

As mentioned above, most any wood can be used for a mower tongue. Make the pole diameter greater if it is a lighter wood. If you are not sure set the prospect between two blocks (a foot from each end); now jump on it in the middle, if it breaks don’t use it, if it doesn’t it should be OK. Donn

[Donn Hewes]

I can only speak for myself. I am friendly and don’t worry about what others think of what I am doing. I don’t even try and explain it to people that aren’t interested. It is not worth the headache to me to try and explain it to someone that really isn’t ready. I have friends that think I am crazy, they just have to decide if they want a crazy person for a friend. Unfortunately there may be a time or person where it is hard to remain close if they think you are crazy, but they will have to work through that.

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