by Lucas Veale, Assumption, IL 

We have been running a lot of meters this winter with our seed meter test stand.  One of the major causes for performance issues is leaving the disk in the meter over an extended period of time.  This warps the disk and can disfigure the seal.  Make sure that when you are finished planting that you remove the disk from the meter and store it in a vertical position.  The best way to do this is take an old broom handle and slide the disks on it and then hang it so the disks are vertical.  Throwing them in a box or on a bench will cause them to warp.  Another issue we have seen is leaving seed in the planter.  This attracts Disney characters to make their winter homes in your planter meter.  They feast on the seed and your rubber vac seals.

Winter Planter Clinic Lanark, IL  March 5, 2015

Deere just announced the winter software update (15-1).  It is a good practice to update your AMS components with the latest software updates.  It is especially important to update your receivers this year as there is going to be a frequency change in July.  If you perform the winter software update it will automatically find the new frequency when it is released.  This is true for both the ITC and the Starfire 3000 receivers.

One of the main in-season issues or questions we get during planting is the swath control settings.  It is absolutely imperative that the receiver to machine measurements for the tractor and the planter are checked and entered into the GS3 display.  This will make sure that the GPS receiver and display can calculate the position of the seed tubes and turn on/off the clutches at the proper time.  If these dimensions are not entered correctly the time adjustment will likely not do much good to correct any stop/start planting issues.  So, before you start, check these dimensions against a tape measure and make sure that they are correct.  Along those lines, Sloan Express sells a light that will turn on and off with your clutch to give you a visual reference as to the exact time the clutch is turning on or off.  You can put one on the outside rows of the planter so you can be sure that the clutches are performing correctly. You can see more info on this light by clicking here.  It won’t get you down to the last 6” of where the last seed was planted but it will help you see if there was a moderate or major change in the settings for swath control.

Row Clutch Indicator Light – Click Picture for More Info