Simple Home-built Trencher ??

We collectively have thought about building a low-cost (that's spelled "really cheap") trencher that would let us cut a 4" wide trench up to 24" deep. I know folks use a modified middle-buster to lay flexible plastic pipe or electric lines, but my own irrigation lines are 2" schedule 40 PVC, and drain lines are 4" PVC, so an open trench is more like it. One friend bought a "potato plow" which works to a certain degree - cuts a trench maybe 10"-12" wide, but no more than about a foot deep.

Our soil here is pretty much rock-free, but is pretty much dry clay after we get below about 6-12". That makes it pretty firm, but with no real structure to tear up a piece of equipment other than being hard.

Our tractors include an old Farmall (don't know the model) that's not real powerful, a Ford 3000 diesel four-wheel drive, and my own MF35 diesel that at around 38 hp is the strongest.

Anybody out there ever built such a device?

My thoughts are to take an existing 3-pt implement - I have a 3-pt KingCutter "carryall" - and attach to it a length of around 3-4" angle iron, maybe 3-4 ft long, with it's bottom end cut to an angle and sharpened, and angled so it's bottom cutting end is forward. We'd mount so you could easily swing it up since the 3-pt doesn't have a 2 ft. stroke without putting a long attachment arm on it.

The thought is that we could make several passes if needed to get the depth - we're not talking about miles of trench...more like several hundreds of feet for any given job. The angle iron (with it's apex towards the back and on an angle) would tend to let the soil ride up and spill to the outside - hopefully not fill back in. Might need a deflector to keep it from riding all the way up and over the top of the angle, but that's the general idea.

Any comments on that idea, or any other ideas?

Maybe a silly, but then again, maybe not! :)

Thanks!

Small ditcher
I started with a Cat. 1 drawbar, angle Iron, roadgrader ripper shank & point, cultivator shovel and some sheet steel. That's a VAC wheel weight for 'bite'!

Ditch Plow
This one is made up from two bottoms (a right & a left) from a flip-over plow, a Cat. 1 drawbar and some steel strap.

Thanks!

This is a Cat. 3 ditcher so wings are about 5 ft. long. The more you angle it the more aggressive it is and the deeper you can go.

Thanks aqnyhow, but I guess that's just not what I had in mind.

Of coure you can start with a narrow single bottom plow and a couple of passes to get it as deep as possible then use a middle buster/ripper to cut to the final depth but I doubt the trench will be left clean you might have to take a hoe and clean the trench out by hand but at least it'd be loose dirt.

Thanks for the reply.

Your angle iron would need a pipe backing or something, it isn't very strong in the demention you are planning to use it.

Pulling a 4' deep, 4" tile plow takes 200+ hp in clay soils - you are 1/2 way there on your design specs.

--->Paul

A middle-buster, as I understand, is usually a 1" thick by maybe 3-4" broad bar with a chisel tip at the end. I get the impression that it doesn't really leave a trench behind. Am I wrong? Our thinking was to get some lifting action by way of the angle to clear the trench as it cut.

Anyhow, the 4' length includes what's above the gorund since I don't really need to go deeper than 24" max in maybe several passes - ie, maybe 6-8" each pass.

We did figure we'd need reinforcing, just hadn't thought through how to do it yet.

Thanks again!