here is a pic of the D46U set up

Nice set up. We managed to farm only using 10’6” discs here and tractors under 90 HP. My family did not believe in spending $ for most anything. I have better and more equipment now, than when we actively farmed our own ground. Some folks don’t like buying another line of equipment if they already have something that will work.
Glad to see you wanting to cover more ground efficiently.
Believe it or not, D69Us are still sought after out here, very good machines.

if you keep the disc and drill the D4 will pull it in at least one gear higher than your 6U, maybe 2 gears. Too small for the D5, waste of diesel fuel. could pull 18" or 20" in your conditions with the 5 and also faster than the 6U. work out the $$ per hour for them and you will see which is better for your application. Have a great day!

sorry to confuse. the D46U set up was an experiment with machinery i already had just to see if a tracked tractor would open up opportunity on the land. it did well and proved a point to me very well and didn't cost much to experiment. my question on this thread is that i am considering purchasing a newer higher horsepower tractor and some basic equipment to go with it. i have seen D4D tractors with over 100 hp advertised and D5 tractors with as low as 90 HP and up to a considerably higher horsepower rating. i know the D5 will be heavier and has more gears than a D4D and probably is the tractor i should consider but having little experience with these tractors i now realize i can't compare to a wheel tractor at all. to be practical i need to go bigger to cover the acres in a timely manner. i can pick up a decent double offset disk in the 20 foot on up to 30 foot pretty reasonable so i need to match a tractor to that size probably. i can go smaller in disk size but just will have to look a little harder for it.

My question is in regard to your soil conditions, how much crust or dry dirt is on top of the boog. Heavier tractors can be held up with more track pad or wider tire, but if you spin you tracks how fast are you booged? I only ever farmed about 5 acres of that type of ground, the rest has a bottom. Unhook your tool and you can swim a Cat out. But that little bit has given me great respect for how fast you can be stuck.

So maybe yours is not that bad but just other things to analyze as you go forward in the process of getting bigger equipment.

Since you menschen the the wet ground, so not matter what size tractor you might want equipment on the small side so you never spin a track to break that crust.

A question for JM where you calling a JD 1200 a semi stubble disc? That was the most common class of disc in this county in the grain farming days.

thanks Ray that is true and correct. a little spin won't matter. but ground pressure does. the D46U has narrow gauge and narrow grousers also. i figures the aprox ground pressure on it and i think if i remember it was a little over 10psi. i need to figure but i also think a D5 can be found to be at 10 or less???

  duplicate post

anybody see any holes in my theory please chime in. i am seeking advice from anyone who has farmed with a cat.

A D4E has 8.6 psi with 16" shoes, 7.6 psi with 18" shoes, 6.9 psi with 20" shoes
A D5B has 9.8 psi with 16" shoes, 8.7 psi with 18" shoes, 7.8 psi with 20" shoes, 7.1 psi with 22" shoes
D4E LGP DD has 4.28 psi with 30" shoes
D5B LGP has 4.3 psi with 34" shoes
D3B track type tractor/dozer has 8.6 psi with 12" shoes, 7.4 psi with 14" shoes, 6.4 psi with 16" shoes, operating weight is 14,795 lbs

thanks Rome. i suspect that a D5B and a D5 are similar in that regard? and a D4D probably a little lighter than a D4E? maybe not enough to matter in this case? i know the little D46U with 12 inch shoes and four roller frame did just fine,and it has a winch and the blade brackets as extra weight.