With their farm and custom business centered in soybean and corn country in southeastern North Dakota, the Gramlow family was well aware of the shortcomings in some brand new implements.
By 2012 they had decided to put that concern into action by diversifying into manufacturing. Their first offering was a conversion kit for the 1770NT 24 row CCS John Deere planter, allowing growers to replace the centre frame tires with a pair of 16.5-inch wide rubber track undercarriages. That was the launch of the Gramlow reputation for premium rubber track undercarriages.
Richard Gramlow said this gives you four times the footprint of the tires, and they allow fertilizer coulters and most other attachments you would normally use on a planter. The kit is a direct bolt-on with normal tools and can be installed in about two days.
One of their latest innovations is a unique liquid fertilizer caddy that runs on three sets of tracks. The pair of 22-inch wide rear tracks exert 13 pounds per sq. inch (psi) on soil. The single 16.5-inch wide front track exerts 10 psi on the ground. The cart carries two 1,600-gallon cone bottom tanks.
We reached Gramlow on Nov. 15 as he was combining corn. He explained the unusual three-point design.
“We have a single track up front because we didn’t need that extra expense of four tracks for the weight we carry. With just a single track up front, we’ve got only 10 psi, so why complicate it with another set of tracks?
“At the headlands, a single track at the front is a lot easier to steer than two tracks. The load on the implement pulling the caddy is a lot less with just one track.”
The newest product is a track kit for a 1790 and 1795 20-inch corn planter. He said two of the most popular track kits he sells into Canada are the twin row kits and planter track kits.
Gramlow has taken on the manufacture and marketing of the EzOffset three-position crossbar, which replaces the crossbar on John Deere 1790-1795 even row models. This kit streamlines the awkward and potentially dangerous task of jacking up the planter hitch, removing the pivot bolt and re-positioning a heavy crossbar.
The three positions are for 30-inch row spacing, twin row and 15-inch row spacing. The crossbar is provided in Gramlow’s Twin Row Conversion kit and enables the planter to be easily re-centred behind the tractor for twin or 30-inch rows. It works equally well for stock even row 1790s – 1795s. For the 15-inch and 30-inch positions, you can use a Category 3 or 4N quick hitch. For the twin row position, a Category 3 hitch is required. The kit is complete so there’s no need to modify the stock crossbar.
Gramlow also offers meter testing and calibration, liquid fertilizer system design and setup plus custom metal fabrication.
When asked to compare Gramlow rubber track kits to other kits, he makes no bones about it. “We really don’t have any competition in this market. It’s either tracks or tires. If you want tracks you call us.”
