Ford 309 planter
 

Anyone on this site have one of these planters? Know where to find seed plates and planter parts?

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

There are usually 309 plates on ebay, but, compared to John Deere or International, they are quite pricey. I believe that New Holland dealers can still get some Ford planter parts.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

So I've heard. Thanks.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

i have a dearborn 12-20. it's the same planter as the ford 309. ford bought out dearborn. in the last12 months, i've only seen5-6 auctions for 309 planter plates. they went from $10-$40 a pair.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

Psandu,

If I find plates for a Dearborn 12-20 will they work in the 309?

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

i bought some plastic 309 plates for my dearborn. had to use a jigsaw to enlarge the inside diamter of the ford plate by 3/16" so it would fit in my planter. every dearborn plate i've seen is metal. if you can weld and use a grinder, and have a ford plate for a pattern, you can probably convert a dearborn plate to fit a ford in about 30-45 minutes. i really doubt you'll find dearborn plates though, ford bought them in the 50's and changed the inside diamter of the plates when they started producing them.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

As popular as these old plates seem to be, maybe I should design an aluminum mold so I can make the basic plates from epoxy resin and notch them for a variety of seeds. Hell, maybe even sell the molds on the net!

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

I don't think they are all that popular. The 309 was discontinued in 1979 after about 22 years of production. They were never as popular as the International or John Deere 2 row planters, and most new parts have pretty well dried up. NH does have some parts andabout 32 different plates currently listed, however. Lincoln Ag, which specializes in new plastic planter plates and has hundreds in stock (at $11 each), does notlist any for the 309. I suspect that the market is just not there.

Interestingly, agood 30 year old 2 row mounted planter, of any brand will usually bring more today than it cost originally. While a 4 or6 row planter of the same vintage and condition brings about 20%-30% of its original cost.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

Keyshunter, where can I see the "32 plates" NH has listed for this planter? Is there a website to which you're referring? I have the NH parts manual and that's probably about the number of plates listed but the manual suggests nearly all the planter parts are still available. At least, the number of NLS (no longer serviced) parts are indicated to be few versus those for which NH shows a part number. Many of the parts such as nuts, bolts etc. they indicate "procure locally" and those shouldn't be a problem. Have you owned one of the 309's?

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

Yeoman,
Yes, I have a 309 planter. I was at my local (30 miles) NH dealer the other day. I asked the parts man which plates are available for the 309. He brought up the list on his computer screen, and I counted 32 numbers--corn, sorghum, beans, cotton, and peanuts.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

I see. In one of my previous posts I referred to the popularity of the plates for this planter because I've watched them sell on Ebay for $30 a pair and knew that Lincoln sold the Deere plates for $11 new. I've heard that NH is getting $50 a pair for the 309 plates. No wonder they're going for $30 on Ebay. I'm hoping the NH plates that are blank will be cheaper and I'll fashion my own sets. Have you had to get parts for your planter and had trouble finding them?

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

I bought my 309 when I retired from farming, and sold my farm and all of my big stuff, and moved south.The only reason I bought a309, was that the price was right--$75. International and John Deere 2 rows were much more. But IH and JD parts are cheaper and more readily available. CHEAPER, never thought I would say that about John Deere!I just picked it up to plant a little sweet corn, and it will probably do what I want for the rest of my life. I haven't had to buy any parts, and upon checkingsome priceswith NH dealer, I will try to avoid that.

One hint provided by another 309 owner: Do not back up orlet the drive (press) wheels hit the ground when backing up. The seed knockers are plastic and rather fragile. Hitting them hard in reverse will often break them--about $50 each.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

Yikes! That's a tip I won't forget. Thanks.

RE: Ford 309 planter
 

ebay item #: 7603116925