[AT] ford corn planters

[jtchall at nc.rr.com]

Anybody here have any experience with Ford corn planters? I’m wanting to pick up a corn planter for about 10 acres this spring. There are tons of 309 Fords around, prices vary from $500 to 1,000. All of them I have seen have sword openers. I definitely want disc openers and may have found one finally. Likewise there are a few Massey’s around as well. Long term I want a 4 row, preferably no-till machine, however my location hinders that option quite a bit. Are plates for the Ford and Massey planters unique to them or are they the same as other manufacturers? How about other parts? I’ve been looking for a planter for a couple years and the one thing I am finding is that parts for an old corn planter are non-existent or incredibly expensive. 2 row planters carry a fairly high price due to gardeners and hunters (food plots). 

I’ve been using a 900 series Case-IH no till that belongs to a friend, but don’t want to wear out my welcome. I must admit that is one fine piece of machinery!

John Hall