US2377521A - Disk harrow - Google Patents

Description

A. E. RUTTER DISK HARROW June 5, 1945.

7 Sheets-Sheet l Filed May 28, 1942 v MEM @MQW

June 5, 1945. A. E. RUTTER 2,377,521

DISK HARROW Filed May 28, 1942 '7 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mm I Mw ATTORNEY A` E. RUTTER June 5, 1945.

DI SK HARROW Filed May 28, 1942 '7 Sheets-Sheet 3 A. E. RUTTER June 5, 1945.

Filed May 28, 1942 A. E. RUTTER DISK HARROW V7 sheets-sheet 6 Filed May 28, 1942 mh R l 1 m nc i .w ma w@ Il@ \m` u@ www ATTORNEY June 5, 1945.

A. E. RUTTER DISK HARROW Filed May 28, 1942 7 Sheets-Sheet '7 um u il-.- ,..fft

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ATTORNEY Patented June 5, 1945 lUNITED sTATEsPATEN'r ori-lcs DISK BABBOW Alvin n. nutten muore, nl., .umm u J. I.

l Cale Gompany, Racine. Wis., a oorporation Application May 28, 1942, Serial No. 444,818

(C1. SHI) 19 Claims.

, A further object is to provide such a barrow in ,which when narrowed the weight of idle portions of the harrow is carried in such a position as to facilitate the operation of the remainder of the harrow in hard ground.

A further object is to provide improved draft means for harrows of such characteristics; to provide improved spring means for resisting upward movement of the centerof such a harrow; and to provide detailed improvements for the better realization of the above objects.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein a satisfactory embodiment of the invention is shown.' However. it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the details disclosed but includes all such variations and modiiications as fall within the spirit of the in vention as herein expressed.

In the annexed drawings.

Figure 1 is a front perspective view of such a harrow in "straight position with parts folded for transport. use in hard ground, or the like.

Fig. 2 is a similar view with the harrow in ,angled position and with the parts unfolded for use at maximum width.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail of certain mechanism indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a folding connection indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 5 is a similar view with the parts in a different position.

. Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical sectional view through certain latch mechanism indicated in- Y Figs. 1 and 2.

, Fig. rl is a longitudinal axial sectional view of the same including portions of a drawbar.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged plan view with parts re-v` moved and others broken away of certain mech` anism indicated in Fig. 3.

Fig. 9 is a right side elevation of the'same.

Fla'. 11 is a vertical axial sectional view of a spring mechanism indicated in Fig. 8.

Fig. 12 is a detail of certain mechanism indicated in Fig. 1.

As particularly seen in I'ig. 2, the harrow of the present illustrative embodiment comprises a pair of gangs generally designated as III and II, connected at the mid portion of the barrow by a hold-down device generally designated as I2. The barrow is propelled by a draw bar generally designated as I1 connected at one end to gangs Il and II in the vicinity of device I2 and having braces pr portions I4 and il extending from the forward portion of draw bar I2 backwardly and outwardly and engaging gangs I0 and Il at points towards the outer ends thereof. Gangs II and II being identical, gang Il only will be described in detail, it being noted that each of the gangs is made in two sections, I i and I1 of gang Il, and Il and I9 of gang il.

Returning to a more detailed description of the harrow, section Il of gang I0 comprises a series of disks 2li-2li fixed Von an axle 2l carried in bearings 22, 23 and 24 (Fig. 3). The disks and 25 axle being of well-known form. need not be iur- Il-Il o! Fig. 9.

ther described. Bearing 22 has a standard 25 extending upwardly there'irom4 to members 26 and/21, Fig. 1, connected by a panel 28 forming a frame or weight box above disks 2li. A similar standard 29 extends upwardly from bearing 23 and a third standard III extends upwardly in similar manner from bearing 24. A unitary section, above designated as I'I. is accordingly Provided. Section It is identically similar, :as previously stated.

Sections, I1 and I8 as so far described. connected with draw bar I2 and braces I4 and I5 provide a harrow which would be suitable for hard ground and diilicult conditions, and `not too wide to pass through the ordinary farm gate. 'I'his is not as wide as desirable under most conditions and for which reasons sections It and I9 are used.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 4, panel 28 stops short of standard 25 and a cross member 3| extends between members 2| and 21, in the present instance the major portion of the cross member being inclined outwardly and downwardly. Member 3l serves to connect above mentioned section Il with above mentioned section I1. Thzus4 section I6 has frame members I2 and 3l joined by a respectively, then bending upwardly at approximately the inclination of above mentioned member 3|. They are joined by a cross member 4| which preferably overlies member 3| at substantially the same angle. A pin or bolt 42 traverses members 4| and 3| in the present instance approximately in the middle thereof and serves as a pivot about which member 4| may rotate on member 3| to provide for displacement of section I6. Owing to the nesting relation of members 32 and 33 within members 26 and 21, in conjunction with the pivotal connection afforded by bolt 42, section I6 is maintained substantially in alignment with section I1 so as to form acontinuation thereof. The addition of section I6 and identical above mentioned section I9, to above mentioned sections |1 and I8, provides a harrow of sufllcient width to fully load the tractor and accomplish a satisfactory amount of work.

Sections I6 and I9 may be readily removed from alignment with sections |1 and as will ber 4I and a nut 44, a washer 45 being interposed lf desired. Ordinarily, misalignment of sections I6 and I1 would be impossible because of the nesting relation of members 33 and 32 in members 21 and 26. Due to the freedom provided by spring 43, however, section I6 may be lifted slightly so as to cause members 33 and 32 to clear member 21 whereupon section I6 may be rotated backwardly about bolt 42 as a pivot. Referring now to Fig. 5, owing to the contact between cross members 3| and 4|, section I3 moves in a plane inclined inwardly and upwardly toward the center of the machine. This is partly accomplished in Fig. 5 and it will be noted that the total movement of section I6, while being quite substantial, namely, half of the circumference of a circle with bolt 42 as a center, referring to any point on section I8, the actual upward movement is very gradual and in effect is only suillcient to bring section IB to its elevated position above section |1 as seen in Fig. l. Unlike devices of the prior art, it is unnecessary in the device of the present invention to lift section I6v bodily substantially at all, and in any event only sufliciently to disengage member 33 from member 21. The operator has the benefit of the principle of the inclined plane and by virtue of the relatively long distance which he moves section I6, need exert only a fraction of the force necessary to bodily lift section I6.

As a practical matter, a boy may easily shift section I6 from the position shown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. l, whereas with known constructions, it is dilcult even for a very strong man to effect the change from wide to narrow position. Furthermore, the movable section is under full control at all times and has no tendency to get away from the operator and cause injury. In the present embodiment, the force of gravity assists in restoring section I6 to the lowered position shown in Fig. 2. Spring -43 'is preferably adjusted to cause sumcient friction betwee members 3| and 4| to prevent spontaneo movement o1' section Il, and maintains the desired relation between portions 4| and 3|. It must therefore be helped a little in its downward course and produces no dangerous condition at any time.

A further advantage lies in the fact that section IB never turns completely over, disks 4|! always being under frame members 32, 33 and panel 34 to some extent, as opposed to prior art devices in which the pivoted section turns completely over with the frame below and th'e sharp dangerous disks above and exposed. Besides having the disks below the frame in the present instance. it is unnecessary to struggle to the utmost of ones strength to shift the section and there is never the likelihood of the section getting out of control and falling on or against the operator.

In operation, of all disk harrows, there is a strong axial end thrust. In the present instance, sections I0 and oppose each other and the end thrust is neutralized at the center of the harrow. However. end .thrust developed in section I6 must be directed to section I1, and for practical reasons in the present instance this thrust is transmitted to members 33 and 32, ultimately manifesting itself in cross member 4|. There would be therefore a tendency to shear bolt 42. To avoidl this, member 4| is shouldered downwardly at 46 and has a flange portion 41 curved upwardly at 48 and 48a to provide cam portions. Inward thrust of section I6 is accordingly transmitted through shoulder 46 to member 3| and accordingly to inner section I1.

When section I6 is swung rearwardly as above described, cam portion 48 rides up over member 3| compressing spring 43. In view of the substantial leverage afforded by the length of section I1, this slight resistance to rearward turning is not noticeable to the operator. With section I6 at rest on top of section I1, flange 41 rests on member 3| This affords a substantial sliding surface and avoids damage tomember 3| and shoulder 48 during the rotating movement. It is to be noted that section I6 need not necessarily be rotated rearwardly in folding or unfolding, but may be rotated forwardly if desired, in such case the cam surface 48a serving to raise member 4| so thatshoulder 46 will clear member 3|. There are thus two alternative ways of folding the harrow, although in general it is desirable to rotate the sections to the rear where the operator is clear of 'all parts of the implement.

'This property-of the construction is another distinct improvement over the prior art, in which it is necessary to climb on top of the barrow in order to get suiilcient purchase to lift the folding section.

Another advantage of the above described property is that the outer section I3, while normally remaining positively inline with member I1, will be lifted in the event that it strikes a substantial obstruction in the ground. This will free member 33 from member 21 whereupon the rearward reaction of the ground and the obstruction will cause member I3 to swing .to the rear and relieve the parte of any dangerous stresses. Shoulder 48 therefore constitutes and serves the purpose of a detent for yieldingly holding sections I6 and |1 in line.

the parts, the pin being removed when it is de sired to fold the harrow. In like manner section I6 may be locked in its upper or folded position by replacing pin 49 in a hole l2 which in the present instance lines up with hole Il in the folded position. Hole 50 may be arranged to lineup with a hole 53 in the folded position and hole 52 may 'align with hole 33 in the working position. all as indicated `in Fig. 5. If d asecondpinllmaybeinsertedintheremaining set of aligned holes as will be understood.

Owing to the freedom of bolt 52, section i is free to rise somewhat, about bon; n as a pivot,

in operation` in rough ground, and itmay also `fall approximately about the end of` members 21 and 25 by compressing spring 55 and raising pins 55and55,iftheyareused. Aswillbeapparent lthe nesting relation between members 55 and `52 within members 21 and 25 may be relied upon to maintain the gang sections in alignment section I5 in exactly the same manner as bearing 25 is related to section I1.l Draw bar section 55 is pivotally connected at 55 to above` mentioned brace I5. Brace I5 extends rearwardly and outwardly in the direction of bearing 22. However, to reach bearing 22 it would have to pass through one .of disks 25, specifically disk 25a, which of course is impossible. Brace i5 accordingly has a lower portion which is offset at 55 to pass around disk 25a and engage bearing 22 beyond disk 25a. 'I'he 4major portion4 of brace I5, however, proceeds in a straight line from pivot 55 toward bearing 22. A straight pull is also transmitted from member I5 by an upper section 5i which angles upwardly from a pivotal attachment 52 to a pivot 53 on a portion of standard 25 and preferably directly over apivot 65 on which oii'set portion 55 is connected to bearing 22. In this manner a substantially straight line pull is exerted on the end of portion I1 and in the region of bearing 22. A substantially identical construction is used in connection with brace I5, the latter having an offset portion 55 pivotally connected at 55 with a bearing 51, and an upper section 55 pivotally connected at 55 with brace l5. Portion 55 is also pivotally connected at with a portion of a standard 1I connected with bearing 51. Brace I5 is pivotally connected at 12 with above mentioned front portion'55 of draw bar I5.

Draw barportion 55 may be locked in its relation to portions 55 and 51 by a. latch mechanism generally designated as 15, fixed with above mentioned members 55 and 51, the latch having a trip rope or member 15 extending to a convenient point for manipulation by an operator.

Latch 13 has a pin 15 engageable in` one or another of holes 15-15 for maintaining the parts in desired adjustment. Fig. 1, as above noted,

' shows the harrow in straight position as it would be transported to and from the field. .l To angle the harrow, assuming a tractor, not shown,

attached to a pin 11'of draw bar I3, it is merely necessary to pull trip -rope 15 and drive ahead, whereupon portion 55 slides relatively to members 55 and 51, pulling on braces I5 and i5 but not on portions 55 and 51. This results in pulling the outer ends of gangs I5 and il forwardly relatively to the inner ends, thus placing the harrow in angle. When the desired degree of angle is achieved, rope 15 is released whereupon latch pin 15 engages the next hole of the series 15.

arrasar This arrests the angling movement and transmits thepullofthe tractoralsotothe innerend portions of gangs I5 and Il. whereupon the harrow A moves forward in whatever angular position is determined by the particular hole engaged by pin 15. It will be apparent that this operation is true whether the sections I5 and l5 are folded as shown in Fig. 1 or in working `position as shown in Fig. 2. To restore the arrow to'straight posiaan. um tractor g: while trip rope u holds latch pin 15 d, portion 55 of draw bar I5 'sliding between members 55 and 51 `so that braces l5 and i5 receive the backward thrust end of members 55 and 51 through which member 55 may slide. As seen in Fig. 7, a plate 55 is extended between members '55 and 51 spaced rearwardly from plate'15.l This prevents up'- wardmovement of the rear end of member and tends to'keep it in line with members 55 and 51. Member 55 has xed therewith at its rear end, as-by a bolt 5i, a plate 52 in the present instance having upwardly oii'set portions as 55 engaging the upper surface of members 55 and 51. This prevents downward movement of the rear 4end of member 55, the result of the arrangement being a relatively easilytelescoping or sliding sup.- port between the front and rear sections of the draw bar. A

Latch mechanism 15 is built on plate 15. .A U shaped member 5 5 is inverted and fixed with plate 15 and has an upper section '55 which is apertured for the sliding passage of latch pin 15. Plate 15 is also apertured for such passage of pin 15, the apertures being aligned so as to guide pin 15 in a substantially vertical direction and brace 55 extending laterally thereof and a shoulder 55a against whichvbears a spring 51 compressed between the shoulder and upper section 55. This tends to maintain latch pin 15 in its downward position. Cross pin 55 also engages ears 55 and 55 of a U shaped yoke or lifter 55 enclosing U shaped portion 55, and yresting upon plate 15. Portion 55 has anupstanding inclined arm 5I to which is fastened above mentioned trip rope 15. Spring 51 holds latch pin 15 in its lowermost position and holds member 55 down on plate 15. A pull on rope 15, however, tilts member 55 about pin 55 as a pivot, forward cam portions as 52 engaging plate 15, and raising cross pin 55, thereby compressing spring 51 and raising latch pin 15. This disengages pin 15 from any of holes 15 and allows portion 55 to slide relatively to portions 55 and 51. With rope 15 released, pin 15 and extends outwardly and rearwardly past ear 55 and to which it is connected by a bolt 55.

Member 51 continues rearwardly and has an eye portion |55 pivotally engaged with a pin or stud |51 extending in the present instance upwardly from above mentioned bearing 24. This forms f a connection between draw bar I3 and the inner connection of members 91 and |02 at spaced points, as for example at bolt 98 and at ear 95 or 06 establishes a sturdy rigid connection between members 9'I and |02 and the remainder of draw bar |3. In this manner a bifurcated rear portion is provided for the draw bar.

Member 91 has an outwardly extending bracketfor cooperation with a hold-down device above generally designated as I2, as will appear, memyber |02 being provided with a similar bracket; |01.

With the mechanism so far described, a connection to the inner ends of the gangs is aorded and the angling action above described Vcan be readily obtained. In disk harrowsv of this general time. there is also a tendency for the outer ends' of the gangs to cut deeper than the inner ends. In the present instance -this is eliminated as follows.

Referring -particularly to Fig. 3, a compression spring generally designated as |08 exerts an outward pressure against levers |09 and ||0 which in turn exert an inward pressure on the upper portions of gangs I0 and Since 'the inner disks of gangs "I0 and I| contact each other through bumpers III and |I2 (Fig. 1), considerably below levers |09 and ||0, a couple is set up tending to depress the inner ends of gangs I0 and and raise the outer ends thereof. Proper adjustment of spring |09 will then balance this couple and accordingly the tendency to "dig in of the inner disks. y

Returning to a more detailed description of hold down device I2, levers |09 and |0 are fulcrumed on pins |I3 and ||4, the levers in the present instance being provided with offset ears ||6'and ||6. Pins ||3 and I|4 are carriedbya cross arm III, in the present instance bifurcated and suitably xed as by welding with a tongue |I0. Tongue ||9 extends from cross member ||1 forwardly and downwardly, being arched over spring |08 and having an ear ||9 engaged with above mentioned plate 93 by a bolt or the like I 20. Tongue ||8 is connected by a brace I2I (see also Fig. 9) with above mentioned yoke 94, which gives a stable support for tongue |I9. Tongue ||9 extends rearwardly approximately to the rearmost extent of the harrow and may be used for the connection of any other desired implement to follow or trail behind the disk harrow, for example, a spike tooth harrow, not shown.

Lever |09 is pivoted at |22 to a cross member |23 constituting apart of above mentioned standard 30 and lever ||0 is similarly pivotally connected at |24 with a cross member |26. As will now be apparent, outward pressure o! spring |09 will cause inward pressure in pivots |22 and |24.

' Bumpers and ||2, Fig. l, areof suitable or well-known construction comprising semi-spherical bodies which roll in contact with each other. Theoretically the surfaces will roll together and each will transmit the end thrust of its respective -gang to the other. Owing to rough ground, the

necessarily ilexible construction of the implement, and unavoidable inaccuracies, these bumpwhat on the other, thus throwing the inner ends' of the gangs I0 and out of line. vLevers |00 and ||0 are utilized to combat this tendency. Thus. as seen in Fig. 10, lever |09 has-a downwardly extending ear to which is pivoted at |2'I a link |29. Link |20 in turn is pivoted at |29 to above mentioned Vear |08 on member 0l. In like manner lever ||0 has an ear |30 pivoted at v|3| to a link |32 in turn pivoted at |33 to above mentioned ear |0'I on member |02.

As will now be apparent, undesired relative upand-down movement between cross members |23 and |25 will cause opposite movement oi' the portions. of levers |09 and ||0 beyond fulcrums ||3 and ||4.` This, however, will be strongly resisted by links |28 and |32 which will not permit such movement without imparting a twisting motion to draw bar I3. Thus, although all the parts are ordinarily somewhat ilexible, any climbing tendency of bumpers and ||2 is very strongly'resisted by this construction.

Spring |08 as more particularly shown in Fig. 11, is disposed about asleeve |34suitab1y iixed as by welding to a bifurcated element |35. With- 25 in sleeve |34 is guided a rod |38 also extending into spring |03. In the present instance rod |30 has tlxed therewith a bifurcated member |31 and 'an abutment |38 is suitably fixed, in the present instance as .by threading, on rod |36. Thus, the 30 expansion of spring |09 tends to force rod |36 out of sleeve |34, thus increasing the distance between bifurcated members |35 and I3'I. The force of this outward pressure can be varied by adjusting abutment |38 along rod |38.

Returning to Fig. 3, bifurcated member |36 is pivoted as by a pin |39 to above mentioned lever |.I0 beyond link |32 and in similar manner bifurcated portion |31 is pivoted to lever |08 beyondvlink |28 by a pin |40. Among other ad- 40 vantages of this construction, a compression spring is utilized in order to pull the upper portions of gangs |0 and together. This is a more rugged and durable construction than any ar- 'rangement which would place a sion. v

' A detail of standard 30and its associated parts is shown in Fig. 12. As will be apparent, stud I0| extends upwardly from bearing 24 and is shouldered at |4|. Ear |00 is journaled on stud |0| between bearing 24 and a-lower portion |42 of standard 30. A bolt or stud |43 also extends from bearing 24 and traverses portion |42, nuts |44 and |45 holding portion |42 iirmly in contact with shoulder |4| and bearing 24. Standard 30 also includes above mentioned cross member |23 to which is pivoted, by means of above mentioned pin |22, lever |09. In the present instance, a member |46 is suitably iixed with cross member |23 as for example by welding and receives pin |22 therethrough; this reinforces the connection of lever |09 with cross member |23.

As will be understood, the construction associated with bearings 22, 58 and 91 is substantially identical with that just described and no further detailed description o1' the latter parts is deemed necessary.

The operation of the invention lis throught to be clear from the above description. Suliicient to say, the harrow may be placed in angle by 70 pulling trip rope '|4 and driving ahead. Conversely it may be straightened by pulling trip rope 14 and backing the tractor. End sections I8 and i9 may be readily folded by rotating either backwardly or forwardly. When in folded position, end sections I8 and I9 are predominably Spring in ten:

l asvassi I over the inner ends of sections I1 and Il, whereby tosssist under diilicult conditions in Aholding toward down the middle of the harrow.

In ordinary operation, the tendency expansion-of spring Ill acts through levers Ill and I Il to draw together the upper portions of the main gangs II and II, thus tending to force the center of the harrow down or in any event to resist upward movement thereof. Levers It! and I III act also to prevent or minimize any tendency toward climbing of the inner bumpers, and a supplemental implement may be readily drawn behind the harrow by attachment to tongue III.'

'I'he above being a complete' description of an illustrative embodiment of the invention, what tioned engage the other plate for transmitting endthrust developed in said outer gang section to said inner gang section through said plates independently of said pivotal connection.

'1. In a disk harrow the combinationof a pair v of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang section and an outer gang section, means for Joining said outer gang section to said inner gang section includingl a pivotal connection, said connectionv being inclined from the vertical and horizontal when said harrow is on level ground so that said outer gang section willbe raised and folded on top of said inner gang section when said outer gang section is rotated about said pivis claimed as new and desired to be secured by` Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang section and an outer gang section, means for Joining said outer gang section to said inner gang section includingA a pivotal connection, said connection being inclined from the vertical andy horizontal when said harrow is on level ground so that said outer gang section will be raised and folded on top of said inner gang section when otal connection, the dimensions of said outer section being so chosen that said outer section will be positioned vertically above the inner ends of said inner sections when so folded thereover.

8. In a disk harrow the combination 'of two oppositely extending disk gangs, means for chang- Y ing the angle between said gangs, each of said said outer gang section is rotated about said pivotal connection, and means independent of said pivotal connection for` transmitting the inward thrust of said outer 'gang section to said inner gang section.

2. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair -of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner 3. In a' disk harrowthe combination of two disk gangs, draft means connected therewith, and means for changing the angle between `said gangs, and one of said gangs comprising two sections pivotally connected for relative movement in a plane inclined from the vertical and horizontal when the harrow is on level ground.

4. In a disk harrow, the combination of two disk gangs, draft means connected therewith and means for changing the angle between said gangs,

and one of said gangscomprising inner and outer sections, said outer section being guided for folding movement relatively to said vinner section in a plane inclined from the vertical and horizontal when the harrow is on level ground.

5.I In a disk harrow the combination of a pair of` gangs. each of said gangs comprising two axially aligned sections, and means connecting the two sections together at a single pivot point above the axis of the sections whereby the inward reaction o f the outer section is transmitted s to the inner section above the axis of the disks thereon, said pivot being so disposed as to provide for forward and rearward swinging of one of said sections relatively to the other.

6. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair ofgangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang sectionand an outer gang section, means for Y joining said outer gang section to said inner .Y gang section including a plate on the inner gang section and a plate on the outer gang section, said plates being juxtaposed. a pivotalconnection for said plates, a shoulder on one of said plates posigangs comprising two sections connected together for' swinging movementin a plane inclined from the vertical and horizontal when the harrow is on level ground whereby the outer section can be swung upwardly andover upon the inner section. the dimensions of said outer sections being so chosen that said outer sections will be positioned vertically above the inner Vends of said inner sections when so folded thereover.

9. Ina disk harrow the combination of a pair of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang section and an outer gang section, means for joining said outer gang section to said inner gang section including a plate on the inner gang section and a plate on theouter gang section, said plates being juxtaposed and rotatably connected for movement in their own planes, and said plates being disposed substantially parallel to a i plane that is inclined relatively to the vertical and horizontal'` when said harrow is on level ground so as to raise said outer gang sectionwhen the latter is rotated about the rotatable connection.

10. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang section and an outer gang sec-tion, means for joining said outer gang section to said inner gang section including a plate on the inner gang section and a plate ony the outer gang section,

' said plates being juxtaposed. a pivotal connection for said plates, and a detent on one of said plates positioned to engage the other plate for transmitting a draft from the inner to the outer section, and said detent being so disposed as to be disengaged when said outer section encounters an obstruction.

11. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair l of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner gang section and an outer gang section, means for Joining said outer gang section to said inner gang section including a plate on the inner gang section and a plate on the outer gang section, said plates being'juxtaposed, a pivotal connection for said plates, and a detent on one of said plates positioned to engage the other plate for transmitting draftl from the inner to the outer section: said detent being so shaped as to be disengaged by upward movement of said outer section upon encountering an obstruction.

12. In a disk harrow the combination of a pair of gangs, one of said gangs comprising an inner standing rims, said outer gang sections also havof said inner gang section, said spaced upstanding rims being extended outwardly past said pivotal connection, and said outer gang section upper frame extending and being engaged between the disks of said gangs being so disposed as to abut in the neighborhood of said Pivotal connection for the purpose of neutralizing the end thrust developed in said gangs, and means for urging said upper frames toward each other comprising forwardly extending substantially straight levers pivotally connected at one end to said upper said upstanding rims whereby draft is 4trans mitted from said inner to said outer gang sections.

13. In a disk harrow, the combination of a pair of gangs, one of said gangs comprisingan inner gang section and an outer gang section, pivot means connecting said sections for relative forward and backward movement. each of said sections including an upper frame characterized by an upstanding rim, and the rim on one of said frames being positioned to interengage with the rim on the other frame to transmit the draft from one gang section to therother. but being disengageable therefrom to allow relative displacement .of said gang'sections in the event said gang section encounters an obstruction.

14. In a disk han-ow, a pair of gangs, a pivotal connection between the gangs. and a d raw bar connected to said gangs at said pivotal connection, said gangs having upper frames and disks, the disks of said gangs being so disposed as to abut in the neighborhood of said pivotal connection for the purpose of neutralizing the end thrust developed in said gangs, and means for urging said upper frames toward each other comprising forwardly extending levers pivotally connected to said upper frames, link means connecting said levers and on which said levers are fulcrumed, 'a compression spring interposed between said levers forwardly of said link means and acting to force the forward portions of said levers outwardly whereby to urge the connections oi' said levers to said upper frames inwardly to counteract any tendency for the inner ends of said gangs to rise, and means connected with said levers serving to prevent up-and-down movement of said levers relative to each other for preventing climbing of on of said disks on the other.

l5. In a disk harrow a pair of gangs, a pivotal connection between said gangs' and a draw bar connected to said gangs at said pivotal connection, said gangs having upper frames and disks, the disks of said gangs being so disposed as to abut in the neighborhood of said pivotal connection for the purpose of neutralizing the end thrust developed in said gangs, means for urging said upper frames toward each other, and mechanism associated with said means serving to prevent climbing of one of said disks on the other.

16. Insl disk harrow, a pair of gangs, a pivotal connection between the gangs, and a draw bar 4 connected to said gangs at said pivotal connection, said gangs having upper frames and disks,

upper frames, substantially straight transverse link means connecting said levers .intermediate their ends and on which said levers are fulcrumed, and a compression spring interposed between said levers forwardly of said link means and adapted to force the forward portions of said levers outwardly whereby to urge the connections of said levers to said upper frames inwardly to counteraci'eny tendency for the inner ends of said gangs to 17. In a disk narrow, a pair of axially opposed disk gangs, a draw bar pivotally connected to the adjacent ends of said disk gangs, said disk gangs having upper frames, mechanism for urging said upper frames toward each other including a pair of forwardly extending levers pivotally attached to saidupper frames and extending on either side of said draw bar, a rearwardly extending draft tongue attached m saididrsw bag-and .extendingI rearwardly between said gangs, fa' link memberv carried by said tongue and to which saidl levers are fulcrumed, and spring means connected with said levers and adapted to urge them in a direction tending to force said frames together.

18. In a disk harrow having a draw bar including spaced apartstationary sections and a slidable section arranged between the stationary sections, the combination of a spacing plate for said l spaced apart sections, a latch pin slidably supported in said spacing plate and in one position engaging said slidable portion, guiding means for maintaining said latch pin in predetermined re- 40 lation to said spacing plate during sliding movement of said latch pin, a fulcrum on said latch pin on the opposite side-oi said spacing plate from said slidable portion, a lever pivoted on said fulcrum and having a free end engageable with said spacing plate, and means for rocking said lever for engaging said free end with said spacing plate and raising said fulcrum and latch pin for disengaging said pinfrom said sliable portion.

19. In a latch structure, a plate, a shouldered latch pin slidably supported in said plate, guiding means for maintaining said pin in predetermined relation to said plate during sliding movement of said latch pin, resilient means engaged be tween said guiding means and the shoulder on said pin for yieldably maintaining said pin in one position, a fulcrum on said latch pin, a bifurcated lever having portions extending on either side of said pin and engaged with said fulcrum, said lever portions having free ends engageable with said plate and means for rocking said lever for engaging said free ends with said plate and moving said fulcrum and said pin against the pressure of said resilient means.

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