Planter Maintenance Tip: Now Is the Time to Replace Closing Wheel Frame Bushings With Bearing Kits

Replacing worn closing wheel frame bushings on planters is a recurring expense and chore. There are kits to replace those bushings with bearings to eliminate that semi-annual maintenance project.

Those kits work well, and they aren’t hard to install. At first glance the concept of welding the mild steel bearing mount to the cast frames suggests frustrating results to anyone who ever tried to weld cast iron, but those frames are actually cast steel and not hard to weld. The first few frames might have bubblegum welds as you adjust welder settings and get a feel for how to make the welds, but it’s not long before each weld isn’t an embarrassment. A few farmers and mechanics, once they get good at welding those bearing mounts, have been known to go back and grind out their initial bubblegum welds and re-weld them with “pretty” welds.

RK Products came out with the original bushing-to-bearing replacement kits. Copperhead Ag bought out RK so now Copperhead Ag, or their distributors, are the place to go for closing wheel frame bearing kits. 

While working around the closing wheel frames, be sure to check the mounting points for the horizontal spring that provides down pressure to the closing wheel frame. Over time the constant flexing wears the hooked end of the spring into the front cast steel hole where that spring attaches. The resulting notches can be filled with weld, or there are repair kits from various ag parts suppliers.