I will admit, I love deer plots.

I love planting... even the garden at home.

What I do not like are high cost farm implements.

I found myself in need of a cultipacker for clover and other small seed - but could not find a decent deal on a small unit.

OK, fine... I will make one!

The materials were very simple... some plastic corrugated sewer drain pipe, some metal, 2 bearings and some concrete and you are in business!

I cut the pipe, in this case, to 46" wide - as I intended to pull this one with the four wheeler (and still do to this day) and made plywood end caps for both ends.

I got a length of 1.250" cold rolled for an axle and two pillow block bearings and cut it 2" wider than the pipe. I welded sections of 1/2" rebar to the inner portion of the axle that would give the concrete something to "grab on to", I did not want the axle to separate from the concrete once it was poured.

I put the end cap in one end of the pipe, securing it with some screws, put the axle in dead center in that section of wood and then stood the pipe up and tied it to a tree.

I then filled the pipe with cement, packing it with a hoe handle as I went.... and then put the other end cap on and secured it with screws - just to hold it til the cement cured. I added some lag bolts through the wood and into the wet cement (on both ends... one end before I stood it up) to also give the concrete a way to anchor to the wood end caps. I also ran numerous screws into the plastic of the drum and ultimately, of course, into the concrete - to make sure the inner portion of the drum did not separate from the concrete.

When it cured, I had a solid, 550 lb section of corrugated pipe with a stub of cold rolled axle sticking out of each end - 2" on both ends.

I built the frame work you see here- making it like a small trailer and used a 1 7/8 trailer ball receptacle on the front end. I installed flanges for the pillow block bearings and the axle on either side.

I hung it up and painted it - John Deere green of course...

I installed the pillow block bearings on to the axle stubs (good ones, greaseable, of course) and mounted the frame on top of the bearings and marked / drilled holes for 3/8" bolts...

I bolted it together, stepped back and VOILA!, a cultipacker was born! 

I had just cleared a section of woods next the house and graded it off with the bucket on the front of the tractor... I hooked my new toy to the 4 wheeler and it worked wonderfully!

It pulls easily using with my little 2wd Rancher... even in plowed ground.

It packs VERY well - it is heavy - and the ridges in the pipe make great hills and valleys that help reduce rain and wind erosion.... and these valleys fill with the seeds and when your seeds start to grow - it almost looks like you drilled the seeds in!

I worried initially about the plastic drum and how roots and rocks would impact it - and am amazed at how well it has held up.

I went on to make another towable unit - 60" wide unit that weighed about 800 pounds... and it worked well also - but then I sacrificed the frame - and made a three point hitch version using the 800 pound drum - and it was just a little too heavy for my tractor, so I sold it to a deer hunter who took it to Ohio to plant deer plots with it.

An easy project, even for someone with rudimentary skills (you know... someone like me!) and it is a very rewarding thing to have the end result come out like you wanted it to.

If someone needs additional photos, just send me a note - I will be glad to help.