We have a DB60 that I think is a 2004. We bought it used last year and it had brand new blades just installed. We did not install the blades but before it went to the field we went through it from stem to stern and replaced most of the drive bearings and a bunch of other stuff (I think the dealer must have had a high school kid check the planter out as anyone with half a brain would have seen lots of things that should have been fixed). Planter came from Illinois, not a local dealer. At that time several of the adjusters were at the end of their adjustment but were ok to run that year. When going through it this winter getting it ready to roll a bunch of the gauge wheel arms would not adjust up. I thought this was pretty poor, wearing out in only one set of blades.

I was not keen on the idea of spending the money for replacing all those arms and bushings only to have them wear out in another set of blades. On the Bauer bar frame there is a perfect place to wedge an arm into where you can put a 4' piece of pipe over it and carefully "adjust" it by bending the arm slightly. We tried on the press but the pipe works much better. You can kind of "feel" when it gives a little. A few we went too far and had to readjust them back the other way but in the end they are all in the middle or better of their adjustment range and should be good for a long time. We had bought one new arm and bushing to compare and even putting a brand new arm and bushing on there still was not much adjustment left. What we ended up with was better than new as far as adjustment range left. I think maybe their castings or machining is off from the factory to have that little adjustment on brand new parts. We have planted well over a thousand acres with it this spring after "adjusting" the arms before we got rained out and it worked fine.

Some purists would argue that doing such heresy on a high dollar piece of machinery is just plain wrong. "Bending" parts to make them work instead of spending money on new. Well it works and it is better than what new parts would have been. And the price was right.

John

John