Closing Wheels for Drills
All About Closing Wheels for Drills
- NEW: Bolt-on star wheel = cost-effective replacement stars
- Zinc plating for even longer wear life
- Same proven spoke design we’ve used for 20 years.
- Aggressive furrow closing with self-limiting depth
- Creates ideal zone for crop emergence & rooting
- Heavy-duty bearing with 5-yr guarantee
- Doesn’t overpack
Thompson closing wheels are an excellent upgrade for John Deere 50, 60, and 90-series drills, and bolt easily onto the original closing arms. The OEM cast closing wheels on the Deere drills have a ridiculous tendency to hop because of their weight and smoothness, and the angle of the arm’s pivoting, and really hammer the soil when they land after being airborne. Even when running smoothly with low spring pressure, heavy cast closing wheels tend to seriously over-pack the soil, reducing emergence and early growth. Thompson wheels completely avoid the problem, since they weigh far less than JD and certain aftermarket wheels, and actively pull themselves into the soil.
Sizing Things Up
The bearing from a competitor’s wheel setting inside the Thompson wheel’s housing for its huge bearing. Our bearing features a triple-lip seal, as well as our unique patented shroud to protect the bearing face from fertilizer and water. We’re so confident in our bearing arrangement, we guarantee it for 5 years.
High-Carbon Steel
The Thompson wheel’s high-carbon spokes resist wear and bending for an exceptionally long life. The thinness of the wheel allows it to easily enter the soil, for excellent breakage of the sidewall. Now with zinc plating for even longer wear-life.
Bolt-on Star Wheel
The wheel uses 4 bolts to attach it to the spindle so when you wear down the wheel in the future, you can just purchase the star, and not have to buy the whole assembly. You’ll spend far less money to replace a worn out Thompson wheel in the future with the new replaceable star.
An honest assessment from numerous observations by 3rd-party scientists and farmers.
* Closing wheels that don’t pack the soil above the seed (a good thing) shouldn’t be used without a separate in-furrow firming device (seed-lock wheel, or the Fin).
Closing Wheels for Drills in the News
Featured in No-Till Farmer: For Ambitious No-Tillers: There’s No Place Like Home
Almost to the Colorado border, these far western KS no-tillers credit some of their success to good seeding equipment set up — including Exapta’s Thompson wheels on their drill as well as their planter (although we do worry about the T-whls on their planter not being ran with a seed firmer).
Featured in No-Till Farmer: Using Residue Layers, Precision Tools to Boost No-Till Profitability
Todd Yackley says he uses Exapta Solution’s Thompson closing wheels on his planter as an aggressive furrow-closing tool with self-limiting depth.