Easy Way To Self-Propel Auger

Easy Way To Self-Propel Auger GRAIN HANDLING Augers (4) 20-2-23 "It lets me move my auger by myself with-out almost no effort at all," says Brian Yokimas who came up with a simple way to "self-propel" his grain auger using a pickup rear axle and a junked hydraulic motor. "There are commercial units available to drive augers, but they can cost as much as $2,500," notes the East Selkirk, Manitoba, grain farmer. "This whole project cost me only about $100. Every-body who's seen it is quite impressed. All the neighbors want one like it." Yokimas replaced the wheels on his 8-in. by 26-ft. Westfield auger with the rear axle from a 1970 Ford pickup. The rear end had the ideal combination of low speed and high torque he wanted. He mounted a low speed hydraulic motor on a steel plate that bolts to the rear end (using four existing bolt holes). The motor is fitted with a 10-tooth #50 sprocket that's used to chain drive a 60-tooth sprocket that mounts on the rear end's pinion yoke. "I simply plumbed the hydraulic motor and a two-way electric control valve into the 7 gpm hydraulic pump that drives the auger's bin sweep," he says. He controls the valve with about 10 ft. of electrical cord and a spring-loaded toggle switch. To make sure it works in even the coldest weather, he replaced the differential oil with automatic transmission fluid. "I've emptied five 1,600 to 4,000 bu. bins full of canola with it since I self-propelled it last fall and it works like a charm," Yokimas says. "I only wish I'd done it years ago." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Brian Yokimas, Rt. 1, East Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada ROE OMO (SASE only).

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