Steel in the Field: A Farmer’s Guide to Weed Management Tools

	Agronomic Row Crops Disk-Steer Guidance (electronic sensing/controls, hydraulic adjustment) Overview: One of the earliest electronic-sensing guidance systems, steering disks are now used primarily in the most severe conditions or with 12-row or wider equipment. Sophisticated electronics provide self-diagnosis and automatic calibration, important features for wide tools when a control lapse could affect so many rows at once. System does not influence tool’s range of crop or height capacity. Design Features: The system uses two to six 27" disks mounted on a rigid box-beam frame that sets the disks several feet behind the toolbar, usually straddling two to eight rows per set. Sensing signals control hydraulic movement of the tie-rod that connects the disks, turning them as long and as sharply as needed for alignment. Allow draft arms to move freely. Pivot-type stabilizing coulters work best on the cultivator. Designed for closed-center hydraulics; adaptable to open-center systems. List price: $7,800 Sources: 62 See: Cavin Next section Agronomic Tool Index