ATV Cultipacker ideas
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: Trackdawg
25-Jul-22
I have been looking at Cultipacker ideas. Why are they so expensive? Anyone have a good diy idea? I’ve seen some made with culvert pipe filled with concrete. Some folks say they fall apart when ran over rocks though.
From: KingDaddy
25-Jul-22
Something like this
https://eauclaire.craigslist.org/grd/d/42-cultipacker/7498744931.html
From: Pat Lefemine
25-Jul-22
The smaller packers are in high demand for food plotters.
Look for a 10’ cutimulcher. Works great.
From: Schmitty78
25-Jul-22
Buddy of mine just bought a spike aerator from Rural King and cut the points off to make a diy packer. Not as nice as an actual cultipacker but I think it’ll do the job.
From: Ambush
26-Jul-22
I use a homemade “culvertator” made from a ten inch culvert. It works good but I have no rocks.
I have a 14” culvert waiting until I can afford the cement to fill it.
From: Cheesehead Mike
26-Jul-22
I made this roller out of 3 dock wheels that I got for free. I fill them with water and they're heavy. Probably not as good as a cultipacker but it works well and it was basically free.
From: scentman
26-Jul-22
Ambush, that's a great idea... maybe fill with sand then seal the ends?
From: Pat Lefemine
26-Jul-22
Sorry, missed the part about it being pulled by ATV. Cultimulcher is not an option.
From: Trackdawg
26-Jul-22
Great replies. Thanks for the ideas.
From: Ok...Russ
26-Jul-22
Using a culvert pipe, the ridges are hollow so hitting a rock might put a hole in it but won't affect the overall functionality. I think I had about $100 in this one. Works just fine for our small plots plus we have a sandy soil.
From: APauls
26-Jul-22
Packer Maxx are pretty darn tough and $800. Pretty much the cheapest new decent unit.
From: Pat Lefemine
26-Jul-22
Cant you fabricate an axle down the middle and then fill the culvert with cement? and I imagine that would work. On the above example I would think that welding that metal would make it much sturdier than being bolted together.
From: Ambush
26-Jul-22
^^^ Cut plywood discs for the end with a hole for an axle tube. Stand on end with one disc in then fill with cement. Place the top disc and wait for the cement to set. “Quick-Crete” works best, yet it cost more. Regular cement takes a month or more to cure in the tube.
Concrete keeps the plastic from getting damaged (excessively)
Google has lots of vids on how to do it.
From: Ok...Russ
26-Jul-22
Ambush X2. The one I built has an axle through it with pillow blocks on each end. The inside of the culvert pipe is smooth lined so concrete would never get into the grooves. Yes, welding would be more sturdy than bolts but this allows me to make modifications until I get it where it works good and is reliable. At over 400 lbs, it works fine on our sandy soil. A Packer Maxx likely would work better but this gets the job done on small 1-2 acre plots.
From: t-roy
27-Jul-22
They seem to be very pricey on eBay, Craig’slist, etc. Not sure if you’re in farm country or not, but lots of times you can pick one up at a farm sale fairly cheaply. Also, keep your eyes open if you’re driving around in farm country. Occasionally you can spy one out in a farm lot or pasture, that the farmer might be willing to sell you. You have to look close, though. Usually they are in an overgrown weed patch and have a 20’ sapling growing right up through the middle of it….
From: APauls
28-Jul-22
Has anyone ever used a concrete filled one for years? Judging how well plastic concrete filled workout weights last I would not have high hopes. Once I added up the cost of concrete, and metal materials to fabricate one and thinking that it might break is why I opted for the Packer Maxx. It's also super easy to transport with no weight in it. I just grab it and chuck it in the truck box.
From: ILBow288
15-Aug-22
Bought this black boar model that mounts into a 2" receiver i added onto my atv disc. The disc provides tons of weight and it works well.
