| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 07:58:00 AM
is any of you using a side bucket milker or a surge belly? i have a question or two. thanks sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| 14 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 13 2011 : 07:26:26 AM
lol well i had to laugh this am thinking of milking yesterday. so thanks michele it is easier. well hazel decided to act up. she stomped kicked and pooped. i was so fast i saved the milk and can. it is in her second let down on her bigger side. she hates it. i mean i am so glad my hand is not broke. sore but not broke. its as if it hurts. when i do belle she does not move. same machine claw and pump. i also think she acts out when she is tired of standing there. she broke the surcingle so i had to let her win that one. i hobbled her last night. she tried to lift a leg to no avail. we have been leaving them in pasture at night and i am milking belle OAD now. it makes it easier at night to just bring hazel. i like milking one cow as to two. i must have been a whole cycle off on marilyn. she is still prego. she is a boer-nubian cross. i thought she was huge before oh my now is insane. so still waiting. i have some help on the farm again. i am so happy about it. she is a sweet calm person. her name is crash and i like her. well gotta get ready to milk. thanks michele
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 11 2011 : 2:44:36 PM
Glad to hear things are going well. Just squeeze the inflation to see if she is done or not. You will feel milk coming through. I actually hold the strap back, on my cow, for a bit. To keep the inflations on her back teats. Then once she is milked out some, I leave it hang. I do need to get a grommet kit, and put another hole in the strap. The weight of the milker pulls a bit when she is almost done. Good luck with your husband being gone. That is a long time.
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 09 2011 : 6:22:38 PM
hi michele, so its all going good right now. i took the clear extensions off. i was using them to help me know when the girls were empty. so with the normal length it is working good. i have one inflation that is difficult. she has a crooked teat. it gives me grief. all the help here has made a difference for me and the cows. so thanks so much. we have a new system coming. we also ordered our semen sticks from new zealand. A-2 sexed jersey. this is very fun very hard but very rewarding. papa is leaving for new mexico friday. possibly for 4 months. wow what we have to do to get a dollar earned these days. anyway thanks for checking on me. happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 09 2011 : 4:22:11 PM
Hope everything keeps working for you.
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 06 2011 : 1:28:14 PM
yup that is how i do it. pulling the can back and stretching the inflations helped a lot. i used the surge this am. it was our easiest day with hazel. so the rebuild job we did on the pusator worked. i had the hamby dairy guy matt say the same about them. to put each piece back from where it came only. i could see the wear on it and how it fit. i am happy with myself. with all you girls help i was able to not be scared and take it apart. no confidence. so it was a good feeling when it beat. happy days here thanks farmgirls sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 06 2011 : 12:58:32 PM
I have the milker hanging level. I hang it after the first bump on the handle. Not sure how else to describe that one! :)
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 05 2011 : 7:19:40 PM
thanks michele, i rebuilt the pulsator for the surge belly. it worked great. my friend here ordered a whole new system. pump and claw and all. it was $2100. big ones. i will get to see a perfect milker work. i love learning. we have 10 days before it comes. we will use the belly milker tomorrow. so hamby dairy said to take the bucket pulsator apart and wipe it down put it back together and oil it. so once i know for sure that my surge will keep us out of trouble i will do that. its a universal lid. so i need a round pulsator base with a gasket. so thanks for all the help. yes i have the brush on a wire. i hate it but it does the job. i will try putting the can farther back when i hang it on the surcingle. i have goat clear extensions on them so i can see the milk. then when she is done i can see she is done. the inflations are small bore. i do have one that is weaker and needs to be replaced. i usually done take my inflations off. i check to see if there is water in there. i never see any around the places where they slide onto shell. do you have your belly can hang at an angel or level? thanks happy milking sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 05 2011 : 3:25:23 PM
Just wondering Sherrye
what size inflations and teat cups are you using? I use the narrow bore. The old ones were big, and these are alot smaller. Do you have the wire to clean your rubber hose? The one that goes from the petcock to the milker? It looks kind of like clothes line wire, with a brush, or solid piece to pull through the hose to clean it out? I am terrible trying to remember what all the names are for the differnt things..sorry. Do you pull your inflations out of the teat cups? You can get water in them. I would imagene you keep the strap back as far as it can go on your cow. So the weight of the milker is not pulling the cups off. My first calf heifer is heavier on her front quarters then her back ones. So they have a tendancy to squeek, and fall off, if I don't keep the strap back. Also putting the strap up higher as she milks out. I will talk to my husband and see if he has any other ideas.
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 04 2011 : 3:14:40 PM
thanks michele, i am happy to learn this about the pump. when shutting it off now it does have a valve open. i found one of my air holes on the pulsator was loose. i tightned it and it helped. its also her teats get so much smaller when they are empty too. i think i do have the old surge pump. i think it is the one that is obsolete. only it runs like a champ. i have 2 gauges on it for air. one is on the pump the other is inside the milk room on the ceiling where air comes in. they both say 15 pounds pressure. so any more thoughts.? thanks for the help. i love learning new things.happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 03 2011 : 6:06:10 PM
Hi Sherrye,
Hope you pump keeps working for you. Boy if the inflations don't stay on, I would guess you dont have enough vacuum. Just a thought, when you shut your pump off, do you leave a petcock open and then shut off the pump? My dad always said never to leave pressure on the pump when you shut it off. I keep my fingers crossed that mine keeps working! A friend of mine is gettting set up to use a deleval milker. That would have the milk can that sets off to the side, with the claw. She said something about finding a good deal on a vacuum pump somewhere on KFC forum?? I did put a rebuild kit on my pulsator today. Off course I had put it together wrong. I tell ya, first time of screwing it up. We did get it going though.
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 03 2011 : 07:17:49 AM
good morning michele, i have a universal side can and double pulsator, also a surge belly. i bought the rebuild kit for the surge. thanks for the heads up on how to put it back together i have mine set at 15 but when the teats are getting empty the inflations dont stay on well. i have 2 systems for my pump. i have an old one too. the one day neither worked. so i am going to buy a backup system. the old surge pumps sure do keep running. i found out ours is so old there are no parts for it. so i am going to shop for a new refurbished pump. it went great last night. papa came and checked on me and gathered the eggs. happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 03 2011 : 04:38:21 AM
Hi Sherrye, I have an old vacuum pump. Actually my dad used it for 20 years, and he had gotten it used. We have (not sure what to call it) a breather, and a vacuum gauge on it. I just went out and looked at the gauge, and the blue area, is where it is supposed to run, is just below the 15. So I would think 14 is about right. I will ask my husband and see what he knows about it. We did change the oil in pump when we started using it. What kind of problems are you having? Are you having pulsator problems? Have you tried cleaning it and putting in new leathers? (on a surge). When you take a pulsator apart, my dad always said to make sure it goes back together the same way. Don't switch around the little slider things, on the surge. Do you have pulsator oil to oil it? Hope you get it figured out.
Michele |
| sherrye |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 7:17:00 PM
hi michelle. i dont remember if your milking jersey or dexter or ??? i am having challenges with my surge belly milker. i also have a universal side bucket milker. challenges with it too. what do you have your pump set at? i have mine at 14. i am wondering if it id strong enough? any thoughts? thanks sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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| windypines |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 12:34:53 PM
Surge milker
michele |
