Starting a Farm From Scratch (First Year Recap)

[@tristanfarms]

It makes me smile see someone fulfill there dream of really truly becoming a farmer. It is great inspiration and I appreciate the videos thank you for all of your hard work farming is not just driving tractors!!

[@thomasbritten7216]

One idea for you - buy an older tractor that is still big enough to pull both gravity wagons (4850, 4960, 8400), then buy a 600 bushel grain cart for the 8110. Wagons can be rolling on the road and grain cart can stay in the field to keep the combine moving. Grain cart could have scales to track your yields using weight, rather than an approximation on the combine.

[@reinckeoutdoors2319]

I second this, and then use it for tillage as well, then the 8110 can plant, spray and pull wagons. It’d be a lot smoother in the long run, and also for when you pick up more acres. It always benefits to be able to do more at once, Spence does tillage, you plant behind him.

[@fazeobama8872]

probably wanna go for something fast then tho, an old jd powershift will only do 30kph /18mph ish so that would slow you down loads

[@chadsimmons6347]

Looks like they are better spenders than money makers, bankrupt in 5-yrs!

[@fazeobama8872]

@@chadsimmons6347 then its a good thing he has the other business to take money from..

[@chadsimmons6347]

@@fazeobama8872 Nothing used for the "first-yr-millionaire" he aint getting his hands greasy, if it breaks, call the junkyard.

[@brianmauss9039]

Grant---your 8110 is one of the cleanest 8x10 series machines I've had in my work bay. Great video, great channel and great seeing you guys at VanWall. Do not hesitate to call with any qs or concerns. Make sure Spencer keeps it waxed up for the 22 season!! Ha. Thanks, Brian.

[@granthilbert5632]

Thanks for working on it Brian! I'll make sure he keeps it spotless😂😉

[@benfields7556]

Looks like a great video! Could you do a video on how we could start a farm or like a series maybe? Cause that's my dream and I look up to you!

[@granthilbert5632]

Yeah I could maybe do a vid with a couple of ideas on how to start! IowanFarmer's got a real good video on it also- kzbin.info/www/bejne/lZbLfqyZpNqbbK8

[@benfields7556]

@@granthilbert5632 Cool thanks so much grant! Can't wait for the suprise!!

[@Merryfarm_ranch]

@@granthilbert5632 you should look into a small self propelled sprayer

[@jonesfarm6501]

@@Merryfarm_ranch or a pulled one

[@peterhuehn6137]

Clarke farms has a video on starting a farm on his channel.

[@ericawagner6240]

Grant you’re a inspirement for anyone who wants to be a farmer/ rancher when you grow up. I’m 12 and I believe this next year will be even better. Keep up the great work Grant. ( I would of watched the video earlier but I had school and Basketball)

[@LtdES7638]

It is so cool to see you start out on this journey, thank you for bringing us along. Look forward to seeing what next season brings. No worries on keeping your $$$ private, it's none of our business. You share enough. Cheers, Good luck to you and Spence.

[@danielelliott3406B]

I’d buy a small auger to fill semi’s…. And then rent a semi from your local co-op during harvest all you have to do is use the gravity wagons to shuttle grain out of the field….. we use to do that when we did corn and it worked out pretty good.

[@erikjohansson4390]

Spencer should buy a farm near yours and he could buy the second tractor, then you do "teamwork" with all the equipment in spring/harvest etc 🙂

[@granthilbert5632]

I agree!

[@ericjenjohnson]

I know someone who farms over 3000 acres and just uses gravity wagons like you. Since your not hauling to far they make perfect sense for your operation. If you need a truck there are plenty of companies you can contract with to haul for you. Yes there is a cost for that but it’s still has to be cheaper than owning than truck and paying for maintenance on it. Best of luck to you in 2022!

[@xBrodeurguyx]

For the algorithm. Likes, comments, shares, and subscriptions help your content creators more than you realize. Keep it up Grant!

[@uncarbonated88]

Keep living the dream man! You and your little brother.

[@alexbersie2755]

I like the explanation on your thoughts behind the farmland market. Certainly something you have more insight and knowledge on than most

[@brandonm6052]

One thing we've always done on our pallet racking is each piece of equipment gets its own pallet and then all relevant parts go on that pallet . We also buy heavy duty totes to keep the small parts in, this helps as you can then set the whole pallet or tote in/on the pickup when going to the field and you have the stuff with you. You said the shed is "too big", that's just because the scope of your farming thought is only at a certain point. Give it time, you made a good decision. The saying is, build twice as big as you need and go half again bigger than that. You add a truck or so and another couple pieces of equipment and boom you're full. I am a Farm Manager/ Real Estate agent in Nebraska for Farmers National Company and you are exactly right about the effect of C**id and the land market. We have seen a lot of 1031 exchanges but farmers still account for 60-70%+ of the land purchases.

[@jacksonrabern9012]

Best move for another tractor in my opinion would be an older JD4840. Legendary, reliable, and good power.

[@brockmilde3086]

Would be awesome to get a new recap on your journey so far. Love watching your videos whenever I see a new one pop up, keep up the good work.

[@dbaineboy6974]

I'm not really one that knows what farm equipment is best, but I would recommend if you are able to, get a decent dump truck, no to big, but what ever size you think would work for you with a little bit of room for improvement for when your farm starts to grow. I worked on a farm that used a dump truck to haul grain and it worked great for the smaller fields.

[@Rebelgamer-1111]

Squad we have 2 tractors and not even 60 acres and I'm telling you rn there is always justification for a second tractor even if it's just a little

[@tarheelpatch3386]

Grant I'm very proud of you.I have followed you from day one.Not many young men would have had the guts and will power to start a farm.Many children raised on a farm don't want to have anything to do with.Great job my friend. Well you seem to have a good business sense about you. I would look at things to improve what you have ,such tiling land last year you some issues with drainage in spots,start working on that issue.Look at improving your technology to learn your fields such as where you need various minerals,fertilizers, nitrogen etc.Investigate varieties of corn and beans that are more resistant to wind damage or pest etc that you had problems with in 21.Your learning your equiptment now learn and tweak your methods to help your production. I also wanted to mention time Mgt.If it can be done do it ,don't put it off.You never know what tomorrow will bring.Your tech savvy there are several successful KZbin farmers in the Midwest ask them questions I feel sure they will help.Something to always remember if farming was easy everybody would be doing it.Looking forward to 2022 for you.

[@onecrazytruckinfarmer]

That 8110 is a sharp tractor. I was surprised to see 180 pto hp not bad. Man it’s insane how high ground is going for. With the fluctuations in the market I don’t think I’d be picking up any ground this year. Stick with what ya got. Keep up the great work Grant and Spencer.

[@onecrazytruckinfarmer]

Spencer should pick up like a 6,000 series or another 7,000 series tractor. I was thinking a 6410 or something that could run a sprayer and a wing mower. Also if any improvement maybe put up a 15,000 - 20,000 bushel bin for corn storage. Play the market

[@SpecCustoms1308]

hey grant, a little tip is keep the land you have now and keep on farming until you got enough money to buy better stuff like tractors, combines, cultivators, planters, ETC and when you got better stuff then you can buy more land and I mean one land plot at a time and don't rush things or you might get stuck in a problem you might not be able to get out of.(love all of your videos on this channel and the other channel and my birthday is coming up on this Sunday. the day before valentines day and i hope you have a good valentines day)

[@magnussenfarms9794]

Hey Grant, I am 15 and live and work on a family farm here in NW Iowa. I have been watching you for years on your other KZbin channel, then I saw that you started your own actual farm. I am truly impressed with how far you have succeeded at such a young age. I hope to follow in the same footsteps as you. Also, lately I have been watching a lot of Ag PHD on KZbin and TV. If you haven’t ever heard of them or seen them I think you should look them up. I have learned a lot about nutrients and chemistry from their videos. I think you could benefit from watching their videos. Sincerely, Tyler Magnussen

[@granthilbert5632]

Thanks Tyler! Hey been watching your channel for awhile. I think I started watching on one of your first harvest vids. As a kid I would watch pretty much every single harvest video on KZbin. I still do till this day, especially the Iowa ones. Love the vids- keep it up! I do watch Ag Phd. It's where I do all my AG Learning. I feel like everyone has a different opinion on how to grow corn/beans the best way, and there's so much "noise" from advice/ coffee talk on how to grow crops. I find it simple just to follow Ag Phd's advice and block out all the other "noise". (For now, when getting started).

[@magnussenfarms9794]

@@granthilbert5632 Thx Grant! I agree with what you said about Ag PHD, I have learned a lot from their videos. Anyways, I hope to meet you someday. Keep up the hard work on the farm and with the videos. I really enjoy watching them! 😁

[@tylerhogie4915]

Grant and Spencer I have always loved watching the farming Sim videos and I am very glad yall put it so much work and got the real deal Farm you guys are doing great keep it up

[@evanrollin6968]

Congrats on completing your first year farming! Hopefully 2022 will be a better year (no downed corn! lol)

[@philipforee]

Had no idea you guys were brothers.....that's really cool. Very proud of you Men. Onward and upwards

[@jimmcginty2344]

Thanks for the 2021 review and what you are looking to do in 2022. Spencer; I bet it feels great to have college behind you. Really enjoy seeing how well you both work together. Job well done gentlemen

[@joshbarrowcliff3019]

1. Keep the rear weights on. 2. Find a rockbox that weights as much as your front weights. 3. 8300 or 8400 would be ideal tillage tractor. Just my 2cents. Good job farming your 1st year, always a big learning curve.

[@jared2168]

You can get a 1000 gal sprayer for a decent price. It definitly pays for itselfs quickly. I farm 500 acres with one tractor (8320). Switching implements isn't a big deal. Of course working with your brother, it would be nice having two tractors and everything would get done a lot faster with tillage and planting running at the same time. Or being able to pull out your brother when he gets stuck in one tractor.

[@robertharris3056]

I AM 78 AND A RETIRED HEAVY EQUIP. OPERATER {Construction equip.}. AND LOVE TO WATCH YOU W/ YOU TRACTORS --KEEPUP THE GREAT WORK AND DPO YOUR PART TO DRAFT MORE YOUNG PEOPLE TO BECOME FARMERS

[@gussoefje6430]

I’m not a row crop farmer but I wouldn’t get another tractor or probably even upgrade any equipment till you get more acres. Maybe like a 3pt sprayer and some other things you actually need. But in all reality you don’t need another tractor until you start getting more and more acres. Good video Grant and Spencer

[@kodacraft8579]

Grant seriously hearing you lay out numbers like you do is so impressive. I don't consider myself dumb by any means but compared to that wealth of knowledge you've got I'm years behind lol. Happy for you man im jealous that I can't get some land for working just yet

[@gavynheld3590]

4440 would be nice to spread lime with and to do other odd and end jobs

[@curtisrick]

Grant you can set your seed pallets on the shelves. We set all of our chemical pallets on shelves just like the ones you have. Pallet of chemicals is 5 30gal barrels per pallet

[@FarmandSpeed]

Grant, Congrats on your first year! You've taken on a lot buying ground, equipment and putting up a nice building! That's something not many 1st Generation Farmers can do in a single year. If you can rent ground reasonably and make a profit, go for it! You defiantly need at least a 2nd maybe even a 3rd tractor. (small 100hp, medium 150hp, large 275hp) I run an IH 986, 1586 (wish it was a 1486, 3speed vs 4 speed trans) and a 4786 on 100 acres. Murphy's Law on a farm, its only a matter of time till there is an issue and you'll be glad to have another tractor. Keep in mind it doesn't need to be super new and paint doesn't make it run or drive any better. A lot of the 70's and 80's deere tractors are cheaper. Keep looking for good used equipment, maybe a small grain cart this way you can keep wagons parked on the road or in a farm drive way. Maybe a 10k bushel bin to dry corn down and store for better prices. Also with the down corn and beans. Use more Potash, more potash means stronger stalks.

[@azarse]

What are your plans for 2022. Are you going to plant the same ratio of beans and corn? Are you going to switch any of the fields or are you going to repeat the same crop on all of your fields?

[@Brian-ov1rj]

2022, keep moving forward with your farm. Wish you both nothing but the best.👍💰

[@charlieromeoh]

I was just thinking last night that had been a while since you posted a video, hope things are lining up for another good season for you !

[@fooddude411]

Another awesome show Grant! Thanks for the recap of the season. Can't wait for you to dig into the soil this spring. Thanks for your channel.

[@anthonydolezal6627]

Congratulations on your first year. It's a lot of work! Your doing good. Stay optimistic. Can't wait to see what happens this year. Keep Smilin!

[@trentgrimes3276]

Hey Grant speaking of dynoing your tractor, we have a pulling tractor and pull in the Lucas Oil series across the Midwest. Our engine builder and dyno guy is Joe Busch Ag repair in Boone Iowa. When we dyno in about a month you should come out and video and check it out! Great videos and congrats on a successful first year!

[@mrporkey8350]

Never realized I was older than you guys. Way to go on a good first year man. Congrats

[@w2fishing713]

Keep the tractor you got for planting and misc work. Get a higher horse for tillage. Then you got one that could be spraying and the other could be doing misc stuff and you don’t always have one tied up. Suggestion/personal opinion

[@Tlc214deb]

My name is Lynn. You can ask your brother about me. Just have in joyed watching his videos! Glad I found your site so I can watch yours also. God bless and have a great week.

[@pauldownes5345]

Well I think you and your brother are doing well so congrats and look forward to more videos with you both 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@tmfishingonabudget7486]

If you look around you can pick up a older tractor for a second tractor to use. Remember when starting up, it doesn't always have to be the best top of the line equipment, as long as it works.👍 You can always upgrade later on.

[@brycewassmann7136]

Hey Grant for moving things as ingrain what my family does is we use a dump truck so then we can also hold material for people and make extra money like that

[@cartervedrode437]

You're awesome! I'm 13 I look up to you, keep up the good work

[@dclug1]

Make sure you adjust your tire pressures if you are going to take the weights on and off. And if you are taking weight off to reduce compaction, you need to lower your tire pressure and that will help a lot. On our 7130 I run 18psi front and 15 psi rear.

[@geedubb2005]

Hey Spencer, nice tractor, drone, skid steer, trailer and dually. Congratulations guys, you’re earning it.

[@stevesmith775]

We use VHT flame proof spray paint on the exhausts. It works well for being a cheap solution. Congrats on a successful first year! Can’t wait to see what the future has in store for you!

[@spencersand2754]

Grant I’m not gonna tell you how to spend your money but it would’ve been really cool if you would’ve bought Larsons Farms 4640 and the 3pt sprayer that went on it plus you would’ve had a pretty awesome 40 series tractors so you could pull gravity wagons with run on the cultivator or even plant with it as well I feel like that would’ve been a good addition to your farm

[@blueonblack3971]

Good job young man, you should be very proud of your accomplishments.

[@lucaspalmer520]

I think that a John Deere 7800 2wd would be a good tractor for, we have one and we plant with it and it’s a nice tractor and has a good amount of horse power, you could use it to spray, plant, and in the fall you could run a stalk chopper with it.

[@waterskiingfool]

Was cool to see how they Dyno a tractor. Can't wait to see how it goes this year

[@fineganfarms5124]

Good to see your back with the vids

[@Malte1996]

Hyped for the next Season wish you all the best :) Love seeing the Progress

[@keegancavanagh9216]

As a future video, you should make one long video of different moments from your first year farming. It can go all the way from just having a skid loader and tearing out fence to what you are doing now. Keep up the good videos!

[@Bwww1234]

Yes I've been waiting for this! I cant believe all that has happened and when you have 100 million subs I will be able to say that I was there since the start lol

[@epicdomain2293]

Great job. keep up the great farming.

[@alcast4774]

Good job. Best of luck going forward.

[@alexmikhael5061]

GOOD LUCK !! hope your future harvests are all abundant and plentyfull!!!!

[@drewthier5390]

I have a rock box for a 8000, bought with an 8130 and took it off right away

[@silas_brugger_yt5708]

Good to see you're chasing the American farming dream

[@jakebrady4133]

Awesome recap video. Love the progress y’all have made over the first year It’s awesome that y’all are working together keep up the good work. Oh and Spencer, nice tractor🤙🏼

[@justinbranen3485]

Honestly a 4450 or a 4455 would be a good tractor for you. They are big enough to do some work but still small enough to do the smaller jobs. They are very versatile

[@terrynickelo1024]

hey grant and spencer glad to see ur guys video and happy to see yall working together

[@piet6259]

Again ... well done bud. You motivate alot of people with your channel.

[@timothykapler3122]

Little did we know back when he had the 1980s series on farming simulator he was planning to make a farm. 👍👍 looks good

[@IAmGx99]

I’m from Ohio so I’m not 100% sure the guidelines in Iowa but if you’re serious about getting a sprayer, know that you probably need a private pesticide license. In Ohio it’s not a major thing, simply need to take a test and pay a small fee. Then every 3 years we have to get training done.

[@duaneamos4413]

Nice video....I think your doing pretty well for your 1st year....own land and some really nice equipment. Looks like your off to a good start. Good to see young folks getting into farming. We have a small cow/calf operation and do it on the side but would love to be able to make it full time.

[@VERMrunner]

On the wagons you should look into a older 4 wheel drive like an 8630, it be on the cheaper side. Made to pull plus you can do your tillage with

[@gordonwalls7684]

Hey Grant if ur gonna replace the headliner take a look into a fehr cab interior kit

[@pistonringfarms8107]

Sir ik u say u dont need another tractor but a 4440 or 4450 would do you great! Would be able to run the cultivator or sprayer.

[@jeffslaven]

A really great video guys! The next year will be easier, as you know now from year - one.

[@jeremymullen5378]

🔥beauty tractor guyzz, 13-14th gear ⚙️ shift hard in all of that series of tractor, use to run a 8200 and she did it every dam time lol🔥👊🔥🏍🚜🛻🔨

[@guamazolopez6456]

If you want a cheap semi look in California, because of carb laws older semis that don't have Def are being made illegal to drive so people are getting rid of them and many are selling them really cheap

[@cmtfarms9777]

My i recommended that you get a older tractor around 150hp to 160hp that way you can put the cultivator on it and leave the planter on you 8110 you and Spencer can do more quicker as a owner/operator of a farm my self this is my fourth year having two tractors will make sure the short windows for planting get done in a timely manner but this is only my opinion.

[@lynpostlethwait3083]

Very great new video on the new farm and have a great year

[@eugenealton7270]

Great video guys looking forward to watching more of your success with your farm I am a truck driver And I also worked on a farm so I know a little bit about farming

[@OscarVaughn]

Livin the dream my friend, livin the dream...

[@chadb5819]

Love the channel guys, I appreciate seeing new farmers feel it all out for the first time, makes me think I may have a chance to do the same!

[@johnperry5102]

good video glad to have you all back

[@mattshell7753]

Another great video and congratulations on your 1st year of farming and how far you've came along so nice to see your building in the clean machine real put away getting ready for the next season we're not too far away thanks again Spencer and grant LOL

[@TheDulle92]

Nice video Grant! Is fun to watch, how you start a farm. I'm living in the Netherlands and it is hard here to start a farm from scratch. It is we wish to have a farm. I work at a agricultural contractor.

[@easternshorefarmer]

You two brothers work good together and if you two bought land together ur at the age where you could get big and be full time farmers and it would work out but it’s all in what you want and how hard ur willing to work for it

[@michaelharrington7154]

Find you a good 7810 or 7800 powershift or power quad 4wd dualed John Deere to go along with 8110, to me those two tractors are by far the best most versatile tractors to work along side your tractor with the acres you tend and looking to expand. They will tote and handle a 300 gallon 60ft 3pth sprayer no problem add 300 front mount tank to it as well you got 600 gallon capacity and the tractor still turns tight and stands up very well. Controls are almost identical as the 8110 so that would not be no learning curve at all. They can also handle the wagons and perfect size to pull that 12 row 30 inch planter you got freeing up the 8000 series tractor to pull a disk or field cultivator. Also great to pull a top dressing rig in corn or fertilizer spreader for pre plant. We farm down in NC with a 8110, 8100, 7810, and 7800 and manage 1500 to 1750 acres a year no problem and never pushed up and farm a whole lot smaller field size farms. I promise you Grant and Spence you want regret this advice! You will have a second tractor to help with field work, plus with the cost of a tractor like this plus the 3pth sprayer and front tank is still cheaper than any decent shaped self propelled sprayer out there for sale!

[@granthilbert5632]

If I end up getting a sprayer, would look for a 2nd tractor! Thanks Michael

[@michaelharrington7154]

@@granthilbert5632 Well whatever you decide to do if you go with a tractor sprayer the Sheppard sprayer that you used on your The squad channel on fs22 is made right here in NC and Mr. Sheppard is a very good friend of mine I bet he could hook you up pretty good for showing his product on your channel

[@jjffarmsjoshuaflees911]

Keep up the outstanding work as always! I always appreciate you taking the time to make these videos for us! I always enjoy seeing these videos especially when they relate to farming and good content!;-) I hope you keep doing the cold start camera view! You've come pretty far woth the farm and it doing great!I hope the farm and family are good and hey have a good one!YEEYEE,:-)

[@bigcheese370]

Nice you got the dealership doing work on it. Surprised to see it getting dynoed.

[@jonl3837]

enjoying your channel. wishing you a great success. keep vlogs coming

[@tyrankin2767]

We have a little bit bigger shelving in our shop that we store skid buckets and salt pallets on then they are slick and convenient

[@vbffarms6274]

One of the things I would recommend is that you should put in furrow fertilizer in with you planter. I use 10-34-0 on a 2x2 system.

[@vbffarms6274]

I noticed a pretty big yield increase with my corn when I did that.

[@granthilbert5632]

Will look into it!

[@zackwalske1779]

I would recommend a 80s to 90s tandem it would be a great fit for you and they are decently cheap with the market!

[@5jkratz]

I know you cannot talk specific P&L, however, did the crops yield sufficient profits to convince you that this is a lifelong business for you, and eventually will it provide you with sufficient income for a family with children (?) as time goes on? Keep on doing the good work what kind of degree do you and your brother graduate with?

[@granthilbert5632]

Yes, Farming can be very volatile year/year and more cyclical. So some years (this year) was really good, and made profit. Some years in the future will probably make very little profit. With that being said, Yes, hope to get to the point someday where this farm is big enough and is well capitalized to safely provide good income and raise family. I do a lot of other investments/business outside of farming, so I don't fully have to count on any of the income. As I put more capital into the operation in future I sure would like to count on more of the income. Hope that makes sense!

[@PickAxSimulatorGaming]

Man , that's a nice tractor . can't wait till planting season.

[@fanaticfarmer7094]

Hey grant why don’t you buy a land roller it really helps with the stance of the crop

[@joey6070]

With your rock box situation we made a rack that goes on top of the weights and if you want to put oil or something you would have to use a bungee but...

[@joemueth4077]

Just found your You Tube site, looking good my man. Love your choice of machinery color. Have a great year.

[@willslagle7011]

I live literally 2 miles east of there and saw y’all on the road heading towards the interstate.

[@farmerj06]

Basically if I were you, I'd save up and get an older new holland like how the iowANFarmer has, like a TG series, or maybe and older 7000 or something, as you "technologically advanced" tractor. Use that for planting and spraying, and then use the 8110 for moving grain and tillage.

[@richardheinen1126]

Maybe some grain bins would be a good idea this year

[@larsharris]

I dislike Dynoing a tractor. They did it to my 2090 case. It ran a Gehl 800 chopper, Handlair 560 20’ alloway stalk chopper…. But they load “tested” it and the pto “slipped at 50 hp”. IMO they likely overloaded it till it slipped, they didn’t stop in time.I worked the snot out of it.