I don't want to get involved in an online debate/beauty/pissing contest.

However:

tried dawn, did not like them to heavy. then put thompson wheel very good did not bounce like the factory wheel because the factory wheel is to heavy and cause compaction

does not make sense to me. "did not bounce like the factory wheel because the factory wheel is too heavy"  heavy things generally don't bounce as much as lighter things...???

The Dawn Curvetine II weighs approximately what the JD stock wheel does. Our
Dawn wheel differs in that it has teeth. The same weight as the OEM wheel is then focused on several teeth rather than a larger wedge in contact with the soil at any given time.

These teeth "chip in" the seed slot sidewall created by the angled single disc opener on these drills. By concentrating the force on intermittent teeth the slot is alternately loosened, filled, and firmed. Sort of like planting beans in a garden. I take seeds out of a bowl and poke them into the ground for good seed to soil contact, then scoot loose soil in around it.

These drills are used in a wide range of conditions basically ranging from potting soil to concrete.  We have a broad continuous shoulder on the Curvetine II, just behind the teeth, to keep the teeth and wheel from going too deep in some conditions.

With this combination of weight concentrated on curved teeth (which tend to extract themselves with minimal soil disturbance as they roll) and a broad continuous shoulder to act as a depth band and continuous closer is unique and patented. We find that in many conditions the Curvetine II can be run at much lower closing wheel arm spring tension settings than the standard wheel with its large continuous surface area.

Running at lower arm spring pressure can logically reduce wear on the closing wheel arm bushings.

As far as bearing location, we have different hub arrangements for the various generations of 750-1850 closing wheel arm designs. Most of our versions use Timken brand tapered roiller bearings and CR triple lip seal and are regreaseable. We just came out with a new version of our Supercap which has a lip protecting the zerk from rocks so the fitting can be left in Curvetine closers for those wanting to grease more frequently....

Here's a picture on a 750. Suggestion: try a couple row each of several designs and go with the one that works best in your conditions in Ohio.

Jim at Dawn

(Dawn Curvetine II on JD 750 drill IMG_2351A.JPG)

Dawn Curvetine II on JD 750 drill IMG_2351A.JPG (98KB - 242 downloads)