The Vandergriff Gin Rib

The final product of this process leaves a gin rib that is not very accurate and not very strong. These ribs are difficult to install, break under duress, and the lack of accuracy from rib to rib creates variations at the ginning point allowing the smaller seed to escape.  Tagging and rib fires are a big problem.  Simply put, ribs manufactured using the casting process can be a maintenance and performance nightmare. To eliminate all these problems, Mr. Vandergriff decided to get away from the casting process which some of our competitors still use, and go to a computer controlled machining process using a forging made from 1018 steel. The design and production of this forging is propriety in nature and can not be duplicated. The process to create this forging and to machine it is time consuming and expensive, but the results are impressive. He also decided to incorporate the use of a reversible, exchangeable wearplate or insert at the ginning point.  This would allow the customer to take advantage of the Vandergriff Ribs extreme longevity by just turning around the wearplate when a new ginning point is needed, and ultimately replacing it when both top and bottom are worn. There would be no need to purchase new ribs every season that would still be plagued with performance limitations. The final product is a very strong and accurate gin rib that is second to none in terms of quality, strength and performance. The use of CNC machines means our ribs are accurate and identical. There is no shimming during installation.  There are no variations at the ginning point that allow the new varieties of little seed to escape. They fit tightly together, are strong and will take whatever you want to give them when it comes to cranking up the capacity of your stand.  

If you are not using the Vandergriff Gin Rib, your rib is probably made from an inexpensive casting produced somewhere overseas, and with that comes serious limitations. If you are ginning with a rib that incorporates the use of a wearplate, in some cases minor machining was used to smooth out the rough edges and cut the slot for wearplate installation. Our competitors have had serious trouble with securing the wearplates to the rib and have even resorted to using lock-tite to secure the plates in place. One manufacturer does not even bother to machine the casting, they just notch out the area for the wearplate and screw it down.  The results speak for themselves. Despite the fact that some our competition still uses the casting process to manufacture their ribs with a wearplate they manage to price these ribs like they were made from steel.  We have customers that have been running The Vandergriff rib for 13 years or more. They make the initial investment in our rib, which frees them up to address other needs in their plant the following season, and seasons to come. For more specific information on each model of rib we produce, click on the specific gin rib section of this site.  The Vandergriff Gin Rib is of course only a small contribution to the gin industry made by Mr. Vandergriff. Its quality represents and personifies the man and who designed it.