Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2023 i Profi

Growing interest from customers wanting the ability to control multiple applications of product and seed in one pass has led to Stocks Ag extending the capabilities of its ISObus compatible I-Con control system. The new ISObus bridge module allows users to deploy up to four applicators at the same time (includes the Turbo Jet, Fan Jet Plus, Fan Jet Mini and Rotor Meter). Connected through a single terminal or the tractor’s own screen, the latter simplifies the operation and eliminates the requirements for multiple control boxes and GPS receivers, as the system can also rely on the tractor’s own GPS and task controller unit. Each applicator’s I-Con control automatically maintains a pre-set target application rate as the forward speed varies, with on-the-move adjustment of the rate applied as required. “A…

Up until now, the four-row Dewulf Kwatro Xtreme has been fitted with a straight hedgehog unit followed by a single Flexyclean cleaning system. Increased demand for other cleaning solutions has prompted the Belgian manufacturer to develop two new options for the coming season to replace the straight hedgehog unit. Badged as Kwatro Xtreme Flow, the first is the redesigned double Easyclean module, which comprises seven active smooth cleaning rollers alternated with nine Easyclean rollers. Said to be ideally suited for dry soils with clods, the newly-developed mechanical regulation system allows the operator to control the speed, height, opening and direction of rotation of both groups of drive rollers separately from the cab. The degree of cleaning is set by adjusting the inclination of the module. Suitable for harvesting in wetter…

A smart control system allows operators to monitor and control the latest automatic Magna dryer models from Opico remotely via a mobile device. Developed over the last two years and tested on farms across Europe and in the UK last season, the control panel features a 9.7” HMI interface and touch screen display. Setting the dryer off is said to be straightforward as it is pre-programmed for a number of crops, although it can also be adjusted to suit bespoke requirements. Providing operator batch progress reports and machine alarms via SMS or email messages, the control system works with any mobile network or wi-fi (4G or above recommended for live data transfer). “Operation, as well as technical support, can be actioned remotely - from general running to software updates,” comments,…

KEEPING IT BRIEF The Powermix test on the DLG dyno mimics real-world work in a repeatable way to produce comparable results. You can only find these test results in profi. Fuel consumption is an important factor when buying a tractor — but not the only one. Not particularly wanting to blow our own trumpet, but, hey ho, why not for a change? profi is the only farm machinery magazine that puts new tractors through their paces, month after month, with the DLG test centre instead of relying on brochure figures. For proof, just look at what we've scrutinised over the past 12 months: Case IH Luxxum 120, Case IH Magnum 400 AFS, Deutz-Fahr 8280TTV, Fendt 211 Vario, Fendt 314 Vario, Fendt 724 Vario, Kubota M4-073, Massey Ferguson 8S.265 and Valtra’s…

KEEPING IT BRIEF The Katana 850 features a redesigned crop flow and roller corn cracker. Liebherr 847hp engine. Kemper Champion 490 Plus maize header option. NIR (Near-infrared spectroscopy) harvest tech available. Features to include automatic filling system currently not offered. Fendt surprised many when it entered the forage harvester market with its Katana 65 in 2010, the Katana 85 that followed in 2014 suggesting the brand was a serious player. Agritechnica 2019 subsequently saw the launch of the Katana 650, its revised crop flow system and new kernel cracker demonstrating continued investment in the market. The Katana 85, however, was discontinued due to its MTU V12 engine failing to meet Stage V emission regs. Despite the Katana 650 showcasing a host of new developments, rumours suggested Fendt branded foragers were…

KEEPING IT BRIEF Particular attention should be paid to the bristles on the roller as well as its bearings and drive. Changing the bristles should take about an hour. Setting the machine up correctly will make a big difference to wear on the brush. Sweeper maintenance is generally neglected or often forgotten entirely. However, when the muck hits the tarmac in a damp time these simple machines need to do a top job of cleaning public roads to avoid a call from the council… or worse. We visited brush maker Tuchel to learn what it takes to set up a mounted Eco Pro sweeper with collector. This is a 2.30m wide version, which is popular on farms. The man with the advice is field sales rep Carsten Heilemann, who has…

KEEPING IT BRIEF Even two years after it was unveiled, the big cab with retro colours is the stand-out feature on the 8S. The 8150 is a workhorse. It suffers from a few teething problems, but these can be fixed. Its strength lies in its details — that was the headline of our 1996 tractor test on the 8150. Compared with the stylish and futuristic looking 8S.265 model, the older Massey Ferguson looks cubistic and rustic. Yet these are precisely the strengths of the 8100 series. The beefy Valmet engine and its simple operation are the hallmarks of this now classic range. But there are also massive weaknesses that spoil the initial charm of this older Massey. Finnish powerhouse The Valmet engine (now AgcoPower) has six cylinders and a 7.4-litre…

A policy of choosing the best machine for the job has resulted in an eclectic mix of tractors equipment of all ages for Lincolnshire farmer and contractor Ollie Smith. A shift towards strip-tillageand direct drilling over the past decade followed by a recent search for a simple, low-cost and high-output establishment technique culminated in a 9.0m Horsch CO being converted into a direct drill using Metcalfe openers. Now in its second season, the drill is drawn using an impressive modern classic 325hp Case IH Steiger STX325 artic, with the combined outfit ticking all the boxes. Based at Threekingham near Sleaford in Lincolnshire, the farming enterprise Ollie runs consists of a 650ha (1,600ac) block around the home farm, plus a joint venture of around 400ha (990ac) with the workload shared with…

Developed following customer requests for a portable grain cleaner, McArthur Agriculture says that its solution can be towed behind most pickups and can be quickly and easily setup and operated by one person. Claimed to add value to combinable crops post-harvest, enabling the production of farm-saved clean-only seed, and the cleaning of grain to meet contract specifications, the mobile grain cleaner is fitted with JK Machinery’s JCC VibroCompact 08 vibrating sieve cleaner. Mounted on a 14ft Nugent trailer with a curtain side body, the mobile grain cleaner comes with an onboard three-phase generator and control system. The new mobile grain cleaning system will be unveiled at LAMMA in January alongside a Mecmar SSI 28T grain drier, which now includes electronics to enhance the grain drying process to reduce energy usage.…

New options for the latest version of the EasyCut B950 Collect include the possibility to operate it from an ISObus terminal. Available in addition to the electric pre-selector box, the ISObus controls have a choice of three colour touchscreens: DS500, CCI800 and CCI1200 (or the tractor’s own compatible display). Also new is the CCI A3 AUX joystick (optional), which provides more convenient use of all frequent functions. Other updates to the butterfly mower include the hardened steel flotation skid (standard), and a new lever on the nearside guard increases the space between mower and tractor for straightforward coupling. Tractor power requirement of the 2.9t mower is from 160hp, the working width is 9.45m (incl. front mower), and the EasyCut B950 Collect folds to a transport width and height of below…

KEEPING IT BRIEF The fully-mounted Combi Expert is available in 4.0m, 5.0m and 6.0m working widths. Requires just 120hp up front. Still some room for improvement. UK importer is Abrey Agriculture. Ziegler’s Combi Expert is a light, four-row cultivator, with the test 4001 having 24 tines spread across its 4.0m working width. It can take one of six different rollers at the rear and comes pre-equipped with a platform for mounting a small seeder unit. After an initial driving impression in the 8/21 issue, we took the cultivator for a longer-term test, carrying out both spring and summer work. The three-point headstock has Cat II and III couplers. For the top link there are two regular round holes and one elongated hole with the appropriate pins — one for the…

We first set eyes on the Greentec Scorpion hedgers at Agritechnica back in 2019, where owner of the Danish manufacturer John Christensen was energetic about pointing out the main novelties of his machines — such as the way the boom achieves its forward reach position or how it attaches to the tractor with the four-point mounting system. As a side note, this technology won a Silver Medal at the German show. It took us a while, but we eventually got to visit Greentec and try out the Scorpion 630, a 6.30m reach machine suitable for tractors weighing 5t or more. There are three chassis sizes of Scorpion: the small frame (330, 430), mid-size (530, 630) and large (730, 830). And don’t fret when looking at the pictures… yes, the featured…

The route to emissions-free fuels is something that virtually every machinery manufacturer is currently wrestling with. And, it seems, nothing is off the table - whether it’s full electrification, hybrid technology, biogas, plant-derived oils or hydrogen – they’re all under the spotlight. But until now few of the big players have openly settled on one option, defining their path to Net-Zero. However, Cummins, Deutz and JCB have bucked the trend, recently announcing their intentions to pursue hydrogen as a fuel source for their internal combustion engines. JCB recently opened the doors of its top-secret engine research and development centre to a select bunch of journalists to reveal its plans to reach the ultimate goal of moving away from fossil-fuels. Heading up the programme is no one less than the company’s…

KEEPING IT BRIEF Plough still favoured on Warwickshire farm. Hired-in combines fix harvesting costs. Pair of M7-173’s share frontline duties. Ploughing will always have a part to play on the traditional mixed farm run by Rob Hadley and his family. With grain maize in the rotation and a keen eye on black grass, cultural control methods have become a staple of the farm’s arable strategy. Since we last visited in the 3/2015 issue, the area of land inverted now accounts for 50% of the 590ha handled at Chesterton Fields Farm, near Leamington Spa, with the remainder involving min-till techniques using a Kverneland DTX. “There’s no doubt that our soil structure continues to progressively improve, and we’ve been putting a lot of FYM and liquor from a local AD plant back…

THE LAST SHOW OF STRENGTH From profi 9/1991 Here is an article from the German profi archives that you won't have seen before. It was a last-ditch effort to keep Eicher alive, but even this cooperation failed to save the iconic brand. Why, many Eicher fans ask, do the new Eicher tractors not have an Eicher engine? Then at least the most important Eicher feature would have remained! Eicher put a lot of effort into realising this idea. After all, the prototype of the new model range at Agritechnica 1989 in Frankfurt, still had the three-cylinder Eicher engine with separate air cooling. However, this 'perfect' solution became too expensive in view of the small production numbers. So, as a result, the new Eicher tractors are now technically identical to the…

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Poluzzi has supplied kits for John Deere 9560 and New Holland T9 articulated tractors, but the upgraded version of the RX-9 fitted to a 445hp Axion 960 is not only the first conversion of a Claas tractor by the Italian manufacturer, but also the most powerful rigid frame tractor so far. The larger diameter sprockets on the latest version of the RX-9 not only reduces the torque on the drive lugs, but also improves the top speed from 30km/hr to 40km/hr. Other updates include rubber coated rollers and idlers and a new structure for the front and rear main track frames. Also, three roller undercarriages for the rear track units is said to spread the weight of the 610mm front and 762mm rear tracks over a wider footprint of 1.01m²…

Case IH has expanded its LB large square baler range with a new 1.2m x 70cm model. The 2.6m long bales produced by the LB424XLD (Density) are up to 10% heavier than those pumped out by the existing LB424XL, which remains in the range. The denser bales are mainly due to the reinforced plunger. Providing 400kN of compression force (27% increase), its design incorporates perpendicular V-shaped support beams made from 8.0mm steel, together with four sectional reinforcement plates instead of two. Equipped with reinforced baler chamber side doors, the design also includes two larger, 140mm-diameter hydraulic density cylinders which exert 113% more force on the side doors and increase the force on the top doors by 25%. Like the existing LB424XL, with which shares a high commonality of parts, the…

Horsch has taken many of the new features from the large-scale Sprinter NT drill and packaged them in the mounted 6.25SL (6.0m) and trailed 12.25SC (12m) models. The more compact format is said to be better suited to the UK. With a 25cm row spacing, and suitable for direct or mulch seeding, there are numerous tine coulter options. Equipped with a 6,300l twin hopper (triple tank or additional MiniDrill options on the way), the design on the 12.25SC is based on that of the new Avatar 8.25 and can apply up to four components. With a coulter pressure up to 180kg, the hydraulically pre-stressed tines ensure a high clearance between frame and surface and between the seed coulters. The tines are individually depth controlled with a press wheel and the…

Also suitable for using with other sprayers, when combined with the Leeb CS rear-mounted models, the 1.2FT (1,200l) and 1.8FT (1,800l) front tanks provide up to 4,000l of spraying capacity. Horsch says that a standard coupling triangle ensures short set-up times of the compact linkage mounted tanks without the need to manually couple hydraulic lines. There are two versions; basic and pro. Suitable for combining with all Leeb trailed sprayers, the base model can be used as an additional water tank with a 2” suction line towards the rear, without agitator and cleaning. The higher specification version is integrated into the software and the water circuit of the CS and has its own agitator and cleaning. Controlled via ISObus, both tanks are fitted with lights. The optional camera network provides…

Cummins has recently announced a deal with Buhler – the company that builds Versatile tractors – to supply hydrogen-fuelled engines. The Canadian tractor manufacturer has used Cummins power-plants since 1967 and this latest announcement signals the intention for this long-lasting relationship to continue into the future given full-scale production isn’t scheduled to start until 2027. Having produced methane-fired engines for the truck world for decades, the engine supplier has plenty of experience with spark ignition and the management of gas as a fuel, which it says puts it ahead of the competition. Cummins plans to develop versions of its 6.7-litre and 15-litre blocks to run on carbon-free fuels. These units will be based-on-a‘fuel-agnostic’ platform where below the head gasket each engine employs largely similar components but up in the head…

KEEPING IT BRIEF Similar output, varied fuel use. Choose between mechanical or hydrostatic drive. Small size, decent performance. Value for money is a key factor in this sector of the market. All of the tested tractors were fitted with front-end loaders. Although the use of 50hp tractors in agriculture is modest, this class of tractor remains a popular category, compact size suiting markets such as equine, amenity, municipal and estate users, not forgetting the odd scraper tractor, too. Most tractors of this size and power will be bought with a front loader, as the little rascals provide versatility that we think could also suit them to working in a livestock yard. Here we consider performance of these small platform tractors, but all can be fitted with a cab. In the…

KEEPING IT BRIEF The main factors that impact the ageing and decomposition of diesel are oxygen, water, light and microorganisims penetrating the tank. The additives can almost completely stop the diesel bug forming. If there are signs of diesel bugs, a bactericide can be used to stop the decomposition so you use up the remaining diesel. Exocet will be more commonly found in the UK and Ireland. Rotech is the distributor for the latter. The purpose of including an additive is to benefit the core properties of a substance. This could be something as simple as putting milk in coffee to influence the taste, or even lemon juice in a fruit salad, with the juice’s ascorbic acid preventing the cut fruit from turning brown. Out of the farmhouse kitchen, the…

KEEPING IT BRIEF TJ Steele relies on converted Terragator trikes for operating his balers rather than conventional tractors. Reducing repair costs and depreciation compared to the previous fleet are the main reasons for the policy. TJ’s elaborate conversions are carried out by Vogel Engineering from Michigan. We tried every make and bought brand new tractors,” explains farmer TJ Steele from Stinnet, Texas, USA. “We also tried both options: swapping the tractors regularly or driving them for as long as possible. None of these policies was really profitable.” With each new generation of tractors, the technical problems increased. “The emission control systems caused malfunctions, and error codes of all kinds were commonplace.” The final straw was the total cost of around $230,000 a year to keep the last fleet of eight…