Profi July 2020

Editor, profi international It is a sad state of affairs that we have almost become accustomed to standalone tractors, ATVS and telehandlers being stolen in the UK and Ireland, not to mention the all too regular occurrence of GPS equipment and displays being robbed overnight. Mid-May has seen things worsen with Claas dealer Olivers Agriculture having a Scorpion handler as well as an Atos 340 and Axion 810 stolen from their Reading depot. Luckily, at the time of writing, the telehandler was soon recovered but the tractors were still aloof. Just a few short days later, used tractor dealer, CFS had six current shape New Holland T7.210s stolen overnight from their Oxfordshire based premises. The firm says the well-planned theft was captured on CCTV, with the half dozen tractors driven…

One year ago, Polaris introduced the ultimate utility workhorse - the Ranger Diesel. Representing years of research and development to create the ultimate agricultural vehicle, the Ranger Diesel was inspired by its users with a diesel engine that delivers extreme durability and enhanced power, plus an increased engine service internal to over 200 hours; delivering a lower cost of ownership - just one of the many upgrades to the vehicle that made it more suited for the UK market. With robustness and refinement being key to customer satisfaction, the Ranger Diesel features a one-piece chassis design, offering a large front bumper and a full-body skid plate for 50% more protection to the underside of the vehicle. Internally, there’s a huge amount of legroom, 2.5cm of extra seat cushioning, reduced engine…

First online Cambridge machinery sale Cheffins is hailing its first fully online collective machinery sale a success. Since the UK Covid-19 lockdown started on March 23rd the well-known monthly machinery sale has been postponed. To get things back up and running, Cheffins opted to do a live webcast auction on May 18th for the drive through tractors and other self-propelled machines while other lots were sold via a five day timed auction. Those willing to travel could only view the machines the day before the sale and had to adhere to social distancing. A higher number of overseas buyers were in on the action with strong prices on the day for the over 300 lots. The selection of tractors included a consignment of a baker’s dozen of 2018 Massey Fergusons,…

Before the introduction of the latest 7700S models, the 7718 was the most powerful of the trio of short wheelbase six-cylinder Masseys. According to the brochure stats, it's rated at 121kW/165hp and develops a maximum of a whopping 200hp during pto work or when travelling over 15km/hr. Our tractor owner has been more than happy with the overall performance of the test candidate. The 7718 Dyna-VT arrived on farm in late 2017 and since then has clocked up over 2,614 hours carrying out a range of contracting tasks — transporting slurry with a 26m³ Kotte tanker, drilling maize with a 3.0m wide Lemken/Monosem power harrow planter one-pass, powering a Krone B870CV triple mower combination with groupers and following up with a 9.0m Reiter merger. The drivers praised the engine, not…

Usually when it comes to the profi Practical Tests, the supplied machines are brimming with options, such as the almost fully loaded Amazone trailed sprayer we looked at last month. So, when it came to test the Claas Liner 3600 we chose to keep things simple and went with the bog-standard, entry-level version of the firm’s smaller four-rotor rake. This 9.90m to 12.50 machine is towed from the lower links. These are in the correct position when the rake is sitting slightly forward. Disconnected oil hoses are stored in on-board brackets, and the electric plugs are placed on the frame. We liked the guide bar that safely routes the pipes and wires to the tractor. Another neat touch is the massive parking stand, which has a reasonable handle and a…

Kverneland is constantly adapting the Optima range of precision drills, updating the frames and expanding the selection of seeder units. For instance, back in 2015 it introduced the TF Profi II frame, complete with four-wheel running gear, which we used with Optima HD seeder units that could work at speeds of up to 12km/hr, in the 5/2016 issue. With the need for more speed, Kverneland then unveiled its faster pace SX seeder units at Agritechnica 2017. These could make use of the same TF Profi frame, and it's this combination that we got hold of for our practical test. The new, second-generation SX seeder unit can precisely place seed at speeds of up to 18km/hr. Not only that, but these second-generation models also bring the choice of two new versions,…