Profi August 2020

There have already been several dealer changes this year, and, if even some of the current rumours prove true, there could be further announcements over the coming months. Franchise switches are pretty commonplace, of course, as every few years there seems to be yet another significant appointment that causes a ripple of other transfers in allegiance. Some of these dealer franchise changes are brought about by question marks over the succession of a dealership — in other words, if the boss kicks the bucket in the morning, will the business be able to carry on? This has clearly been one of the attractions for some manufacturers to opt for larger multi-depot outlets with a team management structure in place, and no doubt this will continue to be the case. But…

Finnish-made front-mounted rakes arrive in the UK Fife-based Henderson Agri Services recently completed the first demo with the Finnish-made Agronic Oy WR500 (5.0m) front-mounted rake. Attaching to the front linkage or front loader with the use of an adapter frame, the two merged windrows pass directly underneath the tractor ahead of a baler or forage wagon. The two rotors are driven hydraulically (25-35l/min), and the rake rides on its own wheels. Working width and changing from work to transport position are both controlled from the tractor cab. Transport width of the standard WR500 is 3.0m, and, as a rough guide, prices start from around £6,500. Incidentally, the first machine demoed was bought by the host farmer. Contractor Jonny Henderson, of Henderson Agri Services, reckons to have been inundated with farmer…

This front block not only weighs 800kg, but it also provides some additional storage. The metal box sits on a sturdy base frame. To make it really heavy, scrapped shredder blades are placed on the floor and covered by another steel plate. The eyelets on the front are connected to the lower link coupler with thick ends of flat steel, so that it's possible to pull the tractor with a rope if it gets stuck. Tubes and flat bars welded inside the box divide it into compartments, preventing tools and boxes from moving. Small magnets hold a spare potato disc coulter.…

Revealed at Agritechnica, John Deere has officially added two new X-Series combine harvester models to its 2021 harvesting line-up: the 639hp (max) X9-1000 and 700hp (max) X9-1100. Designed to harvest more tonnes per hour and more hectares per day in tough, high yielding, wet conditions, the X9-1100 can harvest wheat at a claimed 100t/hr at less than 1.0% loss level. Grunt for the two newcomers is from an all-new PowerTech 13.6-litre six-cylinder block, and the 1,250-litre fuel tank, which can be fully filled in under 2.5 minutes, allows the combines to run for up to 14 hours. The outside dimensions are about the same as the S790's, but the X9s are bigger on the inside with the largest active threshing and separation areas Deere has ever offered. Claimed as the…

Cerescon, the Dutch developer of the Sparter, a selective white asparagus harvesting robot, has spent this season demonstrating the one-row self-propelled unit to growers in the Netherlands and Germany. Asparagus spears detected by a sub-surface sensor are cut by an integrated double harvesting robot. Claimed benefits include a 50% reduction in harvesting costs — good news for growers struggling to recruit staff to harvest the crop manually. "Manual harvesters are even thinner on the ground this season, and grower interest in the Sparter has doubled since the outbreak of the coronavirus," explains Mark van Lier, international sales manager at Cerescon. Requiring just a single operator, the company reckons the Sparter, which is transported between fields on the back of a trailer, can replace around 25 manual workers. The Dutch company…

The VF (Very High Flexion) casing and deeper, specially designed tread on the TrailXBib lead to a significant improvement in tyre life compared with the CargoXBib range, says Michelin. Sold for trailers, spreaders and slurry tankers, the use of Ultraflex technology on the TrailXBib results in a larger footprint which, says the company, keeps ground compaction to a minimum. The new tyres carry more load than the same dimension of CargoXBib HD or HF and at a reduced pressure. This helps to reduce the stress into the structure of the trailer, explains the company. Other TrailXBib features include improved road handling, and the new tread pattern with wide inter-lugs provides good self-cleaning capabilities with fewer closed areas for soil to accumulate. Fully compatible with central tyre inflation systems, the new…