Automatic sheep farm series#

It would be nice if Merlo offered a newer version of this. The previous one, a 34.7, was much better, with a two-speed hydrostatic transmission and the tough ring-of-steel construction. It might be better for towing, but we never use it for pulling trailers so there’s little benefit for us.

Automatic sheep farm series#

This one is OK, but it has had a series of AdBlue problems, it’s constantly getting oil leaks and it has a CVTronic transmission, which isn’t as nice to use as a hydrostatic. It would be nice to replace the Merlo at some point. These days it spends most of its time hooked to a Teagle Tomahawk straw bedder. Reliability has been excellent and the engine has never smoked, even at 9,000 hours. It was bought when it was a couple of years old to replace a Ford 4000 and has done all sorts of jobs over the years. We’ve got several classic pieces of machinery, but the oldest that still gets used regularly is a 1987 Case 885XL. But there also seems to be growing demand for contracting work.ġ987 Case 885XL © James Andrews Oldest machine still at work? It gets used for our own arable area and we hire it out. They’re not that trendy in some regions these days, but they’re a very popular and versatile tool in this area and they do a fantastic job.īuild quality is also first class and it should hold its value well. Latest purchase?Īfter hiring a Sumo Trio off a friend for years, we bit the bullet and bought a second-hand model. We’re very much of the opinion that tractors should be working for us, rather than us working to pay the finance and depreciation.īy running second-hand models that have a chance of going up in value, we’re not having to work every hour under the sun to try to pay for them and we can put the money to good use elsewhere. The money was put towards concreting the yard which, although costing as much as a new 200hp tractor, is far more useful for us. It had bags of power and it was tough to see it go, but we didn’t need it and it made financial sense. Sometimes they will replace something we’ve already got, or we’ll use them for a while, see if they appreciate in value, and hopefully sell them on for a profit.Ī recent example was an exceptionally tidy Case Magnum 310 that we used on the big baler for a season and sold on for £6,000 profit. These aren’t always easy to find, but if you cast your net wide enough and look for long enough, they do come up. There’s no set replacement policy, but we’re always on the hunt for popular second-hand tractors in good condition at a sensible price. The John Deere 6910 was recently treated to a £5,000 refurb © James Andrews How long do you keep your machines? Tom George of APA Mechanics is our go-to for the New Hollands, Bristow Brothers at Hereford has carried out a few jobs on our John Deere, Steve Hodges and Stewart Linton help spanner the Merlo and Nick Smith has done some work on the Fendt. To save on servicing and repairs, we also try to use independent mechanics where possible. We don’t use main dealers that often as we shop around for good second-hand equipment and will travel some distance to get the right machine. That said, the current model has the CVTronic CVT, which we’re not quite so keen on. They’re comfortable to drive and the hydrostatic transmissions are smooth and controlled around the yard. We spend a lot of time moving bales and loading lorries and have found Merlos to be brilliant for this.

The telehandler is a different story though. We’re more interested in picking models that have a good reputation and hold their value, so the main workhorses are a Fendt 724, New Holland T6080 and T7050, and a John Deere 6910. Merlo 42.7 © James Andrews How brand loyal are you? Drill 3m Kuhn Venta power harrow combination.Cultivation kit Dowdeswell DP130 six-furrow plough, 3m Sumo Trio.

Hay and straw kit Krone Easycut 3.2m front-and-rear mowers, Lely 770 tedder, Krone KW 7.82 tedder, Krone Swadro 46 single-rotor rake, John Deere 459 conventional baler with Cooks flat-eight sledge, hired Massey Ferguson 2270 baler.Tractors Fendt 724, New Holland T7050 and T6080 with Quicke Q6M loader, John Deere 6910, Case 885XL, Ford 6600, Fordson Power Major.