Tractor test

Fendt Vario 724 SCR

The Magnificent Seven

Along with a dramatically different cab, the major change introduced with the new Fendt 700 range is that it now packs extra muscle — 162kW/220hp/217PS on the tested Vario 724 flagship. So, even though the tractor-buying jury might still be out on the 700’s styling, its performance potential is much less in doubt

Practical test

JF-Stoll GXF 3205 P plus GXS 3205 P mower combination

Shortcut to a short cut

Last year saw JF-Stoll introduce the hydraulically suspended GXS 3205 P Vari Float rear mower/conditioner. Does it make a good match for the company’s front-mounted GXF 3205 P? And does the combo require huge amounts of pto power? We find out in the field…

Driving impression

MF 2170 XD big baler

X is for Xtra

The more crop you stuff in a bale, the fewer bales there are to move around. Massey Ferguson’s XD variant tops off the 2170 range and looks to open the door to extra density, so last summer we explored just how much straw it can cram into a package

New Holland T5

Gimme five

With a new engine, bigger four-post cab and the option of larger boots, New Holland’s four-cylinder T5s move beyond the T5000s they replace. This impression comes courtesy of Dutch magazine Trekker

Chop and mix

Väderstad Carrier Crosscutter

Straw harrows may be one of the latest must-have fashion accessories for the arable farmer wanting to just tickle the surface, but Väderstad is adopting a slightly different approach on the front of its Carrier min-till cultivator

Livestock equipment

Alvis Bros rotary milking parlour

The perfect cycle

Andy Collings takes a look at a Bristol-based firm that has recently installed a 60-point rotary parlour from where all the milk goes to its cheese-making business. Here the focus is on the agricultural side of a hugely diverse operation

Used machinery

Quivogne Tinemaster disc/leg cultivator

On the lookout for an old Master

The Quivogne Tinemaster has undergone a number of changes since its formal launch in 1999, matched with a maturing user appreciation of what this type of ‘disc plus leg’ cultivator can achieve; it took a while for the idea to catch on. James de Havilland assesses what has changed in the tool’s build and what you need to consider when inspecting a potential used buy

Workshop

From the workshop

Simple solutions to perennial problems

Mike Donovan does his usual job of spreading a bunch of your labour-saving suggestions across the following two pages. Find out how to warm your hands in the workshop and turn your trusty Defender into a safer stock carrier

Air-conditioning

Keep cool and carry on

Stay chilled down this coming summer by doing the right thing now. In the first half of a two-part series, Andrew Pearce explores the way air-con works before moving on next month to system maintenance

Machine management

Sharpening the machinery fleet

Bring out the big guns

Whenever a new manager takes over a farming enterprise there’s always a period of change as new ideas are implemented. And it’s no different at Waldersey Farms, where a pair of 6m drills has recently made way for a 9m wide monster. This is just one part of a continually developing machinery story, as Mervyn Bailey finds out

Around the world

Old-timers pull in the punters / Meeting the needs of small-scale agriculture / Farmer rethinks combine capacity / Blue ute takes the honours

Report

Contractor price guide 2012/2013

UK contractor charges

This is the National Association of Agric.Contractors’ charge guide, based on info supplied by its members last spring. The figures are ONLY A GUIDE and assume a red diesel price of 70p/litre. Prices will vary according to UK region, size of job, type of equipment used etc

Farming in South Africa — part I

Fresh hope for Africa

Despite what many might think, Africa is not a dry, arid and unproductive landscape. To the contrary, there is in fact massive agricultural potential in the region, especially in the vast tracts of ground yet to be touched. This first instalment of a two-part report visits a South African dairy farmer and carrot grower

Electronics

Reichhardt RTK Clue

Expand your Deere steer

An alternative way to pull in RTK correction promises lower costs, wide coverage and a consistent signal when looking to upgrade to the most accurate form of mobile machine guidance. Andrew Pearce talks to Carl Pitelen, FarmSight consultant for East Anglian John Deere dealer Ben Burgess and Company

Hobby

Forage harvester models

Which chopper for the collection?

With both Ros and Wiking now selling their first 1/32 self-propelled forage harvester models, David Pullen takes a look at how they compare. Mini Krone forager takes on a mini Fendt