Reversible ploughs are getting bigger, with articulated frames and a seemingly endless number of bodies, too. German maker Lemken is the latest to join the big league adding the Vari-Titan semimounted reversible to its range. We tested the 12-furrow version – a 5.8t mother of a plough which turns over 6.6m of soil with each pass.
Lemken has a good track record of producing semi-mounted, reversible ploughs offering up to nine furrows. But, until now, it has steered clear of the articulated plough sector because of these machines’ complex nature. Lemken was not keen on the articulated plough’s two main drawbacks of setting up difficulties and awkward in-field handling characteristics.
But larger farming operations and the economies of using bigger kit have recently seen more and more growers use fewer but larger tractors, harnessed to much bigger implements. And Lemken wasn’t prepared to let the competition have this market to themselves. So it developed the Vari-Titan articulated
plough range offering nine to 12 furrows – in its 12-furrow guise, the plough measures 15m in length, weighs almost 6t and, with hydraulic furrow adjustment, has a working width of up to 6.6m.
Key to the plough’s articulation is in the use of a universal joint and draft control system built into the frame. These allow the front and rear sections of the plough to move independently of each other – this gives such a large, rigid looking implement the ability to closely follow ground contours.
