Front tank/toolbar combinations

[Ruston3w]

What do people think of the above? I was thinking of trying a 3m GD or dale to replace the SimTech but it seems they will bee too heavy for my 313 fendt? Is the toolbar too light when the going is firm?
We can't have any hills as in Suffolk but plenty of slopes, the late Deutz6160 was pulled about a fair bit by the 3.5m SimTech.

 

[Alistair Nelson]

I run a front tank with a 4.8m tined back half very similar to a dale or a 4.8m GD I have never found a problem with weight for penetration but my land is very kind wold land and we are predominantly extreme shallow mintill / ploughed but are doing some direct and putting in covers etc direct. the biggest trouble I have with the GD and weight is that it is plenty heavy enough when the front tank is empty for balance. but my back half is the back half off a trailed machine which is heavier rather than a mounted machine without the hopper. Hope that helps.

Interested as to why your going away from the Simtech?

Alistair

 

[Ruston3w]

Good afternoon Alistair,
I can see what you mean about the empty hopper, we used to run a front hopper drill on a Fendt toolcarrier and had the same issues, ok with a front press on the toolcarrier but not much you can do with a conventional tractor. I would like to drill with a four cylinder tractor but all these drills take so much carrying.
We love the SimTech for drilling WW, it's no trouble and really a pleasure to use.
We struggle drilling spring barley deep enough without burying some too deep, the wheat will get over it but barley obviously not so clever. Now we rely on pre-em spraying I get patches where the shallow seed is upset by spray, the deep drilling is miserable anyway...….if you don't roll the slot stays open to help deeper seeds emerge but heavy patches dry and slugs clean up.....bit of a no-win really.
We are trying soya again (please don't laugh)-the SimTech really wasn't the thing for precise sowing. If the soya is a dead loss we will have to resort to linseed and I think it will struggle with drilling depth here also.
I think if I did go for a GD I might keep the SimTech for drilling through spring barley straw etc, if I swapped to a Dale not sure why we would need the old drill. Of course the GD is much lower disturbance then our drill, not sure where the Dale fits in disturbance wise, between the two perhaps?

Richard.

 

[Farmer Roy]

 

[yellow belly]

For the press wheels to work they need enough weight especially when cereal or bean drilling