Simba/Great plains SLD advice

[Wheels88]

Good evening chaps, does anyone have any experience in running a SLD? Looking for a cultivator to work heavy ground, in fair conditions would ideally go straight in behind with a vad but also would follow with a cultipress if needed. Have tried topdown/terrano MT style machines and in certain conditions have worked well but have also struggled, just seem to bob around on the back of the crawler when conditions get tough. We have ran a joker and a v form as 2 separate passes which works well but due to increased workload we want to try and do a similar job in 1 pass. Not a fan of a trailed sumo trio, always feel they don’t do a great job on mixing/incorporating crop residues and have had experience of the front legs in a straight line heaving lumps in dry conditions. A Quattro would be ideal but with a 4m having 8 legs we struggle to pull it (plus the price is eye watering) and going to a 3m we would compromise workload again.

We would be looking at a 4.6m SLD to pull behind a 756d (that’s potentially going to get tweaked to nearer 400 hp) working heavy ground but with plenty of fairish banks! The SLD looks to tick many boxes but would love to hear off any operators, would also be interested to know if anyone thinks we could actually pull it using the legs at 8-10 inches? Many thanks

 

[rm1]

Use a Philip Watkins quad till here one of the best one pass machines you will find

 

[snarling bee]

We use an 4.6 SLD, initially behind a tweeked 75E (390HP) but we struggled for grip and power. Now run it behind a 485 quad, which is boss of it.
We have changed the legs to Sumo low disturbance and that has made a big difference. Easier to pull, no big lumps brought up, finer seedbed, less mixing of lower topsoil.
We are on heavy land, some exceptionally heavy, with some hills as well. We find it is better to work in anti clockwise 'lands' using autosteer. (ie your work is to your left) it leaves it leveller like that.
Neighbour has a Philip Watkins and really rates it, but I don't think it is a standard configuration.

 

[Wheels88]

Thanks at @snarling bee and @rm1, I will have a look into the quad till, by the looks of the spec on their website it certainly looks a fair tool! If you were struggling with the 75e I don’t think we would get on much better to be honest, especially on the banks, I half thought we’d struggle to pull a 4.6m hence the question. @rm1 what configuration is your quad till and what do you pull it with? Are they as well made as they look?

 

[rm1]

We had a 3.6 mtr we pulled with a cat 765, now have a 4 mtr which is pulled with a 8370 Rt. 2 rows of discs followed by subsoiler then 2 rows of straight wavy discs,levelling boards then twin dd packers very well made we have not had any issues with ours.

 

[warksfarmer]

Good evening chaps, does anyone have any experience in running a SLD? Looking for a cultivator to work heavy ground, in fair conditions would ideally go straight in behind with a vad but also would follow with a cultipress if needed. Have tried topdown/terrano MT style machines and in certain conditions have worked well but have also struggled, just seem to bob around on the back of the crawler when conditions get tough. We have ran a joker and a v form as 2 separate passes which works well but due to increased workload we want to try and do a similar job in 1 pass. Not a fan of a trailed sumo trio, always feel they don’t do a great job on mixing/incorporating crop residues and have had experience of the front legs in a straight line heaving lumps in dry conditions. A Quattro would be ideal but with a 4m having 8 legs we struggle to pull it (plus the price is eye watering) and going to a 3m we would compromise workload again.

We would be looking at a 4.6m SLD to pull behind a 756d (that’s potentially going to get tweaked to nearer 400 hp) working heavy ground but with plenty of fairish banks! The SLD looks to tick many boxes but would love to hear off any operators, would also be interested to know if anyone thinks we could actually pull it using the legs at 8-10 inches? Many thanks

If a topdown is bouncing around a SLD will as well. We used to run a SL and that was terrible for it and why we swapped to a Quattro and Trio.

 

[snarling bee]

I've never had the SLD 'bounce around' It has always gone in the ground.
An SLD has far fewer tines than an SL, and designed for a different job.

 

[Enduro]

We have a 3.5 metre trailed sld that we pull with 8345rt on heavy land,it takes some pulling depending on how deep you are working and to be honest we would not manage a wider machine,ours does not bobble around and leaves a good finish which have managed to drill into with our vaderstad.,last year was first year running this machine.we are hoping to establish more like this and miss out a pass before the drill,

 

[Wheels88]

Thanks for all your input, @rm1 how does the the 8370rt handle the 4 metre quad till? They do look a fair tool, do you prefer the rear wavy discs over tines? @warksfarmer what Quattro do you have and what do you pull it with? Being in Warwickshire I’m guessing you’re on some fairly heavy brick clay! @Enduro I think it’s fair to say we are definitely going to struggle with a 4.6m, a 3.5m like you have would be an option but the chances of finding one would be slim!

 

[rm1]

The 8370 handles it ok.we have plenty of hills subsoil down too 12 inch wavy discs finish surface clods, where as tines just move them round on heavy land.

 

[Will 1594]

Look for a twb terminator ,
it wont bob around behind crawler ,might be other way round ,you wont break it

 

[GlennW]

Just sold our SLD 460. We pulled it with a T8.435 half track, mostly grade 2 land. Some days it needed all the hp

 

[Robt]

I sold a few of these... You wont ever bend it!

Keeble Brothers - Progressive

Manufacturers of rugged, quality built agricultural machines, we have been building Subsoil Cultivators for over 30 years

keeblebrothers.co.uk

 

[Wheels88]

Thanks for all the advice, a tidy second hand 4m Quattro popped up this week and we’ve decided to go for it, we’re hoping with the challenger pushed up to around 400hp and running the legs around ploughing depth we should be ok moving it. We are still subsoiling rape in (if we continue to grow it) so don’t see the need to run at subsoiling depth with the Quattro and accept that until we get a few more pony’s we will probably struggle at that depth anyway! They look a great tool and seriously well made, like the idea of both disc gangs and legs being hydraulically adjustable and the huge Packer looks like it will do a fair job, We’ve always liked trios apart from the trash incorporation/mixing so hopefully the Quattro will solve that problem!