LAKE Grace farmers Kael and Ashton Gray put a new Equalizer VX model through its paces recently sowing vetch and oats before starting their main cropping program.
The South African-made bar – the first of its kind in the Lake Grace district – was bought from their local AFGRI Equipment dealer and first impressions were positive.
“We used it to sow dry into tight pasture country which is good, loamy soil when it’s wet and I doubt we could have done that with a spring tine machine,” Kael said.
“We’ve also got at least 50 per cent of our cropping program coming off pastures so it will be interesting to see how the bar handles our ironstone country.”
It was somewhat of a surprise for the bar to ‘stop’ the tractor in one pasture paddocks, but when the leading gangs of scalloped discs were hydraulically lowered and engaged, horsepower requirements dropped dramatically.
The brothers bought the 12 metre (39.6 foot) VX model because it can easily be widened and it is a fit for 12m controlled traffic, with gear on three metre axle spacings.
“If we want to go wider with the bar, the lugs are already there to add 3m sections each side,” Ashton said.
With the main cropping program, the Equalizer will be employed deep banding phosphate on a 50:50 ratio although there is capacity to adjust the ratios if required.
A liquid system on their Bourgault air seeder also will allow them to band liquid UAN and traces in cereals.
According to Equalizer, the bar can be optioned to suit a variety of soil and stubble conditions.
It features three knife points, including an ‘Aerator’ (20cm, 8in), which is equipped with a ‘shoe’ at its base to burst subsoil, two seeding boot options (single and split) and two pivoting press wheel options – narrow semi-pneumatic or wide V-shaped.
The pivot design ensures constant tracking of the knife blade with two separate adjustments for press wheel depth and pressure to match soil conditions.
Three types of leading discs are available for stubble control with a choice of coil spring or hydraulic.
The VX features two in-frame flotation tyres and front, frame-protected outrigger wheels on the wings.
A 18000VF five section 18.2m (60ft) model also is available, which has a unique fold to legal transport width.
The Equalizer models come standard with liquid-ready stainless steel tubes and there is a five-year warranty on the frame and a 12-month warranty on the tine assembly.
More information: See your local AFGRI Equipment dealer.
