A VIRTUAL trouble-free 12,000 hectare crop establishment completed in seven weeks.
And no trouble with seed depth control.
So it was self-evident that the purchase of a second Equalizer seeding bar for this season was the right move.
It was made by east Wubin farmers Colin and Ruth Cail and their sons Michael, Darren and James, after buying a similar 18.2 metre model on 300 millimetre spacings for the 2019 season.
"We've had spring tyne and hydraulic breakout bars in the past and had trouble with seed depth control and the hassles of adjusting them to get the right seeding depth," Michael Cail said.
"With the Equalizer seed depth control is easy and takes less than two minutes to adjust and the seed is always where you want it regardless of point wear or bar frame status.
"You can set the press wheel pressure to suit soil conditions.
"The big point for us is that the bar, which is strong and sturdy, handles all soil types, even in dry sowing and seeding depth is consistent.
"The tyne layout also shone as we had no problems going into shin height stubble whereas with our previous bars stubble blocking was a huge problem."
According to Michael, having two bars in operation enabled the program to go in during the optimum sowing window.
"We were getting about an average 250 hectares in a 10 hour shift and the May rain has got everything away," he said.
"We got about 25 millimetres and we were done by May 20 and now everything looks pretty positive.
"We also got between 70mm and 100mm of summer rain which is sitting down there."
The Cails also opted for a 4500 litre Equalizer liquid tank fitted on the drawbar and operated by a John Blue pump at a fixed rate via friction drive.
The tank also can be fitted for extra seed or granular fertiliser capacity.
According to Equalizer product specialist and engineer Bert Badenhorst, the Equalizer can be optioned to suit a variety of soil and stubble conditions.
It features three knife points, an Aerator, 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.
"One of the stand-out features of this machine is the semi-independent parallelogram system," Mr Badenhorst said.
"The tyne assembly, which carries the fertiliser hose (a stainless steel tube is positioned in front making it liquid-ready) has a measure of distance to break out independently of the seeding assembly and for bigger obstructions, there's automatic breakout of the whole assembly."
The 12000VX features two in-frame floatation 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.
