A LACK of rain dampened values at last week's G & B Battaglia clearing sale at Kalannie, held by Elders Wongan Hills, though it didn't deter more than 300 people attending.
The exception to values was an Ausplow DBS precision seeder which took top honours.
The 12-month-old bar had only worked 3400 hectares and was bought by J & B Sawyer, Dalwallinu, for $339,000, to lift sale proceeds past the million dollar mark.
The final figure could have been substantially higher if a JCB 8310 Fastrac, New Holland CR7090 header and a Goldacres PrairePro trailed boomsprayer were sold.
The Fastrac was passed-in at $140,000, the header failed to attract a bid after the auctioneer's call at $130,000, while the PrairePro reached $105,000 before bidding stopped.
A total of 228 buyers registered for the sale with many commenting on the excellent condition of machinery and sundries neatly arranged in the lanes.
The DBS was always the pick for top price and four buyers had obviously done their homework and were prepared for a bidding duel.
An adjacent 2009 Ausplow M14000 Multistream air seeder with liquid kit was sold separately to Maringanui Grazing Co, Kojonup, for $90,000.
A 1996 deep ripper from the same company made $37,500, sold to TR & AJ Sermon, Ballidu.
The second top-price was secured for a 2006 Case IH STX5000HD Steiger four-wheel drive tractor which was initially passed-in at $107,000 and later sold for $113,000 to TM and AM Grant, Beacon.
The unit was in very good condition, having recorded 5434 hours.
It was presented with near-new 800/70R38 dual tyres, wheel weights, five remotes and was steer-ready.
A 2007 Grizzly 108 Field Boss offset discs with 55-60 centimetre-radius discs ended in a two-way bidding duel before D A Gillet & Co, Bencubbin, prevailed with the last bid of $70,000.
The 2010 JCM 930H front-end loader (1052 hours), which came with a GP bucket and forks with a quick hitch and auto greaser, attracted plenty of interest before selling to RA & MJ Birkle, Gingin, for $53,000.
Among the trucks, a 1998 Hastings tri-axle tipper trailer (9.2 metres) found favour with PC & AM Mitchell, Mingenew, who achieved the winning bid at $45,000.
Old 'Inter' trucks never die and a 1985 T2670 model (897,690 kilometres) with a 7.5m tray, went for $26,000, to BKS Farms, Esperance, while a 1998 Iveco 4470 TurboStar (554,590km) prime mover found a new home at $17,000, bought by JG and KL McCreery, Kalannie.
An unlicensed 1978 Ford Louisville 8000 6x4 cab chassis truck in good condition sold for $6500 to LV & EM Dodd & Son, Kalannie.
Holding its value was a 2009 Norrish Ezy Bin (50/50 split) with high flow pump on a tandem axle skeleton trailer which was knocked down for $42,000 after spirited bidding.
The mandatory licensed Landcruiser, in this case a 1997 HZJ75 model (255,000km) with a TL steel tray and new suspension met with expected interest and spirited bidding pushed the price to $20,000 and was claimed by Ag Implements, Merredin.
It was a value buy for the dealership.
Among the vintage items, a Chamberlain DA55 diesel tractor with a Perkins motor, hydraulics and PTO found plenty of admirers joining in a short bidding frenzy before GW & N Fuchsbichler, Koorda claimed the prize for $6750.
Other higher-priced items included an Atlas Copco Compressor ($13,500); a Caterpillar 12 grader ($12,000); a 12.4m Farm King 841 auger ($11,000); a Cold HD800 bin ($9500); two DE 45 tonne field bins ($8500 and $8000 respectively); a 12,000 litre stainless steel tanker ($8000) and a 200L fuel trailer and pump ($7000).
On the precision farming side, two Trimble 2050, M200 displays with unlocks made $10,000 and $9000 respectively.
Some buyers walked away with bargains as is usually the case in the sundries lane.
For example, a new unopened pack of 200 star pickets went for $1150 while a new pack of four Waratah 'Stocklock' fencing rolls was knocked down for $2200.
Vendors John and Pam Battaglia said they were delighted with the sale.
"We really appreciate the number of people who turned up and we would also like to thank the many people who have supported us and helped us organise the sale," Mr Battaglia said.
"We've moving on, as our children have completed university and are pursuing other interests.
"I have some health problems so we didn't crop this year and leased the farm but we haven't decided yet what we'll do going forward."
Mr Battaglia is a second generation farmer who has been farming in the Kalannie district for 40 years after his father Giovanni (deceased) and his brother-in-law Bert Pellegrini developed a block following the World War II.
Mr Battaglia has expanded the holdings to 3200 hectares, most of which is cropped.
