Simon

Ah yes, the Renault Ares 550 for Mailleux.... always thought that was a lot sexier than the orange ones we were touting!!!

I was going down the Fendt 500 route... http://www.tractorpool.co.uk/media/6017/1156017/147465/Fendt-512-C-147465.jpg But the XL cab is definitely closer looking at it.... https://secure.tractorpool.co.uk/media/7721/1117721/71828/Case-IH-1455-XLA-71828.jpg Where the kit originates from is beyond me, but although the mudguards have been trimmed, you can still see the IH extensions and the A pillars don't have the rake & curve of a Fendt.... It's obviously just something Profarm have made up to mount their models on for display to avoid pushing any unconnected brand and to prevent themselves from falling foul of licensing laws.... It's a 'nothing' tractor.... and nothing whatsoever to do with Bonnel or, indeed Bonhill.... who I have in the back of my mind did actually have something to do with importing Fendt to the UK once upon a time... way back when.... along with another German brand, the previously noted Fortshritt combines... or 'Fall-to-sh*t' as they were referred to round here....

Google turns up nothing for a 7640... could be a typo or misplaced assumption on the part of whoever has made the entry... I've never heard of one, and like to think of myself as something of a Ford nerd.... The power difference between the 5640 & 6640 was just pump settings... the 7740 was the same thing with a turbo, as previous 5610 / 6610 & 7610's....

You're right Paul and yes, you have got your point across perfectly, I agree totally. The subtle difference between what Imber are doing and what other manufacturers seem have done previously is that Imber are producing a full & correct range of tractors, other manufacturers in the past have tried to inaccurately change the model into a different range just by a decal... they deserve to get frowned at for that!

I think the Bonnel is the cultivator rather than the tractor... http://www.agriaffaires.co.uk/used/chisel-plow/1383012/bonnel-multirotor.html The tractor definitely originates from a Fendt, although what exactly it ends up as I don't know...

I think that's great news that Imber are releasing it as a 6640.... It saves us from butchering perfectly nice 5640's and adding our own decals. It's always been assumed that this would happen anway, so OK, anyone who feels the need to own everything is going to get stretched, but those of us who want to cherry pick our particular favourites are well looked after.... The problem with decal changes in the past has been that the casting or paint was not right for the model [britains 5610?].... that sort of release tested even my mild mannered nature, but offering all the range, even if that is just the correct model number on a decal, is a very generous offer by Imber if you ask me! I look forward to a 7740 too.... I would be really chuffed if they did the 7740 with larger wheel equipment though to differentiate it from the smaller ones... As others have suggested, if you don't like it, you don't have to buy it, but the fact that they offer it is definitely a good thing...

That looks brilliant, well done RC2, looks like Britains might be back! Can't wait to see the IH models now, going by this they're gonna be great. Top marks RC2, judging by the pictures you have every right to be proud of that.

Hmmm, can't remember all the ones I've driven, but I've NOT operated any Fendts, Valtra's, Deutz, Argo McCormicks or Landinis, I have had extended stints on these... Ford Thousand, 10 & 40 Series, Fordsons NH 35, TS & T6000 series MF 100, 200, 300, 3000, 3005 & 6000 series, even a 1200... Case / DB 90 series, 56, 85, 95, Maxxum 5100's, International World series Fiat 90 & Winner ranges JD 30, 40, 50, 6000, 6010 & 6020 ranges Air cooled Same's Most Renaults Early Fastracs Leylands & Marshalls, right up to Explorer [sekura] cabbed versions Lots of little Kubota's / Iseki's etc Plus probably many others which now escape me...

Ah, I didn't see pictures.... ta Sean.... was a really big trailer then... I hate those dolly things.... lethal when they're working properly if you ask me.... fine on a 5th wheel but double jointed behind a tractor... no way....

Would be interesting to find out why the trailer came off... whether a worn ring or ineffective PUH latch.... the latch was sticking on our 6030 I noticed the other day, it wouldn't always return to lock position on it's own... 5 minutes with a screwdriver to clean it out and WD40 round the mech and it pings like a new one.... it's too easy to rely on the lift arms holding a trailer on a PUH but it can so easily drop a couple of inches and bounce off.... more care needed.... I don't think that farmer's sentence is too lenient for failing to do something so simple which has led to such disastrous consequences....

Orange photos or not, still giving me the horn....

I always pull over for traffic.... EXCEPT... for that stupid old git who sits up my ar$e down perfectly acceptable clear overtaking straights because they're terrified of driving anyway... chances are they've brought their own ready made tailback to the party anyway... if you are not confident of overtaking a tractor doing 25 miles an hour down a half mile straight, you probably shouldn't be driving.... sit & bloody wait, like I have to when I'm stuck behind you in that sodding tailback in my car... and, lorry drivers who are the first in the queue and come screaming straight up behind me and start pushing me along. Again, you can F*IN wait like you make the queue of cars behind you, I like to think of it as revenge! Other than that I'll pull over anywhere to brighten peoples day... even onto a bumpy wide verge... do unto others as you would have them do unto you and all that....!

Lovely little conversion, very nice indeed! Can you do a 6410 with a loader on next please!!!

Nice trailer Ciaran, and those trimmers came out a treat mate!

I would dispute that this outfit was as bad as the writer made out. There are only one or two growers who use the routes he describes and only one which is large enough to invite the statements he makes. 90% of their drivers are 20 something farmer's sons and they have a large core of full time staff. They also have a fleet of lorries for everything other than hauling off a muddy field. Having read his report again just now, the more I read it the more he sounds like a lorry driver having a tantrum about how hard done by he is and how careful and conscientious he is in his lorry. He probably fell out with the farm manager because he had no experience and a lot of attitude. I can't think of a farm manager in the land who would tolerate some smart ar$e 'incomer' starting an argument for the sake of it over a beacon at his most stressful time of year! I vaguely remember the spuds getting spread across the 49.... it would have posed a far lesser danger than the broken ratchet straps or shredded tyres which drop off lorries on the motorway with alarming regularity.... Spud growers round here are the most careful of the lot, you see far worse practices when cereal harvest rolls along, creaky old trailers with splayed axles and no lights....

I am inclined to agree, I'm only being the arbiter for the other side. As I say, we make sure that our kit is up to the job but I'll be brutally honest, we don't know the laws off pat, we just use what feels like the right kit for the right job and make sure it's the best we can afford. You've probably seen most of it in my farm thread. I mentioned earlier that I had a fair idea who this guy was driving for who wrote the article, I know them fairly well and follow their kit round every year. Yes, they do have one number plate on all their trailers and to my knowledge it doesn't relate to any of the kit they pull them with. But their operation is genuinely not nearly as bad as the moaning min from the haulage industry makes out. Yes, hauliers are hard done by but it's not caused by farmers hauling spuds on red diesel. We do make money out of our farm, it's well run, always tidy and if something needs doing it's done. All our budgets are planned well in advance and, if I didn't have such an expensive family nor a father who liked his foreign holidays and nice cars, we probably could scrape a living out of the farm. I don't dispute that there are excellent operators out there looking for work. Surely the fact that there were so many responses to those ads should set alarm bells ringing though? Why excatly were so many highly skilled operators looking for work? Probably because they've been replaced in their full time jobs by seasonal semi-skilled labour because the farms they worked for couldn't afford to keep them. Their regular drive will have been sold and an application submitted to the planners to get the restriction lifted from their tied cottage and then probably let out or sold off. If we think about it, the agricultural industry doesn't really whinge that much, not like many other industries or sectors of the population. They tolerate often rubbish prices with little or no stability and not altogether fair competition from other countries, encouraged principally by the supermarkets and the general population who are happy to throw their hard earned in their tills for african runner beans or french apples. They even let the EU, government & those with little or no knowledge of the countryside tell them how to run their businesses and what access to provide for recreation and how it should all look. OK, public opinion may well generally be on the side of UK agriculture, but when asked to vote with their purses, the housewives of the UK still buy the cheapest they can buy from a supermarket. It's not their fault entirely, one does what one can for one's family, but when the choice is there, they don't tend to be overly mindful of the bigger picture. All the while, farmers keep on buying shiny new tractors the second they get two pennies to rub together and how often have you seen farmers out demonstrating that they're hard done by? The haulage industry on the other hand will complain about everything and have some industry rep on the news spouting about any gripe, be it foreign wagons on our road, fuel duty or working hours, and truck drivers are the first ones to get agitated if they come up behind a tractor when their tacho's ticking.... Reference a couple of Clive's responses, marker boards etc are generally fitted when something is supplied new is it not? If not, then it should be, the manufacturer should be responsible for supplying something which is legal for our roads surely? You don't have to fix your own washing instructions to your M&S jumper when you buy it do you? With regards weights, we generally don't have the luxury of a weighbridge so I think trailers are just filled till they're 'full'. Perhaps manufacturers should mark fill levels on their trailers for different types of crop? That would surely resolve that issue once and for all? And yes, if you have a trailer or other piece of kit which is poorly maintained or falling apart then you shouldn't be using it at all, never mind on the road. It's a false economy... but I can't think of any examples off hand of such kit being used round here. As usual it is probably a storm in a teacup....

Well done Marky.... your 15 minutes of fame continues! Were you invited or did you just keep sending them your testimonials until they let you in?

Christ alive Rich! Whose a talented lad then?! Yes! You! Can't wait to see this finished!

Interesting catch up... To clarify a couple of points, 1. Clive, I like to think we personally are an almost shining example of good maintenance on a small farm. All our kit is correctly sized and maintained for the task and I agree that everyone should do the same. However, as an ordinary small mixed farm of around 250 acres, it pays for the kit but not any salaries. This is not unusual. I could list many small farms round here who struggle on with old knackered kit because they can't afford to carry out even basic maintenance, never mind replace worn out tyres or fix up rotten trailers... So yes, there are bound to be some farms who can afford to maintain kit better than they do, but there are probably many more who can't... 2. The big contractors, if they don't maintain their kit are either mad or incredibly wealthy. Every contractor I know locally has a proper annual maintenance programme whereby they look after their kit during the off periods. If they don't, it packs up when they need it, thus costing them money. I don't think bona fide ag contractors are part of the problem really. If contractors are pushing on with kit too big for the roads, it begs the questions, 1, how has it gained approval for sale in this country if it cannot even be transported within it? And 2, Why do they have to operate like that? I doubt very much you'll pull up outside their sprawling mansion to be greeted by an Aston Martin and a Porsche.... and I don't suppose they'd be taking too many foreign holidays either... so the money has to be going somewhere..? Wages, tax, fuel, interest on finance probably... 3. The farms who invest in new kit are either big concerns who will have a rolling replacement scheme which they probably have no hope of getting out of, or regular farmers who are just rolling the money back into the farm. I doubt the former are spending hundreds of thousands on new kit as such every year, it will just be a lease deal. This is very different from you or I buying a tractor or implement for cash and then looking after it. I also doubt many of the latter ever really do the sums on whether buying shiny new kit is the right thing to do. I think spreadsheets with 3 year budgets on are still alien to many in the grassroots side of the industry. Perhaps they all need to start looking in a bit more detail at what the costs really are before they jump into these things. 4. I don't dispute that many machines on the road probably shouldn't be anywhere near it. What I do dispute is that they represent an immediate disaster waiting to occur. The problem is not so much the kit as the operators. If consumers bought more locally produced seasonal food and there was a genuine living to be made in agriculture then more skilled operators would work in it. I am a very conscientious operator, but I couldn't afford to buy a house with what I was earning, so I left the farm and went and did something else. That leaves quite a few positions to be filled sadly by those with little aspiration or intellect, who don't have the intelligence to look after their kit. [Not implying that everyone who works in agriculture is that way inclined...! Simply that employers don't have a huge pool of highly skilled thoughtful operators to choose from anymore because many can't justify the poor wages] I was replaced by a retired head teacher from a primary school. Nice chap, but no mechanical sympathy or particular care lavished on the kit... 5. Finally, the big one.... should any of them really be in business. Honestly? Of course not. As an industry agriculture just doesn't stack up. Prices are continually being drepressed, input costs and overheads are continually rising. Where exactly is the profit for anyone to survive? Compare [roughly] now with 15 years ago... Cereal prices, down, what, 20%? Maybe more? Fertilisers & chemicals, up maybe the same, 20%? Machinery... well, steel went through the roof, and extra technology has added 'value' and cost, so that must be up probably the same, maybe 15% at the lowest end up to what, 200% for the big stuff...? Land prices... skyrocketed... 4 acre grass field just went for £8'500 and acre here last week.... the land we farm is up for £6500 an acre.... do the sums, takes a long time to make that pay.... I recall Veg & produce.... Supermarkets can import whatever from wherever, and do, so I doubt very much that fruit & veg have increased at the farm gate along with inflation... Meat.... Been out of production for a while but you can't survive on 250 ewes anymore... Fuel - Diesel, electric, gas, oil, all between 25% & 75% higher than 15 years ago Wages... yup, they have been forced up too I could go on.... Yes, I know hauliers don't like seeing tractors trucking round on red, but would a haulier really want to invest in lorries capable of crossing fields and operating in farm yards? No, or they would have already. And would they like to share their haulage market with anyone with a tractor and trailer if farmers did run on white and with tachos? I doubt that too.... I could deliver steel framed buildings to sites .... I could delivery plant.... I could probably do lots that a lorry can do.... It's not farmers who hauliers should be getting arsey with! Should most of these farmers and contractors be in business? Of course not, it simply doesn't add up. Many operate at break even point if they're lucky, often at a loss, and with none of the luxuries or protection many of the rest of the population enjoy. Thankless work with out break or recognition. Farming is bloody hard work and not rewarded in any way like how it deserves to be. But we MUST stay in business. For many it's all they know, it's their life, and that of generations before them. It's a responsibility to the land and the environment and to some, even humanity... all far more important than some recently imported EU law on weights and measures or road speed or working hours.... is it our place to suggest they hang up their wellies and work in a factory? There is probably no workable solution in the short term in all honesty.

Putting in a case for the other side, while I can't see the likes of some farmers ever getting to grips with new [or existing!] laws relating to ag kit in the same way they've never got to grips with reading, writing and personal hygiene, there are many who would legitimately suggest that once the UK re-evaluates how they buy then they will re-evaluate how they supply. The consumer demands dirt cheap food, the most essential item they can buy is seen as a pointless luxury purchase by many and they want to buy a bag of spuds for 5p, supermarkets put pressure on suppliers for ever more perfect produce and consistently screw the market price down, European bureaucrats want to control the way the countryside looks and all in all the ag industry is looked on with disdain by pretty well everyone. We have always been careful to ensure our kit is well maintained and up to the job, but there is no money there to do it, we can only invest because we fund everything else through separate incomes. If the supermarkets get a rocket up their ar&e, the consumer takes a bit more responsibility for their nation's economy and spends more on home produced food and less on designer clothes and widescreen TV's, and the EU just sling their hook, chances are the wider ag industry would be able to post some profits, and then we could implement some rules on the condition of their equipment and the operatives that use it. But so long as the industry is on a knife edge of bankruptcy and the nation does nothing about it, farms are forced to scrape along the bottom and get the job done any way they can, as cheaply and efficiently as possible. I've said this before on various subjects, we don't need more red tape, we need that we already have enforcing properly and we need to incentivise and educate those we wish to improve.... And on top of all that, for all the panic that something might happen, I've only ever known a couple of very minor things happen round here caused by tractor drivers [and bear in mind the guy who writes the article wqas driving for one of the local outfits], a spud harvester clipped the side of a car parked on double yellows in town, and one of the planting boys drove his bed tiller across the flower bed on a roundabout on the A49 in some 'end of planting high jinks'. I've only known one person get killed round here in an accident with an ag machine, a young girl who came round a corner on the wrong side of the road and went under a Fendt. A horrible tragedy but not the tractor driver's fault... So yes, it's not perfect, but not a cause for hysteria either.... What about the 40 year old tractors with only brakes on the rear axle towing unbraked 3 tonne trailers at speeds, in cases, up to 50k...? OK, they will do less damage if they hit someone's car, but they're far more likely to have accidents in narrow lanes with high hedges, where people walk and children cycle....

I have a fair idea who he was driving for... \

I think I used the Renault.... Ceres 85 S, would have been brand fire then too....

Thanks Alex, it's a bit lax to be honest, not really had much chance top do anything farm-ish of late.... have promised myself some corn carting this summer, my son is big enough now to want to tag along, so *hopefully* some nice photos of good old fashioned British cereal harvest on their way.... \

Let me know when you're about next Rich and I'll take you for the tour, I'll run you across to Marlbrook too mate I ought to do some updating on here, not touched it for a while!

I'm saying nothing... Was it pure MF or badge engineered....? Even for the French it's an odd looking thing...