Deere-est Posted June 28, 2010 Share Posted June 28, 2010 Well, yesterday as planned members of Farmtoys Forum were treated to a little look around a big farm! Co-Op Farms, Down Ampney in Gloucestershire was the venue. James Taylor, the farm manager was our host. He spared us very few details when it comes to running a big arable unit, all the 'how' and 'why' questions were met with full unreserved answers. James first gave us an insight into the Cooperative as a national company and how the small agricultural sector plays a massive part in the company and how it got where it has today. We were told how such a large acreage is farmed the most efficient way, about machinery policies, staffing, even some of the history of the estate itself. Although informal and friendly, the visit offered a fascinating look at James and his team of four permanent staff and what they do at Down Ampney and the thousands of acres around it!! After a half hour overview at the reception centre and a cup of tea, it was time to go and look at the beasts in the stables! We travelled the short distance from Manor Farm to Airfield Farm where James told us all about the fully automated drying plant which handles thousands of tonnes of grain and other combinable crops every year, the work involved in running the plant day and night, 15minute intake and output samples, ensuring correct and self implemented storage standards are met and how the plant copes with 150t an hour of grain coming in off of two combine harvesters. Just around the corner, the machinery park greets us with names like Vaderstad, Simba, Kuhn, Rolland, Richard Western and the odd Dowdeswell and Ken Wooten. A 5m Topdown works down most of the ground with a Carrier for certain jobs, Simba Cultipress for hard or overwintered ground and a new fully mounted 6f Kuhn plough which can be set for on-land plough as well as in furrow. The Vaderstad Topdown and a new Simba Flatliner also have Opico seed boxes for the broadcasting of Oilseed Rape. Some huge 12m rolls (two sets of) follow on behind these two as well as the John Deere 8530 headed, 6m Vaderstad Rapid seed drill. Some older kit like cultivators and ploughs still earn their keep on this up to the minute estate especially in challenging conditions. Two huge Rolland grain trailers tower over a pair of Ken Wootens, a pair of Richard Westerns and even a Webcox all sat around them. Views on the Rollands aren't massively positive. Expensive and difficulty in getting parts, awkward to manoeuvre and not holding the capacity they look like they should. Replacements are due but will be smaller and more of them for when each combine is running in different places. Spraying, both chemical and liquid fertiliser is done with two Knight trailed sprayers. A Knight 3800L sits behind a 240hp Claas Axion and possibly the worlds only, 6000L Knight trailed sprayer ball and spoons onto a Claas Xerion 3800 - the hitch in the higher euro-spec position too. Auto steering, auto on/off at headland turns and rate guidance as well as 32metre booms mean these two machines can cover the ground needed pretty quickly!! Combines are a brace of Claas Lexions, a 580+ Terra Trac taking a 36ft header up front and a 570+ Montana taking 30ft. Some steep ground borders the M4 on the north side near to junction 15 which is Montana country, 2500 acres of it! James gave us a demonstration of the Montanas break dancing skills on the vast runway (the base of Airfield Farm) which brought our visit to close some three hours later!! A huge thank you to those of you who made it, I hope you went away having learn't and seen something new. More visits are being planned in other parts of the country so hopefully more of you can attend a visit closer to you. Another huge thank you goes out to James Taylor who I am sure those of you who met him will agree was a top bloke for allowing us to nose around and to tell us so much about the Cooperative and it's farm, Down Ampney Estate. I will now hand you over to some of the days photographers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDH Posted June 29, 2010 Share Posted June 29, 2010 I'll try and post up a few photos in the next couple of days. Great day out....the Xerion was awesome............. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 29, 2010 Author Share Posted June 29, 2010 Well, here are some of the photos that were taken on the day at Airfield Farm. This is the main hub, machinery, workshop and drier. Starting with the Alvin Blanch 'mobile' drier. Yes because it has wheels and a drawbar it was deemed acceptable for a planning application on another CoOp farm. Firstly it was refused due to it's size so Alvin Blanch said ok, we'll stick some wheels on it and call it a mobile drier! 25t/hr (2%MC drop) continuous flow. The kit. 5.5m Cultipress, Twose 12m rollers and the Vaderstad Carrier. The Carrier again with the 5m Vaderstad Topdown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 29, 2010 Author Share Posted June 29, 2010 A pair of Richard Westerns, Gull, Webcox and of course Rolland make up the trailer fleet although the Webcox is now resigned to yard shunting. A trusty couple of old fail safes, a Cousins subsoiler and a Dowdeswell and it's press, which spurred the purchase a couple of years ago of... ... this baby, a Kuhn 6f in furrow / on land plough. Another recent buy, 3.5m Simba Flatliner (with Opico seeder). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Thanks for the report Tris and many thanks for taking time to organise this trip. We hope it is the first of many throughout the Country and beyond. We are certainly looking to organise a trip for a large farm setup in Lincolnshire (Near Louth) in the near future. Details will be posted soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 Thanks Andy, I have some more photos to add tonight. Will also get an email together for the place in Leicestershire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 I'll get some of my photo's up soon. Was a good day out to see a modern farm, things have changed in the last 10 years since my Dad was a farmer, computers everywhere now!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMB Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Ok just a few to fill in a few gaps really> First up the well-used Ken Wotton: Suton yard brush and behind it Xerion front weight block: John Deere 8530 with Vaderstad Rapid A 800 S drill in the barn: Another of this huge machine: Seriously big wafer(?) weights for the Xerion: Tidy Class scorpion rtth: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMB Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Bomford Tri-wing topper: Massive 36' header on the Claas Terra Trac: Both combines: Claas Axion 840 on the smaller Knight: Claas Ares 816 RZ: Claas Ares 816 RZ on Bomford flail: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMB Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Last for now. Axion rear: Some interested spectators: The imposing Xerion 3800 with Dan (Goodhead) for scale: What a monster: Cab view: Ball & spoon hitch of the Xerion/Knight: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jordantaylor Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 i dont think ive ever seen such a big tractor on a sprayer before, but theres a first time for evrything Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilw Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Im gutted i missed this one, looks like you had a fantastic day!!! Do they use the xerions in place of tracks?? Superb pics there!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 Yes Nial. This farm has been home to tracklayers from Cat/Claas, Challenger and John Deere. The latter made way for this Xerion which should be able to double the annual hours by being a more usable machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Palmer Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Yes Nial. This farm has been home to tracklayers from Cat/Claas, Challenger and John Deere. The latter made way for this Xerion which should be able to double the annual hours by being a more usable machine. do you mean being able to do more work than the trac models tris,love to see more pictures,got to pm you as well mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Ferguson Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 greta pics... looks like I missed a good trip there Trissy... fair play to you for organising it all mate too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractorman810 Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 looks like a great day out there, and that lexion with 36ft header?? blimey thats bigs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 do you mean being able to do more work than the trac models tris,love to see more pictures,got to pm you as well mate Yes, the crawlers were clocking up to 500 hours a year on cultivating duties. The Xerion by being the spraying tractor as well as the main cultivating tractor will now be almost trippling that. As well as a host of other preferential benefits which James explained. However, to get it down from the standard 88" wheel track the wheels were sent away to have the centres cut out and refitted to give a wheel track of 82". It does make it look narrow considering it's size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 In to a shed now and a Scorpion waits for another grain truck to load. Loading an artic bulker lorry can be done in as little as 7 minutes with this baby!! A Targo and an old JCB 528-58 back it up. One of two 'shunters', a Claas 816. These are contract hired but at the end of the agreement, the most reliable one is bought to run for another couple of years. Can't be bad having 155hp 'shunters' lying around the place! Huge Bomford 6.5 mounted on another 816. Pretty big outfit really and I should think with 5000 acres, there are a fair few hedges to cut!! The odd one out, a darker shade of green here which has one more year with the farm before being chopped out for something else. No clues as to what yet. The likely lads all listening to James telling us about the drilling outfit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilw Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Looks like a superb set up. Well done on the organising Tris, and im up for the next one in this area!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 Outside on the concrete, James had parked these up for us before we arrived. Winter serviced and ready to go but he wants them cleaned up before the off, storage dust has just taken the shine off them a little but otherwise I couldn't see any dirt on them!! Each combine has a very highly regarded driver, staff are hugely respected here. James spoke very highly of the team he has working with him. It was nice to hear that. 580 TT overshadows the 570 Montana. Again, showing the split reel 36ft header which keeps the 580 fed. And lastly, James shows us the 'gateway trick'. The Montana with it's hydraulic levelling can be quite a time saver by lifting the front end right up and the header right up, gateways are easily overcome without having to remove the 30ft header. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graham Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 what a set up you looked round there tris and others very nice sounds like a good day missed , that is what you call a grain store is that a belt conveyor running the length of the building Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted June 30, 2010 Author Share Posted June 30, 2010 The conveyor is probably (in sections) about 200m long as it runs over the yard into the shed with the Deere parked up, Graham. It There is another one heading into another shed for overhead fill too. It really is a fascinating place matey. There will be another day for you buddy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nashmach Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Looks like a good day was had by all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ertlerik Posted July 1, 2010 Share Posted July 1, 2010 Very interesting read, and great pix. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilw Posted July 1, 2010 Share Posted July 1, 2010 how big is that seeder, 8 mtr?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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