DAIRY farming on the slopes of an old volcano requires nimble wheelwork and lots of power, ANDREA MAYES writes
Graham Clay is a third-generation farmer in Camperdown, Victoria.
- IN A WORD
- MAKE: Massey Ferguson
- MODEL: MF7495
- LIST PRICE: $194,000 (+GST)
- BEST FEATURES: Graham said the tractor is easy to drive, with exceptional power-to-weight ratio and simple-to-use Dyna VT transmission.
- MORE DETAILS: Rhys Evans (03) 5231 5855 or visit www.agco.com.au
He and wife, Melissa, live on the family dairy farm in the crater of Mt Leura. Together with Graham's parents, David and Joan, they run 350 Friesians on 445ha.
They milk right through the year, producing about 2.5 million litres for the Fonterra factory at Cobden.
With an eye on rising grain costs, Graham decided pasture was the way to go as a feed source for his cows.
So 80ha were set aside for silage and 60ha for hay.
In an average year they bale 850 rolls of hay and produce 800 tonnes of pit silage.
The Clays also lease 138ha to grow more pasture and have bought a trailed Gehl forage harvester with 1000rpm drive and eight tungsten carbide-faced knives.
A little more than a year ago, Graham traded in an 18-year-old Massey Ferguson 3070 71kW tractor for a more powerful machine.
"The old Massey had 9500 hours up when we traded it for the 151kW MF7495 in September, 2008," he said.
"The Gehl forage harvester is a great machine but it takes a lot of horsepower to drive, particularly on the steep slopes around here.
"We couldn't be happier with the MF7495. It's easy to drive. It does everything from feeding out, cultivation and direct drilling to the heaviest jobs on the farm like towing the forage harvester.
"We can hitch up our old 28-plate discs and go uphill and downhill and it's no problem at all.
"We love it. We call it the gentle giant. It's 10 times better than we expected, and we expected a lot."
Graham said the Dyna VT transmission was very good.
"It's simple to use and you've got the two variable speed ranges, which is very useful," he said.
"You can do the hill work in low range and use high range when you're feeding out cows or driving on the road.
"You've got the speed control and all the power you need, as well as fuel efficiency.
"When we're feeding out hay, the 7495 uses about six litres an hour. With the forage harvester, it's up to 15 litres an hour. This is much more efficient than anything we've used before."
The MF7495 is powered by a SisuDiesel engine, which is a Tier 3 emission-compliant, four-cylinder engine with common rail fuel injection.
Electronic engine management is designed to monitor and adjust fuel injection to improve emissions and fuel economy, and achieve lower fuel consumption over a wide range of operating conditions.
"We were told it would be quiet, comfortable and economical, whatever the task, and we can't fault it," Graham said. "The power-to-weight ratio is exceptional and you've got heaps of grunt on hand for any job."
The Clays bought the MF7495 with an MF975 loader and Multibenne silage attachment.
All loader functions are controlled from a multi-function joystick.
At the same time they bought the tractor from local dealer Rhys Evans, the Clays also bought another Massey Ferguson tractor at the other end of the scale - a GC2300 sub-compact.
Graham said the little workhorse gives him big-tractor technology in a small package.
"It's got all the power, torque and hydraulics we need," he said.
The 17kW tractor measures 2.48m long and 1.16m wide.
It has selectable two or four-wheel-drive, a liquid-cooled diesel engine and two-range hydrostatic transmission, which allows Graham to set the exact speed for the job. Separate pedals for forward and reverse make it easy to change direction.
The GC2300 has a category one, three-point linkage and Graham said the pump output of about 23 litres a minute gave plenty of flow and power for implements.
"Melissa loves it. She's driven the big tractor but she prefers to work with the little one," he said.
"We use it with a finishing mower and we do light front-end loader work with it, like clearing out the calf shed.
"It's no trouble at all.
"I've given it a hard time sometimes, pushing a fallen tree around. It's a tough little tractor."
The Massey Ferguson GC2300 has now been superseded by the GC2400.
The Clays also have a 12-year-old 111kW MF3545 tractor for general farm work.
