Event Farmfest 2019

CRT Farmfest lit up Toowoomba and the Darling Downs in early June – Andrew Hobbs was there to see what was on display

It’s no secret that dry conditions in Queensland has seen farmers do it tough, but there was little evidence of this at this year’s CRT Farmfest, with over 2,000 exhibitors taking part in the event.

Recognised as one of the state’s best events for showcasing new products, roughly 60,000 people attended the event over three days to inspect the latest in machinery for crops and livestock.

Redback Weedwiper

Taking a concentrated, targeted approach to weed spraying, the Redback Weedwiper is designed to be light enough to be towed by a quad-bike and nimble enough to navigate gateways and races.

Available in widths of 2.4m, 4.8m and 6.2m and adjustable between 50–400mm in height, the sprayer boasts two rows of wiping wicks and a bruise bar on the front edge to allow for better chemical-to-weed contact.

Designed with a standard tow ball coupling and anti-theft features, the Weedwiper also has three point linkage options available.

EZ Compost Windrow Turner EZ-2700

Able to output 950 cubic metres of compost per hour – and up to 1,400 cubic metres/hr with an upgrade package – EZ’s range of windrow turners has been redesigned, with a remodelled drum and an easy-to-service paddle design.

The Australian manufacturer has also implemented a new water delivery system, enabling full coverage of the windrow, as well as delivery from overhead water sprays.

An in-tractor hydraulic steering mechanism enables the operator to steer the unit while sitting in the cab, ensuring an accurate line can be maintained during the turning process.

The EZ-2700 can be powered with a 75 horsepower (56kW) tractor and has a tow speed of 330m per hour.

TTQ 25 tine deep ripper

The new rippers from TTQ can be fully bolted together, making them totally customisable for individual clients.

The rippers offer a very high underframe clearance of 780–950mm, allowing the rigs to be used in heavy growth.

They also come with shanks measuring 32mm thick, and cut from 450 grade Hardox steel – designed not to invert the sub-soil when ripping.

Westfield MK X-tend retracting swing auger

The X-tend, which its local distributors say is an evolution of the swing-away auger, is designed to move its low-profile hopper from side to side to reach the hoppers on B-doubles and other road trains without the need to unhook them – removing any need for a drive-over pit and removing a major bottleneck at harvest time.

Equipped with three-way hydraulic controls, the auger is able to process 300 tonnes of grain per hour and can be powered by a 120hp (89kW) tractor.

Gessner 6m heavy duty deep ripper

Gessner Industries operations manager Ray Finnie says that while the company has been making deep rippers for years, this hydraulic release ripper was built primarily for the Western Australian market.

“We have sent some of our shear release type ones over, which were quite successful, but we will probably have broader acceptance if we have the hydraulic ones,” he says.

“We have spent a bit of time developing the tine and testing it, and then building the frame to go with it. This one goes to 700mm and 6,000lb break out on the tine.”

Weighing about 9.5 tonnes, the ripper needs a tractor of between 450–600hp (336–447kW) to tow it, depending on the soils where it is used.

Gessner knife-type cotton root cutter

Gessner has also released a new take on its hydraulic-driven cotton root cutters, having worked with growers to develop a knife-type cutter for the dryland cotton grower, in place of the more common disc root cutters.

Finnie says the group had been tinkering with the model for the past 18 months, with the company able to configure different row spacings and widths based on customer demand.

“Cotton is grown on the flat, so the discs trying to work on the flat sort of bind up, whereas these knives work a lot better, plus there is a lot less maintenance involved and expense, it is a lot cheaper also,” he says.

Schulte G2500 giant rock picker

With a capacity of 1.93 cubic metres, the new model from Schulte can pick rocks of 50–690mm in diameter when towed behind a 75hp (56kW) tractor.

The picker’s teeth are 38mm wide to eliminate jamming while allowing soil to sift through, while its batt tubing has 10mm thick walls.

A contractor option also includes heavy duty 150mm round super-batts and replaceable teeth on the pick-up grate.

Heavy duty batt springs are also standard, with the rock picker designed so spring coil diameter is reduced at the ends – cutting the chance of breaking the spring hooks.

An optional hydraulic swing hitch kit also makes for easy folding and unfolding of the picker.

Kubota WG 3800 engine

Whether they’re powered by petrol, liquid petroleum gas (LPG) or natural gas, Kubota bases the design of its engines on its diesel models – meaning most parts are interchangeable.

The four-cylinder WG 3800 engine reaches a peak speed of 2,600rpm and weighs 288kg dry, offering up to 68.8 net continuous horsepower and 80.9 net intermittent hp (60kW) on its LPG model.

The company plans to start importing its natural gas-powered model in 2020.