Archive, Features

Mighty Giant hay grinder excels for Valton

Able to handle tough conditions with a consistent performance, the Mighty Giant hay grinder is a star recruit for Valton Feeding Solutions

As any Greater Western Sydney fan will tell you, the mighty Giants has made a formidable impression on the AFL in its short time in the league.

In the world of hay grinding, it is a different kind of Mighty Giant making its own impression as one of the newest products on the Australian market.

Available through Valton Feeding Solutions, the American-made Mighty Giant hay grinder has been a winner with farmers since arriving on to Australian shores.


Mighty Giant can grind 70 bales in an hour

Offering a rugged design, consistent output and considerable efficiency increases, the Mighty Giant has become available after Valton linked up with American distributor Post Equipment Company, becoming the company’s Australian importer and distributor.

Post’s sales representative Joel Schelling says despite being an American-made machine, the Mighty Giant excels in Australian conditions.

“The Australian hay type is quite a bit different and is more coarse, and that’s actually where the Mighty Giant shines versus the competition,” he says.

“The Mighty Giant is known for tough grinding situations.

“When I was visiting Australia, we did the straw in the machine and we were getting it down to a 5mm length. We were taking those big four-by-eight foot square bales and grinding them down that small in one grind.”

Among the popular uses for the Mighty Giant in Australia are straw grinding for both chicken sheds and feedlots.

The poultry industry, which Valton says is a growing business among its customer base, can particularly benefit from the Mighty Giant.

It is used to make the bedding for chicken sheds, with the ability to grind straw down to 5mm being a considerable advantage for users.


The Mighty Giant hay grinder

Schelling says another advantage of using the Mighty Giant is the ability to guarantee a consistent output and therefore increase efficiency.

“Without this machine, if you’re mixing your TMR rations for your dairy or feedlot, you’re really not sure of the exact amount you’re putting in,” he says.

“If you’re just dumping a bale in, that bale could weigh 1,000 pounds [454kg] or it could weigh 800 pounds [363kg], so your ration is never going to be consistent. Consistent rations are what gives you efficiency in the feed side.

“With this grinder, you can ensure all the product you’re putting through there, whether it’s grass, straw, you name it – you can narrow it down to a specific length.

“There are different screen sizes you can put in there, too, so you’re in control of that and it’s going to be a consistent grind.

“You know exactly how much you’re putting in every time, so you’re utilising your forages most effectively.”

Valton sells the Mighty Giant 2015 PTO, which has a hydraulically tilting tub that allows the user to service and change screens easily.

The 2015 PTO has a 35cm discharge auger under the mill to allow for trouble-free grinding with less mess under the machine.

Its elevators drive from the top with a rubber lagged pulley, while the hydraulics enable it to fold and unfold, raise and lower and swing side to side to make a wider pile or fill trucks.

A handheld remote control allows the operator to control the tub and elevator functions from inside the tractor.

While still a relatively new product Down Under, the Mighty Giant is built by Jones Manufacturing, a company based in the US state of Nebraska with more than 60 years of manufacturing experience.


The Herd-Boss feed wagon is a collaboration between Post Equipment Company and Valton Feeding Solutions

Schelling says the quality of machine – plus the proximity, with Jones Manufacturing and Post Equipment Company being located about two hours’ drive apart – was what created the manufacturer-distributor partnership that ultimately led to Valton Feeding Solutions importing the Mighty Giant.

“Jones Manufacturing also own a custom grinding company, so they’re hands on and know what works and what doesn’t,” he says.

“They’ve kept it pretty simple – there’s not a lot of glamour to the Mighty Giant but they’re rugged.

“One of the biggest differences to the competition is it grinds the forages in the mill. It forces the product down in to where it grinds, whereas the others grind over the top of a mill grate, so your production is quite a bit quicker.

“Any mid-sized to larger producer would benefit from this machine.

“When it comes to using mixers rather than the Mighty Giant, when you’re grinding your hay in that mixer you are decreasing the life of that mixer and those aren’t getting any cheaper.

“You’re talking more horsepower and you’re talking more fuel consumption, whereas you can back your grinder up and grind 70 bales in an hour versus putting two in a mixer and taking 45 minutes to grind up those two bales.”


The 980V Herd-Boss wagon has a 28 cubic metre capacity

Another area Post Equipment Company has delved into is manufacturing, through its Herd-Boss mixer wagons. Having sold TMR mixers for other manufacturers, it was partially a conversation with Valton Feeding Solutions owner Tony Byron that inspired the decision to start building the Herd Boss.

“We’re very knowledgeable in the TMR market and we know what works and what doesn’t,” Schelling says.

“Even prior to building the Herd-Boss, we had a lot of people wondering ‘when are you going to build your own mixer?’, and we put it off for quite a while, before we made the connection with Tony from Valton, who was having a hard time with supply.

“We decided to delve into it and what we did was use our knowledge and make a really sturdy mixer.

“We took different features like a complete stainless front conveyor, heavier chassis and different fits and functions of the hoses.

“There was nothing crazy but it was enough to make a difference. Even talking to Tony, people notice it right away. We didn’t just throw it together, there was a lot of thought in how things function.”


Dedication to detail has resulted in a sturdy mixer for the market

The partnership between Post and Valton is an ever-growing one, with Herd-Boss feeders becoming the latest product to be imported for the Australian market.

Schelling says it has already been a “great partnership” with Valton Feeding Solutions and the team has enjoyed working to get more products on to Australian farms.

“We have the same goals and interests,” he says.

“Even with the different dealers we work with in the United States, you can tell right away if they have the same vision we do.

“You can tell Tony has expertise in the mixer market and it’s fun to work with him that way – they’re very knowledgeable on that side.”

Valton Feeding Solutions is a family-owned business based in the western Victorian town of Mortlake, which specialises in feeding and hay grinding equipment.

It is the importer and distributor of Mighty Giant and Herd Boss products and can supply products nationwide.

Send this to a friend