The new Centurion drill from Simba Great Plains will be unveiled at Cereals 2011.
Simba Great Plains' new Centurion cultivator drill provides European farmers with a new standard of accuracy and sophistication in drilling in a machine that offers in-built ease of maintenance.
The new drill will initially be available as either a 4m or 6m model, with 3m and 8m versions being added to the range in 2012. The drill, which includes four elements for which patents are being applied for, is fully Isobus compatible and gives users genuine practical advantages over competitor drills.
The Centurion is the result of a multi-million pound development programme between the research and design departments of Great Plains, based at Salina, Kansas, USA, and Simba's Sleaford, Lincolnshire-based team.
One key aim of the design teams has been to produce a drill that is easy and economic to maintain. Two examples of this approach are the use of nylon bushes to replace metal ones – which minimises metal-on-metal contact and the need for regular greasing – and the fact that all in-field changes or adjustments can be made without specialist tools.
The first evaluation model was featured on Simba Great Plains' stand at Cereals 2011, and a number of units will now enter field trials right across Europe, ahead of the drill's worldwide launch at Agritechnica 2011 and British launch at Lamma 2012.
Great Plains' experience of producing direct drills is evident in the machine's coulter, which features a pair of robust 4mm discs that are staggered front/back by 8mm so they can open an effective seed slot in all soil types. The coulter disc bearings use a maintenance free triple-lip seal that ensures a long, trouble-free working life.
They are mounted on heavy-duty arms that provide down pressure from 40kg (their own weight) to 210kg via hydraulic cylinders. At the top end of the range, among the highest pressures available, they effectively carry the drill's total weight.
Coulter depth adjustment is easy and accurate via hand-operated toggles, with those coulters running behind tractor wheels being easily set to run deeper than the others. Fully hydraulically adjustable track eradicators that fold automatically as part of the headland turn, are available.
Drill purchasers can specify either 167mm or 125mm coulter widths, the wider setting being best suited to reduced cultivation systems and narrower spacings to plough-based systems.
The drill's 4,100-litre hopper includes a front window, internal light and adjustable low seed level sensors. Split hoppers are available for those who want to drill both grain and seedbed fertiliser.
The hopper can be mounted on load cells that provide a range of valuable information to help users optimise output. This includes the time/acreage until hopper empty; calibration checks; and measuring seed into the hopper to avoid wastage.
When using the Muller electronics to link to a GPS system, it can send alerts back to the farm to indicate the drill's position and the length of time until the next fill up is required.
The hopper features a 2.7m x 1.0m opening to facilitate bucket loading, with a loading auger being offered as an option. Farmyard filling is facilitated by the fact that the hopper cover can be opened when the drill is folded.
Seed delivery is aided by an agitator fitted above the seed roller. The roller is powered by a electric motor with a wide speed range (5-120rpm), so the drill only needs three roller options to provide seed rates of between 0.5-500kg/ha for crops like oilseed rape, cereals and beans.
The metering rollers are made of corrosion-resistant nylon so they can handle fertiliser. Changing rollers is simple, with a hand-operated isolation panel shutting off seed supply before the roller is easily changed without the need for tools.
Even seed distribution is guaranteed by using rollers with a seed pocket pattern that eliminates seed bunching. Seed is sent to the distribution heads by air coming through a venturi, which ensures even propulsion so all coulters receive an even supply.
A half-lift function that needs comparatively little hydraulic oil movement makes turning in the field quicker, the operator being able to adjust the degree of lift so working elements either brush or lift just clear of the soil surface.
The drill can be pulled via a drawbar or a cross shaft, with CAT 3N/3/4/4N options available, as is an extended drawbar with directional hose mast.
For transport between fields, the whole drilling element lifts 180mm clear of the ground, while to facilitate in-season maintenance it lifts to over 400mm. When in road transport mode, only four braked tyres contact the road, making it easy to travel on country roads with significant cambers.
For more information visit: www.simba.co.uk.
