Last winter I met with a group of university engineering students and their professor in a small garage behind a house in Regina. They were one of 15 such teams working on creating an autonomous tractor and planter to enter in the AgBOT Challenge in Indiana last May. As it happened, they ended up winning […] Read more
Going driverless
New grain bag loader from Loftness
The new XLB10 is a new "fully-featured" machine, designed to make the job easier
Last May, Loftness Specialized Equipment introduced its new XLB10 “premium” grain bagger, which, the company claims, makes it easier on operators when it’s time to install bags. A remote-controlled jib crane and trolley system use electric motors to lift bags off the ground and slide them into place on the tunnel. A retractable bag loading apron […] Read more
PHOTOS: John Deere debuts new air drill and air cart
A third, wider model joins the 1870 lineup, and a new cart puts more product behind it
This year John Deere unveiled a wider air drill and all-new air cart at Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina. The new addition to John Deere’s 1870 line of air drill toolbars stretches the maximum available working width to 76 feet, joining the existing 40- and 56-foot versions. The 76 footer is a five-section design […] Read more
Low price or good quality?
People have always shopped for bargains, but I suppose you could credit today’s low-price, big-box store concept that is a magnet for bargain hunters to Sam Walton. His creation, Walmart, spearheaded the trend. As a result, I wonder if he’s changed the way all of us consumers now think. We seem to always concentrate on […] Read more
Getting a back-stage pass
One of the great things about my job as machinery editor is I sometimes get a chance to go behind the usually-closed doors of research and development shops at the manufacturers. Those workshops are where all the great new features that appear on farm equipment every year are born and evolve from concept to market-ready […] Read more
Thanks for stopping by
The last two weeks have been a bit of a blur for those of us involved with the Grainews UTV Challenge. Not only did we organize the event and test nine different machines from seven manufacturers, we put them on display at the Ag in Motion farm show near Saskatoon after the judging was completed. […] Read more
How to track down an electrical fault
We trace the source of a tractors' parasitic power drain with a multimeter
Automotive electrical systems in newer machines that make extensive use of computer processors can be very complex and confusing. But there are a lot of machines on the farm with electrical systems that won’t have anywhere near that level of complexity, especially those with diesel engines and no computer controls. Finding and fixing electrical faults […] Read more
Up to the challenge
At Grainews we pride ourselves on providing practical production information to our readers, and I think we do a pretty good job of it. This year we had the opportunity provide even more of that practical information on the machinery side of things. With access to the facilities at the new Ag in Motion farm […] Read more
Small sprayer with a big reach
Top Air pull-type UTV sprayer now available with 60-foot boom
Unverforth Manufacturing just announced the release of a 60-foot boom for its small Top Air sprayer, which is designed to be pulled behind a UTV. The boom can be set to operating heights of between 12 and 30 inches without the use of any tools. The outer sections use a breakaway design to help prevent […] Read more
Keys, please
For those of us who’ve ever bought a new tractor, taking delivery of it usually means waiting for the dealership truck to come down the driveway and unload it. The driver rolls it off the deck, leaves it running and says, “There you go,” before high tailing it off to some other job. It may […] Read more