Editor’s note: This instalment is another in the series that highlights the different seeding technology offered by manufacturers who had their equipment on display at the Ag in Motion farm show this past July.
Glacier FarmMedia — Back in late February, John Deere introduced its new line of C Series air carts at the Commodity Classic farm show in the U.S. In July, farmers here on the Prairies got one of their first looks at a new C Series cart at the Ag in Motion farm show near Langham, Sask.
The new lineup includes five leading and five trailing models, with capacities from 350 bushels to 650 with two, three or four tanks depending on the cart size.
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At the top end, the line also includes the flagship model C850T, with 850-bushel capacity. It’s only available in a trailed configuration.
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“For 2025 we introduced the new C Series,” Deere’s go-to-market manager Anthony Styczinski says. “There’s lots of new technology throughout the lineup. The ordering program is open now. We had a limited production run for this year. We’ve had really good feedback from customers on those units.”
Carts get the new AccuRate metering system that uses stainless steel components to reduce corrosion and can handle up to eight meters per cart. Each metering section now has its own electric motor. That allows for improved sectional control.
“We’ve always had section control,” says Styczinski. “But that was the gate slamming shut. The meter would continue to roll. You could get some seed damage in there. Now, having electronically controlled meters, we’re able to stop them to avoid seed damage. There’s no grinding there.
“We have high-fidelity prescription. (With an 80-foot drill) in the past we’d have to run a prescription that was 80 feet wide. Now we can control that on a primary level. In this case you could run a 10-foot section instead of an 80-foot section. You could run a different prescription every 10 feet across that tool, which really allows you to manage your land better.”
To ensure the cart is feeding the exact rate of product to the openers, the C Series carts get some added features that make that task easier for the operator.
“We now have tank scales on all carts,” he adds. “In the past we could only get tank scales on the 650 and 850. Now all carts can have tank scales. That gives the customers the ability to have ActiveCal, the ability to calibrate from the cab throughout the day as conditions change. It allows them to adjust to ensure that rate is perfect throughout the day.”
And making the initial calibration is easier on the C Series as well, with Deere’s EZCal system.
“I think we all remember the days when you had to climb under the cart with a bag and a fish scale to weigh it,” says Styczinski. “This new system really does all that for you.
“It takes the material, runs it through and weighs it for you, gives you the NDV value, all from the cart side display. Then all you do is hit a check box and it send that number to the cab.”
Working through Deere’s Operations Center, prescriptions can be prepared well in advance and ready to transfer to the cart when it hits the field, saving time when seeding is in progress.
“You can do that all in the off-season with Work Planner,” he adds. “Send it to the tractor and when you show up to the field it’s as easy as hitting the Go button. The operator, tractor and cart know what rates should be put where and it all just works seamlessly.”
