SPECIAL PRINT from top agrar 02/2013 A tidy threesome in

With compliments
Väderstad GmbH, Am Berliner Ring 8,
14542 Werder (Havel) OT Derwitz
Tel.: 03 32 07/30 87-0, Fax: 03 32 07/30 87-29
infoDE@vaderstad.com, www.vaderstad.com
SPECIAL PRINT from top agrar 02/2013
TOP AGRAR
TEST
A tidy threesome in
the maize field
As more and more manufacturers succumb to the thrill
of speed in maize drilling, they are coming up with some
innovative seed metering technology. Yet, what about
consistent spacing at speed and what about the effect
on yields? Our comparison offers swift answers.
Landtechnikmachinery
Agricultural
Vaderstad
Tempo
TPF 8
Amazone
EDX 6000-TC
Watch our video documenting
the tests and showing more
close-up footage on our website
at www.topagrar.com/maisdrillen
TOP AGRAR
TEST
A tidy threesome in
the maize field
As more and more manufacturers succumb to the thrill of
speed in maize drilling, they are coming up with some innovative seed metering technology. Yet, what about consistent
spacing at speed and what about the effect on yields? Our
comparison offers swift answers.
km/h was considered the fastest speed
a drill could possibly travel in the field
whilst achieving consistent spacing.
Enter these new machines that sweep the
fields at nearly double this speed. Many
farmers are quite suspicious about these
work rates. Unjustly so?
Amazone introduced their EDX design
back in 2007. The new singling system
along with a suitable placement technology
allowed the drill to work at speeds of up to
15km/h, a quantum leap in its day (top
agrar driving impression 9/2009). There
was no doubt that Amazone’s competitors
would follow suit and that it was merely a
matter of time. So, at last Agritechnica
Horsch introduced its Maestro and Vaderstad unveiled Tempo, the company’s first ever maize drill. Shortly afterwards, in the following spring we had the opportunity to
test all three machines in an exclusive comparison:
• Amazone EDX 6000-TC
• Horsch Maestro 8.75 CC
• Vaderstad Tempo F 8
For a full season the machines were put
through their paces to find out how fast
they can go, what level of precision they deliver and whether they make any difference
to yield levels. All test machines were trailed
8-row models, with rows spaced at regular
75cm. To compare the three machines and
their performance we operated them on the
8
Bröker farm in western Germany. Afterwards they were taken to contractors who
continued to use them throughout the season.
The site for this direct field comparison
was an 8ha field with sandy soil. The
ploughed and well consolidated land provided ideal conditions for our specific test
scheme. The scheme had each machine drill
parcels of land on April 19, travelling at various speeds of 9, 12 and 15km/h. For an
easier comparison, the individual speed
tests were lined up side by side.
To ensure the 6m drills maintained accurate row spacings, our Claas Axion 820 was
equipped with a GPS steering system and
RTK correction signal. The GPS equipment
gave us the additional benefit of controlling
forward speed without wheel slip. All drills
were driven by the same operator. Before
the flag was raised, all three manufacturers
had the opportunity of setting up their
drills to handle LG 3216 seeds. The set-up
was conducted on another site and then the
machines were adjusted for the soil conditions at the test site. The scheme was to
plant the seeds at a 6cm depth and place
the granules (200kg of DAP 20/20) 5cm
beneath and 5cm to the side of the seeds.
Weather conditions for crop emergence
were mixed. Although the soil was wet
enough to ensure germination, a number of
These three
drills lined
up for a
comparison
at speeds
between
9km/h and
15km/h.
chilly nights in early May destroyed some of
the germinated seeds, which resulted in
empty patches that looked like skips. Nevertheless, emergence was very uniform. By
May 14, the crop had on average developed
three to four leaves, so that the DLG engineer could move in to evaluate the crop
spacing.
How the measurements were taken. Following an approved scheme, one DLG tester pushed a recorder down a row of plants.
The equipment records distance covered at
down-to-the-millimetre accuracy. The recorder runs on two wheels that are rigidly
linked to each other to eliminate wheel slip.
As the engineer is pushing the recorder
down a row of crops, two pointers are directed to the individual haulms. Whenever
both pointers detect one haulm, the engineer triggers a pulse on the handle bar,
which is saved to the computer. These recordings form the database which the DLG
test station uses to compute the accuracy of
crop spacing (see Tables 1 and 2).
The so-called ‘actual spacing’ achieved is
expressed incm and is derived at by averaging all spacings recorded in any one test
plot. So-called ‘doubles’ are spacings that
are smaller than 0.5 times the actual spacing result, whereas so-called ‘skips’ are spacings that are larger than 1.5 times the actual
spacing value. The tables show the occurrence of doubles and skips within one plot
expressed in percent. The remaining percentages reflect those plants that are spaced
at the so-called ‘nominal spacing’. The higher this value, the greater is the accuracy provided by the drilling technology.
The ‘standard deviation’ figure defines
how many millimetres the average number
of plants within a plot are spaced closer or
Photo: Küper
Horsch
Maestro 8.75 CC
Summary
wider apart, hence reflecting the consistency of spacing. A small standard deviation
figure means the cop spacing is very consistent. Skips and doubles are not included in
the computation of spacing consistency.
• Drilling at high speeds, these new
drills are able to boost work rates
by up to more than 50%.
• Tempo spaced the crop consistently and well - at all speeds.
Vaderstad sets the pace. The Swedish in-
• Spacing results achieved by
Amazone and Horsch were
affected by speed - to a minor
degree though.
Photo: Küper
novation achieved a consistently good accuracy in spacing the crop (+/- 29mm) – and
surprisingly did so at all speeds. The percentage of doubles was also really low. In
fact, it decreased even further during the
subsequent tests carried out at higher
speeds. Whilst the percentage of skips was
relatively high by comparison, it seems that
these gaps were not accounted for by the
machine. Nor could the other test machines
be held accountable for many of the gaps in
their rows. These were down to a number
of chilly nights that killed a number of
germlings. In fact, we found germinated
seeds in many of the gaps.
Seed metering on Tempo’s contenders,
Maestro and EDX, seemed to be more affected by forward speeds. Here, the accuracy of eventual crop spacing decreased when
both machines stepped up the pace. The ratio was more or less identical for both machines. At this point we need to mention
that Horsch delivered the smallest standard
deviation among the test machines: Working at 9km/h, it delivered an accuracy of
eventual crop spacing of +/- 26.3mm, as determined by the DLG engineers. This compares to +/-30mm achieved by Amazone
EDX at the lowest test speed, which is on a
par with the good result delivered by Tempo. As ground speed increased to 12km/h,
Maestro delivered an eventual crop spacing
of +/- 30.5mm whereas EDX placed its
seeds 3mm further apart (standard deviation), achieving a +/-33.7mm accuracy in
crop spacing. As ground speed increased to
15km/h, accuracy unfortunately decreased
by roughly another 3mm.
And again, the relatively large number of
gaps was mainly attributable to the adverse
The DLG measured the crop spacing for us.
weather, so that we were unable to evaluate
the gaps by mere occurrence. However, as
all machines were exposed to the same conditions, it is possible to use the database to
deduce a trend. This reveals a slight increase
in gaps for EDX when speed increases beyond 12km/h (all measurements in Table
2).
Note that we are talking about only a few
millimetres here! After all, the difference
between the highest and the lowest accuracy is just about +/-10.6mm, which translates into slightly more than two centimetres. This difference is so small that the naked eye will find it hard to actually see it in
the field. Incidentally, these new and fast
drills compare rather well with traditional
drills that the DLG tested for our sister
magazine profi in the past. At 8 km/h, the
traditional drills produced accuracies in the
eventual crop spacing of +/-25mm and
slightly more than +/-30mm.
Measuring yields: We were naturally keen
to see whether ground speed and minor differences in crop spacing actually had any effect at all on yields, and if so to what extent.
We therefore conducted a preliminary assessment of our crops in the youth stadium,
together with a crop consultant from the
Table 1: Consistency of spacing
36
34
Standard deviation (mm)
Amazone
Horsch
Väderstad
Source: DLG measurements
Graph: Driemer
38
32
30
28
26
24
9 km/h
12 km/h
Work rate
15 km/h
The smaller the ‘standard deviation’ figure, the better
the consistency of crop spacing achieved by the
individual machine and placement technology.
• Minor deviations in consistency of
spacing had no effect on yield
levels.
Chamber of Agriculture of the Federal
State North-Rhine Westphalia. Although
the expert did spot some differences in
growth, these were accounted for by differences in the soil and not by inconsistent
crop spacing.
At the end of the day it’s all about yields.
So, to determine the exact levels of yields,
we used a forage harvester, which was provided by John Deere along with an operator, to harvest our test plots on October 2.
The 7750i forager was fully specified with
the new generation HarvestLab system
which detects potential differences in yield
that may be attributed to varying speeds
and technologies.
To do that, we set up a separate job for
each plot in the HarvestLab system and
mapped the fresh mass contents for the individual plots. To verify these results, we
weighed the harvested amounts, using a
Fliegl forage wagon with push-off system
and integral weighing system plus the farmowned weighing bridge.
No differences in yields: Our test shows
that speed and accuracy of eventual crop
spacing did not have a measurable effect on
yields (the yield maps of all plots are available on our website). The maize crops were
Table 2: Crop spacing in the field
Manufacturer/Model
Speed
Actual Doubles Nominal Gaps
spacing
spacing
Amazone
EDX
6000-TC
9km/h
16.4cm
Horsch
Maestro
8.75 CC
Vaderstad
Tempo F 8
0.7%
91.1%
8.3%
Crop
spacing
± 30.0mm
12km/h
16.4cm
1.9%
85.2%
13.0% ± 33.7mm
15km/h
16.3cm
4.0%
79.8%
16.3% ± 36.9mm
9km/h
15.6cm
0.6%
91.5%
8.0%
12km/h
15.6cm
1.0%
91.4%
7.7%
± 30.5mm
15km/h
15.5cm
1.5%
89.3%
9.3%
± 33.8mm
± 26.3mm
9km/h
16.2cm
0.4%
94.4%
5.2%
± 29.7mm
12km/h
16.3cm
0.3%
94.3%
5.4%
± 29.3mm
15km/h
15.8cm
0.2%
93.3%
6.5%
± 29.2mm
The higher the number of plants spaced at the nominal distance, the
better is the quality of work. The relatively high number of gaps was
down to damaged germlings.
able to balance out minor differences in
space.
More decisive for germination and hence
yields is consistency of placement depth
and soil coverage. In this respect we can
confirm that the coulter systems and placement kits on all three drills accomplished
impeccable results, with all systems maintaining the required drilling depth to absolute accuracy in our conditions.
In this context we should also mention
that owners of these fast drills will have to
settle for a slightly rougher surface, because
at high speeds these coulters create deeper
furrows than the traditional technologies.
This may be a problem in the subsequent
top work. Furrows and ridges were most
prominent in the plot planted by Tempo.
Removing the optional star discs will be of
some help.
And there is another detail which the operator in particular has to get used to: drilling at such high speeds is indeed exhausting! So, you had better use GPS to make
sure you keep up the high speed and maintain a straight pass for the entire job.
And then, the price takes some getting
used to as well. High ground speeds mean
high efficiency. And these ask for a substantially higher investment than for a traditional machine. The tractor, too, has to step up a
gear. Drilling at 15 km/h with the fertiliser
hopper filled to the brim, our 225hp Axion
really had to battle its way along. Yet, those
who have no issue with the high speed will
be able to boost their acreage by 50% and
more! Quite a gain – particularly when it
makes a second drill, tractor and operator
redundant.
Jan-Martin Küper
Table 3: Measurements and prices
Amazone
EDX 6000-TC
Horsch Maestro
8.75 CC
Vaderstad
Tempo F8
No. of rows
8
8
8
Row spacing
75cm
75cm
75cm
Seed hopper capacity
600l
8 x 70l
8 x 70l
Cell wheel diameter
31.5cm
14.2cm
25cm
Number of cells
70
21
32
Cell diameter
5.5mm
Slots
5.5mm
Seed drop height
/ 2)
57cm
61cm
Coulter design
...Disc diameter
Catcher roller
...Width/diameter
Press wheels
...Width/diameter
2 next to each
2 next to each coulter
coulter
11/50cm
11.5/40cm
2 V-discs
2 V-discs
42.5cm
38cm
1
1
1.5/30cm
1.5/25.5cm
2, V-arrangement
2, V-arrangement
3.5/36cm
2.5/30cm
2 next to each
coulter
11/40cm
2 V-discs
38cm
1
1.5/30cm
2, V-arrangement
2.5/30cm
Load on seeder unit 1)
100 – 325kg
150 – 300kg
175 – 325kg
Fertiliser hopper 1)
3,000l
2,800l
1,700l
Fertiliser hopper opening
1.90 x 0.78m
2.40 x 0.88m
2.11 x 0.66m
Fertiliser coulter
...Diameter
1 disc
40cm
2 V-discs
38cm
1 disc
38cm
Spool valves
2 da, 2 sa + return line 4 da + leak oil
2 da
Kerb weight
5,640kg
4,680kg
4,120kg
Folding time in /out
45/60s
38/17s
10.7/13.8s
Transport width
2.97 m
3.00 m
3.00 m
Storage height
3.66/3.843) m
3.85 m
3.18 m
710/40 R 22,5
700/50 R 22,5
4 x 11.5/80-15.3
84 400 €
98 270 €
62 490 €
69 840 €
44 830 €
74 190 €
Depth control wheels
...Width/diameter
Bereifung
1), 4)
Preis Grundausstattung
Preis Testausstattung1), 4)
1) Manufacturer information, 2) ‘Power Shoot’ delivery pipes > 1 m, 3) incl. auger,
4) excl. VAT.
The fast maize drills cost about 1.5 times the price of their more traditional class mates.
VERDIC T
Step up the pace - but use your common sense
Jan-Martin
Küper,
top agrar
editor
After we completed our top agrar
comparison test, I went to ‘my’
contractor to help with the maize
drilling. I have done this for many
years and last spring it was the first
time his customers saw me pulling
the fast kit. And I was really surprised
by their reaction. I can’t really think
of a new machine that ever cost me
so much effort arguing in convincing
customers. Some even wanted to send
me home when they saw the new drill.
“You aren’t pulling that kit at speed in
my field”, was the general comment.
So, I took my time and explained the
new seed singling technology down to
every last detail. Then I took them to
the field, uncovering the furrows to
show them that singling and placement
did work at speed. In my experience, it
is essential that the operator understands the seed singling technology even
better and that he is able to adjust the
system more accurately to different
seeds. This is important because
potential gaps really widen at speed.
After all, the operator covers more
distance after the system prompts an
alarm and before he is actually able to
stop the tractor.
I have never seen contractors
looking more pleased than when
using this technology: “It’s just
amazing how much we covered
today.” Obviously, their revenues
increase as the workrate increases.
On the other hand, costs are substantially higher. Eventually the benefit
accrues to both sides: To the contractor, because he covers more acres
during a given time or because he
can even save another drill whilst
farmers benefit from the extra
efficiency. After all, everybody wants
to have their maize in the ground at
the optimum time. So, when rain was
forecast everybody was really happy
that we were able to step up the
pace.
-jmk-
Landtechnik
Vaderstad Tempo TPF 8
Tempo boasts plenty of intriguing details. The on-board alternator on the drawbar drives the individual metering wheel electric motors.
Light-weight pace setter
Introducing a new seed metering system that relies on air for
singling and delivery, Vaderstad
challenges existing maize
planter concepts.
Seed meter & seed hopper
Tempo uses the Gilstring seed meter
that employs overpressure and a pressure difference to force the seeds into
the cell wheel holes whilst three small
and adjustable stripper wheels are in
charge of removing any doubles. As a
seed arrives at the drop-off point, a
small rubber wheel covers its hole,
thereby cutting the pressure difference.
Any seeds that may linger on in their
cells are evicted by a tiny pegged wheel
so they drop at 50 km/h down the coulter pipe and into the furrow. Vaderstad
refers to this technology as ‘PowerShoot’ system. Any occurrence of skips
and doubles is read out on the terminal
display screen.
Each of the sealed hoppers holds
70 litres of seeds. Sweeping them is by
opening the metering unit; an outlet is
not available. Sweeping the units was a
bit cumbersome although the metering
unit opens without tools and Vaderstad
provides a chute for removing large
quantities. To make up, the units were
really empty then.
Coulters & seed placement
The user-friendly terminal could to with a
larger display screen.
The double-disc coulter opens and
forms the furrow, using a wedge-shaped
opener, which sits at the end of the delivery pipe. Depth control for the coulter comes by two wheels that run on either side. The depth of each seeder unit
is set on a spindle that boasts a knob to
adjust the setting. In this context we appreciated the laser-marked scale that indicates the current depth. Increasing the
coulter pressure from 175kg to 325kg is
quite easy - simply refit a torsion spring
to one of six settings.
Tempo, too, relies on a press wheel to
catch the seeds and prevent them from
rolling in the furrow. These spring-loaded wheels are arranged at a fixed angle
that forms a ‘V’. Spring tension is adjusted on a lever.
Granule metering & granule coulters
The 1,700-litre fertiliser hopper sits
sideways on the frame and is a tad
smaller than the hoppers on the other
plus & minus
+ Consistent singling
+ Good weight distribution
+ Electronic fertiliser metering and
placement is available now
- Hoppers are swept by opening the
seeding unit
- The display screen is small, menu
navigation is complex
- The granule metering system is at
risk of collecting dressing
test machines. Filling the fertiliser into
the hopper is either by loader or Big
Packs, which is easy enough. An auger
will also be available in the future. Yet,
forget to fold up the ladder that leads to
the hopper and it may get damaged during the folding sequence. Fertiliser calibration testing is hassle-free and the calibration results can be used to adjust the
current rate from the terminal. Each
seeder unit now boasts its own individual motor, which drives its metering system. Adjusting the granule placement
depth takes a ring spanner: Undo a bolt
and turn the cam, which serves as a stop
for the depth control wheel.
The fertiliser hopper mounts sideways and
holds 1,700 litres of granules. The seeder
wings fold forward and alongside the
drawbar into road
transport position.
Seed placement & crop spacing
Tempo’s planting system really impressed by its high quality of work in all
conditions. The only gripe was that the
seeder units created deeper furrows in
our sandy soils than the other drills in
the tests. The situation improved slightly after we removed the star cleaners.
The machine clearly earns praise for
its consistent crop spacing, which did
not seem to be affected by speed, yet we
should not overlook that our pre-production test machine sometimes shut
off individual rows all by itself and
without the screen prompting the incident to the operator. Vaderstad says
they have tracked down the problem in
the meantime and cured it by a full upgrade of the electronic system.
Design & build
Specification levels & prices
The most prominent feature about
Tempo is its on-board alternator, which
generates the electric power to drive the
seed singling units and the granule metering system. The box section tubes
that formed the parallel linkages to hold
the coulters have meanwhile been replaced by forged arms. Also, the staggering number of 126 grease points has
meanwhile been cut down to 38.
The trailed Tempo model is marketed
as two 6-row and 8-row versions, which
offer a choice of 70, 75 and 80cm coulter
spacings. At this time, only the mounted
version offers narrower spacings. This,
however, does not feature fertiliser placement. The seed singling design suits
maize, sunflowers and soy beans. The base
specification model Tempo 8 is priced at
just under €48,000 (excl. VAT). The price
for a model in test specification
including fertiliser placement,
extra depth wheels, air brake,
row cleaners, bout markers, micro-granule spreaders and hydraulic folding system is just over
€74,000.
-jmk--
➊ The seeder units hold 70 litres of
seeds – enough for three packs of
50,000 seeds each. The lids are
sealed. Optional micro-granule
spreaders are arranged behind
them.
➋ An electric motor drives the
metering disc. The seed singling
housings open quickly and without
tools.
Pictures: Küper , Höner (4)
➌ The small rubber wheel covers the
holes and cuts out the pressure
difference. The pegged wheel gives
seeds ‘a nudge’ to leave the hole.
These will then ‘shoot’ down the
pipes and into the furrow at 50 km/h.
➍ The three rotary strippers are very
effective. Unfortunately, they adjust
with difficulty via the grey wheel.
Reprinted by kind permission of Landwirtschaftsverlag GmbH, Hülsebrockstr. 2–8, D-48165 Münster, Germany