Farm machinery is getting more powerful by the day, but with every increase in horsepower comes a bit more bulk. Here are a few of the heaviest machines on the market – in ascending order:

Tractors

1. Claas Xerion 5000VC

The German maker’s 517hp Xerion tips the scales at a meaty 17.45t (6.5 Ford 5000s).

2. John Deere 9560R

Deere’s articulated monster weighs in at 18.84t (7 Ford 5000s).

3. Challenger MT875E

The V12-engined crawler from Challenger pumps out 590hp and weighs 19.3t (7.2 Ford 5000s).

4. Case-IH Quadtrac 620

It’s the biggest tractor in Case-IH’s line-up and a favourite among East-Anglian farmers. The 620hp Quadtrac weighs 24.4t (9 Ford 5000s).

5. Versatile Delta Track

Versatile’s Delta Track is the heaviest tractor you can buy in the UK, weighing in at whopping 27t (10 Ford 5000s).

Other heavyweights

6. Dammann 3200 sprayer

Dammann’s tri-axle self-propelled sprayer can hold 13t worth of liquid and with a full load on board weighs 25t (9.3 Ford 5000s).

7. Claas Lexion 780 Terra Trac

Claas’ flagship Lexion 780 with track units, an acre-gobbling 12m header up front and a tank full of wheat weighs 32.6t (12.2 Ford 5000s).

8. PMC potato harvester

This self-propelled potato harvester from PMC weighs 29.5t empty and with a full load of spuds on board tips the scales at 41.5t (15.5 Ford 5000s).

9. Vredo slurry tanker

Dutch maker Vredo has taken slurry spreading to an industrial scale. The VT5518 with a full tank weighs 44t (16.4 Ford 5000s).

10. Holmer T4-40 beet harvester

The heavyweight farm machinery title goes the T4-40 beet-harvesting behemoth from Holmer. Empty it weighs 32t and its capacity to almost carry its own bodyweight in beet pushes the total to a earth-crushing 62t (23 Ford 5000s).

The benchmark

Ford 5000

In 1975 the Ford 5000 was one of the most popular tractors on the market. Its four-cylinder engine pumped out 75hp and it weighed just 2.68t.