The Cereals event returned to its regular southern haunt at Chrishall Grange, Cambridgeshire this week. Farmers Weekly’s machinery team picked out a few of the latest machines on show.

Weaving GD8000T drill

Weaving’s GD drill has proved to be hot property on the zero-til scene since its launch in 2015 and, with more than 300 now working across the UK, the company has set its sights on the 8m market.

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The extra wingspan has required a complete redesign of the drill’s running gear, including a chunky chassis that runs underneath the hopper, a link-arm hitch and massive low ground pressure tyres on the back, although it can still fold to 3m for transport.

© Jonathan Page

There are also double metering units and distribution heads to keep the slanted disc coulters fed from the 4t hopper. Currently it’s only geared up to handle grain, but a split version will be launched later.

Spacings between the 48 low-draft coulters are set at 16.7cm, although the added bulk means it will want 280hp up front.

The drill is built at Weaving’s Evesham base and a standard spec model is expected to list at about £89,000. However, that figure will climb if it’s ordered with Avadex, fertiliser or slug pellet applicators.

Amazone Hektor plough

Following its buyout of ailing cultivations maker Vogel and Noot, Amazone has added another plough to its ever-growing line-up.

The semi-mounted Hektor is based on the old V and N model of the same name, but has had a number of upgrades, particularly to the headstock.

Here, Amazone engineers have reworked the turnover mechanism and improved the damping so the plough turns over more smoothly. Apparently this was a particular weak spot on the previous model. It’s also rated to 360hp.

© Jonathan Page

Furrow width adjustment is manual from 15 to 19in and the standard shearbolt version can be specced with six, seven or eight furrows.

Those on stonier ground also have the option of hydraulic auto reset, although this isn’t available on the biggest model.

Buyers can choose from eight different mould boards and there’s tool-free setting of both the working depth and pitch. At the rear, a wide depth/transport wheel with hydro-pneumatic suspension comes as standard.

The Hektor, along with the rest of the Amazone plough range, is being built at the former Vogel and Noot factory in Hungary.

This includes the maker’s in-house developed Cayron, with was originally put together in Leipzig.

List price of the eight-furrow Hektor model pictured is £42,940.

Househam Harrier

After a troublesome six-year existence, Househam has replaced its mid-ranking Merlin sprayer with a fresh-faced Harrier machine.

This follows on from the launch of the new flagship Predator at Cereals last year, which signalled the end for the Merlin and coincided with customer comments stating that the Merlin bore little resemblance to the machine that was released in 2012.

© Jonathan Page

Tipping the scales at 8,500kg unladen, the machine has a single-piece chassis with oscillating A-frame axles on the front and rear, which has significantly improved the ride and weight distribution, we’re told.

Running the same 240hp MTU six-pot engine that was in the outgoing Merlin, it has a choice of boom widths from the twin-fold 24m to larger 36m units.

There are three tank sizes with the smaller 4,000-litre coming in fibreglass while the larger 5,000- and 6,000-litre tanks are stainless steel.

A new cab, fitted out with much of the same technology as the Merlin, includes the TMC screen and auto section control through the Field master terminal and the option of Househam’s own or Norac boom levelling.

Built at the Househam HQ in Lincolnshire, it is available to order now starting at about £160,000.