Those after a high-output direct-drill have another machine to add to the expanding market after well-known Mzuri founder Martin Lole launched his enormous Izona iPass to the no-till enthusiasts at Groundswell.

It is the latest in a flurry of additions to the booming direct-drilling scene, with the Spanish made Virkar and French firm Novag also both recently entering the fray.

The bulky design of iPass means it demands a big tractor at the front. Mr Lole suggests something of at least 300hp, which should be large enough to boss it around – even in heavy clay soils.

See also: Spanish-made Virkar Dynamic adds to no-till drill options

However, that aspect may make some die-hard direct-drillers shudder, as reduced tractor power and weight is often a big benefit of converting to a zero-tillage system.

© MAG/Edward Mowbray

Hefty build

A prototype version of the iPass drill has been tested at Mr Lole’s home farm in Worcestershire for the past two years, but the example at Groundswell was the first pre-production version to roll out of the UK factory.

© MAG/Edward Mowbray

It is a monster, weighing 11t unladen and sitting on an 18t lorry-spec axle sourced from Italian firm ADR, which is shod with a pair of large-diameter 800/65 R32 Mitas rubbers.

This is to cope with the strains of pulling it through unmoved soil at speeds of up to 18kph.

The drill – which comes with wingspans of either 6m or 8m – mounts on the tractor’s lower link arms, helping to keep a respectable turning circle.

Weight is spread across the huge wheels at the rear and a bank of four pressure transfer wheels in front of the toolbar.

© MAG/Edward Mowbray

These work in tandem with the lower link arms to hold the seeding deck level and maintain ample weight on the tractor’s rear wheels for grip. If the drill hits a hard spot, the link arms will lower to shift a greater load on to the drill’s wheels, and vice versa.

Mr Lole says this is essential for semi-mounted machines to run at their optimum and, once set up, it is easy to see the link arms tweaking to keep the seeding platform level as the drill motors down the field.

A monocoque chassis made from 300mm steel box section has kept the bones of the design simple, while a following harrow set on a parallelogram linkage system levels the surface at the rear.

Coulter arrangement

Each coulter assembly features a twin-leg system offering greater flexibility in terms of drilling date and soil condition than a disc.

A 430mm Vaderstad-sourced disc is employed at the front of the coulter setup to slice through the soil and keep trash carrying to a minimum – this can turn to follow sweeping bends and is sprung-loaded to ride over obstacles.

The first tine almost tucks in at an angle underneath the disc. It has a narrow wing with a carbon tip and tills a band of soil about 25mm wide before dropping the fertiliser in behind.

© MAG/Edward Mowbray

A second tine mounted on two ball joints further back carries the seeding tube, and Mr Lole says keeping it in the tilled zone created by the front tine is the reason for a degree of sideways movement.

A V-shaped press wheel forces soil back around the seed to keep it weatherproof, with a manual five-hole height adjustment on each wheel.

There are three coulter options and the version we saw was a single chute, 50mm knife coulter designed for minimum tillage – row spacings on the 624 model are at 250mm, but there is the option for an 18-coulter setup offering a 333mm gap between the rows.

Two other choices come in the 75mm double-exit coulter and the larger 125mm banded foot, which can offer 48 outlets on the drill, giving eight rows a metre and minimal gaps.

One downside that stood out on our first walkaround was the abundance of grease nipples on the coulter arms.

There are eight on each twin leg and disc assembly, totting up to 192 across the coulters on the 624 iPass alone, aren’t a daily chore, we’re told, and some will rarely need doing, but it is worth bearing in mind.

© MAG/Edward Mowbray

Hopper

To allow the iPass to travel at speeds of up to 18kph, Mr Lole has used pressurised hoppers rather than the typical Accord method. This ensures equal pressure on both sides of the metering system so seed flow isn’t affected by speed fluctuations.

A sculpted 7,000-litre tank has walkways at the rear with access ladders either side. It’s a 60:40 split in favour of seed and there is an optional third tank for slug pellets and microgranules, with holes to add a small seed hopper, too.

There are four identical metering setups on the drill – two for each part of the divided hopper, sending seed and fert equally to both sides of the drill.

A brace of fans mounted on the rear service separate hopper compartments and, while Mr Lole admits that having two is a bit of a luxury, it helps keep the noise down when running and only takes 30% of oil requirement to drive at 2,600rpm.

Availability

Izona is currently finding the process of sourcing the parts to build the drills a bit of challenge. Steel prices and availability are hampering production and making it impossible to determine the final price.

Demos will be happening throughout this year, but orders won’t start arriving on farm until next year.

The price for a 6m, 24-coulter model is estimated to be about £100,000.