Brian Anning is our intermediate category runner-up.

The retired beef farmer and ex-Redrock agent has put his spare time to good use by transforming a 20-year-old Ransomes ride-on mower into a self-propelled cubicle leveller.

The machine solves the problem of blown-in sawdust piling up against the back wall of the stalls by spreading it in a thin, even layer, cutting out any manual labour and potentially reducing the amount of bedding material required.

See also: Modified skidsteer saves dairy farmer time and money

After tracking down a suitable donor machine – two-wheel-drive, rear-steer – for £600, he whipped off the tired triple cutting decks and set about the revamp.

The bombproof three-cylinder Kubota engine and drivetrain remained in situ, with Brian instead concentrating his efforts on the multi-function arm assembly.

Auger and brush

Central to this is a 1.8m-long auger, formed from joining a couple of 15cm-diameter post hole borers.

This is carried under the cubicle rails to level and fluff the material, fed in part by a small spinning brush on the end that drags excess bedding away from the wall.

A bigger, slower-turning brush mounted to the front of the tractor unit takes care of the nearside.

Working height is maintained by little Kubota lawn mower rollers, and there’s a gas strut break-back mechanism to protect it from impacts.

The arm can be folded upwards when moving around the yard and swivelled rearwards on an old trailer hub into a transport position alongside the engine.

As Brian had most of the parts already, the total build cost came to a modest £1,000.

He has since sold it to a 1,100-cow dairy farm in Crediton, Devon, where it is used once a week.