Working on the principle that the shorter, the better, Austrian firm Pottinger has launched a new chopping system for its high-capacity Jumbo 8000 forage wagons.

It uses 65 individually protected knives, spaced 25mm apart, to slice the forage up to 30% shorter than its predecessor – and it does so while requiring just 15% more power.

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Pottinger claims this improves forage quality and delivers higher throughput rates than a self-propelled forage harvester.

It also allows for a higher loading density, with the company estimating that 10% more material can be crammed into each load compared to a 34mm chop.

In turn, this is said to allow the forage to be more effectively compacted, which leads to a faster decrease in pH value to ensure silage ferments properly.

Despite the close spacing of the knives, they are still compatible with the Autocut sharpening system.

There’s also been a change to the automatic loading system, which now has the option of an additional sensor on the rotor scraper carrier.

This detects the pre-compaction of the forage directly above the rotor and activates the scraper floor before any mechanical damage can occur. 

It means that up to four sensors (monitoring torque on the rotor, hydraulic pressures and material loading) are now used to optimise the loading process and make maximum use of the space inside the chamber, regardless of crop type.

Pottinger has not yet specified the price of the Jumbo 8000, but it goes on sale on 1 August 2022.