Practical labour-saving kit for livestock farmers was much in evidence among the new products displayed on the machinery lines at the Royal Welsh Show.

See also: Custom-made cattle handling system improves speed and safety

Spread-a-Bale Midi ST

Adding a further variation to the numerous Spread-a-Bale configurations, “ST” or Side Throw versions have one large-diameter vertical rotor with vanes added to generate extra airflow.

Reversible hydraulic rotor drive and an adjustable curved gate send the bedding material to either side, even though the machine itself is orientated in line with the loader or telehandler carrying it.

“It’s a solution for passages that are too narrow even for the side-mounting option on our shortest machine,” explains Dave Bull of Spread-a-Bale.

“It does the job whether the pens are on the left or to the right – or both sides – of the passage.

“In future, we’ll have hydraulic adjustment of the deflector so operators could bed one side driving down a dead-end passage, and then the other side when reversing back.”

A Midi ST, for round bales up to 1.6m diameter and up to 1m high square bales, costs £17,500.

Ritchie grass harrow

A chain link grass harrow for all-terrain vehicles made its debut at the Royal Welsh Show on the Ritchie stand.

The front frame cross-member acts as a dung pat and mole hill levelling bar, while the harrowing mat is made up of cast spiked rings and is reversible to select shallow or longer, more aggressive points.

Parallel linkage on the towing frame lifts the mat out of work using a battery-powered electric actuator at the rear with key fob remote lift and lower control.

Suited for use on ATVs and UTVs, the harrow’s list price is £2,000.

Smart Stakka storage bin

A stackable poly bin for bulk storage and controlled discharge of feed, seed, and similar materials featured on the Kington Farm Supplies stand.

The Smart Stakka, produced in New Zealand, comes in 1,600-litre and 2,000-litre sizes at £2,350 and £2,495, respectively.

The bigger version has steeper hopper-bottom sides so it is best suited to fine feeds and powders.

The containers are housed in a frame with telescopic legs and pallet fork pockets enabling left, right or forwards discharge when carried on a tractor loader, telehandler or forklift.

A simple vertical outlet slide can be enhanced by a side handle for more controlled release of the contents, and a 152mm pipe chute extension.

C4meccanica tracked tool carrier

The TMU40 tracked tool carrier, from Italian manufacturer C4meccanica, is designed primarily for scrub and vegetation control in extreme locations.

However, it is also available with a trench cutter and rotary mower deck.

Destined for specialist contractors and large estates for tackling bracken, scrub in tree plantations and so on, the machine can be worked on slopes up to 20deg by a seated operator, and up to 55deg remotely using the detachable control unit.

“Working a machine like this in remote control mode all day is tiring because of the posture that operators adopt, so being able to work for, say, an hour seated and a couple of hours on remote control is more comfortable,” says Sean Reilly of UK supplier Arbforest.

The high-drive configured rubber traction belts are calculated to reduce the machine’s more than 2t weight to between 4 and 5.5psi to protect delicate surfaces.

The track assemblies individually telescope from 1.3m wide for maximum mobility at 1.8m when climbing, descending or traversing steep slopes.

“The machine also has an intelligent power-balance system that prioritises drive to minimise the risk of losing traction, sliding down slopes and causing damage that can remain a scar on hillsides for some time afterwards,” adds Sean.

A 40hp Yanmar diesel powers the TMU40’s two-range hydrostatic drive and 55-litre/min hydraulics system.

List price is about £80,000.

Ritchie off-road Combi Clamp

Although Ritchie produces a £5,000 road-going trailer for its Combi Clamp sheep handling system, farmers on a ring-fenced property now have an alternative in the £2,000 off-road version.

“It makes moving the system from one place to another a lot easier than heaving everything on to a flat-bed or into a pickup,” notes Julie Russell of Ritchie.

Once a telescopic drawbar has been pulled out, the assembly is lifted off the ground on a pair of flotation tyres by a hydraulic cylinder and battery-powered electric pump.

Ritchie anticipates a price of £1,700-£2,000 when the system becomes available next year.

Kramer Smart Attach

Channelling oil through the locking pin means operators of Kramer loaders equipped with the new Smart Attach system can pick up and drop off attachments without leaving the cab.

Available initially on KL 8-series four-wheel-steer wheeled loaders, the system makes it quicker and easier to swap between implements such as a muck fork that need a hydraulic oil supply to operate the grab.

The locking pin has a flat-face coupling that engages with the female side under pressure, which loosely fits into a boss on the attachment to allow for future wear of components.

Existing attachments can still be coupled conventionally, thanks to duplicate hoses, but can be converted to Smart Attach with a £1,000 kit that includes the weld-on boss and other components.

Existing machines cannot be retrofitted with the system, which is likely to go on to other loaders and Kramer’s telehandlers in future.

Straw Spreader bedding machine

A prototype straw bedding machine being developed by Tom Robinson through his Straw Spreader business attracted attention at the show.

The project was begun after importing Altec straw spreaders from France became too troublesome, says Tom, and the Multi is designed to handle the biggest square bales – as well as round bales – in a relatively compact package.

“A big Hesston bale ends up shaped like a banana, which reduces how long the bed has to be,” he explains.

“That keeps the overall length down and the mass as close to the loader as possible – this prototype weighs 1.2t.”

A detachable headstock with auto hydraulic couplings and two spikes makes it a self-loading, one-person, one-loader implement.

Wi-fi control eliminates any physical electrical connections.

The main structure is mounted on a kingpin so it can swivel to dispense bedding straw to either side, as well as forwards.

A short chain and slat conveyor with variable-speed hydraulic drive feeds material to an anti-wrap horizontal rotor.

This is height-adjustable, along with the deflector hood above it, to suit different bale types and sizes, and the throw required.

Tom is targeting a price of £22,000 once in production.

Quadcrate ATV kits

It was first-time at the Royal Welsh Show for Northern Ireland farmer William Allingham and his comprehensive range of practical Quadcrate kits for quads and UTVs.

“I feel we’ve now perfected the equipment in terms of metal strength/weight and practicality and need to get out and about to show it off more,” says William.

The base unit is a fold-down platform with pull-out extension for carrying a couple of bales, and sits on the vehicle’s ball hitch.

It is secured by mounts on the rear load rack of a quad, without impeding axle suspension movement.

“When folded up, the device provides a towing hitch, but when folded down it can be equipped with a transport cage with gates at both ends for transporting a ewe, calf, lambs, dogs and so on, with or without a lid,” William explains.

The transport cage can also be upended and reversed to perform as an open-backed general transportation cage, or mounted up front on a quad in conjunction with a fence post rack.

A rear post rack is also available that slots between the cage and the seat.

A wire unroller, fence wire tensioning kit and a front toolbox are also among the devices available, as well as a lamb box.

The Bubble Cab, meanwhile, provides shelter from the elements and potentially some roll-over protection as it comprises a frame clad front to back in tough shatter-proof polycarbonate.

Optional zip-in side doors provide additional weather protection.

The Quadcrate with transport cage is priced at £1,117 and the front and rear post-holder kit with toolbox is £449. A complete fencing package that adds a Quadcrate and wire unroller is £1,448.