Switch from red to silver | The new carts calibrate and fill from the operator’s side
REGINA —Morris Industries has introduced a large capacity single disc drill and a new line of air seeder carts.
It is also opting for a new look.
Company president Casey Davis showed his excitement the day before the opening of Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina. Grinning widely, he told reporters, a few staff and some farmers that Morris was releasing the most dramatically different and effective farming tools in its recent history.
“Farmers can farm more efficiently with less stress and more safely with our new carts. The new drill is a fit for producers looking for fast, precise seeding in every market we service,” said Davis.
Here is a video of Morris unveiling its new line of air carts.
There are seven models of the new Nine series carts, from a twin tank 365 bushel unit to the 800 bu. four tank. The new carts have departed from the company’s traditional red bin colour.
A silver, three part paint system from DuPont now covers the carts, allowing them to age gracefully, even in the harsh conditions of Australia.
Don Henry of Morris said the colour change will avoid having red carts turning pinkish after a decade in the field.
“Producers can tend to keep the equipment for long periods of time. Red is a tough colour to manage. This is the same type (of paint) used on Peterbilt trucks,” he said.
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Changes are deeper than paint. The new carts calibrate and, using a wireless positioning remote, fill from the operator’s side whether using the 10 inch auger or the optional 16 inch conveyor.
Input control technology, as it is branded, provides up to 10 sections of metering cutoffs, which avoid expensive and agronomically damaging overlaps in seeding.
Taking a page from planter technology, the individual meter drives stop turning when the computer finds already seeded ground on the as-applied map.
Small hydraulic cylinders disengage each run’s drive sprockets.
“It’s really simple, and after (three) years of field testing, it’s proved reliable,” said Henry.
New metering and calibration doors provide single person, single side removal and replacement.
Variable rate hydraulic drives or manual quick-change sprockets are available.
Managing the variable rate metering on the cart is left up to new technology partner Topcon, with its X30 terminal.
A new set of steps and top walkway have improved operator safety on the cart.
Davis said the changes were driven by extensive farmer collaboration in the design and engineering processes.
“What we have done is farmer driven,” he said.
Farmers from the former Soviet Union, Australia and the U.S. Plains and Midwest have an affinity for disc drills, which has caused Morris to develop a new single disc unit dubbed the Razr.
A 20 inch disc blade runs a five degree angle, creating a seed trench at up to 10 m.p.h. Depth is managed by an open, three spoke gauge wheel.
Henry said the design keeps the seed disc in the ground at higher speeds.
A large hydraulic accumulator maintains down pressure and buffers the openers to the frame, while deducing the need for large hydraulic flows from the tractor.
“Farmers in the U.S. use disc drills for soybeans, wheat and other crops. We are seeing more acceptance up here as well,” said Henry.
The Razr is a single chute product, but Henry said producers looking to run higher rates of nitrogen with the seed are making use of coated or treated nitrogen products that provide slow release times and seed co-placement.
“We are looking at a (mid-row) bander as an option in the future,” he said of the drills, which are available in 40, 50 and 60 foot widths and 7.5, 10 and 15 inch spacing.
