One way to keep a hungry drill happy and productive in the field is to keep feeding it.
Bourgault thinks it knows how to accomplish that task – with its 700 bushel 6700ST cart.
“We’ve nicknamed this cart the Quarter by Half,” says Jim Vannett, Bourgault representative in Minot, North Dakota.
“It’s big enough that, depending on what you’re putting down, you can seed a quarter section or a half section without stopping to fill.”
Total capacity of the 6700ST is about the same as a semi truck.
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Tank No. 1 holds 370 bu., tank No. 2 holds 95 bu., tank No. 3 holds 30 bu. and tank No. 4 holds 205 bu. Although the cart has four compartments, it has six lids for quicker fills.
“But, no matter what cart you buy, you have to do your math first. There’s no point in upgrading your seeding system unless you can put on more acres between fills and more acres per hour,” Vannett said.
“This new tank represents a new way of thinking. Farmers are thinking in terms of larger volumes of input. And with the huge number of corporate farms here (in North Dakota), everybody wants more acres between fills.”
He said the same interest in large acreage is gaining ground on the Prairies, considering the latest generation of tractors rated higher than 500 horsepower. Bigger tractors are required to pull bigger drills and bigger carts, and Vannett said they all go hand in hand.
Fill speed becomes a bigger issue as tank size increases. If filling becomes the new bottleneck in a producer’s seeding operation, then he can’t justify a bigger cart.
Vannett said 700 bu. is a lot of product to move in a hurry, which is why Bourgault engineers worked with Batco engineers to figure out a solution.
“The result is we fill the 6700 with a conveyor instead of an auger,” Vannett said.
“We fill 700 bu. with the conveyor in less time than it takes to fill 550 bu. with an auger. Plus, the conveyor is gentle on seeds.”
The conveyor uses a wireless remote control for positioning, with frame-mounted controls for a backup.
Vannett said the first 6700ST carts will be built this winter for shipment before spring seeding. The entire production run is already sold.
“I think a lot of the guys buying the big tank are farmers who are already handling big volumes, but they’re doing it pulling two carts,” he said.
“So these are guys who already have the high horsepower tractors and big drills. They’re already organized and geared up for handling high volumes of seed and fertilizer. A tank like this simplifies their operation and speeds up their fill times.”
Farmers should not overlook the horsepower requirements of a bigger cart.
A common tendency is to factor in tractor power when looking at the drill and the number of working tools in the ground but overlook the power requirements of pulling the extra weight that comes with a bigger product cart.
Vannett said producers who are ready to buy a giant drill and cart must assume they will need 500 plus h.p. to make it all work. They cannot cut corners and expect the system to give the expected high performance.
The metering and airflow system is the same as on other Bourgault tanks. The pipes can be easily configured for single shoot, double shoot or multi shoot.
“We have to blow the product a little further, but it’s all a straight line with straight smooth pipes, so it’s no big deal. Everything on the 6700 delivery system is standard Bourgault components.”
The metering transmissions are ground-driven through drive shafts and angle gearboxes that power the variable rate transmission. The metering augers are protected against high damage by torque-limiting devices in the auger shafts.
The cart is 15 feet high when in the field with the collapsible handrail in the working position. Overall width is nearly 18 feet. Empty weight is 22,000 pounds. The optional rear tow hitch is rated for a draft force of 15,000 lb.
To cope with this weight, dual tires at the rear keep the ground pressure lower than 20 psi, even when the tank is full of fertilizer.
One popular option is the hydraulically powered seed bag lift, which eliminates the drudgery of getting bags up to the top.
