Red does not mean ‘no’!

AgroCentre familiarised Russian farmers with Massey Ferguson equipment for the first time at the company’s tractor works in France. A year has now gone by. Today our partners shared their impressions of how the tractors of this brand operate.

Alexander Kolmakov, Director for Crop Production, Soglasiye LLC, Tyumen oblast:

“We’ve used the Massey Ferguson 8690 (340 hp) tractor for half a year. We acquired it expressly for ploughing. With the Kverneland eight-furrow plough, it has ploughed 1,200 hectares at a depth of 25 cm. The Massey Ferguson offers outstanding cross-country capability. We assured ourselves that in our climatic zone there are no barriers to these ‘red’ prime movers. The tractor even goes across frozen soils! The machine is quite agile despite its impressive power. The tractor output is 2 to 3 hectares per hour at a fuel consumption of 20 l per hectare. In a shift, i.e. in 10 to 12 hours, the tractor ploughed 70 ha. I should note that at an equal workload, Massey Fergusson, series 8, is more fuel efficient than the other tractor we use on our farm. The AGCO Power tractor engine is second to none in terms of power. Thanks to electronic controls, the fuel is uninterruptedly injected with due regard to the engine’s revolutions and workload, and this is the principle underlying its fuel efficiency. I like the simplicity of controls in the Dyna-VT transmission. The cogwheels don’t wobble and the clutch is smooth and without interruptions.

The DTM (dynamic tractor management) function enables the operator to independently adjust the revolutions as per the workload. The ELC (electronic load controller) ensures an effective load management, more precise setting of the tilling depth and terrain following capability.

I think that in terms of comfort this is one of the best tractors in its class. The newly designed, spacious cabin offers a panoramic view thanks to its four, not six, posts, which increases the visibility. All the controls are conveniently located on the right elbow rest.
The tractor is reliable. Not a single breakdown in the season. We plan to acquire a harrow and a drill for it.”

Dmitry Filonov, Deputy Director for Engineering, Filonov farming enterprise, Kursk oblast:

“We were the first in Kursk oblast to acquire the Massey Ferguson 7624 (245 hp) tractor. The machine is remarkably productive. In a season, the tractor worked 380 motor hours. In operation with a six-metre disc cultivator at a rate of 17 km/h, the tractor output is 6.5 ha/h at fuel consumption of 5 l/ha. In 10 hours, the tractor ploughed around 65 hectares at a depth of 5 cm. Using a deep digger, the series seven tractor ploughed 500 ha at a depth of 45 cm. At a rate of 9 km/h, the productivity was 2.2 ha/h and fuel consumption – 19 l/ha. We like the very easy access to components for maintenance and cleaning of the engine air filters, radiators and air conditioning system condenser. One only has to raise the bonnet. The engineers have designed a special bonnet in the form of a single piece to speed up the maintenance. What can still be optimised in the series 7 Massey Ferguson tractors is fitting them with wider wheels.”