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Tennessee | I'd like to know a couple of things...
Will I be happy with one?
How many acres is this sprayer good for a year without pushing the limit (*We have plans to grow our operation slowly over time*)?
What are some common problems to look for as I search for one to buy?
I farm around 1,000 acres of ground, usually will have 1,300 +/- a few acres of crop per year. My brother and I own the operation and do all the work. We have hired our spraying the past 5 years, but our spray man has sold his business and we feel it is a good time to get our own rig. We are trying to grow 50/50 corn with a few hundred acres of wheat in the Fall. We are also set up to grow cotton and will if the price is right, probably no more than 200 acres. We are spread out quite a bit, but most areas we have enough acres to spray for a solid day. I figrure we will have cover 3,000-4,000 acres a year depending on the crops we decide to grow and/or possibly new farms we pick up.
Edited by zkeele 10/2/2012 22:05
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South Western Ontario | Not sure what your budget is, but after 4yrs of driving a JD6000 HiCycle over 5000+ acres a year, a Rogator was a welcome change.
The 6000 series have no suspension, which makes for a rough ride in anything but the smoothest fields.
That being said, those machines are pretty easy to work on, and pretty much indestructable. I still have my 1984 JD6000 and use it for drop nozzling a few acres every year. It worth far more to our operation than anyone is willing to give me for it.
I would suggest looking at older SP machines such as Ag Chem or JD and see if there is anything in your price range. You'll cover more acres in a day and be less fatigued at the end of the day. |
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| Nothing wrong with a 6700, give Spra-Coupes a look. A 4660 will out work a 6700 by a lot, they turn tight, have a better front end, can spray 10 gpa at 20 mph vs 13 with a 6700, and have a better ride. |
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North Carolina | I would look at a spray coupe first. Deere is a very rough ride. The coupes ride great. And that means a lot. The one thing the Deere has going for it is the visibility. |
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Tennessee | I don't fit too well in a Spra Coupe cab, but they're on my short list too. I want to talk to you about wheat. I'll call you tomorrow. |
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| Our first SP sprayer was a JD 6500 with WFE & front fold boom. We farm approx 2,500 ac so was covering about 6,000 ac a yr with it, including some fall spraying. Good machine but ride was a little rough, cab was noisy than I expected, and I seemed to go thru 400 gal pretty quick, even @ 10gpa. Was fairly inexpensive to operate and had very little repairs in the 4-5 yrs we owned it. Machine is lightweight & we could spray a day or two sooner after a big ain than the guys with big sprayers could. Tires are narrow so it does little damage in narrow rowed crops, for two yrs I sprayed 20" corn running with the rows with it and even sprayed some 15" corn running with the rows. For your size of operation I think a 6700 would be a great fit. |
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GOODWAY, ALABAMA. | I have a 6700 and I would recommend it for your operation. Yes its alittle rough but put you some radial tires on the back and that will help some. I have sprayed up to 12000 acres in one year with one, and this year alone i'm on about 9000 acres. I spray most of our peanuts, cotton, and corn at 14-17 mph at 10gpa. That being said yes its fairly easy to work on and its a little noisy a little rough, but durable. I bought mine new and have right at 1200 hours on mine and all ive ever done was rebuild the pump. |
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Murfreesboro, Tennessee | Zach,
Did you have your crops sprayed by Adam Trail? Just curious since we were looking at a used 4630 sprayer he used to run. Seemed like a really nice guy we when spoke to him.
We just recently upgraded sprayers from a Wilmar 745 that we ran for years. We looked at Spray Coupe since Lavergne COOP services them, and JD. I really like the JD, but they are so darn expensive. We ending up buying a new APACHE sprayer for the same price as a 1,200 hour JD sprayer. My brother does almost 100% of the spraying and he loves the new sprayer. Its amazing how much more productive he is with auto steer, auto boom, and 90 foot booms. Does not ride as good as the JD, but our fields are not that rough anyway, and the price difference was more than worth it. Ohio Valley Ag was the dealer and we have been more than pleased with their efforts.
We were in the same boat as you guys were recently. Our cousins run one of these sprayers and I think they are decent sprayers. If you would like to call us to discuss, just let me know. My brother used to run a sprayer for the Rutherford COOP and would be a good one to discuss this with.
Edited by Roger/TN 10/3/2012 10:36
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Tennessee | Yes, Adam sprayed for us. He's is an excellent spray man and a really good person. Those Apaches are nice. There are a few in Franklin county and I know Rutherford Co-op has one, but its a little out of our price range. I wouldn't mind seeing a your cousin's though. I'm in no hurry to make a decision so maybe I can take a day before it gets cold and come check em out. |
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John Deere 6700 Sprayer
