Equipment

Tires are engineered differently for tractors, harvesters, implements, trucks and cars, but each tire has one thing in common: They cannot work properly without the correct inflation pressure. Yes, tires are engineered to develop traction in dry and wet soils, provide a smooth ride and stop your vehicle, but their most important function is to the contain the inflation pressure, which carries the load.

The utility tractor is much like a utility player on a baseball team – essential no matter the job and expected to go to work at a moment’s notice. The utility tractor is used for some of the most time-sensitive jobs on the farm, from raking hay to powering an auger at harvest to feeding livestock.

As farms seek to increase productivity, it may be time to consider upgrading your self-propelled forage harvesting machines as well.

Having spent a substantial portion of my youth hauling hay, I am constantly amazed by the advances in hay handling and hauling.

Purchasing a tractor requires a major expenditure and, before signing the sales contract, two questions need to be answered. Is the tractor really needed to make the operation more economically efficient? If so, are you buying the right tractor? There are many choices in choosing a tractor, and each one will determine purchase satisfaction.

Just because it can be done doesn’t make it a good idea. Time for a review of the basics of towing behind the trusty farm pickup.