Farmers have heard about it. A few have seen it in action. Morris is debuting their highly praised independent disc drill prototype and also showcasing the innovative CX 8105 seeding system at the Farm Progress Show in Regina, SK, June 20 to 22.
“We’ve had disc drill prototypes running in North America, Australia, and Kazakhstan this past year. Test results told us we have developed an excellent machine that is designed to create efficiencies for farmers,” says Morris chief operating officer Don Henry.
The complete 60-foot prototype is the biggest independent disc drill Morris has ever developed, but Morris’s trademark engineering goals – efficiency and precision – have been worked into every inch of the machinery. “There are very few adjustments on the new drill,” says Clint Sheppard, Morris assistant director of research and development. “Farmers want to seed; they don’t want to mess around with settings all day long. The spoked gauge wheel means no more crawling around under the drill unplugging gauge wheels in wet conditions.”
The disc drill’s consistent penetration with uniform emergence has drawn rave reviews from prototype farmer co-operators. “A very efficient opener down pressure system provides positive penetration that utilizes a walking axle design,” says Henry. “Traditionally a disc wants to ride out of the ground. With our walking axle design, the packer wheel does not allow the disc to ride out.”
The prototype is the result of farmer input and years of innovative research and development by Morris. “The disc drill is engineered to reduce soil disturbance. But we also wanted to keep our spot-on seed and fertilizer placement, and we knew farmers would benefit from being able to travel a little faster. You can take a smaller disc drill size and do a comparable number of acres compared to a large hoe drill, which is a huge gain in efficiency,” says Henry.
Morris will have a limited pre-production run this winter. The first disc drill will likely become available by the end of January 2013.
At Farm Progress, farmers will also have the opportunity to assess the Morris CX 8105 seeding system, engineered to combine the precision of the proven Morris Contour Drill with the seed metering accuracy of the Morris air cart. The compact and integrated design makes it ideal for smaller acre farms. The base size is 8 meters. The 3695 litre (105 bushel) capacity features 60/40 split tanks. The compact design and 9.84 feet (3 m) transport width makes moving from field to field safe and easy.
The Morris Contour Drill features parallel linkage for ultra-precise seed and fertilizer placement. Each opener follows the contour of the ground, even on hills. The articulated design reduces weight transfer and increases land-following ability. The pivot allows the cart to move independently from the drill, side-to-side and front to back, which improves stability and seeding accuracy in all field conditions.
Variable rate on the air cart is standard.
The CX 8105 is available in 25 feet (7.62 m), 26 feet (8 m) or 31 feet (9.45 m) working widths with the choice of 10 inch (25.4 cm) or 12 inch (30.5 cm) row spacing.
The Morris engineering watchwords, “We hear you”, is backed by 360 Service™, and will be operating at full capacity at the Farm Progress booth. With Morris, communication is a two-way street. Visit Morris where talking technology creates greater efficiencies in farmers’ fields.