Little workhorse is a versatile asset for range of enterprises
Little workhorse is a versatile asset for range of enterprises
ITALIAN built Pasquali tractors are now being imported into the UK by Riko UK, based at Farnham, Surrey.
The range of amenity-type machines extend from 35hp to 75hp with price tags from £7900 to £21,500.
One of the first buyers from the new importer is Chris Paul. He farms at Dockenfield in Surrey, and is now the owner of a 35hp version.
With the main enterprise being the gathering of 40ha (100 acres) of hay, the articulated AGT 835 is employed principally for turning and tedding duties. Fair enough, and nothing to write home about yet, but Mr Pauls other business involves the construction and maintenance of courses used by the horse jumping world.
"I have to travel fairly long distances to visit different courses around the country and the ability to put the AGT into a trailer for towing behind a 4×4 is a real plus," he says.
Fully equipped with three-point linkage and pto, the tractor is powered by a three-cylinder Lombardini engine. Transmission comprises a three-range, hi/lo box supplying six forward and six reverse ratios.
Mr Paul says he is to fit a set of floatation tyres to his tractor come the winter. "Despite being a light tractor, I feel that the wider tyres will enable me to carry on working in conditions that would normally stop conventional tractors," he says. "There is also the advantage of greater stability when working on slopes."
Overall, Mr Paul feels that he has an economical, versatile tractor which will perform most of the duties asked of the MF35 it replaces.
"An ATV would not have been man enough, yet a tractor in the conventional sense would have been over the top." *