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Tips and advice from the workshop
Uncertain over a battery’s state of health? Andrew Pearce explores two units that can diagnose and perhaps recover failing cells
Posted: 16 Apr 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
It’s all very well having razor-sharp trailer brakes when you’re fully loaded, but when you’re empty it inevitably means the wheels lock up and you’re left with clouds of smoke and prematurely bald tyres. To get round the problem, Nick Fone gets some tips on fitting and setting up a hydraulic load-sensing valve from trailer braking specialist Mike Erentraut.
Posted: 12 Apr 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
When you're running an outdoor pig enterprise which covers 100 acres of land, has 720 sows and 7,500 offspring, there's a need for an awful amount of straw each year - 9,000 bales of it.
Posted: 09 Mar 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
We’ve been asking a few of our machinery-minded contributors to nominate their favourite get-out-of-a-fix bits of workshop kit.
Posted: 07 Mar 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
We’ve been asking a few of our machinery-minded contributors to nominate their favourite get-out-of-a-fix bits of workshop kit. This week we’ve got hold of some open-ended ratchet spanners, a nifty wrench and a handy screwdriver/retrieval tool, plus a selection of top-quality water pipe tools.
Posted: 02 Mar 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Williams Grimshaw, workshop supervisor for Kramp UK, Walterscheid's UK agent, steps Andrew Pearce through a pin clutch rebuild
Posted: 29 Feb 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Whether its repairing water pipes under full pressure or fishing about behind an engine block to find that essential nut, there are always jobs that can be made easier. Nick Fone tries out 15 tools you might not have thought of but are actually more useful than you might ever imagine
Posted: 23 Feb 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
When it comes to farm workshops Paul Hayward is in his element – not just a place to change tractor oil and filters, he uses his workshop to develop and construct equipment which is used by his family’s outdoor pig enterprise.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Breathe life into a tired Land Rover with a new chassis – Andrew Pearce sees how it’s done
Posted: 30 Jan 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Along with the cough and murmur of cows and the muffled curses of the herdsman, the hoot of a vacuum tanker pump in full song is part of many dairy farms. Mostly these pumps – pto-powered and often Italian-made – chug on for years, if not decades, slowly shedding non-vital bits and disappearing under a crust of black oil and old slurry.
Posted: 25 Jan 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Having trouble making a clean gas cut? Andrew Pearce offers suggestions and solutions
Posted: 17 Jan 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Vacuum tanker pumps are simple beasts, so the job is straightforward, yet there are still one or two things to watch.
Posted: 16 Jan 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
No workshop is complete without a drill – but what sort of drill should it be? Andy Collings takes a look at SDS-drills to see what they can do and how they do it
Posted: 07 Jan 2012 | FULL ARTICLE
Practical tips on plasma cutting from Mick Andrews, Welding Process superintendent at ESAB, are relayed by Andrew Pearce
Posted: 24 Dec 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Is there a place for new metal cutting technology on yourfarm? Andrew Pearce explores the world of plasma with help from Mick Andrews, welding process superintendent at ESAB
Posted: 17 Dec 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Don’t risk engine frost damage: Andrew Pearce mulls over antifreeze and ways to test it
Posted: 12 Dec 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
New seals for old as David Silvester, boss of Sussex specialists Southern Hydraulic Rams, steps Andrew Pearce through a reseal.
Posted: 06 Dec 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
New to MIG? Andrew Pearce offers 11 tips to help the job along.
Posted: 01 Dec 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
When was the last time the scraper tractor had a service? You'll probably be struggling to remember.... Charlie McCarron runs through a quick 10-minute checklist
Posted: 20 Nov 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Tractor engine won't fire up? Andrew Pearce lays out ways to troubleshoot the starting system.
Posted: 15 Nov 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Boiling with rage 'cos a small engine just won't fire up? In the first of a two-part series, Andrew Pearce and Stihl's technical services trainer Mark Hellewell offer basic troubleshooting tips.
Posted: 08 Nov 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
A broken down grain-drier can create the ultimate harvest-time headache but a few simple checks before the combine starts rolling can help you avoid a lot of hassle. Nick Fone reports
Posted: 06 Nov 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
The humble loader tractor gets some stick. It runs day in day out, usually up to its axles in slurry, the cab often looks and smells like a silage pit and servicing is a luxury it is rarely afforded.
Posted: 01 Nov 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
For the second half of this series, Andrew Pearce and Stihl's technical services trainer Mark Hellewell bring more tips for dealing with small petrol engines around the farm that won't start.
Posted: 29 Oct 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
For Cambridge Farm Machinery, Vaderstad drills are big business. The company sells more than 40 each year and claims to be one of the UK’s largest Vaderstad dealers.
Posted: 27 Oct 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
15mph: Dipped-beam headlamp, matching pair, coloured white or yellow*
Posted: 19 Oct 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Andrew Pearce provides a step-by-step guide to starter system fault-finding
Posted: 05 Oct 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
Few, if any, machines do more work on the farm than the mixer wagon. Used every day of the year, there is no respite from a relentless workload which sees them mixing tonne after tonne of rations.
Posted: 21 Sep 2011 | FULL ARTICLE
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