Brazilian maker Stara has taken a different approach to self-propelled sprayer design by putting the boom on its new Imperador model between the axles.

It says that’s the place where the boom is most stable, especially on the ultra-bumpy fields that are left behind Brazilian rice crops. It’s a triple pantograph design that has taken four years to develop, but 200 machines have already been sold.

Two boom widths are available – 27m and 30m – and the mid-mount format gives the machine a 50:50 front-to-back weight distribution. One potential drawback of mid-mounted booms is limited height but the Stara’s booms go from 60cm to 2.2m. Power is from a 215hp MWM engine.

Agritechnica 2011