Know How / Farm maintenance Must reads How to fix farm tracks with an adapted road grader Guide to ensuring electric fences are stockproof What to look for when buying and fitting a tractor dashcam How to build your own tractor autosteer system for £700 Case studiesSee all WORKSHOP SKILLS£10,000 Wing Jet workshop mod forms 30m Avadex applicatorUpsizing from 24m to 30m tramlines meant Buckinghamshire arable farmer Charlie Edgley had a raft of machinery to either upgrade or replace, one of which was his Avadex applicator. In… CULTIVATORSHow to adapt cut-price cultivators to low-disturbance systemWhen Michael and Will Scholey decided it was time to stop damaging their ground with high horsepower tracked crawlers and deep, intensive cultivation, they drafted in some expert help. This… WORKSHOP SKILLS5 home-built pieces of slurry kit which improved efficiencyArmed with a degree in mechanical engineering from Ulster University, Niall Murphy returned to the family farm and contracting business and set about making handy custom pieces of kit. His… WORKSHOP SKILLSNorthern Irish inventor reveals his best machinery creationsSince he was old enough to wield a welding torch, Albert O’Neill has been busy designing and building novel kit to improve the efficiency of his family’s dairy farm in… MUCKSPREADERSKent contractor develops driven-axle spreaderCompost, manure, lime, fertiliser, chicken pellets, fibrophos... you name it, Richard Moon’s home-built spreader can apply it – deposited in strips or chucked out in a 10m wide band. Based… WORKSHOP SKILLSVideo: Herts contractor builds self-propelled bale chaserFor years, farmers, contractors and machinery manufacturers have been dreaming up novel ways to make the job of hauling bulky straw bales more efficient. Their endeavours have spawned high-capacity grabs,… Practical adviceSee all CULTIVATORSTips for picking the best cultivator wearing metalReplacing cultivator legs, wings and points can be a depressingly regular and ruinously expensive pastime for those working in the nation’s most abrasive soils. But instead of hunting around for… FARM MAINTENANCEHow to fix farm tracks with an adapted road graderBouncing along potholed farm tracks is an unpleasant business, putting unnecessary strain on tractors, implements and their operators. But with input costs through the roof and margins tight, shelling out… GRASSLAND MANAGEMENTGuide to ensuring electric fences are stockproofChecking electric fence systems for faults should be a priority ahead of spring turnout to make paddocks and fields secure. From testing the flow of electricity to locating where overgrown… MACHINERY MAINTENANCEHow to get the best from a McConnel hedgecutterSince the launch of its first Power Arm trimmer in the early 1950s, McConnel has been a dominant force in the world of flail hedgecutting. From a starting point of… WORKSHOP SKILLSTop tips for upping the quality of workshop projectsEvery year, the Farm Inventions Competition unearths a horde of impressive workshop builds that provide ingenious answers to some of agriculture’s recurring conundrums. Traditionally, farmers and contractors have sketched out… BUSINESS MANAGEMENTRailway fencing safety: What livestock farmers need to knowFigures produced by Network Rail in 2019 show that incidents involved more than 800 animals through the year. Of these, about 80 were struck by trains. The downtime caused by… Machinery maintenance MACHINERY MAINTENANCEKubota unveils 210hp five-litre engineKubota has managed to squeeze 210hp from its biggest four-cylinder engine to date, the V5009. The Japanese maker hopes its relatively compact 5.018-litre turbo-diesel will offer an appealing alternative to… TRACTORSValtra tractors: Common problems and how to fix themWhen Valtra joined the Agco stable in the early 2000s, it brought with it dependable Sisu engines that have since been given the parent company’s branding. They are still solid… TRACTORSClaas tractors: Common problems and how to fix themAmassing a sales tally of roughly 600 tractors a year at the last count makes Claas the eighth most popular tractor brand in the UK, just behind Valtra. And of… TRACTORSFendt tractors: Common problems and how to fix themIt might be the premium brand of choice for large-scale farms and contracting businesses, but just like any other maker, Fendt’s tractors can suffer the odd mechanical gremlin. Engine problems… More articles Workshop skills WORKSHOP SKILLSInventions Comp 2024: Neat ideas for livestock farmsFrom crafty modifications to high-tech implements and self-propelled machines, this year’s Farmers Weekly Farm Inventions Competition had it all. We round up the best of the entries for livestock farmers.… WORKSHOP SKILLSInventions Comp 2024: Andrew Metson’s Vaderstad CarrierBy treating his 24-year-old 5m Vaderstad Carrier to a series of upgrades, Andrew Metson has created a multi-use cultivator that can double up as a cover crop drill. In its… WORKSHOP SKILLSInventions Comp 2024: Martin Buck's 'Slabmaster' bandsawKeen to make the most of fallen trees on his hill farm near Crickhowell, Powys, Martin Buck built his own “Slabmaster” track bandsaw to turn them into useful timber. A… WORKSHOP SKILLSInventions Comp 2024: Sam Hill's Twin Pull tractor unitOn a quest to find a cheap source of additional horsepower, Norfolk farmer Sam Hill came up with the idea of building a wheeled power pack to sit between a… More articles VideoSee all MACHINERYVideo: Farm torches on testTorch technology has come on in leaps and bounds in the past few years. Emily Padfield and David Cousins gathered 15 torches on a snowy February evening in Warwickshire to… MACHINERYVIDEO: Nifty pto safety system[fwi_vidyard code="KWYr4dOzN-l54wlls9TbuQ"] Accidents involving pto shafts have maimed and killed many farmers and farm workers over the years, but two new simple protection products could save lives. Manufactuered by Irish… MACHINERYVideo: Fitting tractor air brakesFitting air to your tractor How does the system work? Optional extras Plumbing up a trailer with air-brakes might be almost as simple as tying your laces, but it’s a… TOOLSVideo: 20 handy workshop tools, gadgets and knick-knacksHaving the right tool, gadget or knick-knack at hand can take some stress out of the most frustrating farm tasks. Here the Farmers Weekly Machinery team presents 20 potential gems… InsightsSee all MACHINERY MAINTENANCEKeenan mixer wagon renovator offers repair tipsThe daily chore of chomping through tonnes of abrasive feedstuffs mean a mixer wagon’s innards only have a limited lifespan. Added to that, the tight environments in which they work… FARM MAINTENANCEMobile diesel tank options and prices for farm machineryOptions for getting fuel to thirsty machinery out in the field range from purpose-built trailed bowsers to a tank in the back of a pickup, strapped on to a flatbed… TOOLSLatest tools and workwear for the farm workshopHowever well stocked a farm workshop becomes, there’s always space for a couple more tools. We look at some of the latest goodies on offer. See also: Video: On test –…