Big drill tanks a theme at FPS

        At least 10, maybe 15, seed drill companies are at the Farm Progress Show. I can't see how they can all survive, given the consolidation in the tractor side of the business. And especially with the cost of these things now. We were at a Seed Hawk demo today and a 50 foot drill with drill mounted liquid fertilizer tank and 400-bushel tank — and all the electronic bells and whistles — is well over $200,000. The price of steel alone has doubled in the past 12 months, which has increased the cost of a drill by 20 per cent, says Norbert Beaujot of SeedMaster. With 10 or more companies sharing a market that seems to want bigger and bigger drills, competition is steep. Companies have to make a splash to stand out at Farm Progress Show and one way is to grace their demo with a massive new tank. Morris has a 650-bushel tank. Bourgault has a 700-bushel version. And Seed Hawk's biggest is 800 bushels.

Byron Richardson farms at Coronation, Alta., and he was at the show. I asked him about the big tanks. He says the most important aspect of a drill are seed placement and packing. As for the massive tank, he says "why would you want to pull that much weight around." And he likes the idea of getting out of the tractor for a break every three hours or so. "A guy's got to get out, take a walk, and have a pee with all that coffee he's drinking." Richardson has a Flexi-Coil with a 430-bushel tank.