SPRAYER REVIEWS
R Farms & Farm Machinery looks back at some of its most popular reviews from the last decade. This month, six of our best sprayer reviews
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Tom Dickson checked out the Croplands Pinto 3000 boom sprayer in 2016, drawing on his own experience with a 2008 model
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Pluses
THEN VS NOW
Central control panel
Eight years ago I bought a brand-new Croplands Pinto 3000 boom sprayer from my local Croplands dealer, Windmill Ag (it has since been taken over by John Deere dealer Cervus Equipment) in Hamilton, Victoria. It was destined for use on our 607 hectare sheep and cattle property for weed and pest management, plus I wanted to explore the benefits of applying liquid fertiliser. I had come to the decision that the Pinto 3000 was the right unit for me after searching around a bit and looking at units from the four or five major brands. It held 3,000 litres, had a chemical induction hopper and probe, bottom and top filling options, and four points of filtration. The boom rode on air bag suspension – which has since been upgraded to hydraulic suspension on the new units. It was equipped with hydraulic lift and fold and was plumbed for sectional shut-off. I optioned up to the MT3405 auto-rate controller to maintain precise application rates regardless of speed. All the features that made my earlier-model Pinto 3000 a great sprayer are included on the newest version, along with a few extra modifications, making it one of the best spray units on the market for farmers and small-to-medium contractors. The Pinto 3000 has a height-adjustable hitch so it can be setup to sit perfectly level on any tractor. For the record, my 90
MT3405 auto-rate controller Mudguards Airmix air induction nozzles 60-litre chem-e-flush hopper 275-litre flush tank
Minuses No safety or work lights
Croplands Pinto 3000 Boom Sprayer Type
Trailing
Tank capacity (L)
3,000
Controller
In-cab electric
Boom lift/fold
Hydraulic
Boom suspension
Hydraulic
Boom width (m)
16, 18, 21 and 24
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EW N I
old vs new
Parallelogram boom lift with hydraulic suspension
EVI EW
inpointing the most important piece of equipment to own on a farm – other than a tractor, of course – is a difficult task, because everyone you ask will have a different opinion depending on the type of property they operate. But my response will always be a boom spray. It doesn’t matter if it’s trailing, linkage or even self-propelled. If you have one, controlling weeds and pests in a quick and effective manner will boost production enormously. If you don’t, then waiting days or even weeks for a contractor to arrive can often result in serious losses. The spray unit can also be a useful tool in the application of liquid fertilisers.
horsepower (67kW) John Deere 6220 pulled it easily. The tractor requires two sets of remotes, a power take-off (PTO) and a power source to operate the electrics.
UNCHANGED FEATURES The pump on the new version of the Pinto 3000 is still the same as I had on mine. It’s an A&R positive displacement, oil-bath diaphragm pump with chemical-resistant diaphragms. The AR160 delivers 160L/min with a maximum pressure of 2,000kPa (284psi). A Series 4 PTO drive is standard. Checking the glass oil reservoir and running some fresh water through the pump at the end of each use will ensure you get years of trouble-free operation out of it.
FILTRATION An 18-mesh basket filter prevents larger contaminants getting into the tank when filling through the top, but in all honesty I very rarely used it. I always thought that climbing onto a spray rig covered in chemicals was not the smartest thing to do, so the only time I journeyed up the side to open the top lid was to see if the tank had been properly rinsed out. I always filled the tank through the bottom fill point and mixed the chemical in through the induction hopper. A 50-mesh suction filter, 80-mesh pressure line filter and 100-mesh nozzle filter collect the majority of the smaller contaminants in the water to prevent nozzle blockages. It goes without saying that regular cleaning of all of the filters is highly recommended.
TANK Back when I made my purchase, there were two tank sizes available: either 2,000 or 3,000 litres. Today, the two options in the Pinto range are 3,000 or 4,000 litres. I went with the 3,000-litre version because I felt 2,000-litre just wasn’t quite enough. The bigger tank allowed me to apply higher volumes per hectare without having to be continually filling up.
Looking for a sprayer? Search for ‘sprayer’ on TradeFarmMachinery.com.au or type the TA or DIY code shown here into the keyword search field
48 TradeFarmMachinery.com.au
FFM2103_395 editorial.indd 48
$165,000
TA955968
2015 CROPLANDS ROGATOR 1300 A SPRAYER. Comes with trimble GPS. • QLD 07 3073 8038
$295,000
TA1069830
2017 ROGATOR 1300B WEEDSEEKER. 6300L tank, 37m boom, auto steer. • WA 08 6500 0956
$319,000
TA773429
ROGATOR RG1300 SPRAYER. Self propelled, 339hp, 1160hrs, 36m boom. • QLD 0428 054 644
THE TRACTOR YOU WANT IS NOW EASIER TO FIND
11/02/2021 2:25:11 PM
