ATTACHMENTS // REPTAIL SPREADER
SPREADING STONE THE FINNISH WAY
David Wylie visits Muir of Ord near Inverness to see a JCB 437 wheel loader fitted with a modern stonespreading attachment ased at Tore, Muir of Ord, just north of Inverness, the familyrun firm of D&I Bain started out in 1964 with a seven-year-old JCB MK1 backhoe loader. During the 1960s and 1970s the fledgling business prospered, undertaking infrastructure work in The Highlands, mainly for telecommunications and hydro-electricity projects. Today the firm is run by Garry and David Bain, although their father Ian remains active in the business, which provides a wide range of civil engineering, surfacing and plant hire services. Over the decades the business has remained loyal to JCB, purchasing some 40 machines. Latest purchases include a 150X HD excavator and a zero-tailswing 56Z-2 mini.
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“JCB MACHINES FIT THE BILL, THEY’RE BUILT IN THE UK AND OUR LOCAL DEALER IS TEN MINUTES DOWN THE ROAD”
ATTACHMENTS ARE KEY Years ago the firm converted an old gravel box to act as a 3.3m-wide material spreader to undertake forest access road jobs and other surfacing projects. It has provided good service, but had its limitations. For a start it is a fixed-width spreader and nowadays a commercially-designed attachment would be expected to have a self-levelling function. From a business perspective, more accurate spreading would help to minimise material usage, as there is an over-riding need to improve the productivity of such operations. David researched the market and found almost what he was looking for from Finnish manufacturer Reptail. Its MM model looked perfect, the only issue was its
working width, from 3.3m to 4.8m, which was just too wide for their needs. After discussions with the firm, a smaller SM model was designed, for which Bain was their first UK customer. Gary said, “The new spreader unit will give us much more versatility with its variable width performance from 2.7 metres to 4.3 metres, and will spread the material with more accuracy, using the in-cab display and control unit.” With a new high-tech spreader attachment ordered, Garry and David spoke with Scott
Inset above and below: An innovative, Finish-made stone spreader attachment is being used with a JCB wheel loader to construct forest access roads in northern Scotland.
NOVEMBER 2021
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