Having enjoyed impressive reliability and low running costs from its first Kubota M7-153, Aberdeen and Northern Marts’ Thainstone Centre has added a second model to its fleet, boosting power with an M7-173.
A pair of M7003 tractors has become the mainstay of yard and field work at Aberdeen and Northern Marts’ Thainstone Centre, part of the ANM Group located at Inverurie. The firm’s vehicle and machinery manager John Roy, says the M7 Kubota tractors tick a lot of boxes for the business, which also farms 400 acres of grassland alongside the 60-acre auction site.
“We move a lot of hay, straw and silage for the Mart to look after livestock that are on-site for sale days, in addition to day-to-day tasks on our two farms,” he said. Four years ago, the business bought its first Kubota, an M7-153 from HRN Tractors, complete with Quicke Q5M loader and front linkage. It has proved to be so reliable and dependable, that it has now been joined by a more powerful M7-173. Both are powershift-equipped tractors in Access specification, and with both having identical loaders and front linkages, the brace of M7’s delivers operational flexibility across the business.
“I can’t fault the tractors at all, and one of my operators has confessed to the M7-153 being more comfortable than his previous premium-brand tractor,” said John.“Given that our 153 has clocked up over 4,000 hours, and the 18-month old 173 has done 2,600 hours, we’re certainly getting plenty of use from them.”
Field work across the farm includes top dressing, muck and slurry spreading, rolling and trailer duties. Though tractors will still clock-up, on average some 1,200-1,500 hours/year, with tyre wear being one of the biggest running costs to manage.“Tyre wear can be punishing given the movements we make, and we’ve already replaced tyres on the older M7,” he said.
Choosing a pair of M7’s in near-identical specification has simplified logistics and improved operational flexibility across the business. Both have access to the same range ofattachments, which includes forks, buckets, spikes and bale squeezers, making each outfit self-sufficient when loading and unloading trailers at any location.
“Having the more powerful M7-173 hasn’t increased our fuel use to a noticeable level, though the extra performance when running on the road between our farms and the Mart is extremely noticeable,” he said. “If they’re out together moving forage or livestock, the 153 is the one that needs to be running behind, or it’ll hold up the more powerful 173. It has certainly shortened journey times with loaded flatbeds or livestock floats.”
