They cause traffic jams on old county roads. They’re incredibly fun to drive, but not because they’re fast or smooth. They’re big, they’re loud, and they’re powerful. They are the heavy haulers of the agriculture industry, carrying loads our farming ancestors would have deemed impossible. The trucks, bulk beds and trailers in use on today’s farms are a testament to the wonders of modern engineering.
Take a look through our buyers’ guide. Hopefully you’ll find something that will help on your operation.
This buyers' guide appears in the July 2017 issue of Potato Grower.
GOW Group, Inc.
(506) 473-3133
www.gow.ca
marco@gow.ca
GOW Truck & Trailer Bed
GOW Group has been developing and fabricating quality potato-handling equipment for the last 35 years. GOW’s bulk box and trailers are designed to maximize return by adding quality innovations into its designs. Vertical side gates offer the opportunity of getting closer to harvesters for field loading. A round-shaped bottom allows for more product per load. Swing-out power packs make for quick and easy access. A two-chain drive unloading system offers no-slip advantages, and the leading ConstaFlow unloading system boosts the rate of moving the crop.
GOW Group offers its customers a complete line of handling equipment from the field with its bulk bodies and trailers, pilers, telescopic conveyors and dirt eliminators for storage. GOW can custom-design the equipment to fit individual growers’ needs.
Greentronics
(519) 669-4698
www.greentronics.com
RiteTrace
By automating the record-keeping jobs and precisely logging data for harvest dates, times and locations and where each load is located in storages, the RiteTrace system offers a clear and straightforward method for linking stored produce back to locations in the fields, fulfilling many traceability requirements. It also offers agronomic benefits in allowing growers to track quality in storage back to the field. Reports can be reviewed or made available to shippers and buyers. Data can be used to study and report on efficiencies and traffic flow.
RiteTrace is available as a stand-alone system but can also be purchased in combination with a RiteYield yield monitor. Optional ISOBUS compatibility is available for users who prefer to use their in-cab displays (e.g. John Deere 2630) to view and access the RiteTrace menus.
Safe-T-Pull
(701) 284-6100
www.safe-t-pull.net
4600 Series Crop Shuttle
The 4600 Crop Shuttle is the largest, fastest and most versatile crop cart on the market. It holds 46 tons and discharges up to 22 tons per minute. Safe-T-Pull also offers a 36-ton model. With little modification, the Crop Shuttle can help harvest potatoes, onions, tomatoes, sugarbeets, cucumbers, pickles, carrots or corn silage, and can be used to load potato planters. The company is developing attachments so the Crop Shuttle can even be used to spread lime onto fields.
A PTO is no longer needed to power the hydraulics. The Crop Shuttle’s patented design has minimal moving parts and changing angles, meaning less buildup of debris while using less hydraulic power. The hopper rises into the air while unloading, creating the incline needed without a separate conveyor slowing down discharge and damaging a crop.
Spudnik Equipment Company
(208) 785-0480
www.spudnik.com
4400 & 4300 Bulk Beds
With over four decades of bulk bed experience, Spudnik continues as an industry leader in providing beds to meet the needs of potato growers. The model 4400 bed is the straight-side design, while the 4300 bed offers the traditional “V” design. Both use the same proven belt unloading system and are available in lengths from 20 to 26 feet.
4835 Crop Cart
Spudnik’s model 4835 crop cart continues to prove its worth in multiple crop applications including potatoes, sugarbeets, small grains, carrots, cucumbers and many others. In addition, the crop 4835’s spreader option provides a great tool for evenly distributing fertilizer, compost and other products. The most recent addition to the attachment line is a filling conveyor to allow the simple filling of the crop cart with seed for planting in the field without any other equipment. An entire bulk bed can be unloaded into the crop cart in less than seven minutes. As a self-contained unit, a single operator can take care of filling multiple planters in a single field without the need of any other equipment or a generator to run them.
STC Trailers
(208) 785-1364
www.stctrailers.com
stctrailers@gmail.com
CS20 Truck Bed
New to STC’s 2017 lineup is the Model CS20 carbon steel commodity cab and chassis-mounted truck bed. This new bed is virtually identical to STC’s popular stainless steel bed, which costs less to build and therefore sells for a lower price point. The CS20 bed features STC’s patented sliding side door, innovative removable rollers in solid-belt, double-drive beds, and many more unique, user-friendly features.
Trinity Trailer Mfg., Inc.
(800) 235-6577
www.TrinityTrailer.com
sales@trinitytrailer.com
EagleBridge Belt Trailers
Since inventing and patenting the EagleBridge trailer in 1975, Trinity trailers have excelled at hauling bulk commodities longer than any other self-unloading trailer. Trinity understands that delivering commodities requires hauling the heaviest loads on the roughest county roads, absorbing the punishment year after year.
Each stainless steel belt trailer that rolls off Trinity’s production line is ready to handle the toughest work, the dirtiest hauls and the roughest roads. Trinity trailers are built to withstand rugged conditions without cracking like aluminum trailers, while maintaining stability and rigidity for highway speeds. The patented EagleBridge frame provides a full 36-degree longitudinal twist without distortion and allows the trailer to flex and twist as the ground surface changes.
Western Trailers
(208) 908-5926
www.westerntrailer.com
Spud Express Trailer
For over 40 years, Western Trailers has manufactured Spud Express trailers, providing growers with high-quality, long-lasting, lightweight solutions to their trailer needs. The Spud Express provides the gentlest and most even unloading of any trailer on the market today. Available in lengths from 44 to 53 feet and with various axle configurations, the Spud Express is fully customizable to fit each operation’s individual needs.
LCG grain boxes, end-dump trailers, hoppers and asphalt and gravel boxes.
Grover’s All Wheels
(800) 625-7077
www.groversallwheels.com
Full-Size Trucks
PIC: grovers
Grover’s All Wheels has been serving the heavy-duty truck needs of its customers nationwide since 1978. Grover’s specializes in heavy-duty truck sales, service and parts, as well as in configuring trucks with Allison automatic transmissions. Grover’s carries a large selection of trucks, as well as the equipment required to get trucks ready to go to work for you. Rigorous inspection and reconditioning ensures customers the highest standard of quality.
Grover’s custom-builds trucks on-site to meet the specific demands of growers’ work and has many trucks available for seasonal lease.