The Quantum drill replaces the brand’s C2 Contour model
By Scott Garvey
At the 2018 edition of the Ag in Motion™ farm show, Morris Industries will have an entirely new drill to take centre stage at its display. Picking the show for the official launch, the brand will show off the Quantum independent opener hoe drill.
“It’s an all-new model,” says Garth Massie, Morris’ corporate agronomist. “Basically, it’s a replacement for the C2 Contour, a similar concept independent opener hoe drill. A lot of new design ideas have gone into it. It’s a pretty impressive looking machine overall.”
As an agronomist, Massie says he is most excited about the improved agronomic performance the brand expectsthe Quantum to deliver for growers. “What it does is give is that rapid, uniform crop establishment and minimize mortality. Those will carry forward from the C2,” he explains. “A thing I’m really excited about is we’ve redesigned the air system. There’s a new head design. It’s made of stainless steel. In our testing so far it looks like it’s going to offer a two- to three-fold reduction in row-to-row variance compared to what farmers are using right now in machines across the industry. It’s a big improvement in decreasing the seed variance delivered to each individual opener.”
Although the Quantum’s air system has been redesigned, it is still based on the brand’s original flat pan distribution head concept. “We’ve never used a tower,” he continues. “Any time you make any sharp turns or vertical rises, you lose capacity to deliver higher rates, that’s why Morris has always used the flat pan head dividers. Plus, they’re very good at minimizing variance.
So we’re unique. Morris had a patent on the flat pan dividers, that’s why we’re the only ones to use them. This is a new and improved version. A step forward, so we’re pretty excited about that.”
Under the frame, the new drill still uses a 1:1 opener to packer ratio for a full parallel linkage. So when it comes to depth control, Massie says farmers should expect the same performance there. And while the drill was engineered to meet today’s agronomic practices, the brand claims its design has the flexibility to allow it to work well as seeding practices evolve over time.
Massie says engineers also paid attention to that traditional farmer demand for durability and longevity in equipment. “The row unit itself is new,” Massie adds. “Some of the things that stand out about it are we’re now using oneinch chrome pins across the board and there’s a bigger surface area on the bushings. We’ve changed the design of the packer arm; it’s going to be stronger. “We have a bigger, heavier frame now, made of 4×6 tubular steel. And we’ve developed a new joint system. The hitch is completely redesigned. It has 20 per cent more steel with a greaseable, articulating hitch clevis. It’s really strong.”
The Quantum drill frame will ride on much larger tires than its predecessor. 650×22.5 rubber will give the toolbar better floatation than the dual tire configuration on the Contour. “The tires are 19 per cent taller than the 16.5Ls we had before,” Massie says. There will be an active hydraulic system on the Quantum as well, which will enable farmers to use an auto lift system on headlands and an auto pack system. All that will be controlled through a Topcon X35 monitor. Its design will also be compatible with controlled traffic farming operations, with tires set on three-metre spacing.
This year, the Quantum will be available in 40-, 50-, 60- and 70-foot working widths. “On the initial launch, this is what we could manage to introduce (for sizes) for this year,” says Massie. “We’ll be looking at expansion in the future. There are some neat convenience things for the customer as well.”