Splendimo Classic

"Simple, but then again brilliant in its simplicity"

"Being a contractor, you have to be able to count on reliable equipment. Due to the Lely Splendimo mower the customer can count on us while operations are always quickly finished." In 2006 Holger Nöhrnberg, a contractor of Stuhr, bought a Splendimo 900 MC Triplo mower conditioner combination with a Splendimo 320 FC fitted on the front.

By now he has mown at least 1,000 hectares with this machine and he has just changed his knives for the very first time. For twenty years Mr Nöhrnberg has been mowing the 140 hectares of grassland of the airport of Bremen. This operation requires a reliable mowing combination with a tremendous output and Lely's Splendimo 900 MC meets that requirement perfectly.

Decisive factors for Holger Nöhrnberg were the modular cutter bar concept of the Lely mowers as well as the fact that they require 20% less power than comparable products. "On average we achieve an output of 10 ha/h. This is also true for the smaller fields that we mow as a contractor and if allowed by conditions we even achieve an output of 18 ha/h. We manage all of these operations with a 200 HP tractor." The mechanical control of the Lely mowing combination always was, and still is a major benefit, according to Mr Nöhrnberg.

The combination can be easily folded up and down. The front mower Splendimo 320 FC is coupled by means of the front lift arms, which provides ample clearance for moving over swaths as well as for road transport.

"Product progress for sure; we are contented"

From 2001, Agrar GmbH Lichterfelde - Golzow have been using the Splendimo Triplo 801 C combination for mowing their 800 hectares approx. of grassland. All material harvested from the grassland is processed as silage and hay, which is fed as roughage to the 400 milk cows, 300 breeding cows and 200 bulls. In total, the farm includes 2,000 hectares of land, on which - in addition to forage - cereals and maize are grown.

In the spring of 2007, operator Jörg Haarbach used a Splendimo 900 MC mower combination with a working width of close to 9 metres as a demonstration machine over a number of days. This demo machine was made available by the farm's dealer, Meyer Landtechnik in Lichtgerfelde - Buckow. Throughout the operation of this machine combination, Jörg did not fail to notice a number of features that clearly set the new Splendimo 900 MC mower combination apart from the Triplo 801 C that he had used before. "Despite the fact that the 900 MC unit works one metre wider, its weight is significantly less. This means that the wetter fields can be dealt with earlier in springtime, in addition to the fact that the machine allows easier manoeuvring in the field." The simpler construction with fewer gearboxes and drive shafts means less need for, and reduced costs of maintenance and servicing. The Splendimo Clip quick knife change system - fitted as standard on the machine - means a major step forward as compared to the previous knife fixation. Despite the fact that the knives can be exchanged considerably easier and faster - pretty significant when all 48 knives of the combination need to be changed - the knife fixation is still as reliable as ever. The built-in stops for raising the cutter units on headlands provide increased ground clearance to the Splendimo 900 MC, which is also favourable when it comes to manoeuvring.

Agrar GmbH Lichterfelde - Golzow also operate two Splendimo 320 T mowers for their smaller fields. Tedding of the crops is done by a Lotus 675 Stabilo tedder, while a Hibiscus rake 735 Vario is used to rake the crop together; for harvesting they use a forage harvester or a Welger RP 220 or 235 round baler. Between them, the two Welger round balers turn out a total of 10,000 round bales a year.

"Practice tests are very important to the development of new machines"

At the farm Agrar GmbH Sonnenberg in Schönermark - with land in excess of 1,700 hectares - roughage for 300 milking cows and 140 head of young cattle is harvested by means of a full range of Lely machines. After the grassland (540 hectares) has been mown with the aid of the Splendimo 320 F and 320 T mowing combination, a Lotus 770 Stabilo is used for tedding the crop. For the first time this year, the farm also uses a Lely Hibiscus rake to rake the dried forage together.

Manager Friedemann Karl explains "that the farm's preference for Lely equipment stems from the good impression that the first Lely machine has left at the farm". Shortly after the Fall of the Wall the company bought its first Lotus 675 Stabilo tedder, which was sold in the federal state of Brandenburg at the time. Ten years later this machine was replaced by its bigger sister, the Lotus 770 Stabilo. In the process, the presence of dealer Lamadi as well as the quality of the machines definitely had an influence on the decision of Agrar GmbH Sonneberg to opt for Lely grassland machinery.

For the 2007 season, Agrar GmbH Sonnenberg has undertaken to test a prototype of the new Lely Hibiscus 1315 twin rotor side delivery rake in practice conditions. "So far, we are pleased with this new model", says Friedemann Karl. The Hibiscus 1315 is based upon its bigger sister Hibiscus 1525 but it is fitted with smaller rotors and features a simpler construction and control. Operator Manfried Bloch explains that the machine ensures very clean raking, which is also due to the stable wheel assemblies underneath the rotors, the sophisticated three-dimensional rotor suspension and the rugged H-frame.

The construction of this machine makes it possible to rake at high speeds, which - in conjunction with the large working width - gives an outstanding output. Manfried uses the machine to rake grass together for both big self-loading forage wagons and Welger balers. The Hibiscus 1315 rake makes it possible to rake the appropriate amount of crop into an exceptionally even swath. These swaths can be handled very well by harvesting machines. Throughout the testing process, Manfred noticed some details that might be improved. This is exactly the type of input - emerging from working in real practical conditions - that Lely always greatly appreciates and consistently improves when going to serial production. Before any prototype is being tested in practice, it is subjected at Lely's to rigid strength gauge testing as well as arduous field testing. Consequently, all prototypes that are deployed for field testing are already in their final development stage.

All in all the prototype of the Hibiscus 1315 rake has done such a great job at the Agrar farm that manager Friedemann Karl was happy to purchase the machine at the end of the season.

Mower conditioner boosts productivity and quality

A MOWER with solid build quality was the biggest appeal behind Lely's Splendimo mower conditioner for Te Awamutu contractor Antony Metcalfe. As a partner in M & B Contracting with Werner Betschart, he runs a busy operation with six men in the field over the peak time. Much of his work is spent keeping things ticking over there, as well as keeping an eye on a large dairy operation. Antony needed equipment that was simple to operate by any of his staff, robust and productive.

''A front and rear mounted 3.2 metre combination was going to be the way to go to really get our productivity up,'' he says. However it had to be a combination that could handle Kiwi pasture and paddocks, not always the most forgiving on European designed gear.

''There has been a lot of input from the company including visits down to New Zealand to come up with a mower that really is capable of handling those conditions, and this is proof that it can be done,'' he says.
This is the company's first season operating the Lely Splendimo as a front and rear mounted 3.2 metre mower-conditioner and several features mean he would not look back.

''The mower set up is such that there are no gears and only one hexagonal shaft running the length of the mower.'' He attributes Werner's astute mechanical knowledge being one of the big factors in deciding on the Splendimo.

''He realised just this has meant that if you have any breakages there they don't compound right through the mower, it is just one unit you have to change, not all the gears which is time consuming and costly. So far though, we have not had any problems.''

The hydraulic dampener on the rear Splendimo mower is also a major feature. With its variable dampening ability, Antony says the system gives the mower plenty of adjustablility, depending on the terrain.
''If it is looking like a rougher job you can turn the dampener down, easing the impact across the machine and the tractor.''

Plastic conditioning tines have proved almost unbreakable, and offer a good level of grass wilt without over bruising.
''Certainly in the colder wetter weather you get in early spring, we see a far improved drying process. This makes it excellent for September and early October silage.''

He could not have picked a better year to benefit from the Splendimo's conditioning ability. The Waikato started off with a boomer spring in September, offering the opportunity for some farmers to get a crop in early, only to have conditions turn wet in October with twice the monthly average rainfall.

Close coupling of the front mower to the tractor means there is less overlap between front and rear mowers, due to less lateral movement when steering around a corner.

Coupled to a New Holland TVT 190, Antony says productivity is excellent, with one driver capable of mowing and conditioning 40 hectares in an eight hour shift. Last season he only ran a rear unit, so the combination has effectively doubled the productivity of his operator and tractor, for minimal increase in fuel consumption.

The savings carry through to the final stage of harvest with the New Holland self-propelled harvester the company uses. By increasing the output of the tractor mowing unit, there is no down time for the harvester waiting for the mower to get ahead. This has proved vital this season when the window for mowing and harvesting has been so limited due to poor and variable weather.

''You have to keep that harvester on the go, they are not cheap, and you simply have to have them harvesting plenty of grass before you switch them over to maize later in the season.'

This season he expects the mower- conditioner combination to do over 2000 hectares and given the high build quality he is confident of getting at least three seasons out of the gear.

''Even after that we would probably keep using it on our dairy unit,'' he says.

Mowing & Topping in Ballybunion

Shane Dee along with his father Mike farm a 200 acre dairy farm in Lisselton, Co. Kerry. The grass harvesting side of the farm relies upon Lely machinery for topping, mowing and baling. Shane enthuses about the strength and quality of the Lely machines which are very reliable during the busy silage season. They operate a Lely Splendimo 281 PC trailed mower for mowing as well as a Lely Splendimo 240 Classic for topping.  

As the trailed mower was performing so well Shane decided to go for a 240 Classic (8ft) for topping. The main reason for having two mowers is that he didn’t want the conditioner running idle on the trailed mower while topping. ”I wanted to have a separate machine for each job.” comments Shane. The design of the Lely mowers ensures an excellent mowing pattern and guarantees proper re-growth of the crop due to the evenly cut grass.

“I chose the Lely Splendimo range of mowers due to their solid construction, sealed bed and its low horse power requirement; I can put the mower on any tractor in the yard.” It only requires 90Hp to drive the trailed mower and 50Hp for the Classic. “They are so easy driven” he adds.

Each mowing unit is completely sealed and individually lubricated with grease enabling constant lubrication, reduced maintenance and leading to longer service intervals. The modular design of the cutterbar reduces Hp requirements and allows each mowing unit to be serviced separately.

“These are outstanding features on both machines” comments Shane.

The biggest difference Shane finds between the trailed mower and the rear mounted mower is that weight plays much less of a role with the trailed machine. “It has a better mowing pattern than my previous mower. “The parallelogram system allows excellent ground contour following and more flotation giving an even mowing pattern with no striping” he states. “The drawbar swivels which is a great function in the field for headlands as well as corners and during transport the mower can be manoeuvred into any position.” adds Shane. According to Shane the machine is mowing extremely well and the clean cut allows faster re-growth of grass. 

The 8ft Classic mounted mower is suitable for mowing heavy crops but Shane uses it principally for topping. The classic comes with topping skids as standard. It is very easy to adjust the cutting height between 0 – 100mm allowing the perfect topping height to be chosen depending on conditions. “Compared to my old machine (a topper) the output is much higher.” notes Shane.

 “As well as a very clean cut there are now no lumps of grass left behind the mower with all the toppings evenly spread.” Another benefit of using the Classic for topping is that there are now no issues with tearing of the ground on corners. “In the past weeds would have been a problem in these areas.”

“Overall I can not recommend the Lely Splendimo range highly enough to anyone thinking of changing their mower.” ends Shane!

From Mounted to Trailed in Monaghan with Splendimo

Being the proud owner of a Lely Optimo 205 mounted mower for 5 years, Michael Duffy decided it was time to upgrade to a Splendimo 9-foot Trailed Mower in June 2007. Michael, a part time dairy farmer from Bawn, Co. Monaghan, was so impressed with the reliability and quality of the Optimo that he decided to reinvest in a Lely machine again with a Splendimo 281 PC trailed mower with built-in conditioner. “My last mower didn’t have a conditioner so I think it will help improve the quality of my silage.”

Michaels farming life is centred around the morning and evening milking. His enthusiasm for farming is such that he manages to work full time as well as run a dairy farm.

“I went for a trailed mower this time round” adds Michael. Having only one tractor and being employed full time outside the farm he wanted a machine that could be attached easily and quickly to his tractor, “a mower that was simple to operate” states Michael. When purchasing any type of machine it is a long term investment and for Michael it was no different, it was important to him to get a simple yet robust model. The Monaghan man has found his new mower very easy to drive with the bed being very simple to adjust.

Monaghan is derived from the Irish name meaning ‘Land of the little hills’, referring to the large density of drumlin hills throughout the county. “Even in Monaghans toughest crop conditions, the Splendimo leaves a very clean cut” comments Michael.

Several features of the Splendimo mower meant Michael would not look back with his new purchase. The mower design is such that there is no gear trough; instead individual “sealed for life” gearboxes are driven by one hexagonal shaft running the length of the mower bed, unlike other machines. The low horse power requirement was a major factor in Michael switching to the 281 PC.

“It doesn’t need high horse power; she flies”! Even with the smaller tractor, you can cut six or seven acres an hour in good conditions.” By turning the gearbox around you can alternate between a 540 or 1000 rpm drive system. Michael has his set at 1000 rpm.

Due to his circumstances, working full time, off farm, the conditioner speeds up the process of drying the grass. All farmers are challenged by the issue of safety along with time management, Lely has addressed this issue by featuring an easily adjustable safety guard, which is simple to clip up and down. The Splendimo Clip also contributes to time saving, “changing a blade is quick and simple as well as being safe” states Michael.

Michael attributes his local dealer Gilsenan’s mechanical knowledge as being one of the main factors in deciding on the Splendimo. “As far as backup/ after sales service is concerned I wouldn’t dream of going anywhere except back to Lely and local dealer Terry Gilsenan” states Michael.

The biggest difference that Michael found between the new trailed mower and his previous rear mounted mower is that weight plays much less of a role, by making use of the sturdy transport frame. Trailed mowers consequently have a very high specification and have the best possible contour-following system; ideal for use with a light tractor to give perfect results under difficult conditions.

“I’m very pleased with the Splendimo mower; she’s a first class machine” comments Michael. A good machine can save a lot of time and help ensure that operations are

completed quickly in optimum time! As farms move increasingly towards a one man operation, farmers need to become super efficient especially when combined with working outside the farm. “Organising your time and having a plan means less stress when unexpected events crop up” concludes Michael.