The Irish Farmers Journal recently got an opportunity to test one of the latest tractor models to be offered to Irish farmers from Turkish manufacturer Hattat through Tipperary importer Billy O’Dwyer.
We took the 102hp Hattat A110, the flagship model for an on-farm test. The tractor was equipped with a non-levelling Rossmore FL60 loader plus a Rossmore grab and bucket.
The Hattat is a ‘mechanical’ specification tractor with a dry LUK dual-clutch, mechanical forward-shuttle and mechanical three-point linkage control. The ‘mechanical’ specification has appeal for certain customers; it doesn’t require a laptop to be plugged into the tractor’s ECU or require periodic calibration of transmission or lift control.
There are some frills on offer, including standard air-conditioned cab, telescopic mirrors, clear roof panel, electrical switch control of differential lock, four-wheel-drive and even the lift!
First impression
On arriving on the farm, the first styling impression is that of a tractor produced outside of the EU. That relates to the styling of the bonnet and aspects of the cab. Look a little deeper and you see what appears to be a very well put together and well finished tractor.
There’s no doubting that production of the Valtra A-Series at the same facility has left an impression on this Turkish marque.
The cab is well thought out in terms of visibility. It is a six-pillar cab and the B-pillar is positioned well back to provide large doors. The rear corner windows curve around the corner to C-pillars beside the rear opening windows. Access to the cab is good with the exception of the passenger seat which makes it difficult for taller operators to get in and out.
Quality of finish in the cab is very good. A clear glass panel in the roof provided visibility at height for loader work and the rear left-corner window opens to provide some extra ventilation.
The cab appears small from the outside but inside is quite roomy. A toolbox is fixed to the floor to the left of the driver’s seat but it could do with more storage spaces or compartments.
I have the same criticism of virtually all tractors. The controls are all largely mechanical. To the right there are three gear levers; one for forward/reverse shuttling; one for the tractor’s four synchromesh speeds and one for its three ranges.
On the left of the dash is another large lever for operating the pto’s hand clutch. Down by the seat on the right are the levers for operating position and draft control. The switches for lights, diff-lock, 4wd and a clever lift function switch (up/down) are located up on the right hand console.
In the rear right hand corner there were three levers for operating three double-acting spool valves.
Manoeuvrable & comfortable driving
Being a typical stockman’s tractor the Hattat A110 was put to work loading dung and handling bales into feeders. Its own Hema four-wheel-drive axle is used up front and as a loader tractor the A110 was very manoeuvrable around the yard and sheds, and it was not too high for the older sheds.
The tractor was shod with Alliance tyres all-round, 380/70R24s on the front and 480/70R34s on the rear. The manufacturers quote a maximum height of 2.882 metres (9ft. 7in) to the top of the cab.
The Rossmore loader offered a decent lift capacity of 1.5 tonnes (at pivot) and a lift height under implement of 3.25 metres (almost 13ft). There was no problem loading over the side to the centre of the farm’s Herron trailer.
At full load height, the tractor was very stable for a relatively small tractor weighing just 3.58 tonnes. The addition of two 80kg wheel weights at each wheel helped.
The wheel weights are standard as are a full complement of front weights.
Loader speed was reasonable with the tractor’s hydraulic pump rated at 55 litres/min.
The hydraulic oil is separate from the transmission oil in the Hattat A110; the system has a capacity of 30 litres.
The transmission has an almost identical capacity of 29 litres and includes the multi-disc brake housings. The multi-disc brake system generally can take a little more abuse than single disc systems because there is more of them and more room for oil to cool them. For hitching to trailers, the A110 comes with a swing-back rather than a telescopic hitch which is to be expected for a tractor of this type. You can just see the hook through perforations in the pto guard.
Releasing the hook is not so easy, though. The T-bar release lever positioned behind the seat can be very tricky to operate. Hattat also has an ‘interesting’ clevis adapter which is not the easiest to re-fit.
With the trailer yoked, the A110 performed well – its Perkins engine providing the motivation for the combination. The synchromesh transmission was very nice to use and, while it would be preferable if the shuttle stick were on the left, it’s still very workable and smooth to operate.
Standard telescopic mirrors provided are ideal for wider trailers and loads, while an interior mirror is also useful.
We Dyno-tested the A110 over at Nicholas Gainford Ltd, and while it came back under specification, it was only a matter of adjusting to fuel pump to the correct fuelling. The tractor recorded a rated power of 82.3hp at 1,000rpm on the pto.
Torque reserve was at 38.3% on Nicholas’s dyno and the torque curve it produced was phenomenal. It was almost completely flat, producing maximum torque from 700 pto rpm to 1,100 pto rpm.
On the road is where the A110 really stood out in my opinion. The tractor is a 40km/hr rated machine. It certainly felt like it was doing it and maybe a bit more.
What I didn’t expect, though, was how comfortable it was. It didn’t have front suspension or cab suspension but it still felt really solid, comfortable and the steering was spot on. Why? Maybe the combination of loader with soft-ride and rear wheel weights, I don’t really know.
We got the opportunity to use the rear three-point linkage a bit.
Standard are Cat II hook ends and turnbuckle drop arms on both sides. There are mechanical levers for both position and draft control and there is a very useful electric adaptation of the old Fiat raise-drop function through a rocker switch.
Three double-acting spool valves were mounted at the right of the rear window with their levers extending into the cab – again Hema manufactured.
While I can appreciate the practical aspect of such an arrangement, the traditional central position is a better location for our winding fields and roads.
Hattat sums up well
The Hattat A110 is a mechanical spec tractor with a mechanical price of €35,000, including VAT. For farmers looking for an affordable, new, yet mechanical tractor, the Hattat is well worth a look.
Build quality is very good and I found it is very comfortable on the road. While there were a few niggles, there were far less than I anticipated.
Who wears the Hattat in Ireland?
Hattat is part of the Hema group of companies which was established in 1971 and initially produced Dowty hydraulic pumps and components under licence.
Today, there are more than 20 companies under the structure of Hattat Holding in numerous industries, including automotive, agriculture, defence and energy.
In the agri-sector, Hema lists John Deere, Caterpillar-Perkins, Textron–DBH and Agco-Valtra, etc, among its customers.
In 2002, it entered a ‘technical co-operation’ agreement with Valtra Inc. The following year, Hattat Tarım became the Turkish distributor of Valtra Inc.
In Ireland, Billy O’Dwyer (pictured) imports the Hattat range of tractors; he secured the franchise for all of Ireland three years ago.
Billy has appointed six dealers across the country and will shortly announce more.
Billy O’Dwyer, Farm Machinery
Castletown, Moyne, Thurles, Co Tipperary
Tel: 0504-45215/086-2416255
email: info@billyodwyerfarmmachinery.ie
Web: www.billyodwyerfarmmachinery.ie