Galway-based engineering firm Alstrong showcased its latest Auctus one-pass reseeding unit in both mounted and trailed forms at Lamma show last week, which took place on Wednesday and Thursday 15 and 16 January.

A new option for the Auctus M mounted model first seen at the show was the rear consolidation skid.

The optional skid has been designed to smear cow dung in freshly grassed paddocks and help consolidate the seed bed.

The optional 400kg add-on, which is designed to float under its own weight, is fully galvanised.

It takes the unladen wight of the unit up to 2,900kg, which can be further increased by 700kg if the spiked drum roller is filled with water.

Scarify and scratch

For those less familiar, the one-pass unit features two rows of hydraulically adjustable sprung ripper paddles. These scarify and scratch the surface, removing dead material.

Following is a spiked drum fitted with 60 80mm hardened steel aeration blades.

A free-wheeling revolving scraper roller runs close to the drum, between the spikes to keep it clean.

Behind the spiked drum sit two rows of hydraulically controlled 12mm tines. A row of splash plates then distribute seed across the working width via the mounted air seeder from Denis Doyle Ltd.

Finishing the process, Auctus T (trailed) models feature a 560mm prismatic roller at the rear, which consolidates the seedbed.

In order to keep weight and length to a minimum, the prismatic roller is not offered on mounted machines. Therefore, the skid now offers customers in the market for a mounted machine the option of fitting a consolidation tool.