Conveyor to speed up seeding?

[flea beetle]

Bought the 20” x 55’ Meridian. Wanted the length and it looked the most refined. And installed a big hanging downspout.

Yes whatever I get, will have a long downspout and hopefully it will be retractable as well. Only thing is it will slow down the conveyor to have the extra height.

has the meridian been good? Been reading mixed reviews

[Taiga]

I have no complaints, does well on fert and grain however does seem to make a mess with alfalfa seed on the ground, I don't know why but I didn't buy it for that. The EFI motor is sure nice. I think was around $45k last spring when the others were 55k-60k. Second choice would have been a Conveyall with the stainless parts. No idea where prices are at now. Didn't/don't need an oilseed belt. They all seem overpriced for what they are.

[flea beetle]

I have no complaints, does well on fert and grain however does seem to make a mess with alfalfa seed on the ground, I don't know why but I didn't buy it for that. The EFI motor is sure nice. I think was around $45k last spring when the others were 55k-60k. Second choice would have been a Conveyall with the stainless parts. No idea where prices are at now. Didn't/don't need an oilseed belt. They all seem overpriced for what they are.

You got that right, can buy two augers for the price of one conveyor. Is the 20-55 rated faster than the 15-49 batco or 1650 Conveyall? Or the extra width on the belt doesn’t add much more capacity. They all run 10” tubes correct?

you guys think the ucx3 batco would be leaps faster yet being a u trough? Or you wouldn’t gain the same efficiency with a belt as a screw auger on a u trough?

[flea beetle]

Also does anyone know if the conveyall leaking grain on the ground issue has been fixed with the new model?

[poorboy]

A tender trailer really works well at seeding.

[flea beetle]

A tender trailer really works well at seeding.

Yes, that is the dream, I just can’t bring myself to justify spending the cost of 3 conveyors to use a trailer 1 month of the year to service 1 drill. If I had two drills, I could see it paying off. But I need a bit more land, and to train another guy to seed and spray, before I get a second drill. Maybe in a couple years. Lol. A guy can dream.

[poorboy]

Older brandt conveyors with all wheel drive are very good. Newer brandt canola ready conveyors are mixed reviews from neighbors.

Michels augers or michels remote chute openers would help a lot if using a trailer or remote tailgate and hoist if using box truck.

[blackpowder]

It's the capacity of the air tank load system that is the problem

[flea beetle]

Older brandt conveyors with all wheel drive are very good. Newer brandt canola ready conveyors are mixed reviews from neighbors.

Michels augers or michels remote chute openers would help a lot if using a trailer or remote tailgate and hoist if using box truck.

Yes like black powder stated, it is the auger on the cart that is the bottleneck. As stated before, a tender trailer would be ideal, but can’t justify it at 3x the cost of a conveyor and can only use one month a year.

Already have gate openers on the trailer. Just need faster filling capacity.

[megrizzly]

In your case, i'd look into the slightly used conveyor market(17+). Run it for a season to determine if you like it without dumping big money on a new one. Less headache if you avoid one that has seen fertilizer. I use them nearly everyday and still can’t justify a new one. Capacity doesn’t really matter as you’ll spend more time setting up.

Second is to ask your renter just to custom seed a portion. Stretching equipment for efficiency only works if the weather allows. Used to be stretched for drill power and it wasn’t a great feeling getting rained out with 20% left.

[flea beetle]

In your case, i'd look into the slightly used conveyor market(17+). Run it for a season to determine if you like it without dumping big money on a new one. Less headache if you avoid one that has seen fertilizer. I use them nearly everyday and still can’t justify a new one. Capacity doesn’t really matter as you’ll spend more time setting up.

Second is to ask your renter just to custom seed a portion. Stretching equipment for efficiency only works if the weather allows. Used to be stretched for drill power and it wasn’t a great feeling getting rained out with 20% left.

That is a very helpful and well thought out response. Thank you.

One nagging question I have is if conveyors are as high of maintenance as they look? Or they just look scary, and aren’t all that bad?

The used market doesn’t seem much less than new, and you are probably inheriting someone’s problem for $10,000-$15,000 less than new.

[flea beetle]

The other thing a guy could do is buy a 10”x59’ auger and know what you are getting. But dumping canola seed from the ground seems like such a good feature of a conveyor! lol.

Also looking at getting heavier into peas if all goes well this year. So it might get used more than I think?

[SASKFARMER]

We have one of the first Brant’s we use it almost every day. It’s a conveyor you need every once in a while have to fix bearings.

[flea beetle]

We have one of the first Brant’s we use it almost every day. It’s a conveyor you need every once in a while have to fix bearings.

So not overly complicated to service then by the sound of it?

[LEP]

So not overly complicated to service then by the sound of it?

On our batco, only thing is bearings mostly. Want to keep it stored inside or you have to dig out bird's nests often.