A Fondness For Fendt
This farmer recently added two Fendt 1042s to his operation to pull a pair of Sunflower® 6631 Vertical Tillage Tools that prepare his pastures for seeding.
By Jason Jenkins | Photos By Jason Jenkins
Danny Floyd knows all too well how quickly weather can change on the prairie of northwestern Oklahoma. That’s why he relies on the power, speed and reliability of Fendt® tractors in his cow/calf operation.
“This is a very arid part of Oklahoma,” says the cattleman from Thomas. “When the moisture is right in the fall and we’re ready to put in our winter pasture, we can’t be dilly-dallying.”
To that end, Floyd recently added two Fendt 1042s to his operation to pull a pair of Sunflower® 6631 Vertical Tillage Tools that prepare his pastures for seeding. “I wanted to go to some minimal tillage to keep erosion down and that sort of thing,” he adds. “So, I started looking at how much horsepower I needed to get that done quick.”
Together, he says the four machines can till 60 to 70 acres per hour. The vertical tillage tool manages residue and allows the top of the soil to warm up and dry out, creating an ideal seedbed. While pulling the 40-foot-wide implement, the 1042 runs at 1,200 to 1,400 rpm, which he adds saves fuel.
Floyd, who also owns two Fendt 700 Series and three Fendt 900 series tractors, also touts Fendt’s road speed, its continuously variable transmission, and its combination of power and technology. He notes that his 3,600 tillable acres are spread across two counties.
“Fendt was the first tractor I know of that you could go 30 mph or more,” he says. “Whenever you’re traveling 20 to 25 miles from one farm to another, it’s good to be able to go down the road faster.
“And that CVT transmission, why that didn’t get invented first, I don’t know,” he says in appreciation of Fendt’s groundbreaking innovation. “When you’re in a field and you need a little more power, you don’t have to worry about it because the tractor takes care of it.”
Floyd describes his relationship with AGCO® dealer, Livingston Machinery Co., based in Fairview, Oklahoma, as a partnership focused on the success of Floyd Farms. In total, Floyd Farms runs 18 pieces of AGCO equipment.
“You can have the best piece of equipment in the world, but there’s going to be a time when you need service on that equipment,” he says. “If you can’t get good service done in a timely fashion, you’re in trouble. If I have a problem, when I call Livingston, they always jump right on it and get it taken care of.”