Kilian Piriou, Tim Pannell and Adrian Carr (right), all of Rocks Gone, with Brodie, Noel and Liz Cook and the H4 Reefinator rock crushing machine on the family’s Kindon Station property near Goondiwindi in Queensland.
More than 40 growers travelled up to 450 kilometres to attend the H4 Reefinator demonstration day at Kindon Station near Goondiwindi in Queensland and they were amazed by the performance of the machine in “mud rock” country where mustering has been restricted to using horses and helicopters.
A ROCK crushing machine that has transformed agricultural land and production across southern Australian States always was likely to turn heads in the north and this is exactly what it has done.
The Rocks Gone H4 Reefinator was a popular attraction during its debut at the recent FarmFest Field Days at Toowoomba in Queensland and it has proven to be a big hit soon after, at a special on-farm demonstration day for growers at Kindon Station, near Goondiwindi, where the first sold machine already is preparing for work.
Invented by Rocks Gone founder and former Western Australian farmer Tim Pannell, the 3-metre wide H4 Reefinator comprises a levelling blade, four front row and five rear row hydraulic tines, plus a following ribbed drum, all weighing 28-tonne when filled with water and digging up to 600 millimetres deep.
In numerous cases across Western and southern Australia, the machine has doubled cropping yields, increased stock carrying capacity and trebled land values, and growers have later sold machines for as much as they purchased them for.
More than 40 growers attended the demonstration of the H4 Reefinator at the Cook family’s Kindon Station, with some travelling to the event from up to 450 kilometres away.
Rocks Gone National Business Development Manager Adrian Carr said the machine was put into action in the family’s 600-hectare “pull paddock” that had also been stick raked, and which featured sedimentary rock.
Adrian said due to the tough terrain, the Cooks had only chained the paddock in the past and were restricted to using horses and helicopters for mustering.
The H4 Reefinator was pulled by the family’s 425-kilowatt (570-horsepower) John Deere tracked tractor at 8-10 kilometres per hour and onlookers were immediately amazed by its performance.
“The Cooks and other growers were a little sceptical and so they couldn’t believe how well it worked,” Adrian said.
“They were amazed how quiet it was and also with its efficiency and the speed it could go. They didn’t think it was possible.
“People were amazed by Tim’s engineering with the machine, particularly with how much weight he had been able to build into it, and they were also impressed with the design of its hydraulic system.
“The family brought a D8 dozer to the ‘demo’ area with two big rear ripping tynes, but all it could do was scrape over the rock. It just sat up and there was smoke coming off from where the tynes were hitting the rock.”
He said the demonstration also highlighted Rocks Gone’s latest Depth Master integrated automation technology used with its H4 Reefinator. The auto depth and slip control system, which is suitable for ISOBUS and GPS-integrated tractors, calculates speed over ground and tractor load or wheel slip to adjust machine depth up to 50 times per second, as well as the level of its blade.
“The growers could hear the machine adjusting up and down during the demonstration, allowing the tractor and the machine to work at maximum efficiency and without stalling,” Adrian said.
He said Depth Master eliminated the requirement for operators to perform on-the-go depth adjustments according to the particular land and rock conditions, while it also added valuable other benefits like depth mapping.
“The mapping can show perhaps where you have not been digging deep enough and so you can concentrate extra passes in those areas rather than everywhere.”
The demonstration also was attended by Goondiwindi Regional Council, which uses grid rollers for gravel resheeting of roads and was interested in viewing the H4 Reefinator and its engineering.
Adrian said Kindon Station comprised major cattle and cropping enterprises set over 68,000ha and the H4 Reefinator would be digging to a depth of 15-20 centimetres to improve pasture and cropping land on the property.
“Noel Cook is pretty keen to see a crop of wheat grown on their ‘pull paddock’ after it is ‘reefinated’.”
Winter conditions can cause trafficability issues on Kindon Station and this was raised by a couple of its staff, however the H4 Reefinator also is expected to increase water penetration in these areas and improve its characteristics.
As the H4 Reefinator is put to work across the property, neighbours, as well as others in wider regions, are set to be “looking over the fence” to view its performance and potential for improving their own properties.
The next opportunity for growers in New South Wales and Queensland to view the Rocks Gone H4 Reefinator will be at the upcoming AgQuip field days at Gunnedah next month.
Growers interested in viewing on-farm demonstrations can get in touch with the company at www.rocksgone.com.au
Media information: Rohan Howatson, Howatson PR Communications, on 0407 428 459.