With a heritage steeped in cutting silage, Mark Troy was always destined to take over the family contracting business.

First started by Mark’s father Eamon in 1971 in Bandon, the duo grew the business steadily over the years. Mark noted that a lot of the customers who started with his father are still with them and the second generation is following on.

Located in an exceptional area for growing grass and dairying, the core of the operation has always been silage. In the early days, Eamon, like many other Irish contractors, ran New Holland and Hesston harvesters. The Hesston era continued with the Troys until 1999, having run 7680, 7720 and 7725 machines. The decision was then made to buy a Case Mammut (Mengale).

Mark described it as an excellent machine, better than any Claas or John Deere at the time to get through grass, when they could manage to keep it running. Electrical and hydraulic problems were its downfall, leading to its departure after three seasons. The 2002 season marked the beginning of the long-lasting relationship with the Jaguar series.

Claas 990

Chopping the final few acres of maize for the 2020 season, Mark Troy and his team were making the most of the fine spell of weather last week.

We visited the crew as they chopped away outside Belgooly, Co Cork. Ahead of the 2020 season, Mark traded his 2018 Jaguar 980 for the new 990, the first and only 990 to be sold on the island of Ireland and one of just three which have been sold by Claas UK and Ireland.

Claas introduced its flagship 900 series forager to the public at Agritechnica last November. At 925hp, the 990 is the most powerful forager offering from Claas to date, surpassing the previous 884hp Jaguar 980. The latest 980 and 990 models are powered by a 24.2l V12 MAN engine. An 850hp version is now used in the 980, while all 900 series foragers are now Stage V-compliant.

More power

“I have been running Claas Jaguars since 2002 and moved to 900 series foragers when they were first introduced into Ireland in 2007/2008. We always change the forager every season or every second season, as reliability and avoiding downtime is essential.

“When looking at upgrading my 2018 980, moving to a 990 was a no-brainer. If I had changed it for another new 980, the reduction in power in the new model would mean it would have been a step backwards for us,” outlined Mark.

When asked if he needs and utilises all 925hp chopping 30ft swaths of grass, Mark noted: “We need this high horsepower to get through heavy first-cut for a hectic 10- to 14-day period at the end of May and into early June, and similarly for maize.

“We lift 30ft swaths and aim to gather 180 to 200 acres each day. We run the machine at full capacity, keeping the six trailers on the move and the two wheel loaders busy on the pit. We can’t afford to compromise on power,” explained Mark.

The cab

This year witnessed the introduction of the new touchscreen Cebis terminal on the new 900 series machines, the same as what has become popular in the firm’s tractor range.

“I’m very happy with the new layout. It’s even simpler and easier to use than the previous layout. One small issue I have is the fact that the application rate for the additive tank is set in litres per hour rather than litres per acre. This makes it more difficult to gauge an accurate application rate,” outlined Mark.

Instead of opting for the new-type joystick, Mark stuck to what he knew and decided to equip the 990 with the standard joystick.

Likewise, Mark decided against using some of the automated features. He explained: “The automated functions, such as CEMOS, work in light swaths of grass and open fields of maize, but in tough going with heavy lumpy swaths of Cork grass, I feel these automated systems can’t react as quickly as the operator.”

One area Mark thinks Claas needs to up its game is visibility to the chute. He noted: “I’ve driven other brands such as John Deere and Krone and they all offer better visibility from the driver’s seat to the chute. It’s a pet hate of mine, especially when running the chute that bit higher.”

The 990 is specified with the full LED lighting package, which Mark notes makes working at night much easier.

Mark and his team built a bespoke control box that governs the movement of the chute for use in maize. When opening the field, the team hooks a trailer on to the forager. A tractor operator sits in the cab beside the forager driver. The tractor operator takes control of the control box, taking some of the stress and responsibilities off the forager operator, at a time when they have enough to watch out for.

Throughput

While chasing the 30ft rakes in grass, Mark often operates the 990 at 16km/h to 20km/h. While running the machine at full capacity, Mark has achieved a consistent throughput of 15 to 20 acres of grass per hour. He notes that this is vital to hit the target of 200 acres per day. Across the first cut, the average fuel consumption of the 990 has been 5.7l/acre.

Meanwhile, in maize, with the eight-row Kemper header, forward speed varied from 7km/h to 13km/h. Mark noted that output capacity in maize is more difficult to judge, as draws are typically a lot longer and there doesn’t tend to be the same pressure as what comes with silage. However, he noted that they have got through 10 acres/hr, or typically 70 to 80 acres per day.

Mark opted for the 20-knife drum (V20- 2×10). This offers a theoretical chop length of 5mm to 26.5mm. The 900 series foragers have the capability of altering the chop length from the touchscreen terminal while on the move.

What’s new?

Aside from the increase in power and the new control layout, Claas has beefed up a few bits around the feed rollers. A new hydraulic pre-compression system is now standard in all 900 series machines.

Acting on pre-programmed control characteristics, hydraulic rams with pressure reservoirs automatically adjust the pre-compression pressure applied to accommodate different crops and changes in crop flow. This is designed to keep the chop length consistent in varying conditions.

The feeder housing has been beefed up a little. It now features a reinforced feed rollers for more throughput and larger wear plates on the sides of the pre-compression rollers to reduce dirt and noise. Maintenance has been made easier by the use of clamps to secure the rollers.

The sealing of the chopping cylinder sharpening system has been improved to help reduce dirt ingress and noise. The service life of the chopping cylinder bearings has been extended and a flat-face coupling makes for easier maintenance of the feeder housing and knife drum housing.

Rake v merger

In recent years, we have seen many Irish contractors who put large acreages of grass through foragers having made the move to four-rotor rakes, while some have even gone down the route of a merger.

When asked why he’s running two 30ft rakes ahead of one of Ireland’s largest foragers, Mark explained: “As regards a four-rotor rake, I think that for the additional size and cost over a 30ft twin-rotor rake, there’s not enough of a gain in output, especially in the conditions we work in. I believe that a four-rotor rake would mean too much of a compromise on the forager’s forward speed, while producing a lumpy, uneven swath that’s more difficult for the header to deal with.

“Meanwhile, we demonstrated the Reiter merger this summer and I think it’s a super concept and a super machine. If I was in Northern Ireland or the UK where there’s more three- and four-cut systems, I’d have one bought by now.

“I love the flexibility of being able to gather 30ft or 50ft with one machine, but I don’t think the initial buying cost can be justified. In addition, I’m worried about the longevity and running costs of such machines.

“ I’m going to keep a close eye on the concept and see how it performs in Irish conditions. Everyone thinks I’m mad, but the 30ft rake works for me.”

Running business and full-time job

The Troy contracting business is unique, in the sense that Mark has a full-time job as a financial controller with Kevin O’Leary Motors in Bandon.

Upon completing his Leaving Cert, Mark initially wanted to go contracting, but his father pushed him to get a degree, so Mark trained as an accountant. Each summer, Mark would take unpaid leave and help his father at silage. Mark noted that his father ran the business almost up until he passed away in 2010, while Mark helped out. Mark then took over the running of the business.

He explained: “Balancing two jobs is tough, especially when there’s first-cut to be gathered and the weather window is limited.

“I’m lucky in a sense that my job is flexible and I have a good boss. I take some time off during the summer, but when I’m needed, I’m sending and receiving emails from the cab of the harvester.

“Planning and organising jobs is a huge part of getting through the workload. I’m lucky to have good staff I can trust, which makes things a lot easier. I also have a very patient wife.”

Verdict

“After my first season with the 990, I’m very happy with how it has performed. I’m intending to run it for one more season. You would definitely notice the additional 41hp between my previous 980 and the current 990, especially in heavy first-cut.

“The 990 is also lighter on diesel and runs a little quieter. Across the entire first cut, it averaged 5.7l/acre. Compare this to the 2018 980 in first-cut, it was averaging over 6.5l/acre. However, it’s worth noting that the previous machine didn’t use AdBlue, while the new 990 does, and burns approximately 0.33l/acre, which is quite a bit across the run of the season. But all in all, there is a fuel saving.

“No machine is without its imperfections. There’s a couple of bits I would like Claas to change. Visibility to the chute needs to be improved. Claas needs to fit a proper in-cab Bluetooth system.

“The 990 has the same chute as its smaller 800 series counterparts. I think it needs a larger-diameter chute. I would like the option of automatically adjusting the pick-up speed in line with forward speed, like some other manufacturers offer, rather than manually adjusting it on the terminal.

“But in fairness, all in all, the 990 has certainly lived up to my expectations and hasn’t given us a day’s trouble. The two big changes – increased power and a new cab layout – are very welcome. The power availability and throughput capacity coupled with the back-up from McCarthy’s has been top notch.”

Likes and dislikes

Likes

  • Power and throughput capability.
  • Reliability and dealer backup.
  • Ease of maintenance.
  • Dislikes

  • Would like a better Bluetooth system.
  • Would like increased visibility to the chute (when in high position).
  • Air screen blocks easily.
  • Machine spec

  • Engine: 24.3l V12 MAN.
  • Horsepower: 925hp (680kW).
  • Transmission: Twin-speed hydrostatic.
  • Max road speed: 40km/h.
  • Chopping cylinder: V-Max 20 knife.
  • Chop length: 5mm to 26.5mm.
  • Feed rollers: Four.
  • Fuel tank capacity: 1,500 litres.
  • List price: €500,000 plus VAT.