Low-Cost Loader For Bunker Silos

Low-Cost Loader For Bunker Silos CROP STORAGE Silos (50) 1-2-16 There's a new, low-cost way to load silage out of horizontal bunker or trench type silos. Called the "Loader Gopher", it's a hydraulically operated cutting-digging attachment that fits most any front-mounted tractor loader. "It has only one moving part and has been tested and proven in all weather conditions, including frozen silage," says Lee Stirling, inventor of the new attachment and president of Innovative Implements, Inc., the manufacturer. "Compared to other loaders on the market," says Stirling, "the outstanding features of the Loader Gopher are performance and price." The standard attachment sells for $1,795. The same unit equipped with telescoping arms that give it more reach for higher silage piles (up to 25 ft.) sells for $1,995. The Loader Gopher attachment requires a minimum hydraulic capacity of 20 gal/min. For tractors with hydraulic systems too small to handle the attachment, the company offers an auxiliary 3-pt. hitch hydraulic power unit called the Hydra-Pak. It's pto-driven and, in addition to serving the Loader Gopher, can be used as a completely independent power source for use with any other equipment using hydraulic motors or cylinders. The Hydra-Pak, rated at 17 gal./min. capacity, sells for $1,095. Here, according to Ken Forbes, marketing director, are other features of the new 7 ft. wide Loader Gopher which cuts a 5 to 7 inch slice off the face of the silage pile on each top-to-bottom pass: • The silage face is left sealed and tight so no air can penetrate to dry out and deteriorate the pack, even in very warm or humid weather conditions. • Cut feed is chopped, mixed and left more palatable because of the sealed condition which prevents silage juices from evaporating. • The Loader Gopher saves a tractor loader from the rigors of bucking out tightly-packed silage. • When enough feed for a feeding has been cut loose with the attachment, the operator hydraulically folds the attachment back over the bucket. The loader is then used in the conventional manner to load the feed into a truck, wagon, feeder or whatever. For more details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Innovative Implements Inc., Box 627, Ridgetown, Ontario, Canada N0P 2C0 (Ph. 519 674-2361).

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