TRIALS OF REAPERS AND BINDERS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1841, 17 January 1889, Page 3

TRIALS OF REAPERS AND BINDERS.

TBMUKA. A trial of reapers and binders was held yesterday in a paddock of oats belonging to Messrs Pratlley and Ward, adjoining the Winchester and Beach road. The only machines in competition wore the Deermg, of which Mr James Findlay is agent, and the Mavsey, the agents for which ore Messrs Gray and Montgomery. There were two Massey machines on the ground—one owned hr Mr A, Grant and the other by Mr A. M. Clark, by whose teams and nten they were worked. The Deermg „ wus' drawn by a splendid team belonging to John Aitken, of Winchester. The weather during the fbrnoon was threatening, but it cleared up after 12 o’clock, a udth o remainder of the day was very fine. There was a very large attendanae of farmers on the ground, and they appeared to.take a very keen interest in the working of the machines. It is not, of course, our. duty to select one machine for more praise than another. Suffice it to say that both machines did excellent work, with which few could find fault. Last year we gave a long description of the Massey, which then came new into the distriot, and as no improvements have since been made it is not necessary to repeat it. The machine did splendid clean work, and was mueh admired. With regard to the Bearing, it met with a little bit of an accident in the first round, having run into a piece of fencing wire that was concealed :n the crop, xhis damaged three of the sections of the knife, but notwithstanding this drawback it did its work satisfactorily: cutting cleanly and tying splendidly. The Peering has been greatly improved since the last occasion on which it came under our notice. All the frame work and elevators are now oonstrueted of steel instead of wood, in fact, there is very little wood in the machine at all. Another feature is the sheaf carrier, which is a contrivance for collecting the sheaves in rows at distances from each other. It can be taken off or put on as desired' and it is estimated that a man would stock two acres per day more after such a machine than ha would after any other. After the crop was cut Messrs Findlay and Gray, junr,, thanked those present for their attendance, and intimated that both machines were for sale. This brought the proceedings to a close. GERALDINE. A public trial of the Walter A. Wood Single-Apron Reaper and Binder was held yesterday in a paddock of oatf, on the Oran Bridge road, belonging to Mr W. Postlethwaite. The crop chosen was one that should yield about 25 bushels to the acre, the straw ranging from three feet to eighteen inches in places. The ground was very stony, and consequently shook the machine considerably. There was not, however, much undergrowth, and the crop was generally a very clean one, Messrs Webster and Macdonald, the local agents, were present with Mr Genn, the expert. Mr Macdonald handled the ribbons, and with a good pair of horses cut round after round with apparently little trouble to his tsam. The work done by the machine was excellent. The crop was clean cut, leaving a very even stubble, and was cleanly elevated and delivered in well shaped tightly-bound sheaves. The only fault to be found was that the butts were not quite square enough to please the most critical, but it was explained that with the machine bumping and Jolting as it was over, the large stones it was almost impossible to get a square butt. In evsry otbeV respect the work done was pronounced highly satisfactory. The tying of the machine was there being scarcely one loose sheaf ft o be seen on the ground, while very few loose straws were left about. The Wood binder is admirably adapted for working on sidings, as almost the whole weight of the machinery, in addition to that the driver, is on the crop side of the driving wheel. During the time the machine was at work a large number of farmers and others interested in cropping visited the paddock, and inspected the work done. Several ladies also visited the paddock to witness the trial.