TALENTED South East Queensland fabricator Brendan Slattery has just completed an impressive chopper-roller specifically designed to control regrowth.
The extreme duty chopper-roller is designed to smash down and help expedite the process of turning production sapping regrowth into mulch.
The 12 300mm high, aggressively angled blades are designed to shatter, chop and bury vegetation.
It is promoted as an alternative to stickraking which requires regowth to be pushed into windrows, which can later be burnt.
Empty, the chopper-roller weighs 7 tonnes. However, with the three ballast compartments filled with water, the gross weigh tops almost 12t.
Engineered to be towed behind a Caterpillar D6 or D7 or equivalent powered machine, the chopper-roller was manufactured in Mr Slattery’s on-farm workshop, Nardoo Welding, on his property east of Inglewood.
The roller is constructed from incredibly robust 400 and 450 grade Bisalloy steel.
The axle is housed inside heavy duty bore casing, protecting it from the ballast water. It is set with 125mm 300t capacity bearings in the 80mm sidewall of the roller.
The tow section is equally impressive. The arms are constructed from 250x250 12mm RHS plate and reinforced underneath. A cover shield has been installed to prevent sticks flying up and hitting the back of the bulldozer. The machine has a swivel ring attachment to connect to the bulldozer.
“The aim was to make the machine as strong as possible,” Mr Slattery said. “For example, there is more than a kilometre of weld used to secure the blades. As much as I have enjoyed building it, I’m very confident this machine will more than handle the rugged conditions it has been built for.”
The machine was also constructed to a maximum 3.495m width, eliminating the need for a transport pilot on public roads.
The machine can also be fitted with shaker-style seed dispensers to improve productivity.
The Nardoo chooper-roller was custom made for Richard Fry from Inglewood. It took more than 300 workshop hours from conception to completion.
Mr Slattery, who has operated Nardoo Welding for 20 years, is also well known for his agricultural engineering including heavy duty stickrakes and protective scrub canopies.
Contact Brendan Slattery, 07 4667 4103, Nardoo Welding.
