WOOL GROWERS looking to purchase superfine and ultrafine wool types were active during the Rayner family's Grathlyn Merino and Lynford Poll Merino ram sale at Hargraves near Mudgee on Thursday last week.
Repeat buyers Mont and Anita Waters, RD Waters Family Trust, Ournie near Jingellic, bought the $3250 top-priced ram, Grathlyn 19-068. A September 2019-drop horned son of Conrayn Thor, he measured 15.5-micron with a standard deviation of 2.3, coefficient of variation of 14.5 per cent and comfort factor of 99.9pc.
The Waters family were completely burnt out and lost stock in the Ournie Valley 2019/20 fires. They are currently rebuilding, and run around 1500 Merino ewes.
RELATED READING: Grathlyn and Lynford stud sale results 2020
"Wool is our focus - our adult micron is under 16-micron with a wool cut of 3.5 to four kilograms on average," they said. Being "wool first" they were looking for stylish ultrafine wools and bought four rams at a $2063 average.
"The Grathlyn rams are doing the job and breeding the type of sheep and wool we want, so we have been coming back for six or seven years," Mr Waters said.
The largest volume buyers were GS and PK Murray from Laggan who bought five rams to a top of $2500, to average $1500. South Australian buyers the Bleishcky family of Melrose bought two rams average $1500, while MJ and JL Hedges of Yass bought three averaging $1917.
In all, 19 rams were sold for a $1618 average. The sale was settled by Australian Wool Network with auctioneer John Settree, Nutrien stud stock, Dubbo, taking bids.
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