Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Weather can be a real problem when drilling, particularly when the conditions are too wet.  There is no definitive solution or perfect machine, but the best types of drill for these challenging conditions are mounted machines like a tine seeder or power harrow/drill combination.  The tine seeder is effective due to the lightweight and open frame helping to cope with high trash and damp soil and also preventing it from sinking.

Yes this is acceptable.  The salesmen will need to be notified and the extra cost will be invoiced.

To extend the life of your drill and to reduce damage how you store your drill after use is very important.  There are 3 main actions to carry out:

1. Ensure the drill is thoroughly cleaned out, and all the seed (and fertiliser if it is a grain and fert drill) is removed, leaving seed in the hopper can not only damage the drill but also encourages rodent activity which can cause a lot of expensive damage to the metering system and the electrics.
2. The drill should be cleaned and oiled/greased this will help keep any water out of the bearings and moving parts which will prevent them from being seized next time you come to use it.
3. Keep the control box in a warm, dry place. The control box is one of the most important parts of the drill but is also one of the most delicate.  Ensuring that it doesn’t get damp and is kept at a constant temperature means it’ll be working again next year.

Ploughing is a labour-intensive process, and it is tempting to ditch it in favour of much wider cultivation machinery, but ploughing is a very important part of the cultivation system.  Ploughing does something that no other cultivator does; it completely inverts the soil burying the trash and weeds.  Ploughing every few years and vastly improve control of stubborn weeds such as blackgrass.

There is a huge range of cultivators available, mostly cultivators are designed with a tillage system in mind.  Starting from a minimum tillage system using machines like the straw rake, you can go to the other end of the spectrum to a heavy cultivator like the Sumo Trio.  One of the most popular cultivators of recent times has been the short disc.  Machines like the Simba X-press and the Vaderstad Carrier are an excellent all-round light cultivator which are equally adept straight onto stubble or breaking down ploughing.

Ellis Machinery is specialists in used agricultural machinery, but we do have a range of new machinery.  Idrofoglia Irrigation equipment imported from Italy, Quivogne cultivation machinery imported from France, and the UK built Mzuri direct drills.

Ellis Machinery is specialists in used farm machinery, and we’re always looking to purchase machinery.  Obviously, we can’t stock everything so we have created out online selling platform which includes a very popular auction where you can list your machinery for sale.

The machine will leave our site on good metal or with metal supplied if necessary, and then it would be maintained by the hirer, including any further wearing metal needed. Damage made beyond what is acceptable is then charged extra.  Also, the machine should be returned in the clean condition that it was delivered in.  Failure to do so could result in extra charges.

We have all of our machinery at our conveniently located yard in central England.  The yard is clean and well laid out for viewing machinery, we’re always happy to see customers and coffee biscuits are always available.

We have a very simple listing fee system.  All of these charges are up-front costs and non-refundable, there are no other hidden costs or expensive commissions.

Not as such, but with over 400 machines on site, there would be more than 250 machines to choose from so generally plenty of choice for most situations.

If you would like to sell machinery via the Ellis Machinery auction, you must first create a seller account; it is here that you can create listings and see if people are bidding on your machinery.  When you create a listing for an item you will be charged a listing fee depending on the value of your machine, once paid the listing will be live and open to bids.  Once the item has sold you will then have access to the buyer’s details, the invoicing and payment arrangements are to be between the buyer and seller, Ellis Machinery does not get involved with the invoicing of the machinery.  More about the auction and listing fees can be found here https://ellismachinery.co.uk/auctions

To protect the legs of a cultivator or plough from damage, many machines will have shear bolts.  These bolts pass through the leg and frame of the machine and are designed to snap when the legs come in contact with a rock or other unmoving object.  The idea behind this is to save the frame and leg from bending, using an incorrect shear bolt and result in the bolt not shearing and expensive damage occurring to the machine.

Direct drilling is very attractive to most farmers as it removes the need for multiple cultivation passes to create a seedbed.  The main benefits are cost reduction due to the reduced groundwork and soil heath as there is less traffic and soil disturbance helping the soil to work organically as nature intended.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t work for everyone; in some situations, the soil or conditions mean that more cultivation is required to increase the germination of the crop.

The drill is probably the most important piece of machinery you’ll buy.  The Drill you buy will depend on the type of tillage system that you use, whether it be a direct drill or strip-tillage system, or a drill and power harrow combination that is perfect for drilling after ploughing.  Direct drills are very popular these days with the UK made drills like Mzuri and Claydon leading the way with direct tine drills. 

Vaderstad revolutionised the drilling market in the ’90s with the rapid which brought high speed, accurate drilling to the fore.  These type of drills are very popular today with models from most of the leading brands including; Horsch, Vaderstad, Kuhn and Kverneland.  Another very common drill used today is the Horsch Sprinter which is a tine type drill that can be adapted for direct drilling.

We deliver machinery to all parts of the UK, indeed the world.  With a network of delivery companies working for us, we can usually delivery machinery at short notice and a very competitive price.

 Our second-hand machinery doesn’t carry a manufactures timed warranty, but we stand by our word.  If it has been workshop checked and the salesman has the confidence to tell you it’s all good, then we’ll stand behind it.

The first consideration when buying a plough should be the ground it will be working, for stony ground consider an auto-reset machine to save stoppages, the soil type also dictated which mouldboard type will work best.  The horsepower of your tractor will obviously determine the size of the plough you can pull.  There are also other options and considerations which are mostly to make it easier for the user such as hydraulic vari-width and hydraulic front furrow.