Sherwood Farms in Melton Mowbray – the UK’s first farmer to specify a tractor on Michelin’s new AxioBib 2 tyres – is reportedly noticing the soil protection benefits of the Ultraflex technology fitments after just 300 hours operation.
Working an arable farm that produces wheat, barley and oilseed rape, director, James Parker’s Fendt 724 tractor is chiefly used for spreading fertiliser and muck in the spring, and corn carting, drilling and hedge-cutting in the autumn. The latest fitments were recently put to work fertilising the land and so far, the team at Sherwood Farm are impressed.
Commenting, Parker said: “Spreading fertiliser and muck puts a very heavy load on the rear axle, so we’ve been able to take advantage of the load-rating being much higher on these tyres. The AxioBib 2s have made light work of these tasks – limiting soil compaction thanks to their wide footprint and pressures of just 0.75 bar on the fronts and 1.0 bar on the rears.
Also suited for daily tasks such as ploughing, drilling and cultivation, Michelin’s new AxioBib 2 tyres can run at extremely low pressures to limit soil compaction and crop damage and boast the highest load capacity on the VF 650/65 R42 174D/171E market – providing exceptional traction for heavy machinery such as the 240hp Fendt.
Each VF 650/65 R42 AxioBib 2 tyre can carry an extra 2,450kg at 65kph than the same size Michelin MultiBib tyre, making it particularly desirable given the increasing weight of new farm machinery. The tyres also stand out for their Narrow Rim Option (NRO) markings on the sidewall, which confirm their higher load capacity without the need for farmers to upgrade to wider wheel rims.
