A superbly-maintained fleet of machinery lies at the heart of Rodney Clarke’s exceptional agricultural contracting enterprise. We travelled to Bessbrook, Belturbet and met up with the personable Cavan man to discuss the history of his business and the extremely impressive fleet.
You have to take your hat off to Rodney Clarke. The Belturbet man has never bought a new tractor or machine in his life, yet he operates a magnificent fleet of equipment, all of which he buys second hand, reconditions and maintains / services / repairs himself. He invests so much time, effort and expertise into the machines that he has at his disposal one of the best fleets that an agri contractor could wish for.
The money that’s saved by not spending lavishly on shiny new gear with go-fast stripes is passed onto his customers in the form of substantial savings. In the end, everyone is a winner.
Machinery is very much a vocation for Rodney, an area he has been attracted to all his life. “I was always into machinery,” he reflects. “I worked in a local garage from I was able to walk and I also grew up on a family farm, so there were always tractors – Massey Ferguson Copperbellies and 165s – and machinery around the place.”
Rodney runs the family farm today and he has also been operating as a contractor for approaching 20 years. “I started contracting in 1996 when I bought a hedge cutter. I started off doing mainly hedges at the start and then began doing round baling. I bought my first baler in ‘97 and went from there.”
A comprehensive, prompt, reliable and cost-effective service is provided to a large number of customers around the border in the greater Belturbet, Cavan, Killeshandra, Ballyconnell areas and anywhere in between. “I do nearly everything,” he confirms. “Slurry, hedges, grass, aerating, muck spreading, baling – a bit of everything, really.”
Considering that his tractors and machinery are so finely-tuned and dependable, it’s hard to believe that Rodney effectively does all the work himself after sourcing quality, pre-owned equipment at a reasonable price. “I’ve never bought anything new,” he continues. “Since I started out, I’ve always bought second hand and fixed them up and kept them going. And that’s how I mean to continue. I never took out any big loans and that has stood to me. I’d buy them cheap, get them going and gradually build up the stock. For a good few years, any money we got went back into the business and there were a lot of hours and long days.”
Rodney’s fleet would make any classic tractor enthusiast’s eyes water. He operates New Holland 8160, 8260, 8360 and 8560s (ranging from ’95 to ’00-reg) as well as an ‘01 ts115, two 7840s (1994 and ’95), a ‘93-reg 7740 and an ‘02 tm165. He also runs a 10145 Zetor and a 10540 as well as old Massey Ferguson 165 and 135s plus a Ferguson copper-belly 35 and a Moffet 390 tractor.
“The 101 45 Zetor was the first one I ever bought, with a circular saw built onto it, and it’s still working 100% fine today. It’s a 1990-reg and there’s not much can go wrong with them; it’s all manual. I would have no interest in replacing it with the new stuff. They are gone too computerised and I don’t like the common rail engines, which are giving people a lot of trouble. We’ll stick with what we know.
“I also have three silage wagons and have front and back mowers on the tm165 with another trailed mower, plus a round baler and wrapper, three slurry tankers, a Redrock loading shovel, a couple of rakes, a tedder and a Keenan orbital dung spreader. For the slurry, I use an umbilical pipe system and dribble bar.”
Rodney – who buys everything private – has gradually moved up through the years, always improving the general age profile of his gear. “Over the years, I’ve had a lot of older machinery, which I fixed up and then sold on. That way you can keep renewing your own fleet. I’m buying a bit fresher now. The freshest wagon I have is an ’08, which I bought last year, when it was six years old. I also bought an Alstrong aerator last year, which is 2012-reg and is the newest thing I’ve ever purchased. It was a great investment because it’ll last a very long time.”
Economically, it makes perfect sense … being a dab hand at mechanical work coming in extremely handy, of course! The straight-talking Belturbet man doesn’t know how he’d survive if he was buying new stuff: “I don’t envy having the repayments,” he confides. “We can do just as much with these and we have very small repayments. We’re not under the same strain as somebody who had over-borrowed and I never have to go to a garage, which is another saving There are still a lot of bills to be paid, though – men, diesel, parts etc. – but at least by cutting back on one of them it gives you a fighting chance.”
Rodney employs a couple of men on a part-time basis and staff numbers go up to four during peak times. “During the winter time, I’d be working away at the hedges on my own,” he says.
With the family farm also to look after, there’s rarely a dull moment. “We have 60 hectares of our own and rent another ten. We do sucklers to beef and sheep, with roughly 100 head of cows and 50 ewes. My father still looks after the cattle and keeps an eye on the stock – only for that I’d have to cut back on the contracting. You’re always kept going and I suppose that’s not a bad complaint.”
While he’s ticking along nicely, Rodney is hoping 2016 is a better year than the current one: “It wasn’t a great year,” he concludes. “Farmers seemed to be just doing the bare essentials and with the way the weather was, it was a tough year. The weather spoiled it. You were doing nothing for long spells and then there was a mad burst and they all needed you at the same time. Compared to that, 2014 was a godsend – there was no pressure and you could plan your days and get everything done. We could do with another year like that.”
Whatever happens, Rodney Clarke’s trusty fleet will be tuned up and ready to roll into action!
Rodney Clarke
Agricultural Contractors
Bessbrook
Belturbet,
Co, Cavan
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 3 No 11, December 2015
