Kuhn unveils 13.4m-wide trailed butterfly mower

Contractors battling to get enough grass knocked down ahead of the forager now have the option of going large with Kuhn’s semi-mounted butterfly mo-co, which carries beds that can be telescoped out to provide an albatross-like wingspan of 13.4m.

That makes the FC 13460 RA roughly 30% bigger than most triple mowers on the market and, says the company, perfectly suited to controlled traffic farming  on a 12m system.

It comes with hydraulically powered groupers that ferry the crop inwards to form a swath of anything between 1.8m and 3m wide, saving the need to employ a separate tractor and rake when conditions allow.

The speed of the groupers can be adjusted and they can also be lifted out of work for heavy, wet first-cut silage that might require a bit of extra drying time.

See also: Driver’s view: Gatcombe Farm’s Kuhn FC 8830 D-FF mowers

© Kuhn

Unusually, the outfit runs on a telescopic axle that can be extended in its “field” mode to improve stability when turning and allow more space between the wheels to lay a wider and more evenly shaped swath that should be easier to pick up with the forager.

To achieve the huge wingspan, Kuhn has fitted a pair of six-disc Optidisc Elite cutterbars on each side that will leave a stubble of 35-65mm when running on standard skids. These carry long-lasting, quick-release knives.

As with the firm’s other triples, the FC 13460 RA comes with steel-finger conditioners that can be run at 755 or 1,000rpm.

Theoretical power requirement of the butterfly unit is 260hp, but it may well require something a bit bigger to boss the 8,410kg total weight. It folds to 3m wide and 4m tall for transport on the road.

Control is via a Kuhn terminal – either the CCI 800 or 12.1in CCI 1200 – or the Isobus UT through a compatible on-board display.

The list price is £156,755.