Our editors were on the ground at this year's National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Ky. These are our top takeaways from the show.
1. Case IH's AF11 combine was a big attraction.
Here’s an early morning walk around look at the Case IH AF11 combine. The unit was a big attraction, with a consistent crowd in the booth looking to learn more.
2. 360 Yield Center offered valuable presentations.
360 Yield Center founder Gregg Sauder gave several presentations in the company's booth. In this video, Sauder explains how the autonomous irrigation system works and why it’s boosted yields by 65 bushels per acre in some fields.
3. Trimble highlighted rural connectivity.
We stopped by the Trimble booth to learn about automatic stream switching, which allows farmers to access the best means of receiving RTX corrections - via cellular or satellite.
4. Local dealer showcased the largest available ag spray drone.
We stopped by the booth of 5-store Ohio Case IH dealer Apple Farm Service to check out the mammoth, autonomous Hylio drone. This unit weights 117 pounds without batteries, has a tank capacity of 18 gallons and offers 10-15 minutes of flight time with a full payload.
5. Strip-till units were on display.
We met up with Dan Guenther at Zimmerman Manufacturering, who showcased new updates on Zimmerman Manufacturing’s Contour King units including wavy coulters and adjustments to the rolling basket. We also got details on units from Land Luvr and saw the new Yetter Fast DuraPlacer units.
6. Mahindra brought a stock car.
On our visit to the Mahindra booth, we got to take a close look at NASCAR driver Chase Briscoe’s Mahindra branded stock car. In a recent interview with Rural Lifestyle Dealer, Briscoe said when it comes to his needs as a customer, Briscoe wants to feel appreciated above all, but he also emphasizes the importance of the dealer’s expertise in determining what equipment is the right fit.
7. RhinoAG unveils a brand new unit.
RhinoAG invited us for the reveal of the all-new Rhino 4515 heavy-duty 15' Flex-Wing. More cover of this unit will be available soon on theFarm Innovations YouTube channel.8. Salford Group let us crash their dealer meeting.
On our way out of the show on day 1, we stumbled across Salford Group celebrating their dealers over dinner. They welcomed us to join them and even fed us!
9. We caught up with Farm Equipment Dealer Hall of Fame member Paul Wallem.
On the morning of day 1, we prioritized joining Hall of Farmer Paul Wallem during his book signing and personally handing him a copy of this record-setting February Farm Equipment issue! For 2 staff members, it was their first time meeting the legend himself in person. You can read his story here.
10. Castongia Tractor hosted us before the show even began.
A few hours into our drive on Tuesday, we stopped at 5-store John Deere dealer Castongia Tractor's Demotte, Ind., store and spoke with Sales Manager Chris Meding about a new See and Spray unit the store had just received.
