Spirit

Spirit creates new possibilities

Innovative, robust and with reliable establishment results.

Result counts. Spirit is gaining territory among demanding farmers, thanks to the ability to maintain precision during high speed drilling with enormous capacity. Spirit is tailor-made for soils that require double consolidation and achieves an impressive crop emergence.

Precision drilling at high speed

Spirit creates new opportunities in crop production.

Väderstad Spirit is developed for precision drilling at high speed. The key considerations when developing the Spirit have been strong cultivation, excellent seed placement at high working speed, careful soil consolidation and long lifetime.

To achieve an even and strong emergence, the soil is consolidated both before and after placing the seed. Spirit can reduce the number of passes thanks to the strong cultivation ability of the front tools. This saves fuel, time and soil moisture.

Versatile machine

Ploughing or min till - Spirit is always right. The toolbars and even the row space can be selected according to requirements. This makes Spirit a versatile multi – machine for many soils and cultivation systems.

Like other Väderstad machines, Spirit is characterised by high quality, long life and low running costs. Spirit is also easy to adjust and maintain, making Spirit a reliable partner that creates new opportunities in crop production.

Front tools Spirit S

The toolbar cultivates and levels the soil. Depending on your needs, you can choose between four different front tools:

• Crossboard Heavy
• System Disc Aggressive
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Heavy
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Light

The V55 steel-disc and the angle of the disc are the same as on Carrier.

Accurate seed placement

Accurate seed placement is one key feature of Spirit and is the secret behind the uniform emergence.

• Consolidation before drilling is done by large 820 mm Off Set wheels. This operation creates uniform conditions all over the working width. This feature is very important on light soil.
• Off Set V-discs move the soil to the side and place the seed in the bottom of the seed furrow. A steel tube places the seed in a protected area between the v-discs.
• A 380x65 mm press wheel ensures a good seed to soil contact.
• The following harrow levels the surface and breaks the capilarity to save moisture.

Spirit is available with either 125 mm or 167 mm row spacing. Each coulter has a double disc 380 mm in diameter, followed by a large press wheel. The new press wheel has the dimension 380x65 mm with soft tires and rim with spokes ensure good function also in wet condition. The large discs and large press wheel allows working with high coulter pressure without the units sinking far into loose soil. It also ensures a long lifetime and gives more controlled travel at high speeds.

Up to a coulter pressure of 80 kg ensure a perfect seed placement in all conditions.

Working widths

Spirit is available in 4, 6, 8 and 9m working widths with seed only version.
The Spirit 400C seed/fertiliser version is available in 4 m.

Spirit 400C

Väderstad Spirit is also available in a combi version as a complement to the other successful Spirit Next models. Spirit 400C has a 4m working width and 3900 litres hopper. The fertiliser is placed in bands during drilling without increased draught requirement. Spirit 400C is designed to work at high speed with excellent seed and fertiliser placement.

• System Disc Aggressive
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Heavy
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Light

Winter testing in very tough conditions

One of the tests was performed in December to Febuary in temperatures down to 20 degrees below zero. Approx. 1000 hectars in stony conditions on a solid frozen seedbed is a demanding test that ensures a solid construction!

Spirit 400-900S

Drilling technique Spirit

Metering system

 Spirit TriForce

Spirit 400C seed and
fertiliser placement

Master & Slave

 Lowlift switch

Liftstop

Boutmarkers

Saves time, saves fuel, saves money!

1. Cultivation/Levelling

Depending on the front tools Spirit can work either directly in the stubble or on cultivated/ploughed land.
Spirit can be equipped with four different front tools:

• Crossboard Heavy - Perfect solution for ploughed and cultivated land with low draft requirement.
• System Disc Aggressive - Our most versatile front tool for min till farming. Intensive soil preparation with individual rubber suspension for each disc. The System Disc Aggressive is the same type as on the Carrier enabling full cut out in one pass. The disc size in combination with the conical shape ensures small soil particles, ideal for a good seed bed. The discs are positioned in an X-pattern with a unique double disc in the centre of the first row to ensure that no lateral forces enter the machine. The Discs are made of V55-steel with a diameter of 450 mm for superior life time.
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Light. Crossboard Light in front of the System Disc levels off the field with good flexibility and can handle some trash.
• System Disc Aggressive Crossboard Heavy. Crossboard Heavy in front of System Disc levels off uneven fields also in difficult conditions. In some conditions this front tool works direct in ploughed land.

2. Consolidation

The large OffSet carrying wheels have several functions.

• The large diameter of 820 mm ensures calm operation also at high speed.
• The wide 400 mm wheels prepare the way, give Spirit a stable passage and allow the seed coulters to maintain constant drilling depth on all soils.
• OffSet placement decreases the draught requirement up to 25% thanks to improved soil flow and less bulldozing.

3. Drilling

Spirit has 380 mm large discs for high speed accuracy. The Off Set V-discs move the soil to the side and place the seed in the bottom of the seed furrow. The soil falls back behind the discs and covers the seed with fine soil. Seed coulter pressure up to 80 kg to ensure a good penetration. The unique TriForce rubber suspension gives a supreme ability to follow ground contour. Accurate drilling depth is easily set with clips.

4. Reconsolidation

The new large 380x65 mm press wheels give a calm operation also at high speed. Soft tires, rim with spokes and effective scrapers ensure good function also in loose soil or wet conditions.
The wide press wheel controls the seed depth very precise also in uneven ground and ensures good seed-to-soil contact. This is the key for strong germination.

5. Finishing

The harrow is positioned to run in-between the seed rows, so there is no risk of disturbing shallow-drilled seeds.
The following harrow makes a loose evaporation barrier to preserve moisture and prevents capping after heavy rain.

Spirit 400C

Spirit 400C is the latest member in the Spirit family for seed and fertiliser drilling.

Fertiliser is placed in the shadow behind each front tool disc and is covered by the soil thrown by the neighbouring discs. This way the fertiliser is placed in a 5 cm band in front of each seed coulter with a row distance of 12.5 cm. We call this the FIX method.

The working depth and fertiliser placement can easily be adjusted from cab on the go. Actual working depth can be seen on the Control Station screen. The soil is reconsolidated by the large offset wheels before the seed placement, which also ensures good separation between seed and fertiliser. The FIX method needs no extra draught requirement since the fertiliser is placed with the System Disc Aggressive.

Easy access to fertiliser gives a quick start and powerful crop

By placing seed and fertiliser at the same time as the cultivation time and money are saved.
When the fertiliser is placed in moisture, the nutrients dissolve and are immediately available for the plant without the need for rain. Placing fertiliser in the seedbed is therefore an insurance against drought, making every kilogram of N and P more effective. This leads to increased nutrient use and higher yields, other benefits include efficiency and environmental advantages through decreased nutrient losses. By positioning the fertiliser close to the seed, the seed has quicker access to the fertiliser compared to weeds.