To dismiss trailed forage harvesters as old hat is to ignore parts of not just the UK but also the much larger Irish market, where trailed machines remain the forage-making tool of choice. Here James de Havilland reviews the evergreen JF-Stoll FCT 1050 model and outlines some pointers to check on a second-hand buy
Do a quick trawl of the Internet and you will find there aren’t too many used trailed forage harvesters on the UK market. Venture across the Irish Sea, however, and it’s a rather different story. Trailed models such as the JF-Stoll FCT 1050 command solid used values thanks to their simple build and proven design heritage, and, emphasising this point, JF has relied upon the same upward chop cylinder design since the company’s first FC80 side-mount precision chop models appeared in 1972.
Successor to the 1050, the FCT 1060 arrived in 2010. Under the skin, the new model has much in common with the 1050, the key changes being a switch from electric linear motors for controlling the spout, chute flap and reversing system on the 1050 to full hydraulic control on the 1060 and a new chopping cylinder with more capacity and blow. The FCT 1060 can also cope with more power up front; it has a capacity of up to a potential 100t/hr (see box – ‘Key 1050 to 1060 changes’).
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