New Weeks trailer and simpler-spec spreaders
18th December 2024
Richard Western is responding to farmers’ cost constraints with a new simple-specification Weeks trailer and Delilah vertical beater manure spreader.
The new Weeks trailer is built using the same standards and materials as the company’s Suffolk range but with a simpler standard features list to which customers can add if desired. It has an 11t capacity and is designed to meet the needs of smaller farms where manoeuvrability in tight spaces is important. Despite a 15m³ volume (25m³ with silage sides), its body length is just 5m.
Manufactured at Richard Western’s Suffolk factory, the Weeks trailer has a simple box chassis made from S355 box section steel. The post-less monocoque tapered body features a 4mm floor and 3mm sides, retaining strength while keeping unladen weight down to 4,500kg.
The five-stage single ram tips the trailer body to a maximum 50o angle, and a hydraulic tailgate is fitted. Standard ride enhancement features include a rubber-cushioned height-adjustable drawbar and 80mm single-leaf suspension.
Streamlined design and enhanced efficiency
The new Delilah D series of vertical beater manure spreaders provides simpler alternatives to the Delilah DV models. Retaining the Delilah beater format of five complete spiral flight sections with six tips per section, the D series (D10/D12/D15, with corresponding m3 capacities) feature a reduced body width of 1,500mm, decreasing overall width from 3,000 to 2,800mm. In combination with greater use of high-strength materials, this has cut overall weight by 10%.
Rotor diameter has been reduced from 890mm to 800mm without detriment to shredding performance or overlapping. The 200mm rotor tubes minimise vibration and allow a large rubber-cushioned drive zone while providing a large weld area for the five 10mm heat-treated boron spiral flights.
There are two types of rotor tips, both made from heat-treated boron, and arranged in a staggered formation to produce a constant rotor load and uniform distribution of shredded material.
D series spreaders feature floor sprockets with six rather than seven teeth, reducing the torque required to drive the floor. The 65mm floor shaft is connected to the floor drive gearbox with a 30-spline shaft, a design unique to Richard Western that provides a greater engagement area than the standard keyway shaft.
While the floor sprocket uses the key to the shaft, the sprockets are bolted to the hub, meaning shaft removal is not required should sprocket replacement be necessary.
Richard Western are at LAMMA 2025
Visit the Richard Western team at LAMMA 2025. Stand number: Hall 6 Stand 230.