What is the most powerful self-propelled forager on the island of Ireland? And where is it?
As things stand, it must be this grass-hungry Krone BiG X 1100 (see video below). This machine belongs to contractor Brian Horner; he’s based in north Co. Down – in Northern Ireland.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3cq2nnVGoQ&t=2s
This footage was shot by FarmFliX – a well-known producer of agricultural videos. FarmFliX focuses, in the main, on farm machinery – typically contractor-spec equipment.
The BiG X 1100 is the biggest forager in Krone’s line-up. In fact, at present, it’s the biggest forager available from any mainstream manufacturer.
It’s capable of delivering a whopping 1078hp; this muscle is supplied by a hefty V12 MAN D2862 engine. Even in ‘Eco’ mode, it still churns out 636hp.
Brian’s BiG X 1100 is the only one to have been sold in Ireland thus far, though there is a growing population of other Krone foragers on the island.
That’s significant, given that Krone is a relative newcomer to the self-propelled forage harvester market – certainly when compared to the likes of Claas, John Deere and New Holland.
Who is dominant?
Claas, however, is still the dominant player in the worldwide forager market; it outsells all other manufacturers by a sizeable margin.
Image source: Shane Casey
Krone has, nonetheless, come a long way in a comparatively short time. Fendt (AGCO), meanwhile, also has ambitions for this market, but it’s still ‘early days’ for its Katana line-up.
