Time Is Money

As Massey Ferguson® rolls out its newest tractor series, one Georgia farmer takes time from his busy schedule to try out a demo.

Lee Powers (left) with his Massey Ferguson dealer, Roger Harrod.

For Lee Powers, time is at a premium. Most days he’s out of the house around 5:30 a.m. to feed and check on at least one of his two herds that he raises on two separate tracks. He also owns a construction business with the majority of the work—mostly commercial buildings, such as doctors’ offices—located in metro Atlanta, approximately 50 miles east of his home and farmland.

Still, he scratched out a little time when Roger Harrod, his Massey Ferguson dealer at Georgia Deer Farm & Agri-Center in the small community of Roopville, approached him with a proposition.

Roger had a demo model of a new MF4609 tractor. It’s one of three models in the Massey Ferguson 4600 Series that has received considerable press and been eagerly awaited by many farmers for its reported versatility and leading-edge technologies, including a 3.3-liter, 3-cylinder engine that’s said to be extremely efficient and powerful.

“It’s a nice, all-around-size tractor for somebody like Lee,” says Roger. “It’s for guys who aren’t full-time farmers, but they want to keep their place up. I’d say it’s a good hay tractor—perfect for cutting and bush hogging.”

Lee is already a Massey Ferguson customer—the owner of two tractors, an MF573 and MF5455. “The 5455 is the best tractor I’ve ever had in the hay field. Period,” says Lee. “I’ve been on all kinds of tractors, and it has spoiled me.” He says he’s enjoyed the MF5455 so much because everything is right at his fingertips, there’s plenty of power, and the visibility is wonderful.

Since Lee first bought the land, Frank has helped with his son’s farms, a 100-acre spread in Carrollton, Ga., where they raise 50 Black Angus cattle, and a 40-acre tract with about 22 head of Herefords in Hogansville. With other side hay jobs they have acquired—including managing a 205-acre tract of land belonging to the city of Hogansville—Lee estimates they cut and bale around 700 acres of hay twice and sometimes three times per year.

That translates to lots and lots of hay, factors they kept in mind during their time with the MF4609. As it is with many farmers, fuel usage was near the top of their list of concerns. To that end, Lee and Frank were happy with the 3-cylinder AGCO Power engine. “It seems to be fuel-efficient,” says Frank. “I was able to bush hog all day on a full tank.”

They also were looking for something to provide the power they needed. “I have been very, very pleased with the power it has,” says Lee. “As far as pulling, it is perfect for running a 15-foot bush hog. We were even cutting some wet stuff, and it was pulling through there just fine.”

The new power shuttle transmission was also a plus. “The transmission is smooth,” says Lee. “It’s like the cat’s meow. You can shift on the go, and the clutch is easy.”

Lee is already envisioning how an MF4609 might play a significant role on his farms, especially when it comes to raking, cutting and baling hay.

“There’s a 99.9% chance I’m going to buy that tractor,” he says.

To read the full story and to learn more about three key features of the MF4609 that separate it from the pack, visit http://www.myfarmlife.com/features/time-is-money/. To find out when you can check out a new Massey Ferguson 4600 Series tractor, contact your local dealer.