Geoff Hutson small farmer from Samsonvale, QLD, purchased a new 50hp Apollo 5504 at Sota Tractor’s Brisbane branch. “It’s my new toy,” he says. “I’m still learning about it but it’s great to use because of the modern features built in. I like the simplicity of having high and low range gears and the shuttle shift makes changing gears easier. Other little things like having a broader seat space to allow you to turn around comfortably and having a well-positioned TPL lifter mean that I can use the Apollo without straining myself.”

Geoff purchased a 5’ AGMAX Slasher and AGMAX Post Hole Digger with 12” Auger to go with the Apollo. At his property “Benson Park” on 160 acres in a valley with a creek at the bottom, 30 acres of slashing needed to be done urgently. “They’d sold out of Apollos, but I needed to do the slashing of the creek flats, so when I spoke to Tom Thring from Sota about it, he offered me a 46hp Kubota to loan while I waited for the Apollo. I was very pleased to be able to borrow a tractor while I waited; it helped a lot.”



“I used to own an International 454 which was unsafe on hills and a pretty grunty machine for slashing. The Apollo performs effortlessly on hills and I’m able to slash up steep grades going backwards. I’m also pleased that the Apollo’s large wheels do minimal damage to the ground and don’t rip it up. It’s a really comfortable tractor to drive and my muscles don’t hurt after a day of slashing like they used to.”

There’s a lot of trees at Benson Park and no work has been done for 15-20 years so the regrowth has built up significantly. “It’s a substantial timber area we have and I plan to thin out the trees and use the wood for post timbers for fencing,” says Geoff. “The 4-in-1 will help to pick up those posts and put them on and off the truck when we’re making fences. Collecting the timber will also be easier.”

“Another job I thought of uses the hydraulic system in the Apollo. I’ve bought a hydraulic (impact) wrench and I’m going to use it like a large drill. We’ve got big, messy wattle trees that I’d like to clean up. I’m going to drill several holes around the base of each tree and fill them with poison. I have a Carryall and 100L Spraypak to carry the poison in. When the wattles die, I will push them over with the loader and remove them. It’ll be good to get the area tidied up.”

The 4-in-1 Bucket is also going to come in handy for moving manure from the stables to the garden. “It’s definitely easier to use a bucket and I think my wife might like to have a go at driving the tractor” says Geoff. “I know I’m finding it easy enough to use!”
 
Geoff originally did some comparisons for purchasing at the Farm Fantastic field days in Caboolture, QLD. “We weren’t in a position to buy an expensive tractor so we looked around at the price range. I investigated getting a Chinese tractor under 50hp and looked at
the workmanship, quality and a whole lot of other things, since I didn’t know much about the Chinese tractor brands. Tom was pretty good – he knew his stuff and answered all our questions. I talked to different tractor companies and ultimately decided to buy from
Sota because of their excellent support, warranty and customer service. I’m really pleased with my Apollo purchase and the great service from Sota Tractors.”

For more information, contact Sota Tractors on their toll-free number 1300 767 297 or visit their website at: www.sotatractors.com