My name is Rick Moore our farm is located in eastern Ohio.
The name of the farm is Cottage Hill Farm.
It's myself, my dad Stanley and my son Steven.
We have the original land grant deed from James Madison; the sheepskin deed that
originally started on the original 156 acres that was known as Cottage Hill Farm.
We've built the farm up over the years
— we're now at about 700 deeded acres, but we rent about 2,300 more so we're running
close to 3,000 acres altogether. The
majority that is pasture we have 750-800 ewes,
35 mama cows — we keep our calves over as yearlings. I make about 700 acres of hay.
We focus on good alfalfa, good grass hay. Hay is our major crop and you know, we like
we like to make good hay. Usually we
like to be making first cutting by the
middle of May last year it was the 8th of
June. Mother Nature tells us when we'll make hay.
We like to get four cuttings on
the alfalfa depending on the year.
With the grass hay — two is usually all will get. We won't take a third.
This one particular model that we bought, when we bought it new, the first day I had trouble.
It would streak in heavy hay, there was a third roller and finally it got to the place that I would carry
four spare belts with me when I went to mow. I told my dealer that
I was looking to find me another 12-foot and that I was trading that one off and he said
Vermeer is where you need to go,
and I traded it off. I bought a Vermeer.
From the first day out it mowed well. Oh, I
loved it. I went to the field and mowed hay.
I set the header and load up — and with that hitch they're just showing off.
That's just the berries — I love that hitch.
You know you back in and the pin drops
Put the power take-off up, put the hoses on and go. Oh man, it's a joy mowing hay now.
With the other, you'd dread it. You know every time you went to the field you knew that you were
going to end up changing a set of
belts before you went home.
You'd know you were looking at 20 minutes to half an hour to
switch out belts and you know you need
to be mowing. We turned dry in July/August of last year some of our second crop was a
little lighter. It mowed equally as well in
the light hay as it did in the heavy.
Like I say, you can mow as fast you've
got nerves to stay in the seat. I was impressed with
maintenance — to change knives you know
that's slick that's a really cool idea.
I like that. To grease and maintain, it's
simple. You know I don't want to have to
take six or eight shields off to grease the machine. I don't want to do that.
And like I say, it's simple and easy to run.
It's going to make me live longer too. Since I traded that other one off you know
I got a lot less stress now mowing with this one.
I'm Rick Moore and that's why I switched to the MC 3700 mower conditioner.
