The ups and downs of heavy hauling

Seth Hawbaker has been hauling and applying liquid manure since he formed S & L Enterprise in 1998. He currently uses two New Holland TG255 tractors for his custom manure hauling business.

Powershift and TerraGlide™ make the job easier

Seth Hawbaker is a specialist in hauling heavy loads. Six days a week, for about ten months out of the year, he and his two employees at S & L Enterprise haul liquid manure in 6,300-gallon tanks in the hills and valleys of south-central Pennsylvania, just west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. When loaded, the tanks and contents weigh about 75,000 pounds.

Sometimes, it's around-the-clock work on ground that is hard and partly frozen. Then there are the hills.

In this rolling area of mixed farming and forestry, even the valleys can have slopes that run at five degrees for a half-mile. The rise can amount to 150 feet for Seth’s tractors and 75,000-pound trailers.

"We're in and out of a lot of rough lanes and the TerraGlide™ suspension works very well."
—Seth Hawbaker

Seth is the youngest of four children raised on a farm near Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. From the age of 14 until going independent, he farmed as a partner with his two older brothers. In 1998, he and his wife, Lori, formed S & L Enterprise with a single 6,300-gallon Houle liquid manure applicator tank and a New Holland 8870 tractor.

A smooth ride

Business has grown, and his equipment inventory has tripled, but Seth and his crew still pull occasional all-nighters to meet deadlines. Demand for his service is especially high in the spring and fall, thanks to the growing number of intensive livestock buildings in his area.

“We haul liquid waste from lots of dairies, four large hog units, and a couple of municipalities between the state border and Chambersburg,” Seth says. “We take the waste from a tank, pit, or lagoon, haul it to a field and apply it.”

It takes lots of power to handle the weight of a loaded 6,300-gallon tank, especially on long hills. That’s why Seth is happy to have two 215 hp New Holland TG255 tractors helping him on the job. He especially likes the automatic shifting on the TG255.

“Shifting is computerized with the engine and transmission communicating,” he says. “If you put it in automatic, the rpms go up and down to synchronize the shifting. It creates a smoother shift.”

The rolling hills in south-central Pennsylvania create a special challenge for Seth Hawbaker. He says the Auto Shift feature on his New Holland TG255 tractors makes shifting smooth and easy.

The TG Series has a programmable 18x4 full powershift transmission. In gears one through 12, operators press the Auto Shift button to maintain tractor performance under varying loads in the field based on throttle, engine speed, and engine load. In gears 11 through 18 for the road, the Auto Shift button engages another feature that allows the operator to use only the throttle lever.

With a 75,000-pound load on his tanks, going up a long hill and turning from the road into a lane, Seth is happy to let his computer handle most of the shifting.

And, when conditions change from muddy to hard and bumpy, he appreciates other options like TerraGlide™ suspension and the deluxe comfort cab.

“We got the front-end suspension for our job application. We’re in and out of a lot of rough lanes and the TerraGlide suspension works very well,” he says.

The TerraGlide axle smoothes out bumps by providing up to four inches of travel, to keep the front tires in contact with the ground on any terrain and even at the 25-mph transport speed. It reduces vibration and shocks to the cab, improves stability, traction, and steering control.

Handling the kind of loads Seth does is all about control. The manure tanks are 10 feet wide, 10 feet high and 24 feet long. In the field, traction is also a concern: that’s why Seth has a pair of Michelin 600/R38 flotation tires on the front and a pair of Michelin 710/R42 tires on the rear. “We do have excellent flotation. Every hill’s different,” he says.

Besides safety, operator comfort is also important, and Seth gets that with the TG255 tractor. “It’s a totally different tractor from the 8870. There’s a lot more operator comfort. The seat is real nice in this deluxe cab. The hand controls are very convenient. Visibility is better. It’s got better monitors. Really, it’s a whole new concept.”


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