Kinze Manufacturing announced at the Farm Progress Show Tuesday that they will offer a more broad selection of planter configurations and an expanded array of options on its row-crop planters for the 2010 planting season.

One major announcement was that Kinze will make its Air Seed Delivery system available on seven more planter models in 2010. The Air Seed Delivery system features two centrally-mounted 55-bushel hoppers (totaling 110 bushels of capacity) and distributes seed to individual row units using air pressure.

Kinze also introduced the new 3660 TS (two-section) planter, which is equipped with the Kinze Cobalt monitoring system with color touch-screen display, and the Kinze Air Seed Delivery system.

The 3660 TS planter features a three-section frame that provides more flexibility compared to traditional Twin-Line designs, says Luc van Herle, national sales manager. “This allows for 13 degree up and down movement, approximately six additional degrees more up and down movement than other Twin-Line designs.”

Another feature of the 3660 planter is a hydraulic weight transfer mechanism that keeps the tool bar even and prevents the wings from rising out of the ground, while maintaining consistent seed trench depth.

The planter can be equipped with Interplant push-row units of a liquid fertilizer package with total capacity of 550 gallons.

The planter is available with an optional breakaway row marker package, as well. This is a new design that allows row markers to fold back when they hit an obstruction. The marker is returned to service again by replacing two shear bolts.

Kinze conducted extensive research in designing the new planter line. “Our market research shows 84% of our customers want 30-inch row spacing,” notes van Herle.

New options on the 3700 front folding planter include the availability of conventional hoppers on the 24-row, 30-inch configuration or the 36-row, 20-inch configuration. Either mechanical metering or the EdgeVac vacuum metering systems are available on conventional planters. The Air Seed Delivery system option is available only on 3700 planters with mechanical metering.

Also new for 2010, growers can get either mechanical or vacuum seed metering systems on the 3800 forward folding planter in a 24 row, 30-inch spacing configuration.