Grimme FT 300/Farming Simulator 15
The Grimme FT 300 is a Sugar Beet Haulm Topper available in Farming Simulator 15. It is designed to remove the tops off Sugar Beet crops, which is a necessary step before actually harvesting Sugar Beets. It is the only stand-alone Sugar Beet Haulm Topper in the base game.
Overview
The Grimme FT 300 is a Haulm Topper specifically designed for Sugar Beets. Its purpose is to cut the leaves off the plant, to make it suitable for harvesting.
The harvesting process for the Root Crops (Potato and Sugar Beet) involves two steps: First, the above-ground leafy part of the plant must be removed, and only then can the actual roots be extracted from the ground as a crop yield.
The FT 300 is the only machine available in the base game whose sole purpose is to perform this task on Sugar Beets. The only other machine is the extremely-expensive Grimme Maxtron 620, which cuts the haulm and harvests the Sugar Beets at the same time.
The Grimme FT 300 is a header for tractors. It has a Three-point hitch, which can be attached either at the front or back of any tractor that has a similar hitch. Every tractor in the game has a Three-point hitch at the back, but not every tractor in the base game has such a hitch at the front. In particular, the largest tractors lack a front one. Attaching the FT 300 at the front of a tractor makes it slightly easier to maneuver, and produces better results when using Hired Workers.
Once attached and driven to a field containing ripe Sugar Beets, the FT 300 can be lowered and activated. It requires 45 kW / 61 hp to operate, otherwise it will refuse to activate. Any tractor in the base game can provide the required amount of power. While operating, the FT 300 imposes a speed limit of 15 km/h. As the FT 300 passes over ripe Sugar Beets, it will remove the haulms (the vegetation sticking above the ground), leaving only the Beets themselves, underground. These must be collected with a separate machine, such as the Grimme Rootster 604.
- Note: The ability to mount the FT 300 at the front opens up an important possibility: mount the FT 300 on the front of the tractor, and attach a Grimme Rootster 604 at the rear. When both are activated, the tractor can cut haulms and collect Sugar Beets at the same time. Although this combination works poorly with a Hired Worker, it should do just fine in manual driving mode - making a cheap but effective alternative for the Grimme Maxtron 620 during the early game. Of course, the Maxtron 620 still has plenty of advantages over this set-up.
The working width of the FT 300 is very narrow, at only 3.0 meters. This is the same width as the Grimme Rootster 604 and the Grimme Maxtron 620.
You may hire a Worker to operate the FT 300.
Specifications
- Price: $17,000
- Maintenance: $20 / day
- Working width: 3.0m
- Required power: 45 kW / 61 hp
- Max speed (work mode): 15 km/h / 9 mph
- Selling price: $8,500 ($10,200 at shop)