A weekend auction described by auctioneers Halls as "probably the highest quality range of machinery, workshop tools and equipment from one farm ever seen in Shropshire" lived up to its billing as a huge crowd of bidders attended from across the UK and Europe.
The dispersal sale at The Rea Farm, Upton Magna, near Shrewsbury, on Saturday for Messrs S. B. Whittles and Son was prompted by the retirement of tenant farmers Ben and Bec Whittles.
Apart from a huge crowd, Halls handled a large number of telephone bids and the Internet bidding platform i-bidder was very busy, although few lots sold online due to the demand.
"I have conducted big farm dispersal sales in the past but in terms of quality this was the best ever," said auctioneer David Giles, a director of Halls.
"The quality and presentation of the machinery and equipment was unsurpassed.
"The Whittles family moved to The Rea in 1948 and most of the machinery had been on the farm from new and had been meticulously maintained, giving bidders complete confidence in everything they bought. Machines had been kept under cover when not in use and always washed off.
"Everything, including the machinery and equipment records and the workshops, was meticulously maintained, which was a great credit to the Whittles family."
So many people turned up for the auction that an overflow car park had to be arranged three quarter of a mile away with a minibus ferrying them to the farm.
Top price went to a Claas Xerion 4500 tractor which made £111,000 followed by £93,000 for a 2011 Claas Lexion 550 combine with a Vario 6.6 metre header.
Two immaculate Massey Ferguson tractors were headed up by 2012 MF7626 at £63,000, followed by a 2011 MF6490 model at £44,500 and a 1994 JCB 4X at £14,600.
Three 2013 Richard Weston Wellington 18 tonne trailers with steering axles looked almost new and sold between £17,800 and £16,800, a 2009 Chieftain beaver tail trailer sold at £8,200 and the 2009 Chieftain 1400 litre fuel bowser made £3,000.
Cultivation equipment and drills were headed by the Knight 2006 EUA 3800 trailed sprayer at £18,500, a 2006 Sumo five metre Quatro at £14,500, a 2005 four metre Moore’s unidrill at £14,000, a 2009 Sumo three metre Trio at £8,000 and a 2010 Kuhn Axis 40.1W spreader and 2006 Knight four metre press at £6,600 each.
Elsewhere in the auction, a 2013 Opico Magna 20 tonne grain drier in perfect order sold at £36,000.
The comprehensive workshop equipment and tools attracted keen interest from the outset. Top prices were £1,770 for workshop racking, £1,080 for a Colchester student 1600, £980 for a Wilson centre lathe, £750 for a Hypothern powermax plasma cutter, £690 for an Archdale pillar drill, £600 for a Spalding compressor and £590 for a Stihl chainsaw.
Halls’ next collective plant and machinery sale at Shrewsbury Auction Centre is on Friday, June 3
