Hay is a charming town located in the western Riverina region of south-western New South Wales, Australia. It serves as the administrative centre of the Hay Shire local government area and is situated in a fruitful agricultural district on the expansive Hay Plains. The town is conveniently located approximately halfway between Sydney and Adelaide. Recently, our team had the pleasure of interviewing Kevin Walter, one of our valued customers, who resides and works in the Hay area. He shared with us his experience of purchasing the Hidromek HMK600MG Grader.

During our conversation with Kevin, he shared some insights into his business. Kevin states, “their primary clients are graziers, and they focus less on shire work.” Their services include constructing tracks and roads, clearing channels, building trenches for the installation of polypipes, dozing old fences, and levelling the ground for new fences, ground tanks, and dams. With 46 years of experience in the field, their services extend up to 100 km in all directions of the Hay shire area.

Kevin is used to hard-work and completes most tasks himself, though sometimes calls on additional operators when needed. With a fleet of four graders, he can leave one machine on-site as necessary. For customers who require trenching, he typically digs the trenches, leaves a grader, moves on to another job while the pipe is being laid, and then returns to fill the trenches. In addition to his fleet of graders, Kevin has several Rollers, which he primarily uses for constructing bush tracks. If necessary, he can also hire other equipment such as a water truck or a scraper to complete the job.

What led Kevin to purchasing a new Hidromek grader was that the three other graders he has in his fleet have over 17000 hours on them and needed to be upgraded. Consequently, Kevin set out to research what he needed. Having many years of experience in the field, he was aware of precisely what he required. After noticing an ad in Australian Earthmoving Magazine for the Hidromek grader he then rang through to Onetrak’s Melbourne office and the rest, as they say is history.

During our discussions, Kevin pointed out the key features that made the HMK600MG so appealing. Firstly, it comes with a steering wheel, as well as a joystick, and a powerful air conditioner which is crucial when working in Hay's climate. Kevin also highlighted the importance of the HMK600MG'sreversible radiator fan which is a standard feature. This is especially helpful because the dusty conditions in Hay require daily radiator maintenance, however with a reversable radiator fan, the job of cleaning the radiators is so much easier. Kevin also noted that this was an expensive added option for many brands.

After putting the Hidromek grader to the test, Kevin, a seasoned user of graders, has compared it with other leading brands. In Kevin's own words, "It is the most stable grader I have ever driven, and I have driven them all over the years." Although the joystick controls were different from the normal pedestal joysticks he was used to, he found it surprisingly easy to adapt to the new system. He has been able to construct trenches with stable batters for recycled channels up to three meters deep, and he feels secure knowing that the Hidromek grader can handle this challenging task with ease.

He was also impressed with the HMK600MG's speed, boasting over 200hp and exceptional ground speed. The Hidromek grader's quickness, combined with its great turning circle, and the other features highlighted, has made Kevin an avid supporter of the brand – even though he had never encountered Hidromek or their graders before.

For the past three years, Kevin has been working closely with the Tumut branch, acknowledging that Onetrak and Hidromek have been excellent partners. Kevin's knowledge and experience led him to make a small change to the side mesh panel that helps to prevent grass from entering the radiator. Kevin added his own hinges, so the panels could be lifted, allowing access to the radiator to blow it out. Hidromek were made aware of this and when Tim Jackson from the Onetrak Tumut branch came out to do the 1000hr service, Hidromek had redesigned the side panel to include the hinge and installed it on the machine at no extra cost. The Onetrak team, particularly Tim, have been outstanding in terms of service and promptness in resolving any minor issues that have arisen. Kevin emphasizes that proper backup and maintenance are critical to ensure smooth operations.

Onetrak is the official dealer for Hidromek equipment in Australia. Visit www.onetrak.com.au or call 1300727 520 to get in touch with Onetrak and the team.

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