To say that Woody Martin is sold on Fendt tractors would be a gross understatement. In fact, if you ask him what he likes about Fendt tractors, his quick response is, “What isn’t there to like?”.That’s especially evident when you consider that Martin, who owns Martin Custom Farming in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, has owned 24 Fendt tractors since he purchased the first one in 2002… including the even dozen he owns at the present time. Eleven of those are Fendt 930 models, while the twelfth is an older Model 716 he uses on a mixer wagon.

“Like I tell anybody else who is considering a Fendt tractor, ‘You need to realize that once you buy a Fendt, you’re going to end up buying more of them’. ”As a custom farmer, Martin uses his Fendt tractors almost every day on several thousand acres annually — including his own 500-acre farm. While many of the jobs call for hauling and spreading liquid manure with nine 6,000-gallon tankers, heand his crew also use the 930s for tillage, cutting hay with a 32-foot triple mower or pulling a merger ahead of a self-propelled forage harvester.

“I realize it is overkill to use a 930 on a merger,” he admits.“But I’ve tried to streamline my tractor inventory so all the models are alike. I’ve had smaller Fendt models in the past,” he continues. “But I’ve found it’s easier to use a big tractor on a small job than to need a big tractor and find that the only one available is one that is too small for the application.”

Martin says that for a number of years, he used nothing but John Deere tractors. However, after going through about 14 transmissions in five years, he decided there had to be another option. That’s when he bought his first Fendt from M.M. Weaver and Sons in Leola, Pennsylvania.

Martin notes that even though other brands have since caught up on the fast transport speed, Fendt was also the first to offer a 31-mph road speed, which dramatically increased productivity when hauling manure.

“They’ve had it from day one,” he notes. “And they’re stillthe only one with features like stability control and a braking system designed to handle the loads the tractor is capable of transporting,” he adds, noting that the Fendt tractors additionally operate the hydraulic brakes on the tankers. Martin points to the comfortable ride is another feature that only a Fendt can offer — whether it’s in the field oron the road. Then, there’s the fact that he can control the triple mower through the Varioterminal, thanks to ISOBUS implement control.

“Hands down, there simply isn’t any other tractor that compares to a Fendt,” he concludes. “When I look back at the four or five ‘game changers’ that have shaped my business, switching to Fendt tractors nearly 14 years ago is one of them.”