REPEAT buyers helped buoy the Old Ashrose on-property sale at Hallett on Thursday, including a lift in the average.
The sale, which offered 100 Merino and Poll Merino rams, as well as 65 White Suffolk rams, resulted in 80 of the Merino and Poll Merino offering sold during the auction for an average $2520 - up $276 on last year.
Long-time buyers David and Rebecca Hombsch, Brooks Rockwood, Booleroo Centre, paid the top price of $5800 for a 124 kilogram White River 456 son Poll Merino with fleece of 20.9 microns, 2.9 standard deviation, 13.9 coefficient of variation, 99.7 per cent comfort factor and 134pc greasy fleece weight.
Mr Hombsch said he liked the size and the wool.
"It has nice, soft wool and plenty of it, on a big frame," he said.
The Hombsch family buy a sire most years to join with their stud ewes and breed their own rams for use on their 2000-strong Merino flock.
They also bought two White Suffolk rams to join with their older ewes.
Old Ashrose's Nick Wadlow said the White River 546 ram had bred well for them, with another son sold at the Adelaide Ram Sale for $5000 to Belbourie stud, Marnoo, Vic, who also bought another son for $4200 during this auction.
He said the clearance reflected the fact many of their usual clients were in drought, across Australia, but the healthy average, particularly in the first half of the sale, where the first 30 rams averaged $3427, showed the quality of the offering.
"The good rams sold well," he said.
"I'm very pleased with the quality we presented this year, they were even from start to finish."
The volume buyer in the Merino and Poll Merino offering was Lazerline Classing, Peterborough, which bought 10 rams to $2800, averaging $1950.
Also buying in the front half of the catalogue was Ian Gunn Family Trust, Streaky Bay, which picked up eight rams to $3800, averaging $2875.
JG&S Weckert, Clare, bought eight rams to $4000, averaging $2437.
GM Butler & Sons, Naracoorte, took home seven rams to $4000, averaging $2786.
Yellowie Props, Burra, bought six rams to $2200, averaging $1933.
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In the third-year of the Old Ashrose White Suffolk offering, there was full-clearance of the 65 rams offered, with the top price of $1500, for a $10 lift in average on last year to $1094.
The top price was paid eight times, including by volume buyer and first-time White Suffolk client Kobey Morris, Maylands Farms, Parawa.
Mr Morris was previously a long-time Old Ashrose Poll Merino buyer - having paid the top-price before - but says this would be the first of several purchases of the White Suffolks.
He paid the $1500 for lot 17, a late June 2018-drop ram with a Carcase Plus index of 201, a Total Carcase Production index of 139.9, birthweight of 0.37, weaning weight of 10.8, and post-weaning eye muscle depth of 2.1.
Mr Morris bought 12 White Suffolk rams in total, averaging $1183, which will be joined with his first-cross ewes for prime lamb production.
Also paying the equal-top price was ML Jaeschke & Co, Clare, for a late June 2018-drop twin ram with a 193CP, 137TCP and 16 PWWT. They bought six rams in total, averaging $1217.
DR Henderson Holdings Pty Ltd, Jamestown, paid that price for a July 2018-drop 14.8PWWT, 2PEMD, 200CP and 139.9TCP, alongside a second ram, averaging $1150.
Butterick Bros, Jamestown, bought four rams in total, averaging $1250, including a $1500, July-drop twin ram with 203CP and 145.3TCP.
An August-drop twin ram with a 201CP, 139.8TCP and 16.5PWWT was bought at $1500 by AR&DL Henderson, Jamestown, as part of two rams, averaging $1300.
SK&GS Robinson, Naracoorte, bought a fellow August-drop twin, with a 15PWWT, 2.2PEMD, 201CP and 140.4TCP, for $1500.
MS Behn & Co, Riverton, paid $1500 twice, including at lot 59 - indicating consistency throughout the catalogue - for a June-drop twin with 201CP, 139TCP, and 16.5PWWT, and for an August-drop with a 16.9PWWT, 203CP and 145.3TCP. They bought four rams in total, averaging $1350.
The sale was conducted by Elders with Elders' stud stock manager Tony Wetherall auctioneering the Merino and Poll Merino sale while Elders livestock sale's manager Damien Webb had the gavel during the White Suffolks.
Mr Wetherall said the quality of the line-up was "exceptional".
"They were big, good boned, good carcase rams that will cut a lot of top quality wool," he said.
"The spread of clients through this state shows how they can survive and thrive."
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Elizabeth Anderson
Editor of Stock Journal.
Editor of Stock Journal.
