What Schlagel Manufacturing does

Schlagel Manufacturing is a privately held, family-owned designer and manufacturer of specialty agricultural equipment, founded by Ron Schlagel in 1993 and headquartered at 4154 Buttermilk Road in Torrington, Wyoming, with 11–50 employees. The company builds strip-till, conservation-tillage, and planter-attachment equipment — most notably the Rapid Till family (standard, HD heavy-duty, and AR automatic-reset variants, available in 4- to 24-row configurations at unit prices from roughly $25,000 to $312,000), the patented Posi-Close Closing Wheels with a horizontal-rod design, the Gopher Eliminator mechanical bait-delivery system, and a secondary line of material-handling products (Wing Ditcher, Bale Forks, Bumper Hoist truck crane, Grapple Fork). Underlying technology is mechanical: knife-based fertilizer-application points with point-load ground penetration, shear-bolt or hydraulic-reset shanks, and patented closing-wheel geometry that creates seed-to-soil contact while leaving a protective mulch layer.

The business model is hardware sales through a nationwide network of independent agricultural equipment dealers (no direct-to-farm sales), with an extensive replacement-parts catalog sold via the dealer network and the company website. Revenue comes from two streams: complete equipment units (entry-level attachments at roughly $5,000–$6,500 for Gopher Eliminator and Bumper Hoist, mid-tier Rapid Till row units at $5,000–$7,300, and full-size machines up to $312,000) and ongoing replacement-parts revenue (under $1 to several hundred dollars per item). Primary customers are row-crop farmers adopting strip-till or minimum-tillage operations, with secondary segments of ranchers (bale handling) and construction workers (truck-mounted lifting). Marketing is conducted through FEMA membership, six major regional farm shows (Farm Progress Show, Husker Harvest Days, Sunbelt Ag Expo, etc.), social media (Facebook, LinkedIn), product demonstration videos, and an SEO-optimized website with dealer-locator functionality. Schlagel has remained independent throughout its 30-plus-year history with no disclosed outside institutional investors, no funding rounds, and no M&A activity.

Name

Schlagel Manufacturing

Legal name

Schlagel Manufacturing

Website

https://schlagel.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Schlagel Manufacturing is a family-owned, Wyoming-based designer and manufacturer of specialty agricultural equipment — including the Rapid Till strip-till system, patented Posi-Close Closing Wheels, and the Gopher Eliminator — sold through a nationwide network of independent dealers to row-crop farmers, ranchers, and construction workers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Equipment Manufacturing

NAICS

Farm and Garden Machinery and Equipment Merchant Wholesalers (42382), Farm and Garden Machinery and Equipment Merchant Wholesalers (423820)

SIC

Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523)

akta.pro primary industry

Tillage, Seeding & Planting Equipment (IMAHACAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Crop Protection & Application Equipment (Sprayers/Spreaders) (IMAHACAC), Hay & Forage Machinery (Mowers, Rakes, Tedders, Balers, Wrappers) (AFAAAAAE)

Keywords

• Strip till equipment
• Agricultural equipment manufacturing
• Planter closing wheels
• Conservation tillage systems
• Agricultural replacement parts

Headquarters

HQ city

Torrington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Agricultural Equipment Sales: Complete strip till machines (Rapid Till, Rapid Till HD, Rapid Till AR), closing wheels, gopher eliminators, bale forks, bumper hoists, wing ditchers, and optional equipment sold as one-time purchases. Machines range from $30,000 to $312,000 depending on row count and configuration.
2. Replacement Parts Sales: Comprehensive inventory of replacement parts for all equipment categories including wheel parts, Rapid Till parts, Rapid Till HD parts, optional equipment parts, gopher eliminator parts, wing ditcher parts, bumper hoist parts, grapple fork parts, and miscellaneous hardware. Parts range from under $1 to several hundred dollars.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Schlagel Manufacturing designs, fabricates, and sells strip-till and conservation tillage agricultural equipment, including the Rapid Till family (Rapid Till, Rapid Till HD, Rapid Till AR) in 4-row through 24-row configurations, Posi-Close Closing Wheels for planters, the Gopher Eliminator mechanical pest-baiting system, Wing Ditcher cultivators, Bale Forks, Bumper Hoist truck cranes, and Grapple Forks, plus a comprehensive catalog of replacement parts. Products are priced from approximately $5,000 for individual row units up to $312,000 for a 24-row Rapid Till configuration, and are sold exclusively through a nationwide independent dealer network with online parts ordering available direct from the manufacturer.

Product overview

Schlagel Manufacturing is a family-owned agricultural equipment manufacturer based in Torrington, Wyoming, founded over 30 years ago by Ron Schlagel. The company designs and manufactures a comprehensive portfolio of strip till and conservation tillage equipment, planter attachments, pest control systems, and material handling tools. The core product lines include the Rapid Till strip till system (available in standard, HD heavy-duty, and AR automatic reset variants), Posi-Close Closing Wheels for planters, the Gopher Eliminator bait delivery system, Wing Ditcher adjustable cultivators, Bale Forks, Bumper Hoist truck cranes, and Grapple Forks. These products are sold alongside extensive replacement parts catalogs covering wheels, strip till equipment, gopher control, and miscellaneous hardware. The company sells direct through a dealer network across the United States and offers online parts ordering, with equipment configurations ranging from 4-row to 24-row machines with various spacing options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rapid Till Lightweight, low-draft strip till system that applies fertilizer (dry, liquid, or anhydrous ammonia) in fall or spring using a knife-based design with point load for ground penetration and rear packing wheels for depth control. Available in 4-row, 6-row, 8-row, 12-row, 16-row, 18-row, and 24-row configurations, with prices ranging from $25,000-$30,000 (4-row) up to $150,000-$312,000 (24-row). Targeted at row-crop farmers seeking efficient fertilizer application and seedbed preparation in a single pass.
• Rapid Till HD

Quantifiable outcome

• Rapid Till machines can operate at speeds up to 10 mph, allowing farmers to cover large acreages in less time
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ALCIVIAminorOthers · 21 January 2026Schlagel Manufacturing supplies bucket elevators and conveyors as an equipment vendor for ALCIVIA's grain terminal project in Hager City, Wisconsin. The design-build project was completed by J&D Construction, Inc., with Schlagel among multiple equipment suppliers including APEX Industrial, Behlen Manufacturing, AGI Airlanco, and Knobelsdorff.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Yetter Manufacturing: Family-owned Illinois manufacturer of planter attachments including closing wheels, row cleaners, and strip-till equipment. Directly competes with Schlagel's Posi-Close wheels and Rapid Till product lines, serving the same row-crop farmers through dealer networks.
• Dawn Equipment Company: Manufacturer of strip-till equipment, closing wheels, and planter attachments. Highly comparable niche competitor focused on minimum-tillage and one-pass planting systems sold through similar agricultural dealer channels.
• Orthman Manufacturing: Nebraska-based tillage and fertilizer-application equipment manufacturer. Direct competitor in strip-till and 1tRIPr-style fertilizer application products, with similar geographic footprint in the US Corn Belt.
• Sunflower (AGCO): Tillage and seeding equipment brand owned by AGCO, competing in the same strip-till, conventional tillage, and fertilizer-application segments as Schlagel Rapid Till product family.
• Great Plains Manufacturing (Kubota): Major tillage and seeding equipment manufacturer acquired by Kubota. Directly competes in the strip-till and vertical tillage categories where Schlagel's Rapid Till products compete, with broader product breadth but similar dealer-distribution model.
• Kuhn Krause (Kuhn Group): North American tillage and seeding equipment maker (Kuhn Krause and Kuhn Knight brands). Competes directly with Schlagel in conventional and conservation tillage equipment sold through farm equipment dealers.
• Salford Group: Manufacturer of tillage, seeding, and application equipment including I-Series and Halo tillage tools. Direct competitor in strip-till and fertilizer-application equipment targeting row-crop farmers.

Broad incumbents

• Case IH (CNH Industrial): Global full-line agricultural OEM with True-Tandem and vertical tillage product lines. Overlaps with Schlagel's strip-till/fertilizer-application systems but at much greater scale through extensive dealer networks and financing.
• John Deere (Deere & Company): Dominant full-line agricultural equipment manufacturer offering tillage, planters, and integrated precision-ag solutions. Schlagel competes at the attachment and strip-till level against Deere-branded and aftermarket planter components.

Emerging players

• Kinze Manufacturing: Independent planter manufacturer whose planters are commonly fitted with Schlagel closing wheels per customer_segments data. While primarily a planter OEM, adjacent tillage and aftermarket component offerings make Kinze a relevant channel partner and adjacent peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/schlagelmfg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/schlagel-manufacturing-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Schlagel Manufacturing