

Well aligned conventional cluster
A complete set of clusters comprises a claw and four fully-assembled cups (that is, four sets of teat shells, liners, short milk tubes, short pulse tubes, the long milk tube and long pulse tubing).
Correctly setting up your clusters will result in the following benefits:
- Increased milking efficiency - clusters which are correctly set up will be easy to put on and take off, and will require no intervention from the milker while a cow is being milked. They will also ensure cows are efficiently milked out.
- Improved animal health - clusters which are correctly set up will not slip. Cluster slip can compromise teat health, increasing the risk of mastitis.
Getting it right
Poor milking characteristics in many herds result from the wrong match of cluster components. The most common problems include:
Desirable claw features
Scientific studies suggest that claws must have an effective volume of at least 150ml to provide stable vacuum below the teat, minimise cross-flow and contamination between quarters and minimise liner slip.
Suggested improvements
When assessing the ability of clusters to ‘milk out’ use the following measure. A problem with incomplete milking exists if more than 20% of quarters contain strip yields (milk remaining) of 250ml or more. If there are consistent differences in strip yields between the same quarters on different cows e.g. between the left hind and right hind quarters of several cows, it usually indicates poor cluster positioning or uneven weight distribution between the four cups.
If clusters and milking machinery are satisfactory, liner slips should not exceed more than 5 cows per 100 cows milked (excluding cows with very bad udder conformation).
To ensure the long milk tubes are the correct length cut rubbers to roughly the right length and then trim them during milking.