Robert and Ruth Chaplain take the Register inside Wynberg Station Cloncurry

Damien and Chris Chaplain are the owners of Wynberg Station, 29 kilometres south east of Cloncurry on the Landsborough Highway.

The 40,000 acre commercial beef operation consists of 2000 breeders and is managed by their son Robert Chaplain.

Mr Chaplain, 39, said they run a crossbred herd with a Brahman base but were growing more towards a red line.

"This includes an infusion of Red Angus or a composite of a red Santa," Mr Chaplain said.

"We are trying to get a clean coated, minimal hump, with not too much hair on them, it is good to hit both markets live export and feeder.

"We are in a bit of rebuild stage currently (post 2019 flood) and provided that we get a good season, we should be fully stocked next year."

Cattle are bred at Wynberg and sent to a 30,000 acre Downs property for fattening near Maxwelton.

When looking at key traits, the Chaplains are focused on fertility and the consistency it adds to the herd.

"There is a lot of value added if you can get your cows to calve each year, and also you still want something that feedlotters are gong to be chasing too," Mr Chaplain said.

"There is no point focusing on a heavy carcase weight if you're not getting something that produces, an end goal, of a calf every year.

"We have been control mating for the last eight to 10 years and it is really starting to pay dividends in our wet rebreed rate this year and our joiner heifers.

"We've had a strong focus on that and that goes back to the studs we purchase bulls from too, they've got to be putting as much pressure on their herds as we are our commercial herd."

Mr Chaplain said all bulls they were purchasing were poll and there was a strong push for those genetics throughout the herd.

"I think it is just something in the industry that shouldn't be a thing anymore, the genetics are there and in the industry we just have to push for poll genetics and pushing the right traits in the poll genetics," he said.

"We are getting there, that's the dream, poll, clean coated, good yielding."

"Currently we are doing a four month join, but hoping to reduce that now we have our breeder herd relatively in-line with where we want them, so we are looking to shorten that window up. We did a yearling mate and had good percentage there this year."

Wynberg is situated beside the hills of the Selwyn Ranges and has a mixture of red country and flinders black soil country.

Mr Chaplain said there was little to no need to use lick, with a variety of Spinifex and Mitchell grasses as well as native species grasses and buffel.

Wynberg's target market includes feedlots and meatworks.

"Where we are located we are in a position where we are lucky enough to have cattle that feedlotters will chase, but if we keep a foot in the door where we've got cattle that are clean coated enough and suit the live export market, that way we have the best of both worlds.

"We usually turn off feeder steers around 14-16 months, but just follow the markets. We haven't sold a lot through saleyards.

"We don't have any alliances with butchers as of yet. For us the focus has been concentrating on our herd and making sure the performance is sufficient and the weight gains as good as we can get.

"We also have a focus on getting the feedback back on kill data for feedlot steers and seeing how they performed and where we can improve our performance."

Going forward, Mr Chaplain said it was about developing a beast that was best suited to your conditions.

"I don't think it is a one size fits all. We need a beast that yields well, can eat well on a plate and can handle the conditions up here," he said.

"We've got to get a beast that can suit that and get calves on the ground each year is the end goal."