|
||
 |
|
||
|
The family decided they had enough to manage at harvest without worrying about equipment breakdowns, so during the 2002 harvest they demonstrated some new combines, and decided to purchase a New Holland CX880 with 330-bushel grain tank capacity. Neill says, “We tried out every major brand. New Holland really stood out and worked really well. I wasn’t overly impressed until we learned how to set it properly. By about the middle of the season, it was doing more than I thought it would do. By the end of the harvest, it impressed all of us.” 2003 harvest conditions Harvest conditions were close to perfect in 2003 in southern Manitoba. Harvest started a week early and finished early. There was no rain. And with their new CX880 combine, there were no issues with repairs or labor or exhaustion or finding extra help. In fact, the Ryans had time to custom harvest another 1,000 acres for neighbors. “We harvested more than we’ve ever done before, and we never needed any help,” Neill says. “Yes, we achieved our goal, and then some.” In earlier harvests when both combines were working well and everything was perfect, the family had been able to harvest an average of 160 to 170 acres in a day. That became the norm in 2003 for the CX880. On a few days, daily production reached 200 acres.
The high-capacity combine also performed well in small seeded flax and canola, as well as in large seeded soybeans and sunflowers. Easy on grain At the same time, grain sample quality was excellent. “It was easy on the grain,” says Neill. “There were not a lot of cracks or dockage. Our old combines used to be a little tough on grain and we’d get an extra half a percent dockage.” The CX880 surprised the family with more than just capacity. Harvest flow monitors inside the cab saved them effort and time. Adjustments could be made on-the-go for changing conditions, so that loss out the back was easily controlled and reduced. “You can change your setting while you’re combining, to do a better job, and actually keep a lot more grain in the combine. You don’t stop, get out and fiddle now. That makes it really nice,” Chris says. Automatic header adjustments took the misery out of hugging field contours with the 30-foot flex header while harvesting 700 acres of soybeans and 160 acres of field peas. Chris says, “That combine automatically controls the header laterally and vertically. If you go through a drain on an angle, the header will pitch from side to side and go right through without having to stop. You don’t touch anything. No more digging in the dirt and cleaning it all out.” Unloading auger performance was “fantastic,” Neill adds. “It’s about twice as fast as our old combines. It probably enables us to do another 15 or 20 acres a day just by unloading faster.” Equipment-related stress faded into history as they worked with the new combine. A year earlier, it took about 90 minutes every morning just to get the two combines ready. During the 2003 season, it took 15 to 30 minutes. “You’d fuel it up, blow out the filters and go. We gained an hour right there.” Changing headers was easy, too. Chris explains, “There’s just two couplers with over-center locking pins for the electric and hydraulic connections. You just plug them in. Then there’s one mechanical latch that keeps the header from falling off, and that’s it.” After years of struggling with harvest issues in their production system, the Ryan family feels 2003 will go down in their record-book as a real blessing. This time, there were no “issues.” Neill says, “It was a very good year for us. Seeding, spraying, harvesting — we didn’t have a problem with anything.” |
