Every year, the updated machinery offerings from manufacturers make much of their newest equipment just that little bit more efficient — and sometimes significantly more so. But it isn’t always economically feasible to buy a brand new machine just to get a few new features, even if they could enhance the farm’s bottom line.
This year, John Deere is giving owners of some of its late-model machines a chance to get a few of those efficiency upgrades without the six- or seven-figure price tag associated with buying a new machine. At the Ag in Motion farm show near Langham, Sask., the brand was demonstrating them and letting visitors to its exhibit know how they could retrofit them into existing equipment.
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“Our goal is to bring some of the latest technology we have available through John Deere to the current (equipment) fleet that’s already out in the market, to relatively current equipment that’s running,” Yancy Wright, go-to-market manager for precision upgrades at John Deere, told Grainews. “If a grower wants to keep their current piece of equipment and have some of the latest technology, that’s what our goal is.”
Among those available upgrades the green brand is now making available is remote separator grate covers for its X9 line of combines.
“It keeps the crop in the separator a little bit longer,” he explains. “It keeps you from overloading the cleaning shoe. But with the remote separator grate covers, you can open and shut them from the cab. So when conditions change, you can adjust that on the go from the cab.”
Another retrofit update for combines is the cross auger shut-off feature, which stops the cross auger in the grain tank but still allows the main unloading auger to turn and empty itself completely.
“So the next time you start it up you don’t have an auger full of grain to pull down the engine,” he says. “It also keeps some wear off the auger.”
The adjustable auger spout option is now available as an upgrade for S700 Series combines. And the new-style Grain Saver draper belts, which are now standard on Deere headers, can help producers minimize grain kernel loss on older green headers.
Some Deere sprayers can now also get a few upgraded features, too.
“A grower can actually upgrade their current sprayer to have the ExactApply nozzle control system,” says Wright. “Also boom recirculation and reclaim. That makes a quicker and more effective clean out. We also have upgrades for BoomTrac, to be able to control the boom height on the go.”
All these upgrades are available through John Deere dealers.
