This blog helps me write http://industrialscenery.blogspot.com/. For example, it contains photo dumps of field trips with some text so that I can search the photos later. It is not intended to be read by others. But if you find photos organized by geography interesting, then enjoy.
Friday, October 7, 2016
Harvest: Grain: The First Self-Propelled Combines and Custom Harvesting
See also Early. Some of the photos in these notes should be moved there. And those notes have several photos that should be moved here.
Massey-Harris or Massey-Ferguson
But the modern self-propelled design that has the header in front of the separator was developed by Massey-Harris to get an increased quota for steel from the War Production Board to make 500 Model 21 combines in 1944. These were sold only to farmers willing to sign a contract that they would harvest 2000 acres with a combine. Most operators loaded their combine on a truck and went down to Texas in May where they could follow the ripening of the crop all the way north to the Canadian border in November. Massey-Harris dispatched repair crews and oil companies sent extra trucks to follow the "Harvest Brigade" north to help keep them running. The Brigade was a huge success. In 1945, the War Production Board allocated enough steel for 750 new combines.
As the war ended, Massey-Harris dominated the self-propelled combine market, and other companies were scrambling to catch up. John Deere, for instance, didn't bring out their first self-propelled combine, the Model 55, until 1947.
There were some custom combiners working before the Harvest Brigade. But the practice took off in the 1940s. Nebraska counted 515 entering the state in 1942 and in 1947, when they counted again, the number was an order of magnitude more --- 5117. Now custom combining contractors account for just under half of the grain harvested. (Is that in the Plains States or all of USA? Does "grain" include corn?)
In the equipment market, self-propelled combines did take over. In 1944, the War Production Board allowed 43,604 pull-type combines to be built and initially only 1,100 self-propelled models. The Harvest Brigade swelled that number to 1,600. After the war, other manufacturers brought out their own models and by the end of the 40s, most farmers wanted the self-propelled models. There are few, if any, pull-type combines being built today.
W Dan Halverson posted My uncle Ed on a Massey Harris Combine ! Linda ChamberlainThe old Model 21-A. Derek DeWeeseThat's back when part of the grain heads were made of wood. I felt old being trained on a jd 6600. Derek DeWeesedid you moisture test guessing by mouth LOL? you got to remember 6600s didn't have yield or moisture monitors. Dad had his little coffee can and he'd say here take a couple kernels and put it In his mouth and say "it's about 17 percent" LOL. that's going old school LOL Linda ChamberlainActually, the "tooth test," was simply a measure to tell whether or not wheat was ready to harvest. The first two years, I cut "samples," and ran them to the elevators. By 1978, the portable [usually a Dickey-John] moisture tester was affordable and in vogue.
Ralph Goff posted
A couple of Massey 21 combines unloading grain into a 42-47 Ford truck like I learned to drive on. I'm guessing this was taken about 1950
Tractorholic posted eight photos with the comment: "Bumper wheat crop and rail car shortage, OK and KS 1958."
[145 comments! And each photo has some comments.]
Massey Harris Heritage Page shared
1 Rod van Pelt posted Our little town, Harrisburg, Nebraska, doubled in size back in the 50s during wheat harvest when "custom cutters", from the south, came with their 1 1/2 ton trucks, combines, crews and trailer houses looking for harvest jobs. How times have changed, but I still have our '51Minneapolis S140 combine. John McCall: I know that's how it was done back then (pretty much only way), but that just looks all kinds of dangerous. Brakes on those era trucks weren't great with the truck empty. Imagine going downhill with some curves added in. And taking off/on the sideboards on the trucks wouldn't have been easy/quick either even if they weren't all that tall. Don't know what they had for combine trailers back then, but that would have been much simpler and safer. Larry Boyles: John McCall actually,you’re looking at their combine trailers! A trailer would just add more weight for those weak brakes to try to stop. [That was my reaction as well.] If you scan the pictures closely you’ll see that the box sides have been removed and placed under the machines for transport and replaced to haul the grain to the elevators. Rod van Pelt: John McCall I don't remember seeing any machines on trailers. The reels/headers didn't detach easily. Most trucks had hoists so unloading them in a ditch worked well.
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This was evidently a prototype for the Model 21 since it is a Model 20. Hugh Macague posted five photos with the comment: "Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this yesterday! Model 20 Massey Harris! One rare beast! In a museum near Picture Butte AB."
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John Deere
A video of a film of three JDs doing real work. (Combines Harvesters Threshers with the comment "Russ Christensen sent this in and in his words ,,,,, This is in Dagmar mt my great grandfather Thorval Christensen and neighbors Soren and Chris Rassmussen ....the good old days" Carl RobinsonThat brings back a lot of memories and our JD45 and later the JD55!! (So I got it backwards? 45 should be here and 55 should be in early?) Nancy KuehnMan o man. I can only imagine how dusty that must have been. We had an air conditioned cab and we came home dirty! Jeff WoodMy grandpa had 45's 55's and a 95 oh the miles I spent on them.... those were definitely the good old days!
Russ ChristensenThis is the first combine in the Video as it stands today
John Deere's Model 55 in 1947 is "the first combine to center the operator on top and center and to locate the grain tank and engine behind the operator."
Alan Bunkelman posted
So here's what I got myself for Christmas. It's a John Deere 55 combine I bought for $1000 bucks. It's not in bad shape for being from the early 60's. It runs great and needs to be gone through this spring/summer before I use it. It doesn't have a direct cut head for it, only a pickup head. But the conditioner rollers on the 12ft JD 300 haybine I have can be removed and used as a swather so that's no problem.
Combines Harvesters Threshersadded a new photo. Wilf Williamson1949 model, no power steering in them days yet lol first year they built that model was 1947 and my Dad and uncle bought the first one that came into Canada, I grew up with those. 45 bushel hopper, manual variable speed, 12 ft header, and a 6 cylinder Hercules engine. Wow they came a long way since then but these were the real deal back then!William CartledgeWe had one new in 1962. Sid OxandaleRemember the operator sitting in a cloud of dust when in the field. Jerry ReddingTHAT WAS MY FIRST COMBINE TO RUN AT 10 YEAR OLD
Lee Becking commented on the above posting
1958 95
Jerry Cordell commented on the above posting
1958 model #55!
Screenshot
Ken Bos and his 1947 No. 55 combine. It's the oldest Deere self propelled known to exist. Notice the reel which is ground driven stops turning when the combine stops moving. To see an article with more information on this combine and its restoration in our October issue, subscribe to Green Magazine.
So John Deere in 1958 must have been overlapping the production of Nos. 55 and 95. And JD was still not building them with cabs.
Joe Dirtae posted two photos with the comment: "Looking to sell my 55EB just did beans with it. 1100 dollars Carleton Michigan."
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Combines Harvesters Threshers posted
[Did Cessna get into hydraulics because of rudder and aileron controls?]
MachineFinder, The first combine: Model 2 in 1927
Notice they were imitating the design of a Holt combine.
Their 1947 Model 55 switched to copying the 1944 Massey-Harris combine.
If you scroll down a few pages in The John Deere Legacy, you can see a colored illustration in an advertisement of this unit.
McCormick or IH
Wendel's Big Red Book says Harvester's first SP (self-propelled) combine, 123-SP, appeared in 1942. Note that this is two years before the Massey-Harris Model 21 that came out in 1944.
James Hill posted two photos with the comment: "Fun at showtime with my 1944 McCormick 123sp."
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James Hill posted three photos with the comment: "The old girl runs pretty clean. Does anyone think that the blower speed needs to be any higher?"
James Hill posted two photos with the comment: "Couple shots of my 123sp and my friends 123sp during our local tractor show. Only 1 serial number apart."
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James Hill posted a "from the cab" video of his 123sp. And a video from an observer's perspective. The above photo is a screenshot from this video.
James Hill posted a request for evidence of still existing 123-SPs. He got eleven photos in the comments.
Blaine Griggs commented on the above video posting
Thats sure a nice 123...Heres my all original 123 sitting near Ransom,KS in 2008..The seller said that the 123 was sitting on this farm when his Dad bought the farm in 1965..Lots of 123's were updated to 125's but not this one..My Dads first SP combine was a 123 back in 1959.
Sam Bezner posted
403,453,1480, and 1470 IH combines
John Paul Plemons posted four photos with the comment: "Thanks for adding me to the group. I found this old combine at a customer's place. Can anyone tell me about it?" According to the comments, its A-Cs first self propelled combine. A-C made this design from 1953-58 when the bought Gleaner.
We learned above that custom farming became popular during WWII to help solve a steel and labor shortage. It has now become big business in the great plains. In fact, farm equipment has become so expensive that some farmers do custom work for their neighbors. For example, The Farmer's Wife does custom baling. In video 1 she explains at the end how they eject the bales. She says The Farmer has the kids, but you can hear, and later see, that she has their little girl. In video 2 The Farmer's Wife
bales 50 acres when they get a call even though they are busy with their own farm activities. (I play Freecell during the intervals when she is not speaking.)
But of course the big custom operators are the ones that do wheat from Texas to North Dakota. This one has 3 maintenance trucks, which I assume are also refuel trucks; 8 grain hauling simis, 3 articulated tractors pulling modern 1000 bushel grain carts; and 7 combines with what appear to be 40' headers. I've learned that one of those modern 1000 busel carts can fill up a simi-truck trailer. What frustrates me about these videos is that they show a bunch of combines following each other across a long field, but they never show what happens when they get at the end of the field. It seems like it would be a bad traffic jab. Maybe that is why they never show it. Also, where are the trailers for the headers?
Ej Mollet commented on the above posting 1 combine, 1 cart and tractor, 1 auger and tractor, 2 semi trucks, and 4 family members and so many hours I don't even know what day it is.
I was on top of a grain bin.
Michael Duester commented on the above posting For us 1 Combine 2 carts 2 augers 4 tractors and 2 semis and lots of hours for just 3 guys me my dad and brother just a family farm
Justin AndersonFor us... 3 combines, 2 tractors, 2 carts, 13 semis, 20 people, and lots of hours! [13 semis is an indication of the cost of a railroad abandoning the tracks to a more local grain elevator. Another comment confirms that 13 of the 20 people are truck drivers. It seems it would be cheaper to build their own storage bins on the farm. That would reduce truck expense, but they would still have to pay truck driver hours and diesel fuel to haul the grain to market.] Robert HartmanHow many repair trucks and mechanics? The neighbors S series combine has been down more than in the field. It's only 2 or 3 years old.
Roger Peters posted
Hastings tribune 1961 Pete & Roger Peters With Martin & Larry Peters 11 Massey Super 92's Roger PetersWe ran a lot of Masseys from 1949 until 1986 27's 92's 410's 510's 760's 860's. Switched to Case IH 1987 to 2011.
Roger Peters posted
8 Massey 410's Peter & Roger Peters crew Selby South Dakota in the late 70's
Sam Bezner posted
Kansas harvest crew,Deere 95s Mike HallidaySuppose they drew straws every morning to see who got the cab?Mark SullivanGood size machine back in their day.
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