RED DEER, Alta. – Big yellow combines may not have the immediate brand recognition they once did. As of last week, there’s another big yellow combine on the market besides New Holland.
Caterpillar Agricultural Products released its first salvo in the North American combine war at a farm show here Nov. 12-15. On display for the first time in Canada and larger than any other machine in its class, the Claas Caterpillar was a crowd stopper.
Supported by friction-type 90 centimetre rubber belt tracks, the combine on display will start demonstrating its stuff on prairie fields next August.
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The German-made machine is assembled in Columbus, Indiana for the North American market, but has been prowling fields in Europe for three years, said Cat officials. Claas is known in Canada mainly for its forage equipment, and is part of a joint venture with Cat.
The new combine features a 170 cm wide pre-threshing cylinder, located ahead of a conventional cylinder and concave system. This cylinder separates up to one-third of the grain before it reaches the main cylinder.
Using small hoof-like plates, the pre cylinder evens flow from the feederhouse, distributing it across the full width of the cylinder.
Threshed material passes over six conventional straw walkers, or in the higher capacity machine a pair of long rotors.
The model 460/5 is fitted with a 290 horsepower engine, while the rotary has a 365 horsepower engine.
Producers can also choose a model with tires all around, however tracks don’t pack soil as much and handle wet conditions better.
With a 300-bushel hopper, the combine will have considerable weight.
Cab and monitoring functions are equal to those in most higher priced combines, with built-in 486 class computer and yield monitoring.
Manufacturers say the technology in the Cat combines provide up to a 30 percent increase in harvest capacity over competitors.
Prices for the new combines have not been announced but Caterpillar Claas America representatives at the opening said they will be “three to seven percent higher than the nearest competition.”
