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Best Auto Steer

48K views 34 replies 16 participants last post by  Guy1000 
#1 ·
G'Day All,

Now I don't know if there are any differences between the Autoguidance systems in the US/Canada to the ones in Australia...if not your all welcome reply :D

I'm looking for the best value for money Auto steer for a Case 2388?

I've spent a fair amount of time trolling the net and not really getting a lot of usefull info......and obvioulsy the distributers talk up there product and only users can give honest feedback.

I've seen (in Aust) the Ezysteer 500 + the steering wheel thing for $9000? But it doesnt say what accuracy you'll get for that either. Is that good value?

For those in Aus what is the go with subscriptions and which is good value with them? What accuarcy do you get for free??

My BIL has 2cm RTK on his 6088 but do you need it that good for harvesting, predominately wheat...??

What are peoples opinion of the Farmscan units? I've heard they are ordinary...??

Any words of wisdom will be appreciated.

Cheers
 
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#2 ·
hi there,

in my experience with gps/autosteer ive found the best theory is "you get what you pay for". ive used cheaper systems and have had troubles and level of back up, but ive also used 50k+ of GPS-Ag autofarm gear and its just the best to use.

the ezysteer will only be as accurate as how much your willing to pay......
GPS-AG autofarm A5 with RTK is awesome to use
leica mojo rtk and inex............just plain ordinary dont bother
the john deere gear isnt bad, ive had up and down experiences with it

thats just a few of my experiences hope it helps
 
#3 ·
I would not touch GPS AG/ Auto farm there service is S*** still waiting on parts ordered 1st week of april for our autofram A5 rtk. I would go with topcon our trimble systems, do you have corrs network?
We have own bass station but not worth pinch of S*** as our repeater is stuffed and drops out alote away from home farm this is a A5 RTK system.

Madsnake
 
#4 · (Edited)
Hi Agmin,

On the family property we use Trimble and we have it installed in a Caterpillar Challenger 35. We are row crop farmers and need the highest level of accuracy which is RTK and that gives us <2.5cm pass to pass and year to year repeatability. We have the Trimble FmX Display in the cab and utilise the automated AutoPilot steering system.

Reason for Fmx Display was for the GLONASS receiver which means we pick up 6 Russian satellites plus the 11-12 Americans satellites giving us better satellite availablity, down the track want to use yield mapping, water and field management options. We just preferred the AutoPilot over the EZ-Steer because we didnt want to mount anything to the steering wheel.

Where I work they have 6x JD 8320, 2x JD 7930 & 2x JD8520T all kitted out with JD GreenStar StarFire iTC RTK. In the past 3yrs of working with the GreenStar I have never seen it maintain <3cm accuracy across the whole farm. It doesnt matter if your 200 metres or 4.5km away from the base station. We have had JD out calibrate recalibrate still no result. I remember one day a 7930 pulling a 5000Ltr 24mtr boomspray saying 3 -5cm then coming back to the same field 2days later for water test run and it was saying it was 30-35cm out on the same AB Lines - I shake my head. Another day pulling up 12Rows with a 8520T the GPS would fall out for it to reconnect I would have to drive around the farm and then try to get back to where I was plowing while trying to hold connection sometimes it would take 30mins to an 1hr for reconnection and thats with 11 or 12 RTK correctional satellites. And as soon as you fell out to 9 RTK satellites you then dont have RTK accuracy and start falling down to the next level of accuracy.

With the Trimble in the 2.5yrs of having it dad has lost all GPS correction for no more than 10sec. It happened while turning to enter the next AB line he than stopped, reconnected within 3sec, backed out and re-enter the field and thats it. It will even work while the tractor is in the shed.

When we were looking into GPS we looked at Trimble RTK & John Deere StarFire iTC RTK with GS2 2600. Trimble was less than $3000 cheaper, Service call outs were cheaper with Trimble, Trimble has a far longer range from base station to tractor reciever, more optional features, better terrain compensation with less moving parts. But for me the biggest comparison is just look at what JD has done with GPS and now compare that with what Trimble does and thats why when it comes to GPS technology theres only one place to look at - Trimble

For harvesting in my eyes I would be wanting the best pass to pass repeatability so that the header front was being utilised to its full potential but I dont know what your bottom line is but maybe in your case I wouldnt be going for less than 5-10cm pass to pass repeatability. I couldnt answer if there is or how much of a cost is involved for this level of accuracy, my guess would be yes there is.

For Trimble GPS speak to the guys at BMS LaserSat these guys are the direct importers for Trimble in Australia and they will surely help you out and answer any of your questions.
BMS LaserSat Moree
429 Frome St, Moree, NSW
Ph: (02) 6752 4647
Fax: (02) 6752 2470
Email: paulp@bmslasersat.com.au
Website: BMS LaserSat

Trimble Agriculture on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/TrimbleAgriculture
 
#5 ·
I get on well with Trimble kit on both a CAT challenger & a Case 195 CVX wheel tractor, but I struggled on my Case 2388. The antenna is mounted at the front of the cab & we have a German tank extension. Could the grain tank extension be shielding the satellites? I wondered if moving the antenna forward, so it is nearly over the header or raising it would help. I would certainly go for the greatest accuacy available. Our RTK is from amobile phone signal & because we lose it in afew places, we are looking into sharing a signal with another farmer who has his own transmitter.
 
G
#6 ·
well all we run is the trimble 500's and two 750's, i can get 3 cm accuracy in any machine i put them in, i am very happy with them, and i dont pay for any satellites! there is a few little tricks that you gotta remember when your setting one up to get that kind of accuracy though, like where is the antenna mounted. on most vehicles you dont want it at the front!, ( whenever the steering motor goes to adjust, the front has to move 5" to get it lined up when its only off 3" ( this causing weaving))

so you always want it further back on a 2wd tractor, but not all the way back either. on a 4wd articulating tractor you want it infront of the articulating point, but not too much more, usually the front of the cab is good enough, and on a combine you want it at the front of the cab typically because it steers from the back.


there are a few more tricks like the angle per turn, ( default is 20 degrees, which is always way too high somewhere around 6-14 is best)

kind of got off the topic a bit, but i like sharing this information with people because i know a lot of people sell their ez-steers because it weeved or not accurate enough for them, and then they give it a bad review, when i got nothing but good things to say about them for our farm.
 
#35 ·
These are all great tips but they don’t improve gps accuracy. They only improve the accuracy within the vehicle itself. You’re 3cm accuracy is only how much it is off from what the monitor’s line not the actual line. If you want better accuracy you will have to pay for a subscription or set up an rtk base station.
 
#8 ·
Thats strange about your experiences with gps ag madsnake. When i used that system as soon as we had an issue with it they were very prompt to assist us and it was for the better, although that was in 2008/09 here in wa, and i know for a fact that all the technicians we used dont work for them anymore.......
 
#9 ·
When we bought the system they had reps all over the place and thats why Dad went with them for backup, it WAS good. The gpsag got sold to Autofarm and the layed all the reps of and went to dealers, the rep around here went to there dealer here but left not long arfter.

Madsnake
 
#10 ·
Some very good info there thanks guys.

Mikey350, you say you get 3cm accuracy for free how is that done??

I hear people talk about base stations etc to get the high accuracy, but how do you go moving from Qld to Vic contract harvesting??

What system gives you australia wide coverage?

Whats a typical 5-10cm system worth?

Does the price vary that much between manufacturers?
 
#15 ·
If you are looking for a cost effective steering system for use in a header I would recommend the Trimble FM750 display with EZ-Steer.
For a 10cm system you would require HP signal for OmniStar (which is now owned by Trimble). The FM750 needs an unlock code to recieve HP signal, but this is a once off cost. Annual subscription for HP is $2,350 + GST or you can get a 100 day subscription. You will get this signal where you are going.
Rough purchase price for a HP ready FM750 with terrain compensation steering and bracket to suit 88 series would be $10 - 10,500 + GST.

I hope this helps. PM me if you require more info.
 
#11 ·
My suggestion is get it down to a couple of units and ask for a demo to make your mind up. Most of the new gear is good but more important is backup knowledge and service backup, and also if you go for a "said" unit what is the cost to scale the accuracy up with cost. Is the hardware the same for RTK or entry level, do you need additional hardware to get better accuracy, how can you link into the 2388 or other machines for mapping etc, how easy is it change between machines. Just a few thoughts on choice rather than product specifically except stay from Farmscan. You will burn cash on them.
 
#14 ·
We got both the Deere and the Trimble. Both seem pretty good. Our upgraded deere stuff came in yesterday, new screens and receivers. The new receivers are supposed to keep signal better, and pick it up much faster if it does happen to lose it. I believe the new recievers now pick up on the Russian satellites too. We run SF1 and SF2 on the Deere stuff. And the free on the Trimble which came with the leased blue tractor we are trying out for a few years.
 
#16 ·
Caseihaxialflow - thanks for the info mate.

Your spot on with prices. Since starting this thread I've got a couple of prices and they varied from 10,800 to 11,100 + subscription ($2300) for the exact setup your talking about. Ezysteer FMX750 with HP 10cm.

Seems there isn't much competition around on these Trimble units....

Looks like I'll go with the Trimble setup unless something else comes up.

I've also found out its $20k for full autosteer at 10cm accuracy. Now thats a big jump I reckon. Don't even ask about RTK.....:eek: Don't need that for header anyway.

Camel - Paul from BMS Lasersat was a good help. Thanks for the tip off.

Thanks guys.
 
#19 ·
I was quoted fifteen grand each for two 750s with tractor kits for John Deere 9400 and 8970 and the 750s aren't interchangeable with 500s so that sucks. We don't like the Ezee steer system on our tractors but it works great in my Loral floater :).
I wound up buying two more S3 Outbacks with Edrive Xs, they were ten grand each, in my opinion the Outbacks are a little nicer to operate, I like the auto engage option but they seem to have a few more bugs than Trimble and they only autosteer to 21mph but their support is excellent so far.
 
#22 ·
That's the set price through OmniStar :eek: Only gets cheaper if you have additional units on a licence.
I believe Deere offer a cheaper signal because their intial price of the unit is dearer :confused:
Would be nice to see this price come down. RTK signals through a Network is about $1000 AU, but the cost in components to be able to recieve it are more expensive up-front.
 
#27 ·
I just bought a Trimble FM750 display with EZ-Steer from a case dealer in Sask. for $6600. Put it in a ford Genies tractor pulling a 60 ft fert bar and it worked just perfect. I walked the some of the rows after and couldn't find anywhere where there was more than a 3 inch difference. We have intelisteer in the four wheel drive tractor pulling the drill and this is more accurate. We are just running on wass in the Prince Albert Area.
 
#32 ·
I have a JD Green Star 1800 display w/SF1 in a 9530T. Works great for what I need it for (broad acre no row crop). Never lost a signal once all spring. Tried an EZ steer in an 1150 Versatile a couple years ago. Could not get it to work properly....it would over steer and end up wandering all over the place.
 
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