[csfi]

I am new to looking at the Claas machine, I apologize to the veterans here for asking so many questions.

First question I have is it looks to me that there was a major change to the cooling system from 2013 to 2014. What other changes if any were made?

Chopper.........we would like to get as fine a chop as possible and even spread behind a 35' head. I see several options, MAV, Turbo, and Pro. Is the pro more for getting a wider spread? If so which one would get the best job for the least money on a 35' head?

Automatic lube center, is this option worth the extra coin? My situation is different from a lot of people on harvest. We can't start until about 11 am and have to stop when the sun goes down at 8 pm. This gives me all morning to service and fuel the machine for that day.

C-Motion hydro handle.............Likes/dislikes?

 

[greg4321]

whats model of 700 are you looking at? the 730 will be a little short on power for the turbo because it take HP to run it. we got a 740 with the turbo chop this year and it does very well we only tested on canola though not sure about wheat yet. we havent combined any yet this year it chops it up a lot better then our 570R we had before. the thing i didnt like about the pro chop is that it left a zig zag pattern behind it.

 

[csfi]

Sorry, looking at the 760

 

[greg4321]

if you were getting a 730 i would get the MAV. here is information on the 2
The PRO chop is the premium small grains option. It has 67/55 Stationary knives and 108/72 rotating knives depending on widebody/narrowbody machine. Spread width adjustment from the cab Manual side wind compensationfrom the cab Possible to spread chaff andwindrow straw Hyrdaulic fold from chop/windrow/road travel Adjustable chop length and has Chaff Blower – spreads straw and chaff together.
The Turbo chop is the premium all crop corn and small grains option. It has 67/55 Stationary knives and 88/72 rotating knives depending on widebody/narrowbody machine. It is still an easy drop to chop, has a increased spread width chaff spreader, and has an Active adjustable tailboard to spread the straw. Spread width is adjusted with tailboard angle. It also allows you to adjust the chop length.
Both premium choppers will consistently spread past 45 feet. They both feature the Specialcut II system which has basically a shear bar, stationary knives, and an adjustable "Speed Bump" that allows to adjust the length/fineness of cut.

 

[Don Boles]

Only one rule!

First question I have is it looks to me that there was a major change to the cooling system from 2013 to 2014. What other changes if any were made?

Chopper.........we would like to get as fine a chop as possible and even spread behind a 35' head. I see several options, MAV, Turbo, and Pro. Is the pro more for getting a wider spread? If so which one would get the best job for the least money on a 35' head?

Automatic lube center, is this option worth the extra coin? My situation is different from a lot of people on harvest. We can't start until about 11 am and have to stop when the sun goes down at 8 pm. This gives me all morning to service and fuel the machine for that day.

C-Motion hydro handle.............Likes/dislikes?

Rule #1. If buying new do NOT buy without Cruise Pilot and CEMOS AUTOMATIC.
Any machine with Dynamic Cooling can have CEMOS AUTOMATIC added but it must have Cruise Pilot on base.

For 35' and fine cut get Turbo or Pro.

If you like greasing the greaser can be dropped.
I personally would get it.

Yes, get C-motion, after a short learning curve less confusing, more ergonomically shaped, better control.

Note though that I only have one rule.

 

[phantom970]

You can't rely on the auto greaser doing its thing 100%. Best you manual grease then you know every lube point is getting what it should. All this auto everything business, (cemos, cruise pilot), be careful with that CSFI as it probably won't do the right thing in your seed crops. It could be a waste of money. As you know seed is about quality not quantity.

 

[Don Boles]

All this auto everything business, (cemos, cruise pilot), be careful with that CSFI as it probably won't do the right thing in your seed crops. It could be a waste of money.

How so?

 

[phantom970]

How so?

I just can't see it being able to interpret the best thing for Lucerne. But it could work, I don't have enough Exp with Cemos, but I do know how hard it can be to get a machine set right for Lucerne. Huge sacrifices in productivity are required. And often many different machine settings. I couldn't get a good job in alfalfa with a 600, had to go back to the STS and just grind it all up into an ugly green mess.

 

[Don Boles]

I just can't see it being able to interpret the best thing for Lucerne. But it could work, I don't have enough Exp with Cemos, but I do know how hard it can be to get a machine set right for Lucerne. Huge sacrifices in productivity are required. And often many different machine settings.

Oh, lucerne, I'm going to guess that not on the CA list anyway.
What type of seed is it and/or what type of crop?

CA does not control cylinder speed nor concave clearance, as it should be, but does control everything else.
Only used in comparatively small seeds it's not used in peas so my guess is it's not in soybeans or corn either?

But in wheat, barley or canola it will blow any human aided control away on quality, low dockage, low losses and capacity.
Period!

 

[csfi]

Well I tend to agree just from a standpoint of the loss monitors have a really hard time picking up alfalfa seed. Thus it would be hard for the auto pilot features to work, also the lower screen for A. seed is a 1/8 inch round hole. Alfalfa seed will be the main crop put through it, it won't see much wheat and zero corn. My STS will be doing all my seed beans and peas.

Phantom......tell me more about the deal with the 600, I'm assuming that was a 600 Claas? My STS only works in A. seed in very dry conditions, if it gets overcast or overly green it will not separate it out of the mat in the rotor. My other problem is that it leaks A. seed out both sides of the machine just in front of the rear axle. Blowing it down the sides between the outer sheet metal and the shoe. Dealer can't fix it, I've torn it apart twice and can't seem to plug up the leaks.

Isn't canola really small?

 

[phantom970]

Yes CSFI, leaking seeds out of the STS chassis is a big problem. I dread doing canola. It's embarrassing how much leaks out of them. Excessive use of expander foam in the sieve box area seemed to help me with the leaking around the rear end. I let it set between the sieve box and the chassis then useing a hacksaw blade I cut thru the foam so it was still stuck to the sieve box but not the chassis. Sort of worked like a big seal. Plenty of silastic around the feeder house and every where else to. Iam sure you know where
Used the shelbourne one year, that's seemed to go okay with the 9760.

The lex 600 had worn drum bars, about 50%. I didn't have time to custom set up the lexion. Just go as is. It couldn't thrash out all the pods and would overload and jam the repeat. Conditions weren't great, plant still greenish. Never had good dry dead plants ever.
The green waste product would also bridge over the top of the chopper and then build up rapidly and block up the rear end and rotors. Not much fun cleaning that out. The blockage sensors up there were faulty which didn't help. But by the time they would have gone off one would still have plenty of shovelling (by hand) to do.
Iam sure with time and money, custom APS grates, and a custom cylinder and concave could be installed to make a 760 work well. Talk to sunnybrook welding CSFI about alfalfa harvesting. They might be able to custom build a setup for you. But you would need to know $$$$ involved first. If you can't get good dry crop conditions I would be wary of the Lexion straight out of the box.

 

[keystone]

I ran a 2012 760 last year max spread was 35' on a good day with turbochop, this year a 2013 780 with turbochop and will spread 45' and maybe 50 definitely into standing crop even into a moderate side wind have had to slow it down, all settings the same between the 2, cant figure out what the difference is only thing we see is a 4 vs 3 position tailboard setting and both running in # 3. Neighbor with a 2012 760 struggling to get to 35' this year. Our 480 with a MAV wide spread is doing 36' on a good day, more effected by side wind. Auto greaser sounds good and probably works fine, we don't have it and kind of like the feeling of the grease gun and knowing its taking grease and looking around. Cruise pilot is amazing well worth getting.

 

[csfi]

So are you defoliating your alfalfa seed then? I would think that the 760 would handle the tough damp conditions a lot better than the STS would. Going through green spots with the STS sounds like someone is throwing rail road ties in the feeder house....

The farm that is using a 760 for alfalfa seed is using key stock APS and main concave with TM6 chaffer and 3mm round hold on the bottom clean grain screen. Claim it does a beautiful job of saving and cleaning seed.

Our only other real option is Deere's T670 which very underwhelming to say the least.

That's funny that your using spray foam to plug up the leaks on your STS, I've threatened to do this but haven't yet. I actually used ready rod and bent a couple hangers on either side of the machine just in front of the rear axle to hold 5 gallon buckets. One half mile pass with a 25' head and both buckets are full of alfalfa seed. Not cool IMO.

 

[lexpower]

Hey,
as for the Cemos, it is so far just available for small grains.
Why shouldn`t the automatic grease system work? It is standard on the forager since 15 years!?
CSFI, i would just talk to your Claas dealer, ask for a demo and what kind of set up need for your crops. Most of the times the conditions (climate, crops, moisture and so on) vary a lot, so a Lexion in europe or africa for example needs a different setup and adjustments as a machine in the states....
As far as i can tell, go definetly with cruise control and dynamic cooling. The airfilter last a couple weeks till you have to blow it out the first time. And if you have small grains , than the CEMOS automatic is worth the money as well. As Don said already, if you want to maximize the capacity and get everything out of the Lexion (especially if you are new to them) go for Cemos and Cruise Pilot!!

 

[drylandfarmer]

Rule #1. If buying new do NOT buy without Cruise Pilot and CEMOS AUTOMATIC.
Any machine with Dynamic Cooling can have CEMOS AUTOMATIC added but it must have Cruise Pilot on base.

For 35' and fine cut get Turbo or Pro.

If you like greasing the greaser can be dropped.
I personally would get it.

Yes, get C-motion, after a short learning curve less confusing, more ergonomically shaped, better control.

Note though that I only have one rule.

Agree with Don.
Cemos Auto and Cruise pilot are well worth the money, in my opinion. Adds capacity to your machine and Cemos auto gives you a very clean grain sample with few losses. I would/will get these options again, I actually think they should be standard.

Auto greaser I have and I really like it. Expensive option, but I would get it again. I see the auto greaser run 3 to 4 times during the day, always makes me smile cause as i'm not doing it. I think its a time saver.

Pro chop spreads right up to the line on a 45 foot header. Like the pro chop as I can customize the spread pattern. More material in the middle, or more material to the outside. You can also set how sensitive the wind sensors are.

C-motion handle: get it, you will be glad you did.

Dynamic cooling working great. Have not changed or cleaned an air filter yet. Have not blown the radiator yet either. 200 seperator hours.

 

[Don Boles]

Isn't canola really small?

Yes, but not as small as alfalfa.
Canola runs 3 to 6 mg/seed my guess is alfalfa would be 2 mg +/-?

 

[csfi]

Agree with Don.
Cemos Auto and Cruise pilot are well worth the money, in my opinion. Adds capacity to your machine and Cemos auto gives you a very clean grain sample with few losses. I would/will get these options again, I actually think they should be standard.

Sounds like a definite must if your doing a lot of small grains, but again only 14% of my acres are small grains max. I'm not sure it would pay.

Auto greaser I have and I really like it. Expensive option, but I would get it again. I see the auto greaser run 3 to 4 times during the day, always makes me smile cause as i'm not doing it. I think its a time saver.

So do you all think the auto greaser saves or prolongs the bearing life on these machines? It makes sense that it would just from a stand point of not OVER greasing or missing a zerk. Also greasing on the fly with the bearings warm and turning I would think would do a better job of getting grease into the bearing also.........thought's?

Pro chop spreads right up to the line on a 45 foot header. Like the pro chop as I can customize the spread pattern. More material in the middle, or more material to the outside. You can also set how sensitive the wind sensors are.

Would pro chop be over kill for a 35' head?

C-motion handle: get it, you will be glad you did.

I think I'm sold on this option everyone seems to like it.

Dynamic cooling working great. Have not changed or cleaned an air filter yet. Have not blown the radiator yet either. 200 seperator hours.

This is the main reason I was dragging my feet on the 2013, this improvement to the cooling system looks like a big upgrade to me. In my conditions which are always very dry, hot and dusty I think it would be worth getting the 2014+

Yes, but not as small as alfalfa.
Canola runs 3 to 6 mg/seed my guess is alfalfa would be 2 mg +/-?

Good to know Don, I've never seen a loss monitoring system be able to accurately monitor A. Seed loss. I hope the Claas will, that would be nice.

 

[csfi]

CSFI, i would just talk to your Claas dealer, ask for a demo and what kind of set up need for your crops. Most of the times the conditions (climate, crops, moisture and so on) vary a lot, so a Lexion in europe or africa for example needs a different setup and adjustments as a machine in the states....

Lexpower...... unfortunately our seed harvest is over for this year. Fortunately we have a neighbor that has been running lexions for 10+ years. AND in A. seed......how convenient is that! He ran a 485 for about 10 years and this is his second season on his 760. They really like it, not many changes required from wheat to A. seed as far as setup. They are getting between 8-12% cleanouts out of the 760 which is half what we can deliver with either of our deere's.

We are taking a bit of a leap of faith because if we buy one it will only be the second machine in this immediate valley. Dealer only has a couple years experience. But I made a similar leap of faith last year with my Nitro sprayer going away from Deere. That was definitely a good leap to take as I am more than pleased with my sprayer. Hope the Lexion decision turns out to be that positive!

I tend to keep equipment for a long time so I'm not as concerned about resale as I used to be. My 9610 is 16 years old and not nearly as well built as the Lexion from the looks of things.

I really appreciate all the input you guys have shared, it sure makes decisions like these that are out of a guys comfort zone a lot easier to do. Any other observations you all have would be great!

 

[drylandfarmer]

With Pro chop you can set the spread width to whatever you want. The reason I went with pro chop was to get the 45' spread.
The knives do wear a lot and I may have to flip them over to finish the harvest. Will be checking out if there is a different knife that wears better for next year.

I did 25' of canola swath and was able to set the spread width to not overlap. Very nice feature.

If you decide against cemos auto, I would take a hard look at cruise pilot. The cruise pilot is so nice to load your machine up to capacity or loss limits. Do not know anything about alfalfa seed, but thinking cruise pilot would allow you to set a constant and steady load on your machine to limit losses. The loss sensors on a Claas are very good.

The Dynamic cooling would be the tipping point to a 14' model if budget permits. Its that good. My pea conditions were very dusty as usual. Canola was also very dusty this year until the rains hit.

 

[csfi]

With Pro chop you can set the spread width to whatever you want. The reason I went with pro chop was to get the 45' spread.
The knives do wear a lot and I may have to flip them over to finish the harvest. Will be checking out if there is a different knife that wears better for next year.

I did 25' of canola swath and was able to set the spread width to not overlap. Very nice feature.

If you decide against cemos auto, I would take a hard look at cruise pilot. The cruise pilot is so nice to load your machine up to capacity or loss limits. Do not know anything about alfalfa seed, but thinking cruise pilot would allow you to set a constant and steady load on your machine to limit losses. The loss sensors on a Claas are very good.

So cruise pilot would be a "dumber" version of Cemo's auto? If I understand it right it would control the speed of the machine based on loss monitors but wouldn't change settings automatically correct? I'm assuming that its a much cheaper option than Cemo's auto.

The Dynamic cooling would be the tipping point to a 14' model if budget permits. Its that good. My pea conditions were very dusty as usual. Canola was also very dusty this year until the rains hit.

I think that over 10+ years the extra cost of the new machine over the one year old machine would be averaged out nicely. Obviously the cheapest option would be to get a 3 or 4 year old machine but I think the improvements made are worth getting the 2014 or 15 now I guess if I order a new one. On top of that with high value seed crops down time can get very costly and wipe out any savings in a heartbeat. Don't like not knowing how the machine was taken care of before I bought it.