Self Propelled 24 Ft. Hydrostatic Swather

Self propelled 24 ft hydrostatic swather HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Mowers (38) 15-3-11 "I saved a lot of money and it works as good or better than any swather on the market," says Brian Yokimas, East Selkirk, Manitoba, who built his own self-propelled 24-ft. hydrostatic swather for less than $5,000. Yokimas used the frame from a 1975 Canadian Cooperative Implements (CCI) swather. He built the header by welding together parts of three different CCI draper headers. He salvaged the hydraulic system from a Versatile 400 self-propelled swather. The 18.4 by 16.1 front tires, as well as the rear tires, are off a Versatile 4400 self-propelled swather. The swather is powered by an 80 hp Ford 6000 6-cylinder diesel engine. "I chose the CCI draper header because it has a low cutting angle that evenly distributes grain heads throughout the swath for faster drying," says Yokimas. "Most newer commercial swathers tend to leave grain heads in the center of the swath where they can get moldy and rot. The diesel engine is really fuel efficient. It runs on only one gallon of fuel per hour compared to three or four gallons for many gas-powered swathers." The header is powered by a series of engine-driven V-belts and right-angle gearboxes. The steering wheel is from the Versatile 4400 swather and the seat from an old Volvo tractor. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Brian Yokimas, Rt. 1, East Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada ROE OMO

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