"Snowbine" Helps Pay The Bills

"Snowbine" Helps Pay The Bills COMBINES Conversions 27-2-6 A reworked old combine and some miscellaneous parts resulted in a machine that helps boost the bottom line for Paul Barnes, who runs a machine shop in Shelbyville, Ill. He built the "snowbine" from the front and rear axles off a 55 Deere combine, the cab from a Gleaner "L" (complete with heater, windshield wipers and tilt steering), and a small block Chevy V-8 engine with automatic transmission that runs to a Ford rear axle positioned between the 55 Deere's final drives. The hood over the engine compartment is off the top of a 6600 Deere combine straw walker. The frame was built from scratch out of 3 by 8-in. steel tubing. It's built low to the ground to lower the center of gravity. Hydraulics are supplied by a 55 Deere pump controlled by more modern electric-over-hydraulic valves. "It'll travel 35 to 40 mph and the 2-wheel drive has plenty of power to handle big snowfalls. But I am thinking of adding a 3/4-ton Dana 44 steering axle to the rear for additional traction," says Barnes, noting that hydrostatic 4-WD would probably work better than the mechanical transmission but he decided to work with what he had. Paul mounted a blade on a front 3-pt. and gave the snowbine a fancy paint job, complete with a phone number advertising the snow plow business. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Paul Barnes, Barnes machine Service, 209 N. Pine, Shelbyville, Ill. 62565 (ph 217 774-5308; fax 217 774-5310).

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