Nifty Way To Mount Combine Duals

Nifty way to mount combine duals COMBINES Miscellaneous 15-2-29 The last three harvests have been wet ones for Australian farmer John Haigh who farms near Gunnedah in New South Wales. In order to get through the boggy, black soil he farms, he mounted dual front wheels on the two N-7 Gleaners he operates. But because Haigh was worried about the extra strain the duals would put on the combine axles, he came up with an innovative mounting system that lets the duals "float" over fields. He bought second-hand 24.5 by 32 rims and tires to add to the 30.5 by 32-in. tires already on the combines. "We got tires with only 10 percent of the tread left on them so most of the weight is still taken on the inside wheel, with the outside ones being used mostly for flotation." The add-on wheels are held in place by six high-tensile chains tightened by bolts, with a steel spacing ring between each pair of wheels. The chains allow a slight bit of slip that also helps relieve strain on the axles. Haigh says it took about a day to fit each combine with duals and cost about $1,500 per machine. Since equipping his machines with duals he's harvested hundreds of acres of crops in standing water. He says the water keeps the tires clean but under wet conditions he has had problems with mud balling up between duals. (Reprinted with permission from THE LAND Magazine)

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