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Air Reel Fits Any Header
"We designed it with edible beans in mind but it also works great in short, standing soy-beans," says Len Lobb, Becker Farm Equipment Ltd., Exeter, Ontario, about his company's new-style air/batt reel combination kit that mounts on any self-propelled combine header.
The company unveiled a 25-ft. model at the rece
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Air Reel Fits Any Header COMBINES Headers 21-6-17 "We designed it with edible beans in mind but it also works great in short, standing soy-beans," says Len Lobb, Becker Farm Equipment Ltd., Exeter, Ontario, about his company's new-style air/batt reel combination kit that mounts on any self-propelled combine header.
The company unveiled a 25-ft. model at the recent Canadian Outdoor Farm Show near Woodstock.
Becker Farm Equipment has been selling air reel kits for years, primarily to edible bean growers. The firm has now introduced its own kit. It combines the best features from other commercial units.
It's equipped with a Crary gearbox-driven fan. Air goes through a flex-tube to an 8-in. dia. Keho-style manifold mounted along the front of the header with curved aluminum nozzles 3 to 4 in. ahead of the cutterbar. The curtain of air they create pushes the crop into the cutterbar and also blows "shattered" grain back onto a multi-section, stainless steel plat-form.
"It marries the latest Crary fan technology with an out-front style manifold, resulting in more airflow with less horsepower," says Lobb. "The nozzles are spaced to mount between every other tine on the reel. They direct air parallel to the ground and just above the knives and guards. Air keeps the crop moving back over the knives and holds it against the auger to produce a constant crop flow without bunching. Nozzle positioning can be adjusted by an electric actuator. Air flow volume can be adjusted by a mechanical dampener.
"The pto drives a gearbox on the fan and also chain-drives the header cross auger. We switched to a gearbox-driven fan because it eliminates problems in maintaining belt tension and requires less maintenance.
"The stainless steel floor we install allows the crop to slide easier. Anywhere from 5 to 9 stainless steel panel sections are hinged together, depending on header width. The panels aren't bolted to the floor. Instead, a coil spring system is used to draw them for-ward to the cutterbar. The design increases the flexibility along the entire length of the header. It also provides a nice transition on the floor of Case-IH headers and has a 1 1/2-in. rise about 7 in. back from the cutterbar to keep stones from riding forward."
The air/batt reel kit is available for headers ranging from 17 1/2 to 30 ft. wide. A 17 1/2-ft. model sells for $7,400 (Canadian) plus installation while a 30-ft. model sells for $8,350.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Len Lobb, Becker Farm Equipment Ltd., 615 Main St. South, Exeter, Ontario, Canada N0M 1S1 (ph 519 235-2121; fax 2791).
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