Auger Sleeve Reinforces Deere Unloading Auger

Auger Sleeve Reinforces Deere Unloading Auger AUGERS Augers (29B) 33-1-39 "When the unloading auger on my Deere 9650 STS combine got a kink in it, I repaired it with a reinforcing sleeve that fits over the damaged section," says Roger Gutschmidt of Gackle, N. Dak. "I'm also installing a transport cradle for extra support." He says he believes the area that kinked is a weak spot on Deere combines. His unit had about 1,500 separator hours on it when he had the problem, with a lot of use in corn and soybeans. "The auger tube had worn thin in that area from all those bushels going through it, and then we had some exceptionally heavy wheat last year," he says. "The original sheet metal in that area is only 18 ga., which is thinner than the thickness of a dime. After running about 200,000 plus bu. of grain through it, it ends up being paper thin." To solve the problem, Gutschmidt had a special 12 ga., 4-ft. long clamp made at a machine shop in Jamestown, N. Dak. While that was being done, he straightened his auger tube by first positioning his combine so the header of his shop door was just above the damaged area. "I laid a 2 by 6-in. board on top of the tube and braced a 4 by 4 between it and the header. This gave the auger tube some support when I lifted on the far end of the auger with a hydraulic jack. I jacked up on the tube until the auger was a little past the straight position and pulled out the dents," he explains. To remove the dents, Gutschmidt welded several flat washers to the kinked areas, and then used a slide hammer to pull them out. "My slide hammer is a homemade device. It's a Vise-Grip pliers with a long rod and a heavy weight that slides back and forth on the rod," he points out. "I clamped it onto the washers, pulled out the dents, and then ground the washers off with my 4 1/2-in. grinder. I accidentally made some small holes, but they don't show because the clamp/sleeve covers them." For added strength, Gutschmidt made a 6 by 24-in. reinforcement patch and welded it over the once-kinked area. The patch is 12 ga. sheet metal and wraps around the auger tube up each side of the damaged area. He drilled several holes in the patch to spot weld it to the auger tube. Once his new 12 ga. by 4-ft. clamp arrived, Gutschmidt removed the auger's end spout and light bracket, and then slid it on from the end, positioning it over the previously kinked area. He then tightened up the 12 bolts that snugly hold the clamp in place. He painted his handiwork with matching paint, resulting in a professional looking finished product. "I wanted it to look like it came from the factory that way," he says. Gutschmidt says he can supply other farmers with this type of reinforcement kit, allowing them to install it as either a preventative measure or as an economical repair. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Gutschmidt Manufacturing LLC, Roger Gutschmidt, 6651 Hwy. 56, Gackle, N. Dak. 58442 (ph 701 698-2310; shopdoc@drtel.net).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.