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POWER INFLUENCE ON HARVESTING PRACTICE
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By D. N. McHardy, N.D.A., A.I.E.E.
EVEN the most enthusiastic supporters of the horse have admitted, from the earliest days of the tractor, that the agrimotor excels in harvesting and, as tractor equipment progressively improves, this fact becomes more and more evident. •
Probably the most serious factor . militating against the horse in harvest work is the call for long working hours under most trying weather conditions, when the heat and the presence of flies render animal power even less able than usual to meet a peak load. The tractor, unaffected by such external influences and, in fact, running better than in cold weather, will carry on unceasingly and work for 24 hours a day.
The Horse Ousted from the Hayfield.
The harvest field sees a more than ordinary linking-up of . forces between tractor and horse on many farms, where cutting is left to the tractor and haulage to the horse. When, however, there is no special call for horses for other work on the farm, the haulage problem is easily disposed of by the tractor, lorry or car. On many a hayfield, to-day—especially in the southern counties—no horse sets foot at all.
This year sees a most important step in the. progress of . tractor, mowing equipment, with the introduction by the International Harvester Co. of Great Britain, Ltd., of the self-lift trailer mower. Speaking from experience of all varieties of haying machine, I venture to suggest that this type will just what the farmer has been waiting for.
Apart from tractor mowing, it may not be out of place to refer to the great advance in haymaking methods, due to the introduction of the motorcar hay sweep. This appliance, first introduced by Mr. A. J. Hosier, has rapidly been adopted in many parts of the country, and with this attachment on the front of a car, the hay from a large area can be swept to the stack in a day.
become more or less standardized for ganerpl purposes in this country.
A machine free from complications and giving full one-man control, with the ability to lift the cutter bar for turning by a mete pull on a cord, instead of manipulating a hand lever, is
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Whilst most farmers use old cars, there is always an element of uncertainty about them and, where there are good lorries on the farm, they can often be employed in their spare time on this. work, with a greater measure of reliability. As the sweep can, be
attached and detached in a few minutes, the lorry need not be kept off the road.
The coming of the cat sweep has practically put an end to the development of the tractor sweep. The former is simpler, cheaper and more effective, the high speed of the car enabling a rapid and steady flow of hay to be delivered to the stacker. On many fields, speeds up to 20 m.p.h. can easily be employed.
Value of the Traitor Rake.
Another recently introduced tool, which won a silVer medal at last. year's Royal Show, is the Blackstone expanding tractor rake. This implement fits in well with the sweeping system, because it allows the hay quickly to be gathered into large windrows suitable for picking up by the car sweep.
When the hay is to be left for some time before sweeping, it may prove convenient to form it into large cocks, in north-country fashion. These are largely weatherproof and can be picked up bodily .by the sweeps. : The sweeping system, of course, entails stacking in the field where. the
crop is grown, or, at any rate, immediately adjacent, as the sweep car cannot be driven loaded over a road. For those who require th carry their crops home along a road, the trailer hauled by a lorry or tractor can prove an invaluable aid, especially when a mechanical loader is employed.
In this connection, the introduction of the pneumatic tyre has given a considerable boost to tractor haulage. This fact anplies, incidentally, just as much to tractor mowing, for the rubber-tyred tractor injures neither the ground nor the cut swathes, whereas complaints against the steel-wheeled tractor on meadowland were frequent.
Tractor's Part in Grass Drying.
Grass drying, the new system of artificially removing the moisture and converting the crop into a high-class concentrated feeding stuff, depends largely on the employment of the tractor for the field work, and here pneumatic equipment is practically essential. Pneumatics are fitted to the mowers which cut the grass, and to the trailer into which the grass is loaded, lot' the sward must not be damaged. • Whilst it would be an exaggeration to say that the development of grass drying is dependent on tractor equipment, it is probably true that the tractor contributes much towards making the system economic and it has been the means for effecting many sales of new agrimotors and implements.
Turning from hay to corn harvest, we find that the increasing employment of the tractor for cutting corn has come about with the development of the power binder. At first sight one might conclude that in corn cutting, the unflagging energy of the tractor is its only advantage, as compared with horses. There is, however, a much more important factor, to realize the significance of which we must look carefully at the horsed binder.
Hem we have a complicated mass of moving units for cutting the corn, assembling it into sheaves on the binding deck, tying it and delivering the completed bundle to the ground.• All these parts require appreciable power for their operation, which, in the horsed binder, is derived from the adhesion of the bull wheel on the ground. As a result of this method of driving, not only is the draught heavy, but should the soil be damp, frequent skidding will put the working parts out of action.
For many years, the tractor was equipped only with trailer binders, adapted from the horsed types, and the results were none too good. Of recent years, however, the power binder has been developed especially to take advantage of the fact that the power of the :tractor engine can be transmitted direct to the working parts of the binder and thus eliminate the need for securing power by. ground traction.
The Change in Power Bindery.
This at once places power bindery on an entirely different footing from earlier practice, because no time is lost due to skidding when soil conditions are bad. Furthermore, if a heavy tangled crop be encountered, which presents difficulty to the tying mechanism, one can stop forward travel and allow the binder parts to run under power until all is clear. Should a sheaf be passed without tying, it can be picked up and thrown back for the machine to tie a second time, and the old job of hand..
tying missed sheaves is eliminated.
But more important still is the fact that the power available enables machines affording a much wider cut to be operated. Tractor binders with a 10-ft. cut are now numerous. They work well in all average-sized crop% and, if anything very heavy be encountered, it is always possible to pull out for a foot or two of the width. Along with these advantages we must add the fact that mechanical construction has progressed likewise and the tractor binder of reputable make will definitely withstand hard driving.
Arising out of the design of a power appliance, in which the question of traction has no place, the employment of pneumatic-tyred equipment becomes practicable. This year the Dunlop Co. is featuring its conversion sets, in which • all steel wheels are replaced by pneumatics. • • The great advantage to be secured is the reduction of ground vibration, which, in dry seasons, may become violent and cause breakages which would never arise from any other cause. As the wheels are interchangeable on to other machines, it seems probable that this innovation will be received with favour by many farmers whose land is hard on binders.
Coming to the question of hauling home sheafed corn, one finds the tractor being more and more widely used in conjunction with sledges or smallwheeled, trailers. trailers. The special feature in each case is that a.. low load, as long and as wide as possible, is aimed at. Loading is effected solely by the pitchers walking alongside. Matters can be appreciably speeded up in this way and the load can be hauled at.top
speed without fear of upsetting. . One cannot omit mention of the combine-harvester, the introduction Of which has been made possible by the tractor. All things considered, there is quite a large number of these appliances at work in this country, but the heavy capital outlay on most types puts them out of the reach of many farmers and they have not assumed the importance of the power binder. Last year, however, the Allis Chalmers company brought over a " baby " combine, which has shown great promise and may meet the requirements of a much larger circle of growers.
So far, the seasons have been favourable to combining and it is too early to pronounce for or against this type of implement, but there seems to be a reasobable assurance that the lowerpriced patterns may become fairly general.