Hinged Header First Of Its Kind

Hinged Header First Of Its Kind COMBINES Headers 7-5-3 Wheat harvest was easier for Melvin Kejr this year. The 34-ft. hinging platform header he designed for his Deere 8820 combine made a more efficient harvest on all types of ground. "It was always a problem harvesting on terraces and in low spots of fields trying to position the combine to get all of the grain. That's the reason I decided to make this," says Kejr, a custom harvester at Brookville, Kan. But inventing machines isn't new to him. Along with his dad, Harry, and his brother, Joe, Kejr has designed or remodeled several farm implements in the past. "The whole idea of building this thing was to save the time and hassle of always trying to find the best place to drive in the field," Kejr notes. Designed to work at any position with the push of a button, the hinging platform is divided into three parts with the center piece 12 ft. wide and the two outside pieces each 11 ft. wide. "When the center is level with the ground, one side could go up four feet in the air and the opposite side could be two feet below ground level." His header is for the 8820, but the design would work on any machine. "I made it to fit this because that's what I had," says Kejr. It is made completely of salvage parts "from where I could find them." The basic shell was Deere and a lot of the salvaged parts are Deere, but he "had to fabricate and customize" the pieces into a working machine. "It was trial and error to know if some steel would have enough strength and still work," he admits. "It's kind of Siamese. I could cut it down the middle and each side would be exactly the same," Kejr points out. A jig was used on parts he fabricated so he can make them again if and when needed. There's been "virtually no break-down problems. Overall, I would say it's performed very well. "We haven't had wheat loss on the platform even in heavy straw that was down and yielding 60 bu. an acre. We've traveled fast sometimes, too, without any problems whatsoever. "It's not 100% efficient in all conditions, but we're making changes as we go," Kejr explains. And the header has worked equally well in limited harvesting of soybeans and milo. As far as value goes, Kejr says, "I haven't studied it all, but cost depends if you get used or new components. I'd say the header would figure about the price of a new corn head, $15-$20,000." There have been several farmers asking Kejr to build hinging headers for their combines and he plans to do that. A patent is pending. "If some company wants to buy the rights, I'll talk to them, but, in the meantime, I'll build some and see what happens." (Reprinted with permission from Grass and Grain, Manhattan, Kan.)

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