1999 - Volume #23, Issue #4, Page #09
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Loader Tractor Built Out Of Combine
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"It was a hassle to have to turn around and look behind you to load and unload a bale," says the Valparaiso, Neb., farmer.
Starting with a late 1960's 3496 Moline combine, Pekarek and his uncle, Adolph Benes, removed all the grain cleaning components and bought a salvaged Versatile front end loader for the project.
They moved the combine engine and cab back 3 ft. and 1 ft. down on the chassis to better distribute the weight.
The clutch linkage was modified, from rod to cable, to compensate for the repositioning of the cab and engine.
They've filled the threshing compartment with 1,500 lbs. of field stone to counterbalance the weight of 2,000-lb. bales.
They made a bracket for the loader out of 4 by 6-in., 1/2-in. wall tubing, bolted it onto the combine, and mounted the loader on it. The loader is powered by a 22 gpm hydraulic pump that's belt-driven off the combine's main driveshaft.
"We move 125 bales a year and this has worked great. It's also ideal for moving snow or dirt which we do constantly," Pekarek says.
Out-of-pocket expense was about $2,500, including $1,100 for the salvaged loader.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Eric Pekarek, Rt. 1, Box 193A, Valparaiso, Neb. 68056 (ph 402 784-3793).
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