2015 - Volume #39, Issue #2, Page #05
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Repairing Today's Electronics
John Boersma has been repairing all kinds of ag electronics for the past 32 years. He also invented a product for Case IH Magnum Series tractors that was once featured in FARM SHOW (Vol. 22, No. 2). He stopped by our office the other day to talk about something he sees as a disturbing trend in ag electronics.“I’ve worked on planter monitors, moisture meters, electronic tractor controls, and many other types of ag electronics for many years. I primarily work directly with dealers who send in equipment for repair,” says Boersma. “But in recent years ag companies are increasingly making their electronics proprietary so that only they can work on them. They either won’t sell repair parts to farmers, or they don’t even make them. If something goes bad, you have to buy a new one.
“I had a screen on a tractor monitor that was cracked. The company said they couldn’t sell me just the screen. I traveled to the factory and got a tour of the assembly line. They finally did sell me a new screen but during our conversations they said, ‘One unit repaired is one less unit sold’, which I think is a very bad approach for a company to have toward its customers.”
John’s product that was featured in FARM SHOW is a draft sensing pin. Older model Magnum series tractors came equipped with an electronic 3-pt. hitch with a draft sensing pin. If the pin fails, the 3-pt. hitch isn’t usable. Boersma developed a circuit that plugs into the tractor wiring harness in place of the pin and allows the hitch to be used in manual mode. Costs a fraction of what a new pin would cost. (Ag Electronics Repair, Inc.; ph 507 263-5515).
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