Vintage Deere Combines Still Harvesting Crops
Iowa farmer Russ Bruhn has an affinity for vintage Deere combines. It has grown into such a large hobby that it takes up space in several sheds on his farm. “I didn’t acquire my first machine until the late 1980’s, but since then I’ve added at least 5 other machines, and my son and son-in-law each have one, too. Once this hobby gets in your blood it sort of stays there,” says Bruhn, who’s been farming for 40 years.
Bruhn says his fixation on Deere combines began in the early 70’s when he worked for a neighbor who raised a lot of cattle. “I spent many hours driving a model 105 with a 4-row, 40-in. head harvesting corn. The machine had a cab and a heater, so I was comfortable and out of the weather. I made up my mind right then I would own one someday.”
In the late 1980’s, when Bruhn was farming and working as a driver for Worthington Ag Parts, he bought his first 1969 Deere. “That 105 gas model came from Indiana and was in real good shape,” says Bruhn. “The engine ran well, the drive train was in working order, and all we did with the harvester was put in rasp bars on the cylinder and rebuild the clean grain elevator.”
The next model he acquired was a 95 hillside model from Washington state. “That one was in mint condition, and we’ve kept it that way over the years. When it needs a chain, sprocket, belt or bearing, we make the repairs and keep it humming along,” says Bruhn. He uses the machine to harvest about 30 acres of his own rye and oats every year and does some custom work for neighbors. “We can get parts for any of our machines from my son-in-law, who works for Deere, or Worthington has a lot of vintage machine parts, too,” says Bruhn.
The open station 95 is fitted with a 16-ft. wide platform that cuts standing grain. Bruhn says sitting or standing in the open isn’t a problem with dust because the seat and controls are high enough that dust blows to the side rather than up and over him.
Other models in Bruhn’s mid-to-late 1960’s stable of machines are a 105 diesel that came from a salvage yard and a 55 that his son bought at a farm auction. In total he and his son and son-in-law have a 45, a 55, four 95s, and two 105s. The 45 is the smallest, equipped with just a 2-row corn head. The other machines can be fitted with a windrow pickup, a grain platform or a corn head, all of which Bruhn has on hand.
“We bought a 95 rice crawler in Minnesota that had spent a lot of time in Louisiana, so it had a lot of rust from the salt spray,” Bruhn says. “That one has taken a little time to get back into working order.” Their other machines see regular harvest work every year and are always stored inside. Belts, chains, bearings and augers are checked every year and replaced as needed. Lubricants and filters are serviced every season. All their machines still have original tires that show plenty of use, but still handle their job.
Asked about using vintage machines to harvest high-yielding crops, Bruhn is quick to point out “we just can’t be in a hurry when we’re running in corn that’s well over 200 bu. an acre. These machines were built when a good corn yield was 100 bu. an acre.” A few of the 50-year-old machines have grain tank extensions, but most still have their standard tanks which range from just 40 bushels on the 45 to about 100 bushels on the 105. Says Bruhn, “an auger on one of today’s large Deere combines might hold as much as the tank on the 45.” Bruhn says in addition to using the machines, they’ve hosted 3 tractor rides where the machines have all been displayed.
The Bruhn family operation also has two other Deere combines that they use for the majority of their 1,000 acres of cropland: a 9410 that harvests beans and a 9660 used for corn.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Russell Bruhn, 1584 Eagle Ave., Audubon, Iowa 50025 (ph 712 563-3052).
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Vintage Deere Combines Still Harvesting Crops COMBINES Miscellaneous Iowa farmer Russ Bruhn has an affinity for vintage Deere combines It has grown into such a large hobby that it takes up space in several sheds on his farm “I didn’t acquire my first machine until the late 1980’s but since then I’ve added at least 5 other machines and my son and son-in-law each have one too Once this hobby gets in your blood it sort of stays there ” says Bruhn who’s been farming for 40 years
Bruhn says his fixation on Deere combines began in the early 70’s when he worked for a neighbor who raised a lot of cattle “I spent many hours driving a model 105 with a 4-row 40-in head harvesting corn The machine had a cab and a heater so I was comfortable and out of the weather I made up my mind right then I would own one someday ”
In the late 1980’s when Bruhn was farming and working as a driver for Worthington Ag Parts he bought his first 1969 Deere “That 105 gas model came from Indiana and was in real good shape ” says Bruhn “The engine ran well the drive train was in working order and all we did with the harvester was put in rasp bars on the cylinder and rebuild the clean grain elevator ”
The next model he acquired was a 95 hillside model from Washington state “That one was in mint condition and we’ve kept it that way over the years When it needs a chain sprocket belt or bearing we make the repairs and keep it humming along ” says Bruhn He uses the machine to harvest about 30 acres of his own rye and oats every year and does some custom work for neighbors “We can get parts for any of our machines from my son-in-law who works for Deere or Worthington has a lot of vintage machine parts too ” says Bruhn
The open station 95 is fitted with a 16-ft wide platform that cuts standing grain Bruhn says sitting or standing in the open isn’t a problem with dust because the seat and controls are high enough that dust blows to the side rather than up and over him
Other models in Bruhn’s mid-to-late 1960’s stable of machines are a 105 diesel that came from a salvage yard and a 55 that his son bought at a farm auction In total he and his son and son-in-law have a 45 a 55 four 95s and two 105s The 45 is the smallest equipped with just a 2-row corn head The other machines can be fitted with a windrow pickup a grain platform or a corn head all of which Bruhn has on hand
“We bought a 95 rice crawler in Minnesota that had spent a lot of time in Louisiana so it had a lot of rust from the salt spray ” Bruhn says “That one has taken a little time to get back into working order ” Their other machines see regular harvest work every year and are always stored inside Belts chains bearings and augers are checked every year and replaced as needed Lubricants and filters are serviced every season All their machines still have original tires that show plenty of use but still handle their job
Asked about using vintage machines to harvest high-yielding crops Bruhn is quick to point out “we just can’t be in a hurry when we’re running in corn that’s well over 200 bu an acre These machines were built when a good corn yield was 100 bu an acre ” A few of the 50-year-old machines have grain tank extensions but most still have their standard tanks which range from just 40 bushels on the 45 to about 100 bushels on the 105 Says Bruhn “an auger on one of today’s large Deere combines might hold as much as the tank on the 45 ” Bruhn says in addition to using the machines they’ve hosted 3 tractor rides where the machines have all been displayed
The Bruhn family operation also has two other Deere combines that they use for the majority of their 1 000 acres of cropland: a 9410 that harvests beans and a 9660 used for corn
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Russell Bruhn 1584 Eagle Ave Audubon Iowa 50025 ph 712 563-3052
