Powered Wheel Gives Forage Harvester A Traction Boost

Powered Wheel Gives Forage Harvester A Traction Boost FORAGE HARVESTERS Forage Harvesters (31F) 19-5-32 Wet weather doesn't slow down silage-making at Jim Mitchell's farm. In fact, he's usually asked by neighbors to help chop their corn when he's finished with his own. That's because of a "traction and flotation booster" Mitchell built to attach to the right side of his Gehl 1200 pull-type for-age harvester. It consists of a 7:1 gear reduction box which originally ran the plunger on an old New Holland baler, a TRW hydraulic motor, and a 14 by 9.38-in. rear wheel off a Deere "A" tractor. The gearbox is chain driven by the hydraulic motor. They mount on a plate attached to an adjustable stub axle extension Mitchell made for the chopper out of 4-in. sq. tubing. The gear box, which drives the tractor wheel from inside the rim when it's put on, has an over-running clutch to let it free-wheel when extra traction is not needed. The tractor wheel mounts on the forage harvester with an old tractor hub Mitchell rebored to fit the driveshaft out of the gear-box. The hydraulic motor is driven by the Deere 8440 Mitchell uses to pull the harvester. "We only put it on when it's muddy and it works great to improve the traction and flotation of the harvester,- he says. Out-of-pocket expense was about $500. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jim Mitchell, 7896 U.S. Hwy. I I, Potsdam, N.Y. 13676 (ph 315-265-7647).

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