Cummins/Allison/Rockwell/Planetaries/Peterbilt.....paint job completed

[rjfguitar]

Weird. Why not just use a tractor and a grain cart? Is that pretty common out there?

Martin

Try pulling a 6000lb trailer behind your K5 through the mud and let me know how that works out.

There are a few guys around here that use grain carts, but only when conditions are perfect and ground is nice and firm. They are also harder to maneuver as we get into a lot of tight spots. It's pretty tough to drag a 15 ton grain cart through mud like in the picture. Pretty much everyone uses self propelled 4 steer/4wd bankouts in northern California rice.

 

[rjfguitar]

So pictured is a bankout that could be purchased, they are the only company that builds them to sell, and they are built to order.

Price: $140,000

I think I'll stick with building my own.

 

[original balzer]

Cool build are the doors gunna clear the front tires? and what ya gunna do for a hood?

 

[rjfguitar]

Cool build are the doors gunna clear the front tires?

Yes

and what ya gunna do for a hood?

I have a matching Peterbilt 359 hood that will go on.

 

[scotto0609]

So pictured is a bankout that could be purchased, they are the only company that builds them to sell, and they are built to order.

Price: $140,000

I think I'll stick with building my own.

Will they take a check?!!

 

[max 02]

Weird. Why not just use a tractor and a grain cart? Is that pretty common out there?

Martin

I was going to ask the same thing...but I see your point with the mud and tight areas for turning in.

Our neibours a (Hutterite Colony) use a 550 hp Case on tracks to pull there grain cart. But they don`t play in the mud.

Awesome build!

 

[DEMON44]

Deadly awesomeness.

 

[rjfguitar]

I was going to ask the same thing...but I see your point with the mud and tight areas for turning in.

Our neibours a (Hutterite Colony) use a 550 hp Case on tracks to pull there grain cart. But they don`t play in the mud.

Awesome build!

Case quad tracks are awesome tractors, been looking at getting one actually.

I just don't see a need, even in dry conditions, to use one of my tractors with a 14L N14 Cummins compared to a 5.9L Cummins, when it comes to fuel cost. These small litre diesels in these bankouts can run hard all day long on 15-20 gallons of diesel, compared to that N14 that will use at least 5 gallons per hour, even with a light load like a cart. Not to mention these rigs with Allison autos make them run circles around tractors. The reason why grain carts are so popular in almost all other crops, is because they are very large and can go out in the field and unload, two, and even three combines before having to head in and unload into the semi. Works great if you have multiple combines going in the same field. My operation usually only has one combine going at a time.

 

[tRustyK5]

I see Sweco has the shorter wheelbase now, and figured it might be turning radius. I wasn't sure about turning radius though, I kinda figured it's a big field and you'd have plenty of room no matter what.

Cool build!

 

[Fixer]

Very cool build.

Do you have a rough idea of projected total cost? Just curious versus an off the shelf solution.

 

[82355]

We only have corn and soybeans here, so we don't deal with the same type of mud. I have just never seen such a thing before. EVERYONE around here uses a tractor and grain cart.

This is us a couple of years ago:

No mud, but a deep washout.

We harvest together with the neighbor. He has the 8320 and the Brent 880 Grain Cart. My old man has the 4955 and the other Brent 880. He upgraded the following year to an 8430 John Deere, and this winter he just traded the 800 bushel Brent grain cart for a 1000 bushel Brent.

Martin

 

[79rustyk10]

Its amazing how far farm machinery has come. The 2 cylinder JD stuff I use at my parents place isnt really even comparable to the modern stuff, other than bigger tires are in the back and they pull things.

 

[rjfguitar]

We only have corn and soybeans here, so we don't deal with the same type of mud. I have just never seen such a thing before. EVERYONE around here uses a tractor and grain cart.

This is us a couple of years ago:

No mud, but a deep washout.

We harvest together with the neighbor. He has the 8320 and the Brent 880 Grain Cart. My old man has the 4955 and the other Brent 880. He upgraded the following year to an 8430 John Deere, and this winter he just traded the 800 bushel Brent grain cart for a 1000 bushel Brent.

Martin

Those 1000 bushel carts are HUGE. You can damn near pull up to the truck and load him from empty to full!

Yeah, rice is basically the only industry where we use self propelled bankouts. The other problem is I don't have any smaller tractors like yours, those are perfect sized for carts. Everything I've got is 8 wheel drive or on rubber tracks.

These, pictured below are pretty cool. I've seen guys have the tracked carts, pulled by rubber tracked Challengers, but I'm not interested in burning 40-50 grand to on a tracked cart.

 

[rjfguitar]

Very cool build.

Do you have a rough idea of projected total cost? Just curious versus an off the shelf solution.

Well, that is a loaded question. Normally, it would cost someone about $50K to build one of these, if you payed market value for all your parts, built it yourself like I am, and figured your labor cost at a whopping $0.

For me, this project was actually started 2 years ago, and was started by gathering parts when things would come up for a real good deal.

Things I already had or were free:

Grain tank
frame
rims
tires
( all of which were already there from the old version of this rig.)

I got the cab, hood, and Allison for basically free, through trading of an old Pete that we junked.

I paid $900 for the 5.9 Cummins, again, I grabbed it because it was only $900......

The axles, I got an unbelievable deal on, the guy that owned the Military lift that they came out from had no idea what kind of money a monster truck guy would have paid. I paid just a little over what they would be worth for as scrap iron.

All in all, I think I am going to have somehere in the $17.5K range when done. Having a bunch of stuff already is a huge benefit, a set of four of the tires for it are $8K.

 

[max 02]

Do you got a picture of the head you use to harvest the rice with?

I would like to see it.

 

[82355]

Those 1000 bushel carts are HUGE. You can damn near pull up to the truck and load him from empty to full!

Those pictured are only 800 bushel wagons. We will have a 1000 bushel this fall though. Brent actually builds a 2000 bushel grain cart now.

Yeah, rice is basically the only industry where we use self propelled bankouts. The other problem is I don't have any smaller tractors like yours, those are perfect sized for carts. Everything I've got is 8 wheel drive or on rubber tracks.

I kind of assumed that was the situation. There are some 4 wheel drive tractors around here, but they are not super common. Everyone has a row crop tractor though. Tracked tractors are not very common here either. Contrary to the stupid jokes about how flat Nebraska is, it is far to hilly here for tracked tractors. They like to slide off the side hills. Although a guy I use to work for does have an older Quadtrac 4 wheel drive Case IH. They love that thing. The articulated frame makes up for the downfalls of a normal tracked tractor. They also have several new John Deere 4 wheel drive tractors.

Martin

 

[rjfguitar]

More pictures and of better quality.

Rockwell T77 transfer case

Drivelines are a combo of 1710, 1610, and mechanics u-joints all with military style companion flanges.

Better shot of the axles, PS115's, and last shot of the old PS205's that came out of it.

 

[rjfguitar]

More shots of better resolution of the whole rig.

 

[rjfguitar]

AIR boosted master cylinder.

PTO system with 1310 joints

Better shot of the gear driven compressor/hydro pump setup.

 

[rjfguitar]

Do you got a picture of the head you use to harvest the rice with?

I would like to see it.

We use our Shelbourne Reynolds stripper header on most of the acres. We can fly with it at 3mph, much faster than a sickle head. Last pic is a pair of 8820's with draper headers. I only run an 8820 when the mud gets bad, since it's got half tracks and rear wheel assist.