Custom Combining Rates

[sumdumguy]

Farmers with snow lodged wheat, oats are scouting around farmers that are done offering $12/acre for two Cases to straight-cut wheat. Guess the reply they got.

[beaverdam]

Farmers with snow lodged wheat, oats are scouting around farmers that are done offering $12/acre for two Cases to straight-cut wheat. Guess the reply they got.

Just curious, what do you think the rate should be, for combining in the last week of Oct and into Nov?

[bigzee]

Anyone that wants to come and cut this for $12 is more than welcome. In fact, I will round it off to $15. You are cutting as is, as in rocks also.

[STR1]

Just curious, what do you think the rate should be, for combining in the last week of Oct and into Nov?

Dealers charge around $350 - 400 per separated hour, plus you supply labour, plus you supply fuel. So I’m guessing $30-35 per acre would be close.
Then depends on whether it’s friend and you just want help out or true custom work, every situation is different.

[bucket]

Pretty tough to ask a neighbour to come help when he has to go to unrolled ground to get it....and work on land he has never been on....

If combines could be fixed for less than 5000 it wouldn't be a problem to pay the repair bill as a bonus...but when you are talking feed wheat ....pretty tough to think the neighbour will cover his costs if a wreck occurs...

[fjlip]

Do your own, stuff costs TOO MUCH to f ckup on someone else's. Real tired of 2019 anyway, put it all away,changed oils...just dry the rest before TOO cold.

[hobbyfrmr]

Farmers with snow lodged wheat, oats are scouting around farmers that are done offering $12/acre for two Cases to straight-cut wheat. Guess the reply they got.

I don’t understand the sentence.
The farmers with lodged crops are asking around for help, they want to pay $12.00/acre?
Farmers with 2 case combines are looking to custom harvest lodged crops for $12.00/acre?
Either way, custom harvest rates are about $25.00/acre combine only and. $30.00/acre combine and truck in “normal” conditions.
Combines are so expensive now, any damage is a major setback to a farm. Rumour has it a bigger farm put a VT disk into a new JD combine. It took 3 weeks for dealer to fix and $96,000.00 invoice.
That is straight rumour, the tales get taller down the line but it would not surprise me.

My 25 year old combine is breaking down in odd places from getting worn out. Definite down time and learning all about the mechanisms I have never really looked at much. So make payments or suffer the downtime to fix it. I don’t have a solid value attached to the penalty of a wore out antique.

[blackpowder]

If you can't pay your neighbor what it's worth you can do it yourself.
And probably always has.

[jazz]

Well with sme of the guys wheat not even good enouggh for pigs to eat, I would be looking for some custom work to pay the bills, but $12 an acre is a rip. $30 is probably more like it.

[sumdumguy]

That’s sorta what I thought $12 is about 1/3 price, with the conditions and risk. Just didn’t know the going rate for standing grain, never mind flat grain with rocks underneath. Today is finito benito for our gumbo flats so time to get ready for satellite swirls coming in. 💨 Looks like its high-gear time.

[Grahamp]

I am not a custom combiner but when I see how the combines I own depreciate I don’t think 30-35 is enough for newer combines. I’d help a good neighbour but short of that I think you need $40 per acre from a solely economic point of view.

[LEP]

I don’t understand the sentence.
The farmers with lodged crops are asking around for help, they want to pay $12.00/acre?
Farmers with 2 case combines are looking to custom harvest lodged crops for $12.00/acre?
Either way, custom harvest rates are about $25.00/acre combine only and. $30.00/acre combine and truck in “normal” conditions.
Combines are so expensive now, any damage is a major setback to a farm. Rumour has it a bigger farm put a VT disk into a new JD combine. It took 3 weeks for dealer to fix and $96,000.00 invoice.
That is straight rumour, the tales get taller down the line but it would not surprise me.

My 25 year old combine is breaking down in odd places from getting worn out. Definite down time and learning all about the mechanisms I have never really looked at much. So make payments or suffer the downtime to fix it. I don’t have a solid value attached to the penalty of a wore out antique.

Yup, it's payments or parts. Most times both. If you are pulling in on a crop that is upright vs flat on the ground, there's a big difference.

[farmaholic]

Every one of those custom hours better cover the replacement cost of that hour.

Every hour you put on the combine on someone else's farm is one less on your own. Helping for free is good under certain circumstances.

Guides: unless the neighbor has a catastrophic break down or a health issue. I don't like going out to help people who bite off more than they can chew or chronic heel draggers.

Helping greedy land grabbers(I hate using that word) finish their harvest only makes them think they can handle more.

I am so fookin glad to be done ALL I want to do is clean up and put shit away.

Getting a bit of grain dried now to blend down our marginally tough stuff. Only the good quality wheat will be dried at this point. Nothing is insanely tough or damp here, I am so thankful.

[STR1]

I am not a custom combiner but when I see how the combines I own depreciate I don’t think 30-35 is enough for newer combines. I’d help a good neighbour but short of that I think you need $40 per acre from a solely economic point of view.

I agree on newer combines, with the risk of something going through a combine, or just wear and tear this time year $40 would be closer.
If you damage your combine 20 acres into a custom job it may cost the combine owner $10k? $20K? $30K $40K...........

I personally don’t think it’s fair for people to ask you to help finish harvest, too many risks......and it’s always the same ones asking every year!!!
If it’s a family emergency or something out of the ordinary health wise I’m all in .......no charge!!!

[MBgrower]

$12/acre would be a good swathing rate, 30-35/acre for combing more like it