Straight cutting canola?

[Klause]

We use 2 heads


Massey 8570 has a 36 foot agco 5000 d****r no auger finger drum though.


The claas 470r has a 36ft Honeybee with a cross auger and the large center drum. I'll post a video later running it. Just regular dividers.



Why we straight cut?

Swather... 150 grand
Labour.... 200 hrs a year at 18 at hour
Fuel.... 1600 liters a year




Straight cut

1 pass. Labour savings 200 hours
Yield improvement... 5 bu at 10.50 52.50/acre

Equipment savings 50k



There's a lot more headers put there than ever before.... even around here guys are starting to see the light.


The arguments of wind shatter... all of thr USA south America Europe Australia... they don't use swathers. We are basically the only place in the world that swaths grain crops.


We have had 4 days of 50k winds that started moving canola swaths. Never touched our standing well knitted crop.


Nor saying it works everywhere all the time but I really think it is the way of the future.

[Daylate]

So... serious question. Would all you guys think it's safe enough to let it stand till the end of harvest and do it last? Just curious because I wouldn't want it getting in the way of cereal harvest.thats the biggest reason for not trying it. I would hate to have to go for it when I still have durum or whatever still out.

[TOM4CWB]

Straight cut cost 25 percent capacity on combine vs swath. Just like wheat. Green weeds and junk that will not blow out cause it is wet and same density as canola seed.

Spolt canola in bins? Rolling binned canola to keep in shape? Wet deliveries off combine to elevator that are actually 8.5 and dry... two or three weeks late after no room left... burned belts and plugged rotors...

We need a cooking good frost to fix the straight cut Canola... and it did not happen.

[Braveheart]

We straight cut a field of L130 expecting shelling losses. There were virtually none. The L130 was badly lodged though. Moisture was 8.7 and it went through like butter.

Our L140P had a few green spots last week, but we'll get in it tomorrow if it doesn't rain tonight.

We use a Case 2020 header locked in rigid. Fingers all the way down the auger really move the canola in. Don't know yet if the air reel is a benefit. Power dividers would help as it would allow us to cut virtually any direction. The feeder house doesn't like green stalk patches at all.

I echo Klause's comment re loss as well as the economics of straight cut vs swathed canola.

[MBgrower]

I didnt use my air reels, didnt need to, plus was worried about blasting seed out of the headers.

[farming101]

Will never happen here in pothole country. We'll just be content with less.

[biglentil]

in a few missed patches l130 has had zero shell out and swathed stuff has been in the bin nearly a month.

[jake550]

L-140 was about $10/AC more this spring for seed.
Also added cost to spraying with heat or something that actually dries the canola down. Plus tramping/shelling everywhere the sprayer goes.
At best the same yield in our experience.
Also delaying harvest lead to huge costs some years.... Not always but what is the peace of mind worth to have it in the bin.
Won't be doing it again here that's for sure.

[Partners]

Guys here already have the $150K swathers, plus now bought headers..Plus sprayed every acre with round up by plane..What savings?

[Guest]

some guys around here can't travel in the straight cut fields at all with combine , swathed fieds are dry