Know How / Combines

This is your go-to area for everything related to combine harvesters. We offer tips for keeping old combines running well, how to select a new machine and all the specs and prices for the UK market.

Latest combine articles

COMBINES

Massey Ferguson ramps up combine spec packages

Selected optional equipment is being included as standard on a limited run of Massey Ferguson Next Edition combines. All told, MF says Activa S and Beta Next Edition buyers get…

COMBINES

Mid-range Agco Ideal combines get performance upgrades

An increase in separation area for the mid-range models in Agco’s Ideal combine range builds on the cleaning performance upgrades introduced on all four variants for this year’s harvest. It…

TECHNOLOGY

How to get ultra-accurate RTK guidance for £1,100

Once the preserve of the generously acred, ultra-accurate RTK guidance is now a financially viable option for farms of a princelier scale thanks to fit-it-yourself kits powered by open-source software.…

COMBINES

Driver's View: Guy Walker rates Lexion-like Claas Trion 760

A gnat’s doodah is about all that now separates the top Trion from the lowliest Lexion in Claas’ combine line-up. The two ranges were drawn closer than ever last summer…

WORKSHOP SKILLS

Top tips for combine maintenance, repair and storage

Having cut his teeth at hire firm APH in the mid-1990s, Ben Painter knows a thing or two about CNH combines. Three decades on, he’s still in the game, keeping…

Combine reviews and tests

See all

Driver's view: Massey Ferguson Delta

Vital stats Twin-rotor hybrid threshing| 509hp Sisu 7-cylinder engine with AdBlue| 9.2m header| 9,500-litre grain tank| Made in Italy A bit of background How has it performed? Likes & gripes…

COMBINES

Driver's view: Peter Booth's Claas Tucano 320

We get the details on Angus arable farmer Peter Booth’s Claas Tucano 320 that replaced a near-identical model in 2017. See also: Combine add-ons can help slash spread of weed seeds…

COMBINES

Driver’s view: Claas Trion 750 rated after two seasons' work

The launch of the Trion combines two years ago represented one of the biggest-ever shake-ups of the Claas range. Slotting between the high-output Lexions and late-of-this-parish Tucanos, they promised something…

COMBINES

Video: It's coming - Massey's huge 650hp Ideal combine

Claas and New Holland might reign supreme in European harvesting circles, but Agco is hoping to knock them down a peg or two with its highest output and most sophisticated…

COMBINES

Driver’s view: Ed Layton’s John Deere T5 600 Hillmaster

The first examples of John Deere’s five-walker T5 combines rocked up on farms this harvest, offering more output and greater levels of refinement that the T500 machines they replaced. Most…

COMBINES

New Holland’s monster CR11 combine notches 100t/hour

New Holland has edged ahead in the perpetual race for grain harvesting supremacy with its highest output and most expensive combine yet. The CR11 is reckoned to be good for…

COMBINES

Driver’s view: Robert Floyd’s 1989 Laverda 3850 combine

A 1989 Laverda 3850 has been the combine of choice for Worcestershire mixed farmers Robert Floyd and James Kent for the past 13 years. The Italian-built harvester cuts about 80ha…

COMBINES

Driver's view: John Deere CTS 9780i combine

A large output when crops are at their driest was key for Dorset farmer James Reed. After doing his research, the hybrid arrangement of the John Deere CTS was the…

Driver's view: Case Axial Flow 9230

Vital stats Single-rotor threshing| 571hp Fiat 12.9-litre engine with AdBlue| 10.7m (35ft) header| 12,330-litre grain tank| Made in USA A bit of background How has it performed? Likes & gripes…

COMBINES

On test: Combine reversing cameras – which is best?

Clobbering the back of your combine harvester against an oak tree or backing over the boss’s pickup is no fun whatsoever. So the addition of a rear-view camera to keep…

COMBINES

Brace of John Deere X9 combines gobble 170t of wheat an hour

In its quest to build the highest-output combine harvester on the market, John Deere came up with a machine that was also the most expensive. Commanding a heady starting list…

Double cutterbar combine can boost outputs by 15%

An unusual double-cutterbar combine header being used by a Midlands farmer is claimed to be able to boost harvester output by up to 15%. Nick Fone explains how. For the…

Combine guides

See all

WORKSHOP SKILLS

Top tips for combine maintenance, repair and storage

Having cut his teeth at hire firm APH in the mid-1990s, Ben Painter knows a thing or two about CNH combines. Three decades on, he’s still in the game, keeping…

COMBINES

On test: Combine reversing cameras – which is best?

Clobbering the back of your combine harvester against an oak tree or backing over the boss’s pickup is no fun whatsoever. So the addition of a rear-view camera to keep…

TECHNOLOGY

Simple guide to telematics and performance monitoring

Of all the key machines on an average arable farm, the combine is king. It’s the most expensive piece of any machinery – top-of-the-range machines can hit the £400,000 mark…

COMBINES

Ultimate guide to buying a combine 2020

With this year’s combining season well and truly put to bed, it’s time for some growers to look ahead and consider their combine requirements for harvest 2020. We detail the…

COMBINES

Lancs engineer modifies mint Claas and Deere combine fleet

Few combine harvesters leave a contracting business in better condition than when they arrived, but that’s usually the case for the cosseted examples run by Lancashire outfit A Johnson Agricultural…

COMBINES

Ultimate guide to buying a combine 2021

Increased capacity potential with more sophisticated powertrains promising lower running costs are common themes among new combine harvesters listed in this year’s Ultimate Guide for harvest 2021. At Claas, the…

COMBINES

First impressions: Case IH's new single-rotor AF10 combine

While rival brands offer an assortment of separation systems, Case IH only has eyes for socking great single rotors – which is exactly what can be found running the length…

COMBINES

Video: Claas launches biggest-ever Lexion combine

Claas has just won the most recent hand of combine manufacturer Top Trumps after it launched its most powerful Lexion machines yet. The headline-grabbing flagship 8900 is the biggest in the…

COMBINES

16 nifty retrofit items to fine-tune your combine

The internet is awash with bolt on bits of technology to improve your combine's harvesting performance. We've picked out some handy items used by farmers all over the globe –…

COMBINES

Ultimate guide to buying a combine 2025

Some major updates are included in this year’s combine buyer’s guide, not least New Holland’s all-new CR top-end machines. Existing CR Evolution and CX combines have also gained some improvements…

MACHINERY

2019 Ultimate guide to buying a combine

Increased automation to help both experienced and inexperienced combine operators is the highlight of upgrades to the latest crop of machines destined for harvest 2019. New sensor technology can now…

Combine buyers guide 2014

Tweaks and upgrades rather than major new model introductions characterise combine developments for the 2014 harvest. Click on each manufacturer to see their specifications. Case IH Claas Deutz Fahr John…

Video

See all

VIDEO: Fendt tractor sales rocket

The explosive modernisation of eastern European agriculture has fuelled massive growth in sales for German tractor maker Fendt.    Sales of Fendt tractors have rocketed on the back of the…

Video: Is a 61ft header the largest in the world?

This video fascinating video filmed in December 2008 shows a Claas Lexion 600 with a 61ft (18.6m) header working in drought hit wheat in New South Wales, Australia. The cutom-built header…

COMBINES

Video: Claas launches Trion combine range as Tucanos scrapped

Buyers will no longer have to order a model from Claas’ biggest Lexion range to spec all the popular bells and whistles after the German maker launched its new ultra-flexible…

COMBINES

Video: John Deere's monster £850,000 X9 combine

US firm John Deere has given its new X9 1100 combine and 12.1m HDX header a whopping £850,328 list price. The combine alone is listed at £725,908 and the HDX…

Combine insights and practical advice

See all

WORKSHOP SKILLS

Top tips for combine maintenance, repair and storage

Having cut his teeth at hire firm APH in the mid-1990s, Ben Painter knows a thing or two about CNH combines. Three decades on, he’s still in the game, keeping…

TECHNOLOGY

Simple guide to telematics and performance monitoring

Of all the key machines on an average arable farm, the combine is king. It’s the most expensive piece of any machinery – top-of-the-range machines can hit the £400,000 mark…

COMBINES

Retrofit combine yield monitor provides low-cost crop data

From decision-making on crop dryer settings to variety choices for the next cropping year, there is value to be had in being able to quickly access and make use of…

COMBINES

Agronomist-built combine attachment helps monitor losses

A novel Canadian combine attachment is helping growers calculate the monetary value of thrown-away grains by checking tailings as they fall from the machine. The Bushel Plus system was developed…

COMBINES

Plusher cabs and more tech for John Deere combines

Having splashed out on the development of its acre-gobbling twin-rotor X9 combine, John Deere has been making the most of the investment by filtering much of the technology down to…

COMBINES

Ultimate guide to buying a combine 2020

With this year’s combining season well and truly put to bed, it’s time for some growers to look ahead and consider their combine requirements for harvest 2020. We detail the…

TECHNOLOGY

How to improve slurry and silage kit with infrared sensors

Scientists have been using near-infrared spectroscopy for decades, analysing everything from blood and tissue samples to livestock forage and grain. But now this technology is starting to migrate from the…

COMBINES

Lancs engineer modifies mint Claas and Deere combine fleet

Few combine harvesters leave a contracting business in better condition than when they arrived, but that’s usually the case for the cosseted examples run by Lancashire outfit A Johnson Agricultural…

HARVEST

What costs to consider when increasing combine capacity

Every year farmers face the same question: Should I buy extra kit to ensure a quick harvest and secure premiums, pay for a contractor, or risk rain delays? Each carries…

COMBINES

Ultimate guide to buying a combine 2021

Increased capacity potential with more sophisticated powertrains promising lower running costs are common themes among new combine harvesters listed in this year’s Ultimate Guide for harvest 2021. At Claas, the…

MACHINERY

8 ways to make your combine tyres last longer

Checking the tyres before the combine is put away for winter could save farmers thousands of pounds in unnecessary replacement costs the following year, according to Mitas Tyres. "Replacing combine…