Agritechnica 2019: Biso headers flex to ground contours

Aftermarket headers are slowly gaining a foothold in the UK, with the likes of Macdon enjoying some recent success, which has perked the ears of makers such as Austrian firm Biso that also has an eye on the burgeoning British market.

See also: Agritechnica 2019: John Deere launches flagship X9 combine

Its range of headers run from 5.7m to 18.5m, slotting onto all types of harvester, and pride of place on the Agritechnica stand was the 12.3m 3D Varioflex Air unit.

The VarioFlex follows the contours of the ground, working from sensors mounted at 900mm spacings along the width near the fingers.

These relay the information to the pressure cushions under the bed that constantly adjust the level in auto flex mode.

A key feature is the paraellogram design, which allows the header to flex by 250mm from end to end, but the structure keeps the angle of the bed to 10deg, no matter what flex position it is in.

The operator can enter the amount of pressure the header should exert and it sorts out the rest. There’s a hydraulic reservoir on board, auto lube for chains, as well as a clean water tank.

There is no hydraulic source needed from the combine, just an electric feed to link the controls to the joystick.

Biso reckon this is different to some flexible headers on the market that twist the cutter bed angle either forwards and backwards when adapting to the ground.

A clever cylinder also stops the tines from coming into contact with the teeth when reeling in laid crops.

The 12.3m on the stand cost €109,300 (£93,600) and an importer is needed for the UK.

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