Finlands’s Sampo Rosenlew combines are coming back to Britain to meet anticipated demand from smaller growers for new harvesters.

Although the firm’s diminutive trials plot combines have long been available here, the full-size farm machines have not been on general sale since the mid-1990s.

“We think there’s a market developing for smaller combines among growers who’ve relied on contractors or like the idea of having a new rather than second-hand machine,” says Colin Coleman of Trials Equipment UK.

“The Sampo machines are very competitively priced for these growers but they also have some interesting technical features.”

Not least is the ease of cleaning down the combine’s internals, a characteristic that results from Scandinavian harvesting conditions that sometimes see cereals cut at up to 30% moisture content.

Two five-walker and a pair of six-walker combines make up the UK range, with higher specification variants having a separation drum in front of the threshing cylinder to lift performance.

The new range-topping 3085 Superior comes with a choice of 250hp or 276hp Sisu diesel engines. Colin Coleman reckons it is suited to growers with around 400ha (1000 acres) of cereals.

The other six-walker machine, the 3065, is targeted at 280-320ha (700-800 acres) growers, while the top five-walker machine will handle 200-240ha (500-600 acres), he reckons.

“With list prices from £64,172 to £98,750, a new Sampo combine is a viable alternative to a second-hand machine,” says Mr Coleman.

* See a complete listing of all 132 combine models available in Britain in our combine buyers guide .