Is this the oldest working Fahr M66 combine?
Judging by the harvest pictures in our Harvest Highlights gallery, you could be forgiven for thinking that the average British harvest is almost entirely cut by virtually new Lexions, NHs and Deeres, with a good sprinkling of MFs, Cases and Deutzs. Yet we all know that there are plenty of older combines out there doing a fine job year-in, year-out.
Cornish farmer Nigel Gribble, for instance, says his 45-year-old Fahr combine has been happily cutting winter barley at Lynher Farm, Launceston, this month.
The average annual workload is a modest 8ha these days and a neighbour’s newer machine helps out. However his 73-year-old father Ewart still insists on driving the M66 and the family hopes that the machine will make it to 50 harvests.
Mr Gribble thinks it’s the oldest working Fahr M66 in the country and would be interested to know if this is true. The combine was bought second-hand in 1983 and at its height cut 32ha a year.
“Every year we say it’s the last for the old girl, but with the wet summers she has been invaluable in getting the corn cut dry,” says Mr Gribble.
Don’t forget to see our Harvest Highlights gallery. If you have an older M66 than Mr Gribble’s, drop us a line at fwmachinery@rbi.co.uk
