Custom Cutters 1976

[hillman]

well done BBC documentary

 

[from H to 80]

I love running the combine and take pride in not planting a second crop while doing it.

Going on one of these custom cutter runs is on my bucket list, i probably couldn't keep up for the entire run,but i would like to try it.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

I always wanted to go on the wheat harvest. I thought I would when I was younger. Then my grandfather died and it was obvious my dad couldn’t run the farm if I left. Combining was my favorite job years ago, but if someone else wants to do it now they can. I wish I had a few more skilled operators, I wouldn’t run one at all now. 

[Big Bud guy]

1 hour ago, Dirt_Floor_Poor said:

I always wanted to go on the wheat harvest. I thought I would when I was younger. Then my grandfather died and it was obvious my dad couldn’t run the farm if I left. Combining was my favorite job years ago, but if someone else wants to do it now they can. I wish I had a few more skilled operators, I wouldn’t run one at all now. 

Even at a young age I’ve never had a desire to go on the run.  I got more then enough fun harvest experience on our own place and seeing the country side from the seat of a combine or truck and shacking up with 10 guys was not my idea of fun especially when they don’t know what they are doing. But I do get why other people not in my position would do it.  I still enjoy driving combine but I’m ready for it to be over with after 3 weeks.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

1 minute ago, Big Bud guy said:

Even at a young age I’ve never had a desire to go on the run.  I got more then enough fun harvest experience on our own place and seeing the country side from the seat of a combine or truck and shacking up with 10 guys was not my idea of fun.  But I do get why other people not in position would do it.  I still enjoy driving combine but I’m ready for it to be over with after 3 weeks.

When I was young, I put over 600 hours a year on our combine lots of times. I would be out looking for winter wheat to harvest in the summer and extra custom work in the fall too. I thought I was having the time of my life back then. It’s just so hard to manage everything and run equipment too anymore. 

[tractorholic]

My son did it two summers. 2021 and 2022. He was on a good crew. He still keeps in touch with quite a few of them. He really loved it. 
 

That’s a pretty neat video. I can’t imagine taking a young wife with me on it though. That video sounded like there were several wives traveling with them

[Big Bud guy]

9 minutes ago, Dirt_Floor_Poor said:

When I was young, I put over 600 hours a year on our combine lots of times. I would be out looking for winter wheat to harvest in the summer and extra custom work in the fall too. I thought I was having the time of my life back then. It’s just so hard to manage everything and run equipment too anymore. 

There was a time when we had custom cutters help us.  But we eventually did it all ourselves and dropped them because it just became a hassle and they did mediocre work.  Last cutter we had was from Kansas and had a N7.  He was going to show us how to cut wheat but that thing was such a POS dad had to tell him to leave.  After that we did our own.

[Lazy WP]

I have run my fair share of Massey combines. Dad had a 510, and I ran it from the time I got home from school until about midnight, or when the frost settled in. All in corn. First with a 3 row head, then later a 4 row. Picked over 1500 acres every year. Lots of hours in a a cold cab. Did that from when I was 12, until I was 19. 
Then I went to Kalcevics and ran a 860 cutting wheat. Quite a difference from 3 rows to 30 foot head in 100 degree weather. Out there we unloaded the wheat onto a semi on the move. Just like a grain cart. Only stuck a semi once, and it was BAD!

Moved back to Nebraska and leased 500 acres of farm ground and bought a 750 with a 6 row wide head. Still own the 750, but it has not moved in 25 years. 

[Lazy WP]

25 minutes ago, Big Bud guy said:

There was a time when we had custom cutters help us.  But we eventually did it all ourselves and dropped them because it just became a hassle and they did mediocre work.  Last cutter we had was from Kansas and had a N7.  He was going to show us how to cut wheat but that thing was such a POS dad had to tell him to leave.  After that we did our own.

Kalcevics, at one time had 20 custom cutting machines a year. The last time I helped them, all the machines were either CaseIh, or Green. Previous years they had some Gleaners. 
Amazingly how good the custom cutters did when you had a HUGE Bohemian checking behind them. 

[Diesel Doctor]

My Dad and Uncle went three years. 1949, 50 and 51,

21A Massey Harris combines.  

The true Harvest Brigade!

 

[axial_al]

I worked with a custom cutting crew for four seasons starting in 1968.  We started near Oklahoma City and ended in South Dakota.  Two 510 Masseys with 20 foot heads and a loadstar 1600 and a brand new CO1800 with a 20 foot box.  Crew of four and we all took turns on the combines and trucks.  I have fond memories of those summers.  It was long hours and hot dirty work…those 510’s had a cab fan, but no a/c.  Fond memories!

[twostepn2001]

That is the man l went on the harvest with in 1972, Dale Starks. At the time he ran 6 510 Massey's and had 9 Chevy trucks. He farmed near Manchester, Oklahoma. We started near Iowa Park, Texas and ended the wheat harvest at Cutbank, Montana. Then we went back to Leoti, Kansas and Wray, Colorado to harvest corn. This is a pic of me on a 510. After the harvest, l went back to Texas and went to work for a cotton gin hauling cotton seed and cotton bales.

Also a pic of me (way back when l was a young'un)

This is how we hauled the combines. 

[Lazy WP]

I didn’t know that a 510 would fit on a truck like that. I knew that the 92s were hauled that way but don’t think I ever saw a 510. I also had never seen a 510 without a cab. 
Thank you. 

[twostepn2001]

1 hour ago, Lazy WP said:

I also had never seen a 510 without a cab. 

We had cabs for the 510's but didn't use them in the summer. No A/C's in them. Nothing had A/C, even Dale's pickup didn't have A/C. Only vehicle that had air was Margie's Ford LTD. Dale had the cabs stored at the Massey dealer in Wray, Colorado. Once the wheat harvest was done in Montana we went back to Wray and put on the cabs, did major service to all the combines and trucks. That was the first time that we had seen a MF 750. lt wasn't really a secret but they hadn't been unveiled to the public yet. l think Dale got one of the first ones the following year ('72) then traded the 510's for 750's after that. 

At the time, a majority of the custom cutters used Massey's. The next popular was JD's. saw a few crews running Gleaners but not many. And l don't remember seeing any IH combines at all. Not saying they wasn't there, but we never saw them if they was. 

[hillman]

2 hours ago, twostepn2001 said:

That is the man l went on the harvest with in 1972, Dale Starks. At the time he ran 6 510 Massey's and had 9 Chevy trucks. He farmed near Manchester, Oklahoma. We started near Iowa Park, Texas and ended the wheat harvest at Cutbank, Montana. Then we went back to Leoti, Kansas and Wray, Colorado to harvest corn. This is a pic of me on a 510. After the harvest, l went back to Texas and went to work for a cotton gin hauling cotton seed and cotton bales.

Also a pic of me (way back when l was a young'un)

This is how we hauled the combines. 

Have you seen that documentary before?

[twostepn2001]

22 minutes ago, hillman said:

Have you seen that documentary before?

Not the complete video. From what l understand there is a longer version that was on PBS years ago. l think it was available on VHS and then on DVD but hard to find and expensive when you do find it. 

[Big Bud guy]

1 hour ago, twostepn2001 said:

We had cabs for the 510's but didn't use them in the summer. No A/C's in them. Nothing had A/C, even Dale's pickup didn't have A/C. Only vehicle that had air was Margie's Ford LTD. Dale had the cabs stored at the Massey dealer in Wray, Colorado. Once the wheat harvest was done in Montana we went back to Wray and put on the cabs, did major service to all the combines and trucks. That was the first time that we had seen a MF 750. lt wasn't really a secret but they hadn't been unveiled to the public yet. l think Dale got one of the first ones the following year ('72) then traded the 510's for 750's after that. 

At the time, a majority of the custom cutters used Massey's. The next popular was JD's. saw a few crews running Gleaners but not many. And l don't remember seeing any IH combines at all. Not saying they wasn't there, but we never saw them if they was. 

 

 

Our first 510 (64’ model) had no cab and didn’t get one until 76’.  You can barely see it in the pic when it was new.  Cut Bank is not too far away from me.  Our main custom cutter Tupper ran Gleaners.  Our farm was his last stop.  Seems like Massey and Gleaner were the top two brands from what I remember around here.  Don’t really remember any Deeres. I only known of one guy that ran IH combines and that was my neighbor’s father who ran a local custom cutting ring with five 403s.  I don’t know why there weren’t more IH combines but I don’t think their height helped them at all.  

[hillman]

Those trailers they hauled the 750s on look terribly underbuilt 

[Diesel Doctor]

Wow, have things changed.

I seen a 760 Massey on Facebook that was setting for years but runs very well for $1,000.00.

Needed a few parts but an easy fix.

I guess nobody wants them anymore.

[Big Bud guy]

5 minutes ago, Diesel Doctor said:

Wow, have things changed.

I seen a 760 Massey on Facebook that was setting for years but runs very well for $1,000.00.

Needed a few parts but an easy fix.

I guess nobody wants them anymore.

20 years ago they were selling for that much around here. 

[tractorholic]

Wasn’t Massey combined number one back in the early 1970’s? It seems like a lot of people say they had a Massey then. I couldn’t tell you of a newer Massey combine anywhere now

[ray54]

I worked 7 years for guy that farmed 3,000 to 4000 acres a year and few custom harvest jobs to. My first year 79 we started June 6 in his yard doing 40 acres of oats. Then barley until Labor day weekend. Then about Sept 15 we started safflower until early Nov. Be at his house or the combine at 8 am not shut them off until about 7.45 pm then clean windows and oil chains while looking things over. We got as much as 60 miles north of home several years.  Ran Gleaner MH2's. He had a step son that bought his own MH2 in 79 and did all custom cutting. Going on to buy another in 82. They would trade small custom jobs back and forth as to was closer. Then for safflower in 82 we ran all 4 machines together. 

Several time I went with the step son for several weeks at a time operating one of his. So in that 7 years I operated 6 different Gleaner combines, and one JD 6622. The step son was the first guy I knew that had a cell phone. As most of his cutting was into broker supplied sets of double hopper trailers. Depending we cut 1 to 2 sets of trailers a day per combine. So he was back and forth with the broke all day from his combine on the phone. The good part of cutting up north that was the one brokers home country and could have you empties spotted in the field in 30 minutes.

Then in 86 bought JD95H what step backwards from newer machine. 

[Big Bud guy]

1 hour ago, tractorholic said:

Wasn’t Massey combined number one back in the early 1970’s? It seems like a lot of people say they had a Massey then. I couldn’t tell you of a newer Massey combine anywhere now

They were No 1 to start with peaking in the mid 50s having over 50% of the self propelled combine market. But I know by the early 80s JD was no 1.

[SDman]

Wow....kudos to the team that put that all together. They should get an academy award for accuracy of how it is on the custom cutter run. 

Sure brings back a lot of memories. I never went on the CC run, but I had a front-row seat to it for the first 20 years of my life. I lived about a mile off of US Highway 83 just east of Perre, SD growing up. From my farm, you could see a 2-mile stretch of the highway....used to watch anywhere from 100-200 SP combines being hauled down the road everyday from the job they had just finished up, going to their next job down the road. If you were going to cut wheat east of the Missouri River in either South or North Dakota, there are only about 3 or 4 bridges you could haul a large SP combine across to cross the Mighty Mo at that time, with Highway 83 being among the busiest. Most operations at that time had 2 or 3 machines; not very many that were bigger than that.

1976 would probably be about the pinnacle of the 760 Massey being the #1 combine on the CC run.....they were big, relatively cheap, and Massey had a good reputation up until then. The only real competition they had at that time on the CC run would have been 66/7700 Deeres and L series Gleaners.....never saw any IHs, a few New Hollands, no Whites/Olivers/MMs. 

They did a good job of explaining how they went from straight-cutting wheat in the Southern states to windrowing/picking up small grain in the Northern states/Canadian provinces. Our area here in SD is where that change took place many years....my dad was a firm believer in windrowing wheat up until his passing in 1987. Until we had better weed control, many years windrowing small grain was your only option. Another transition in my area is that we are on the northern end of winter wheat production, and the southern end of spring wheat production. That's still true today, many wheat producers are about 50/50 between spring/winter wheat production here. Many wheat producers like the fact that doing it that way spreads out your harvest window....the spring wheat is ready for harvest at about the same time the winter wheat harvest is getting finished up.

Watching those Perkins engines in those Masseys having that wisp of smoke coming out their exhausts reminded me of about the only good thing on the 750/760/850/860s....the Perkins engines were pretty reliable in them, the rest of the combine was a little suspect. Watching the Gleaner turn its unloader out for unloading reminded me of one thing I never understood why Gleaner kept that setup all these years....they were bound determined to keep that instead of using the overhead turret setup that everybody else has used for nearly 50 years. The guy that picked up a rock in the 760 feeder house made me remember how Massey used that series of paddles in their feeder house instead of a conventional feeder chain setup. That wasn't exactly one of MF's better features, either. 

My hat is off to all of you "wheat whackers".....past and present company included. Good memories.....

[Shell1066]

Did 3 years of it for a guy out of Inman Kansas. 03,05,07. Loved every minute of it and if I was 25 again I would go again. Very well done video.