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- The technology of the combine
- changed the ways of harvest. In the
- days of separate reaping and
- thrashing, the shocks of wheat were
- left to dry and "cure" for several
- weeks. But with the combine, the wheat
- must be cut during a narrow window of
- opportunity.
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- The weeks before harvest are tense
- with the stress of preparation and
- anticipation.
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- The farmer must be a technical jack
- of all trades, able to repair and
- maintain complex equipment. Once the
- cutting starts, he won't really have
- time to stop for the inevitale
- breakdowns.
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- Recently, impliment dealers are
- supplying farmers with a "repair
- pack," a kit filled with all the spare
- parts one might need. During harvest,
- the farmer does not need to rush to
- town to buy a part -- just get it out
- of the kit. After the cutting, the
- pack is returned to the dealership and
- parts used are paid for.
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- As The Day approaches, nervous
- farmers watch the sky for storms. Hail
- is called "The Big White Harvester in
- the Sky." So many things can go wrong
- before the grain is in the bin.
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- The elevators reduce the price paid
- if the wheat includes too much dirt
- and foreign matter, or if the kernals
- contain too much moisture. One farmer
- around here will repeatedly cut short
- swaths, scoop up a coffee can full of
- grain, and rush to the elevator for a
- moisture check. After four or five
- trips, he knows his field is ready to
- cut.
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- Then the rush is on. The combine
- can collect a small amount of grain in
- its bin. So with every pass or two
- around the field, the operator must
- stop to unload into a truck or grain
- hauling trailer.
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- Crews work to achieve the greatest
- effeciency. Grain haulers may travel
- along side the combine while being
- filled. Here, one truck collects seed
- from two combines at once.
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