Hagen Brothers farms,Goodrich ND | When I read that you put 1000 hrs per year on a tractor,judged by the standards of "my" area,your resources are stretched foolishly thin. Around "here", we usually only have a bit more than 90 frost free days per season, if we put 1000 hrs on a major planting,spraying,harvest tractor, we would have little chance of staying within the ideal window of planting/spraying/harvest,even in a rare ideal year,and have NO chance in a normal year. The norm here is to buy the largest equipment that is practical to get the job done,even in a short season of less than ideal weather. You have to realize that this large equipment gets the job done in only about 200-250 hrs per year for a large tillage/planting tractor which means that they normally are still in great condition at 20 years with little or no repairs at only 5000 hrs total time. The same goes for combines which are usually the largest available and see 300-500 hrs per year in lower yielding,non abrasive crops,so it is normal to run a combine 15-20 years with only minor yearly maintenance and repairs.
For us,this is by far the most cost effective way to get the job done in our short seasons.
Because we keep equipment 20+ years,the amount of plastic ,which is what most switches,sensors,circuit boards,wire insulation is made from,is of great concern. After 15-20 years of heat and sunlight,the stuff has off gassed and shrunk to the point that it is very prone to cracking,shrinking or just falling apart.
Edited by Jon Hagen 10/6/2006 00:37
|
new versus old tractors?
