Classic Combines 

by Gordy Schultz
      Wheat harvest is under way here in my home state of Wisconsin.  I custom bale for hay and straw customers all summer long with a CaseIH MX Magnum and LBX big baler.  I will spend the next few weeks baling straw.  I find baling behind  rotary combines makes the best big bale.  Axial-flows really make nice baling straw for 3X4 and 4X4 bales.

       I am excited that I will also get the chance to get behind the wheel of a combine this season.  A friend of mine who has combined with a Gleaner R-52 for several years just upgraded to a new Gleaner R-65.  This machine is state of the art and will be joy to harvest with.   

     Looking at a big R-65 makes me think back to a time when combines were much smaller and were fairly simple harvest machines.  This month I would like to look at some of the lesser known combines to yester year.
    One of the more interesting combine brochures from the 1970's is the Case 1660 piece.  Case offered self propelled combines from 1955-1972.  The case 1660 was the largest and the last combine offered by J.I Case.  When Case merged with International harvester in 1985 Case re-entered the combine market.  It is interesting one of the first new Case International combines in 1986 was also a 1660.  The original 1660 was a giant in its day.  It was powered by a 100 hp V-8 engine and had a 100 bushel grain bin.  The 1660 was a conventional combine with a 52 inch threshing area and could handle a wheat head up to 16ft.  A big combine in the early 1970's and late 1960's was the 100 hp and a 100 bu grain bin.  The John Deere 105, International 503 and Oliver 5555 were all equal competition for the 1660.  Case 1660 and 1665 Corn Special literature is on the rare side and should bring at least $30.

      Ford Motors Agriculture division teamed up with Claas in the 1970's to offer a combine line.  Ford combines seem to be most common in the Dairy region of New York, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.  This may be because Ford combines fit a dairy farms combine budget where wheat was harvested more for straw bedding than grain.  Ford combines were also very popular in Texas for wheat and sorghum.  The Ford 642 was the company's big combine of the 1970's.  The 642 offered 52 inches of separating area, 380 cu-in, 6 cylinder Ford diesel engine rated at 127 hp and 130 bu grain tank.  The 642 was available with grain heads from 13ftto 22ft.  The sales literature for the 642 will bring $10.  This is a real bargain for combine literature collectors. It is 8 pages long, full color and shows the 642 harvesting wheat and corn.  

     The Oliver 535 combine was built from 1966-1972.  It was available with a 93 hp Chrysler Industrial engine  or 97 hp diesel Perkins engine.  The 535 was best suited for a 12ft head but was available with 13, 14 and 16 ft heads. With a 12ft head the 535 would sell for just a little over $10,000.  Oliver offered the 535 as an intermediate machine with a 32 inch separating area and a75 bu bin or 100 bu with a bin extension. 

    Also during the 1966-1972 time period Oliver produced the 545.  The 545 had three engine options with a 93 hp or 115 hp gas engine or a 97 hp diesel.   The grain tank could handle 83 bu or 110 with extensions.  The grain heads for the 545 ranged from 12 ft to 18ft.

    Oliver combine literature will bring $15 to $25 depending on it condition.   

TTT May 2003 Page 12

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