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Gleaner A

E

ESVADuke

Member
I have read lots of discussion about small operations getting a combine vs hiring custom harvest. Not being able to control my harvest time has messed me up more than once, and I am tired of chasing the weeds brought in by custom. Ive been keeping my eye out for a small combine, but not really sure I want to make the leap. Guy has a 1963 Gleaner A, looks to be in good shape, well maintained, has original manual, corn and grain heads, used last year for corn.

Whats the value of these?
Im guessing if it wasnt reliable it would have hit the scrap heap long ago.
Known problems?
36 corn rows might limit yield, significantly?
I have a barn I could keep it in.
Any advice? Like Run quickly the other direction?
 
Decent little machine, but it is 50 years old. Orange frame corn head with flat
chain gathering chains are OK, but newer ones are better. Parts may be getting hard
to find. Easy to set , operate and maintain. Will work for small acerage, but the
weeds come from many different sources. 1000 to 1500 here in Ontario

Ben
 
I agree with centash 1000 to 1500 I would look for a latter EIII (will be hard to find) or a K . K
and F both make a small operation combine and are newer. Probably not going to cost very much more.
Problem with any of those old combines is the gas engine. Sits all year and takes some messing with
to get going. Diesel powered K and Fs are out there.
 
Like others have said an A is getting old. Dad had an E, E III and an F before changing to Deere machines. Gleaner machines are easier to
work on than many others. You asked about wide rows and yeild loss. There might be some but not a huge amount with our modern seed corn.
I am still wide row and average over 200 bu per acre. My reason for not changing to narrow is I have plenty of wide row equipment and we
often harvest our corn stalks for bedding in the spring of year and with my combine (Deere 95) it does not run any stalks down. One
thought is if you go wide row there may not be anyone to hire to help if you have a major breakdown. If I were buying a Gleaner it would
be a F or F II machine. With those you could run a three row narrow head or 4 row wide. E III and K's are good but getting smaller for
todays higher yeilds. You should be able to find a good Gleaner with heads in the $2-4000 price range. Tom
 
I am like you FII diesel would be my choice and I think you are right 2 to 4 thousand but they are getting hard to find
 
I won't tell you what I paid for a super nice K2 a year ago out of respect for the YT member who I bought it from, that was between
him and me, but I wouldn't be the least little bit afraid of an A. If you want and need it, and you're comfortable with the price,
buy it. As far as 36 inch rows, yes thee will be some yield loss, but maybe not even enough to cover what you were paying a custom
harvester, especially when you add in all the factors that you listed.
 
thanks for the replies.

I live on a long narrow peninsula between Chesapeake Bay and the ocean, getting through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel with something like this is a bit out of the question for things to the west. Shipping from anywhere north kills decent prices on used stuff, this one may be the best condition and closest I've seen yet, so it is very tempting. It is old, but most of my equipment is old, though I do worry about parts.
 
My Dad bought a new one in 1962,its a easy machine to maintain,they did come with a poor raddle chain,[behind the cylinder],you have to adjust that almost daily,but it's a very good machine,it's only got 4 differant sized bearings,it's got a good 6 cylinder engine, in my opinion ! One thing to look at,is open the rock trap, for the cyl, [bring a piece of pipe with you, and snap it down it came with a tool] and look there for damage, and see does it have the U bars for concaves or does it have mini rasp bars, on the concave, the rasp is very superior for threshing, and less cracking!
 
Gleaner combines from that time frame are very simple to use
and repair. I have a late E and many parts are still available
from Agco. The only thing I would be concerned about is
getting belts for it. So far I have been able to buy every belt
right from Agco. You will want to take a look at the cylinder
bars. Chances are they will be worn out like mine were. I got a
set from Trimpe in Indiana that made a completely different
machine out of it. He had a set ready to go so I just did an
exchange, otherwise he will rebuild yours.
The only thing I have needed and couldnt buy new was the
hydraulic pump. I was able to have one custom modified by a
local hydraulic shop to fit.
Theres no reason to be afraid of an A, but something newer
like a K will be a little nicer to run with a heated and air
conditioned cab. If you plan on switching between grain head
and corn head, the newer machines are easier to make the
switch.
 
Ill add that they used common off the shelf bearings so
replacements are cheap and readily available.
The wide rows will cut down on your population and yield, but
if you arent having to pay for a custom operator or any sort of
share cropping, you may not lose much if any at all off the
bottom line.
You can keep your eyes open and possibly find a 30 corn
head. I found one for my E. The narrower corn heads will be
easier to find for the newer models though.
 
I have an F2 with 15 foot bean header and 4-30 corn head. Turbo and runs good. But it is in Utah. I am not going to need it any
more after this corn harvest. AC works but it does not have a heater.
 
Even some of the bigger combines are relatively cheap. Like a 7720 around here will sell for under 10,000. Most sell for half that. These will run a 25 foot flex head and an 8 row cornhead. Can put smaller on it of course.
 
The Gleaner A came home with me Tuesday, condition and price were right. With a few minor repairs could go right in the field, but I think I'll take some time and go over it throughly, engine service, repair the accumulated wire and tape repairs and minor damage accumulated over the years.

It does need rear tires. I was looking at 6.00 x 16 5 ribbed implement tires or the same size in a three rib tractor tire. Which is better for this? Would the tractor tire help with steering? They are both about the same price.
 
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