THRESHING-MACHINE IMPROVEMENTS

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8343, 1 February 1913, Page 2

THRESHING-MACHINE IMPROVEMENTS

SHEAF ELEVATOB AND BAND CUTTER. • In view of the ever-increasing difficulty that is being experienced in securing a sufficient supply of efficient farm labour to meet the demand, any mechanical contrivance that will relieve the pressure should be welcome. Among the latest labour-saving appliances that have been brought before the notice of farmers one was seen working on a Canterbury homestead recently in the form of a combined power operatea elevator and band cutter attachable to ordinary threshing plants. A writer in an exchange gives the following information regarding the work done at the recent trial, which will be of general inteiest and will cause wonder wny such an apparently simple device has not been thought of before: The English type of mill in general use in New Zealand for threshing is built very high from the ground, the vertical height to tho top of the feeder being about twelve feet. To pitch tho large sheaves of long straw grown in New Zealand from the bottom of the stack to the band-cutter stage is therefor© a heavy and laborious job, and machine owners are finding it increasingly difficult to secure good forkers. With tho best of forkers the speed of threshing tapers off as the bottom of the stack is reached to little more than 50 per cent, of the rate at the upper parts of the stack. The machine tried on Saturday consists of a shoot or trough about 3ft wide and about 18ft long, fixed to. an independent four-wheeled carriage. The trough is set at an angle, and reaches up to the side of the feeder on the combine from about four feet from the ground, being placed at right angles to tho mill. A belt and canvas conveyer driven by suitable gearing travels up tho bottom of the trough, and the sheaves are forked on to the canvas, and are by it landed into tho feeder. Near the upper end of the trough a band cutter, consisting of five arms carrying a sharp blade like a hedge knife at each end, is attached to a cross spindle fixed about the conveyer, and being driven at a high speed the blades cut the bands of the sheaves as they pass under the canvas. The elevator is arranged to work from either side of the mill, and provision is made for placing it further out from the mill if necessary, and tho band-cutter being out of g*ar the sheaves may os delivered uncut to a man band-cutter who would cut into the feeder in the usual way. The trial consisted of a two hours’ run in light oats, with a good deal of tares in the sheaves, and the elevator and band-cutter did the work well under somewhat unfavourable conditions, and met with general approval from those present. The saving of labour for the forkers as the stack neared the bottom became very evident, loose stuff was elevated without any trouble, and the general opinion was expressed that the elevator would be a great acquisition for general purposes, but more particularly when threshing peas. It was also noticed that for stock threshing two drays conld be worked at tho same time, one on each side of the elevator, so that there need be no stop between tho drays as with the present system.