Death by Harvest: A Story of Tractor Breakdowns!

Tractor breakdowns prevented a smooth second half of our 2018 California rice harvest. It was rare having all three of our harvest combines cutting rice at the same time.
In this harvest video you'll see our Claas Lexion 585R, John Deere CTS 2 and John Deere 9660 CTS. With all the mechanical trouble, breakdowns and slow progress we also decided to buy a lightly used Claas Lexion 750.
Fortunately now the 2018 harvest has been completed. The rice is out of the fields and into the barn. That's a huge relief!
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✅ Please contact me with any questions or feedback. I will make an effort to respond within 24 hours.

[@KingofStriker]

The most dramatic farming video I encounter by farm.

[@Ricefarmingtv]

It was definitely the most dramatic harvest (with all the breakdowns) that I've been through. Fortunately the weather cooperated. Last thing we needed was stress from another front. -Matthew

[@jeffreyhaynes9925]

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[@johnr8476]

Should have just cleaned up the glass and kept running it, in my younger days I spent a lot of days running a JD 45 without a cab, didn't hurt me a bit. Thought I was driving a Cadillac, compared to our WD Allis Chalmers with a mounted corn picker.

[@boehmfarm4276]

My viewers need to see this so they know newer machines break down too.

[@Jan_372]

Unusual to see black and yellow CLAAS combine

[@happychiefgaming2381]

I built Lexion grain tanks for years. Glad to see them running strong years later. There is a remote chance I had a hand in your tanks as well. Happy farming.

[@fynbo1007]

Accident always happens during the most busy time, but it’s when it’s used the harvester breaks down. I am sorry to hear about your accident and so many in a row. But now you had more new equipment, you will be better off next year. Thank you for sharing your amazing journey. God bless you and your family

[@casto-]

It never rains but pours with breakdowns. Glad you got sorted and finished harvest 👍

[@Дмитрий-я5ю5ж]

We are with you, bro!

[@Ricefarmingtv]

I hear you, brother! Thank you for the message, Zerg. We are in the clear. -M.

[@Deutschehordenelite]

HOLY frick, when it pours it's heavy :o

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Unfortunately it poured down on us this harvest. It was raining metal and hydraulic oil! -Matthew

[@sunroad7228]

What a master piece you've produced, Matt! The audio post production, the cutting, splicing and everything else prove once again that natural talent is what each human is born having some of it - differently! Seriously, half of the globe must watch your video above and understand the harsh physics behind what is seen: Owing to wear and tear internal to matter - for humans to get a sum useful energy out of any device, several orders of magnitude more energy must be expended upfront to produce that device, even before it's put to any work! If the manufacturer expended more Energy in designing and fabricating more durable axle, we wouldn't have seen this exact failure happens this season, but probably next year. If one traces the manufacturing and assembly lines that have produced the harvester with the broken axle and the Deer with destroyed drum, he will find them long been replaced - as wear and tear didn't allow them to last for that too long, either. Trace the oil rig and the mining digger that have extracted the crude oil and coal which extracted the Energy to build the lines, and you'll find them gone, as well. The ships, trains, trucks, even many people involved - and you'll see them all laying dead in junkyards, or passed away. The industrial base of the whole world, therefore, should be regularly re-building every ten years, in chunks, bits and pieces every day. When humans unconsciously doing that re-building, since the steam engine, they confuse themselves thinking they are just building more 'efficient' machinery and power engines for a better utilization of Energy, economical 'growth' and higher 'GDP'. False! Humans are actually are replacing what is ceasing of the industrial base every second! Without finite and severely-depleting fossil fuels, traded on the market cheaper than bottled water - all this would have been done differently. "No device can produce sum useful Energy in excess of the total Energy put into constructing it, due to wear and tear internal to matter" (The Fifth Law). Cars are seen in the clip below never making it into a next decade in one piece, for a reason - by physics: they don't last intact for very long and they need to be replaced! Well done Matt, this video is a testimony that after 300 years since the steam engine, and almost depleting now all fossil fuels reserves, humans are starting to understand Energy a little bit better! Well done. kzbin.info/www/bejne/i365n4R-eNmEiqc

[@jimd9511]

I remember at least three times over the years that we broke an axel on the combines out in the muddy field. Another time we were driving the combine home after harvest and an axel broke on the hi way. Yup, that was a fun repair, too!

[@oldbluedog]

No windscreen, no problem. I did a week of summer harvest - dust, chaff, heat - without any front glass. Best job I ever had. That’s Australia for you.

[@bnsfbandit9807]

Also last year they had 3 of these Claas Lexions, and the feilds here are only like 50-200 Acres. It was cool!

[@ieuanhunt552]

That's the thing about big working machines. They don't break often but when they do they break hard.

[@jeremymoreside1444]

Nice to see you running a honeybee header. Glenn and Greg Honey are our neighbors. We farm some land near Frontier Sask.

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Hi Jeremy, thanks for the message. Please tell those Honey boys to call me. I’m having a clogged left draper issue on our new (to us) 25’er. Hope you have a great weekend! -Matthew

[@rdekort9273]

That 750 is a verry nice machine,congrats 👍🏼

[@lovetofly32]

Thought he was gonna go "AND BAM another breakdown!" one more time at the last 😆

[@thecrazymanfromireland]

Holy crap now thats some amount of breakdowns 👍👍👍👍👍

[@joelundberg5930]

Congrats on finishing! I’m liking the new combine!

[@tobiassrensen6765]

The Lexion 750 is a fantastic machine we have a Lexion 760 with a 30 foot header here in Denmark

[@joescheller6680]

have a 760 with 45ft MacDon and a 16row corn head

[@tobiassrensen6765]

Joe Scheller You cant run a 760 with a 45 foot header here in Denmark we have to big of a yield for a machine of that size with a 45 foot header. We would need a 780 to use a 45 foot header and that would be struggling so the largest header that is really in use here is a 41 foot. But all the Lexions are fantastic machines no mather what continent you are on

[@joescheller6680]

@@tobiassrensen6765 we run about 200bu corn normally and 40 to 60 bu beans 100 bu wheat 2ooolb flowers we are strickly dryland and small moisture annual rain fall

[@tobiassrensen6765]

Joe Scheller We run about 150-200 bushels of wheat and a little lower in barley. In canola we run about a 100 bushels and we usually get a high amount of rain all year around. We dont have corn on the farm im on, but it is done some places but not as much as Wheat, Barley and Canola

[@kawhileonard1571]

You guys are underrated

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Thanks for the nice sentiment. -Matthew

[@farmerstephen]

Sorry to hear that Matthew the 750 is a good machine we are in the Uk and have a lexion 750 in green from the same year.

[@McNair1952]

Presumably in the UK you are not using the 750 for rice?

[@farmerstephen]

argyll1952 no Barley, oil seed rape, wheat and beans.

[@heine0085]

Waaaaaaw 😃 amazing story, but I am so so sorry for your troubles. Congrats on finishing the harvest regardless of the troubles on hand.

[@PelicanIslandLabs]

Just did a quick internet search and saw that late model used Lexion 750's go for 150K-300+K OMG................. :-( Congrats on finishing up the harvest.

[@EricFielding]

Great job on the story telling! Sorry to hear about the breakdowns, but you made it into an interesting story. Are you going to sell the old combines that brokedown or fix them during the winter after the harvest?

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Hi Eric, thanks for the message. Yes, we’ll repair the John Deere combines (the rotor tube and broken front windshield) but not sure if we will sell both. We certainly don’t need that much horse power. And it’s a hassle to repair and prepare all those combines every year. Great question, Eric. Thanks! -Matthew

[@EricFielding]

@@Ricefarmingtv Good to hear you won't be selling them for scrap! I had a 16-year-old car that I donated to charity earlier this year when one too many things broke on it and the repair was going to be very expensive. Those combines have probably a hundred times more moving parts than a car, so maintenance must be a big hassle all the time.

[@purplerunner1715]

Dawn! That was a rough one this year for sure, hope the to german ladies will do you proud in the years to come. Loved the video even though is was a expencive one to make that exciding.

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Ha! I love it. The german ladies! That they are. Glad you enjoyed the video and recognizing that it was an expensive one to “make”. -Matthew

[@johnneal7155]

Mathew, you know what they say, there's Cat service, and then there's everyone else. Love the videos dude, great work!

[@Henrik7480]

Wow it´s been a tough one for you guys, great to see u got a good future ahead with the new machinery.

[@chriholt]

Wow Matt, fascinating video, thanks for sharing some of the frustration!

[@jeffhoser7717]

Wow ! Not the best of October's I'd say ! OTOH, you did have a great service response when you needed it ! And you did find one machine to take the place of two . Without a closer inspection its hard to say, but from appearances I would say a machine shop with the capability to swing the diameters could effectively repair that part. I supect that's how ( a machined weldment ) it was made . IAC, a great video and thanks for sharing at a time when the pressure's on !

[@rogerwilson9361]

Matthew some body needs a hug lol that's some bad luck at lease Pops came through in the end with a new combine.

[@seriouslyreally5413]

You're exhausted and BROKE from what I can see. 😱 Hey Everybody 🗣- buy lots of California Rice!!!!, Matt needs to pay for his combines!

[@Ricefarmingtv]

I appreciate the support, seriously! really! ;) -Matthew

[@seriouslyreally5413]

Dry land wheat farming. Know your pain.

[@cameltanker1286]

It seems that no matter what color paint a machine has, they all break down.

[@Ricefarmingtv]

That’s some unbiased truth. Agreed, Camel Tanker. Too many moving parts at high rpms and high pressure. Too much time in the field for nothing to go wrong. -Matthew

[@Louis-B-53]

Even brand new combines break down sometimes!

[@tzvifeldman]

Any reputable machine shop could have made the extension hub for the track.

[@crowman5936]

If you had a month to wait for it.

[@pd4954]

@@crowman5936 If it broke at the weld or tube(no picture of broken part)? easy to fix with a lathe and welder in a few hours of shop time. That is a very simple part. The flanges are most likely still good, they would take the most time to make from billet.

[@michaelsteimel8737]

Why don’t you get a 30 foot header? We run them on smaller johndeeres for soybeans. Is the rice yield way higher to make you need to keep the header small?

[@jeff95519]

The whole rice plant is cut and green. It's a lot going thru the thrasher and concave

[@melenaschneider7652]

Oh my! What a story. First the bad to get it over with: I'm so so sorry about your troubles with the harvesters. I mourned with you when that part of the video came up. :-( Now to the good part: You got it done! :-D YAY Good thing you got a good harvester so fast. YAY again. And now you're done. I know the harvest is done so no worries there. But there's still more work to do, so get a good rest first. Whew!. ;-) May you sleep well tonight!

[@mikeraisbeck4630]

How much you want for the cts 2. Combine If you sell it

[@jacobrife7078]

That's about like our farm today we had 2 tractors break down our combine broke down and we ha a few wagon tiers blow out

[@brianbob7514]

Wow, keep trucking dude.

[@williglockel9529]

Landwirtschaft wie wir sie lieben

[@FarmersforTruth]

Your awesome just watched you on tv and had to sub your channel

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Oh cool! Was that on Sara's Weeknight Meals? Welcome to the channel. I hope you enjoy! -Matthew

[@FarmersforTruth]

@@Ricefarmingtv yes it was, do you know Mike Charter? They also farm rice

[@MARILYNANDERSON88]

I am an electrical worker, I am astounded at how often my operations are messed up by errant electrical cords and string and ropes. Haha, the rice machines fouled by errant lazy rice grains!

[@waynep343]

i would probably want to pull the stubs off both machines during the off season and have them magnafluxed or dye checked for cracked welds.. one in a million and no spare parts .. perhaps that combine took at hit on the transport or ended up in a ditch . . the broken weld looked like a clean break.. .. i would imagine the old stub went back for repair to put the donor back together.. do you ever inspect your fields with drones equipped with GPS to note any possible debris out there. no small feat.. i would think that inspecting the JD rotors that tore out during the off season might be a good idea too.. i realize those are probably balanced.. looked like a long weld section failed. but in that quick look.. i can't tell if the weld failed or the parent material unzipped.

[@robertpayne2717]

Had that happen to a 715 international which was a light combine years ago the extension replacement was a100 miles away in Batesville Mississippi

[@jakegoff5304]

Hey bud, is that an auger wagon tractor ( the red one) I have never seen or heard of one, it’s pretty awesome

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Hi Jake, yes it is an auger wagon or a self-propelled grain cart. We refer to them as bankouts and they were built locally in the 1960s from old army surplus axles and drive-trains. I’m going to do a virtual 360° ride along in the bank out for my next episode. Should be good! -Matthew

[@sparkfishes]

What was the metal scrap that the combine hit ( broken windscreen) It sounded like duck something ... why did you not put a flag there ......like a golf flag?

[@LuckyBaldwin777]

Seeing the 585 listing like that was sad. Thankfully it broke down in the field and not on the highway. That would have been an even bigger nightmare. P.S. When I worked on the cats at Heavenly, we had a lot of problems with hydraulic hoses rubbing and eventually leaking. Our fix was to cut a piece of heater hose with an i.d. that matched the hydraulic hose's o.d and was maybe a foot longer than the wear spot. Then cut the heater hose open lengthwise so that it can be wrapped over the hydraulic hose. I'd then make sure the lengthwise cut isn't near the wear spot and the hose is centered. Finally, I'd zip tie the heater hose in place. Do this on both hydraulic hoses. Then all you have to do is periodically keep an eye on the heater hose and replace it when it wears through. It looks ugly but works good. Kinda like me :)

[@joescheller6680]

a true harvester always keeps on going anyway imaginal one break down at a time sometimes more than one, but you just keep on plugging away

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Respect, Joe. But when you can’t get the part in time you can’t keep plugging away. When the cost of a rapid shipment and retail parts VS acres remaining doesn’t make economic sense you can’t just keep plugging away, disregarding costs vs benefits. Trust me, we want to be the most efficient as possible. We’re not lazy. -Matthew

[@joeyhibbard8186]

What is the difference between a normal harvester and a rice harvester?

[@elkslaxer18]

Is your catcher one of the custom made ones by that guy who converted an old combine into one in Kansas? That thing is sweet

[@cliffh8486]

Claas machines are nice, when I was on harvest in 2002 we used 4 lexion 470's. Once cat pulled away from them they should have painted the machines green and white to match the choppers and true claas colors. Are they still using Cat engines or something from Europe?

[@HasanAKhan150]

It is funny you consider 12 year old combine as old. Most of the combines we have running here in Pakistan are 1985-86 New Holdands. I wish I could post a video here of one harvesting my rice.

[@torque350hp]

Great vid, found the channel from JB's channel. :-)

[@jonpbarker]

Matthew, As I tell my guys......sometimes you feel like Sully when he landed the plane on the Hudson River and everyone was fine.....and sometimes you feel like Milli Vanni when the disc hung....

[@tjmfarming9584]

So does that mean the two John Deeres are just out for the count for this year and will be repaired then return next year or they retired for good?

[@ColeTheCornstar]

What do you use to edit your videos? Definitely an editing role model!

[@themerrigans2734]

I was literally stressing out. Good vid though.

[@ironoverview7764]

Awesome video love the farming content hope evrything goes good for rest of year def. Subscibing

[@shawna6528]

Nice job

[@bradmorgan1234]

Wow! Pretty sure rice is the hardest thing to put in a machine! Its bad when the lexions have trouble!

[@gregmiller6477]

Damn, I hope the rice had a good price for you. When the bad luck rains it pours.

[@Function.displayName]

i would feel devastated. if i was there i would do everything i could.

[@GrowingUpGarden]

How much did you spend on all of the repairs and new harvester?

[@jmcook9441]

Hey Matt great to hear your Done with harvest. So was the duck blind part of a club?

[@boomerang379]

I know how ya feel... a few years back I was running a 9770 with Soucy tracks cutting soybeans in the mud and the lug bolts broke out of the final drive. It sounded like a rifle shot and then she laid over. It’s a very disturbing feeling.

[@franksmith2200]

Another great video. I saw one that you did for last Halloween. Will you be able to do another Halloween one with Rice Krispy Treats this year? You look tired, get some rest. Were you able to get a good trade in on the broken John Deer?

[@mrgoob76]

wow that stuff is just shearing off like crazy...

[@anthonym.4621]

minute 2:59, poor combine! It got muddy, poor it! 😞The ladder to access the cockpit is also broken 🤦 I'm sorry.

[@codyludwig2811]

sorry bout the bad year but if I had the $$$$ I'd probly buy you a team of Claas 780TT combines,I heard rice is a tough crop to harvest.

[@littlerougue]

Wow that was like a Greek tragedy glad everybody is alright that could have been a bad situation with the spring tooth coming through the windshield

[@Butch-fn2xr]

Back when I row-cropped it seemed like break downs came in threes.

[@robertpayne2717]

No one that I knows here in Arkansas ever applies P and K on rice during the growing season they mostly rely on residual carry over from other crops we snapped an axle extension on our IHC 715 COMBINE OUR DEALER LOCATED ONE ABOUT 100 MILES AWAY REST IN PIECE RANDY STIDEM IHC PARTS MANAGER

[@10Upstate]

I like the video. Can you tell us about the grain buggy?

[@strangefruit8776]

That extension would be gravy to make.

[@ЛобрадудельЛобрадуделивич]

Hi Matt, can Tribine, harvesting the rice?

[@12Suriname]

What a disaster. Is welding possible for the John deer 🦌.

[@PeterIJmker]

Claas de best in oogst... Claas the best in harvesting..

[@backyardmechanixs2782]

Would've just welded that auger back together, for a temporary fix lol.

[@mikemayfield7716]

Sometime s when things go tits up they really go tits up . Hope your luck changes soon! Does the 750 have a c13 cat motor?

[@codywilcox5236]

Why does your rice in California always go down?

[@Aman_PB03_Hr25]

I think high yielding hybrids go down , pedigree.

[@netdog713]

Have you considered using draft horses? 0_o

[@craigjb]

I'm more interested in the little auger truck thing. We don't have stuff like that here. It's all buggys

[@nskimharris]

I can NOT believe you figured that all out though

[@nskimharris]

GLASS!! is not a thing I ever would have thought of

[@mesh1248]

Run the deere without the windshield

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Ha! We joked about that. Only have the operator cut in one direction so the dust wouldn’t choke him out of the cab. You’d make a great farm manager, Misha! -Matthew

[@Sicktrickintuner]

Just need a large fan up front to blow it away lol

[@Ricefarmingtv]

Tuner, now we’re getting creative! Fan, goggles, an oxygen mask and...GO CUT! -M.

[@mesh1248]

Rice Farming TV lol some times its just about getting the job done ive done it with a payloader in a snow storm and no windshield, thank god i had a good set of ski googles

[@themerrigans2734]

Plywood and plexiglass, and don't forget ductape.

[@lennissytsma5503]

good

[@robertpayne2717]

Good friends son hit an irrigation riser head with a 30 foot header had to borrow a header from neighbor was in 180 to 200 bushel rice.

[@glaticstorm32]

Love your videos but how can you blame an operator for hitting a duck blind if you didnt warn him and it was hidden ?

[@AASparkChaser]

The plant breeders need to come up with a semi-dwarf variety of rice to solve your lodging problem. If they can do it with wheat they can do it with rice!

[@Allen-by6ci]

You guys allow duck hunters to use your fields in the offseason? Did they just forget to remove their blind?

[@MrUltraworld]

Talk about bad luck, one right after another they went down.

[@rcmartinfarm3512]

Every year I think I shouldn’t spend as much in parts this year I fixed most of what could need fixed Then next year you find out there a always more stuff to fix and spen money on

[@JohnDoe-jq5wy]

Harvest has it's secrets waiting. I have lived it; "NEVER SEEN THAT BEFORE". Sounds familiar

[@davidfedriksson8069]

upgrade to the new New Holland Harvester, CR10.90 combine 2018 On my famely’s farm we own that new Holland and it is a great mechine som upgrade to that as well

[@markheitzman4588]

I would have ran the deere without a windshield or pulled the windshield out of the down machine and put it on the other since they are the same size cab

[@AmandeepSingh-mw8qy]

Changed the seed

[@mrmolasses5366]

I thought rice only grew in rice patties

[@fermedina8593]

Hi soy operador de trilladoras y mantenimiento con más de 15 años de experiencia y vivo en los angeles..busco trabajo

[@lucasflorestan8342]

Rapais os vídeos seus e bão d++ na se tivesse umas tradução em brasileiro aí sim era melhor ainda kkkkkk parabéns pelos vídeos tudo d bom 👊😎

[@diljotshoker1]

08:50 dope to see fellow Punjabi Sikhs

[@Ricefarmingtv]

I’m editing that video now. Really great crew. -Matthew

[@diljotshoker1]

sweet looking forward to the video

[@mdnormatnor5226]

Using the machine without maintenance, But you can buy new one.