Standen 1986 | 40 Years Sugar Beet Harvester Manufacturing Market Leaders

[@Ro33ie19]

My Dad said he was local legend!

[@andyhutch8262]

My old boss, John Rawlings from Malton, North Yorkshire, he was a real Jekyl & Hyde character, one moment nice as apple pie and custard, next a raving mad man, keep out of his way if you can. I converted Quite a few of machines for him, namely Grimme potato harvesters and Standen beet harvesters, mainly the 3 row lifter, hydraulic ram to close cart elevator and beet collecting point onto the cart elevator, at the start they bunged up so bad, more beet was going back on the field, I cut all Standens iron out and welded my mod in, it worked a treat, but best modification was making skids out of lorry half shafts to guide sugar beet into the opel wheels, up in yorkshire we had a few custermers grow beet cross over hills, keeping in rows was almost impossible, thats when some sort of skids came to me, these were years and years before any company did that, you can tell how long ago it was, it was on one of the first 3 row lifters on the market, J Rawlings wasnt convinced at the start, old bugger never gave me any extra in my wage packet.

[@AgkitClassiks]

Hi Andy. Thanks for watching and for your interesting story. I remember the 'guide skid' becoming a thing, probably your ideas were taken up more widely than you might imagine. Eventually, a guy called John Blench started making them too for sale to Standen sugar beet harvester owners. I've worked with moody people too, men and women! But it's a shame when bosses don't appreciate their staff when people go the extra mile to give more to the business than they need to.