Combines 915 combines

[john]

I had a late model corn_soybean special('77 low pro) 815. I bought it at auction with about 600 hrs on it. The first couple of years I owned it I found out about digging out plugged straw walkers, broken and bent walkers, etc. In corn it was a pretty good machine. But the walker area could not handle weedy or damp material going through a narrow chute to get to the chopper, even with sharp chopper blades. Maybe a 915 had more room and this wasn't as much a problem. I finally rid myself of this machine at about 1600 hrs. I did 100% of the service and repairs myself and know the guts all too well. With the right modifications it could have been a good combine but the era of this model has come and gone. It has a great diesel engine, hydro system driven direct from the engine to the tranny (no belts)a header control that worked reasonablly well (even though it was a cable type),and a reliable unloading auger system. The brakes are junk and the noise level in the cab was pretty bad. This model used a dry friction clutch to engage the separator. As long as it was adjusted right it wasn't bad, but if you ever had to get into this area for repairs or component replacement - no fun. So there are my thoughts. Could be a decent machine with some help.. but why botherIJ When the rotaries came along they redefined what a combine is supposed to do in the field and for the operator, quiet cab, easy to adjust, easy to service etc. Cadillacs compared to the 815-915's. Anyone who still uses this machine has my sympathy.

 

[Rockpicker]

The 715_815_915 had a good reputation around here. I know guys still using them. One guy used four of them for custom cutting for along time. They were alot better than the Massey combines of those years.

 

[Jake]

When we got more acre's than our 105 JD could handle we bought a used 915 to run with it as we are mostly all red. It had a little more capacity than the 105, but wasn't as reiable and if you pushed it just a little it would throw more out the back than what went in the tank. It never did as clean of a job as the 105 either. We ran wheat, barley, clover, raddish, turnips, and carrots through the 105 but tried to do as little of the vegtible seed as possible with the 915. I have talked to people in California that say they were a great rice machine though. When we moved up to the 1480 dad wanted to get a 7720 after the bad taste of the 915. I won and he now admitts that a 1480 is twice the machine that a convetional JD ever was. When we first went to the field with the 1480 he had it set like a cylinder machine and thought it was worse than a 915. He couldn't belive how fast it would run and wide open everything was set. Once he conceded that the book was right and that faster did do a better job he was ear to ear smiles.

 

[foot_n_mouth]

This combine was a good mud machine! Balanced better than the MF and JD available during that time frame. Cleaning fan design was a joke though. Mine always leaked corn into the cage area.

 

[red]

A better machine was a 914. You could put a nice tractor on it and if you were picking up swaths, it had good capacity. It had a wider feeder than a 60_66 series and had a good three chain feeder chain.

 

[jhoag]

Thanks for all your feedback. Very interesting. I agree about the cleaning system and the elevator chains were not big enough. I never had walker trouble, although I had neighbors who did. I also owned a 105 before the 915's. The MF machines then would walk circles around a 915, I guarantee it. 760's and a good 750 would too. The 915 might keep up but the massey would keep the grain in it and have a three times the better sample. The 915 had a good engine.

 

[cutter2388]

The last 915's we had we ran them for 23 years and they were one hell of a combine. They both had over 10000 hours on them. One the motor was never torn into and the other was rebuilt twice. At one time my grandpa and father had 4 of them, and they cut lots of acres with them. Back in their day they was one a heck of a combine. The last ones we had we put a little notch for the throttle lever back about a quarter inch maybe a little less, grampa claimed that when they was running full throttle the sieves and cleaning system shook a lil to fast so we never did run those 2 combines wide open on the throttle. Those ole machines would run all day long and do a perfect job in the tank and on the ground both. I can still remember though if we put 35-40 acres a day of irrigated barley through one you had a long day. I will say the weakest point of them was the fan system for the cleaning it was a poor design. Why IH didnt stay with the 503 style fan is beyond me. The controls on them was also pretty handy you could make the head dance out in the field, if you had any coordination at all. I dont know that I can say a bad thing about them other then they are slower then my machines I run today, but as far as quality, they were as good as any one out there. I actually located one down where I pick corn and I would like to pick it up and bring it home give it a fresh coat of paint and put it in the shop. It is a real cherry only has 1200 hours on it...